The term you're looking for is a 'Township'.
This is implemented in the Public Land Survey System (PLSS) which is the property measurement system used in the United States.
A 'Township' in this context is not a type of administrative division like most of us might think of in regular parlance. Instead, it refers to a unit of land area.
Let's understand this concept in detailed steps:
1. The land measurement system is most commonly a square complex, formed by dividing the area into smaller squares.
2. This square complex is six miles on each side, thus creating an area that measures 36 square miles in total (six miles multiplied by six miles).
3. This huge square is then divided into 36 smaller sections, each measuring one square mile (or 640 acres).
4. These sections are arranged in a 6-by-6 grid, which makes up the larger six-mile-square area.
5. These sections are numbered from 1 to 36, starting at the northeast corner and proceeding west and east alternatively.
6. Lastly, the townships are numbered according to their relative position north or south from a selected parallel of latitude, known as the baseline.
The term 'Township' used in this sense allows people to locate precisely any given parcel of public land in the United States. In essence, it forms a kind of grid system on the map of the United States.