>From William Dollarhide, an expert on land records, at http://www.dollarhide.com/family/histone.htm "A sworn chain carrier was selected as an assistant in the legal survey because of his knowledge of existing survey lines. He was usually a teenage son of an adjoining land owner." Other sources indicate that chain carriers were sworn (you will see SCC in some deed extracts for sworn chain carrier). >From http://www.surveysinc.com/history/history_4.html "Chain carrier - An assistant to the surveyor, the chain carriers moved the surveying chain from one location to another under the direction of the surveyor. This was a position of some responsibility, and the chain carriers took an oath as "sworn chain carriers" that they would do their job properly." Since persons were frequently related to those that lived next door to them, if the above is true, then the sworn chain carrier would indeed be a relative. Of course there would have to be some exceptions to this (what if there were no male relatives old enough to be a sworn chain carrier?). Carla Tate _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp