From: Shirley Hornbeck <[email protected]> Subject: This and That Land Survey LAND SURVEY: There are two types of land survey which vary chiefly by the part of country in which you are located. 1. Along the Atlantic coastal states land surveys were at one time strictly by metes and bounds. Thus you will see: "Beginning at an oak tree in the bank of X creek, proceed North by East 27 degrees for 16 chains, 6 links, to a large stone; thence ......" This entire system derived from the fact that people moved into the frontier and claimed land, marked by natural boundaries, which were later surveyed. 2. The other system is based on the Geodetic Survey and makes use of the latitude and longitude lines. This was in existence by the time US land grants were being made (but not the British). a. This system breaks down the area into squares within squares. The largest square after latitude and longitude is located by Range (East or West from a Meridian) and Township which are North or South of a line). b. Each of these squares is broken down into sections, numbered in a prescribed order. c. Each Section is one square mile. d. Now divide each Section into four equal parts with a + at the center. Label these NE, SE, SW & NW. e. Now divide each 1/4 into four equal parts the same way. Each will contain 40 acres. Now lets describe the 40 acres in the NE corner of the section: "NE 1/4 of the NE 1/4, Section Section 16, Range 2 West, Township 3 North." A larger plot might be described as: "N 1/2 of the NE 1/4......" or "SE 1/4 of the NE 1/4 and NW 1/4 of SE 1/4 of...." Multiple 1/4's are each described before naming the section. f. This is not to say that a surveyor might not at times follow other lines but he was required to orient the plot by this system, and his starting point will always be one of the corners in the system. In many parts of the country the four major corners of the section are marked with a concrete marker, properly labeled. g. Fortunately most of the US now uses this system. This also explains why most of the lesser roads in a community run N-S or E-W with square corners. The other side is that they did not have as many hills and streams to go around. With a deed and a topographical map, using the 2nd system you can walk directly to the spot described. (In the former, you get into all kinds of platting, and hope with enough research and knowledge of the neighbors, you can find it.) One problem is that the deed maker did not always spell out all the words. Thus it helps if you know what he was abbreviating. Any good topographical map dealer can help you get on the right map and point you to the section. EXPLANATION OF PERCH, ROD, POLE, CHAIN: A "perch" equals 16.5 feet or one rod. It is sometimes called a "pole". Surveyors also speak of a "chain" which is 66 feet or four rods (or perches). A link - from the 1/100th part of a chain, is 7.92 inches. A good page for US Public Land Survey methods: <http://users.rootsweb.com/~mistclai/landsurv.htm> Shirley Hornbeck - [email protected] My Home Page: <http://www.s-hornbeck.com/home.htm> HORNBECK SURNAME RESOURCE CENTER: <http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~hornbeck/hsrc/home.htm> THIS & THAT GENEALOGY TIPS: <http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~hornbeck> Carol P. Martoccia 903 East Fifth Street Greenville, NC 27858 Pridgen Home Page: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Meadows/6297 Pridgen Archives: http://searches.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/listsearch.pl