> The 1833 document says the man lives on "Elm Street between Smith > and Main." [Street names are fictious for the exercise.] > > An 1833 map shows Elm and Smith, but not Main. Smith is between two > other streets whose names on the 1833 map match the names on the > 2009 map. > > I thought perhaps there was a convention that covered the order in > which the streets would be named, but after trying several > acquaintances and a couple total strangers, I don't think so. > > The question now becomes -- which is more likely > > A: that the clerk names the streets as if he were moving out > of the center of town > /or/ > B: that the clerk names the streets as if he were coming into > the center of town? > > I already /know/ there's no way to tell with certainty without > finding Main street on a map; I'm looking for a bread-crumb. > > Cheryl Singhals <singhals@erols.com> Hmmm. Dunno if it applies here, but the military convention is to "read right, up": from a given point, read to its right (east), then up (north). While this has to do more with map grids, it can also apply to locating objects in relation to a known start point. That said, I'd also ask which way the streets on the map run and whether they're in a N-S/E-W grid. Might not help, given the vague description in the document, but ... Steamin' Ol' Bob (but it's a DRY heat!) -- Robert G. Melson | Rio Grande MicroSolutions | El Paso, Texas ----- A government big enough to give you everything you want is big enough to take away everything you have. Thomas Jefferson Bob Melson <amia9018@mypacks.net>

> > The 1833 document says the man lives on "Elm Street between Smith > > and Main." [Street names are fictious for the exercise.] > > > > An 1833 map shows Elm and Smith, but not Main. Smith is between two > > other streets whose names on the 1833 map match the names on the > > 2009 map. > > > > I thought perhaps there was a convention that covered the order in > > which the streets would be named, but after trying several > > acquaintances and a couple total strangers, I don't think so. > > > > The question now becomes -- which is more likely > > > > A: that the clerk names the streets as if he were moving out > > of the center of town > > /or/ > > B: that the clerk names the streets as if he were coming into > > the center of town? > > > > I already /know/ there's no way to tell with certainty without > > finding Main street on a map; I'm looking for a bread-crumb. > > > > Cheryl Singhals <singhals@erols.com> > > Hmmm. Dunno if it applies here, but the military convention is to > "read right, up": from a given point, read to its right (east), > then up (north). While this has to do more with map grids, it can > also apply to locating objects in relation to a known start point. > > That said, I'd also ask which way the streets on the map run and > whether they're in a N-S/E-W grid. Might not help, given the vague > description in the document, but ... > > Steamin' Ol' Bob Melson > (but it's a DRY heat!) Elm is roughly E-W; Smith is roughly N-S; logic, that cute little tweeting bird, suggests Main is also N-S but unless I find it, who knows? Cheryl singhals <singhals@erols.com>