Interesting question, so I have asked my husband, who is a professional, registered land surveyor who has 12 years experience surveying in Rockingham County, NH prior to our immigrating to the Frozen North. He says: The original Land Grants were done by legal description as there were few points of reference other than rivers. ie. "3 miles north of the Merrimack River", which is now the Massachusetts-New Hampshire state line. >Were survey plat's made? or in what manner were these tracts described? Plans(plats) weren't usually needed until later years when town boundaries were established and land within the town became better defined, or when ownership boundaries became more important. Most "metes and bounds" legal descriptions from these long ago times described the property in reference to the abutting properties and the names of the owners unless there was a road or natural feature which would define the boundary, such as a stream, wood lot, stone wall, pond and even "the tree with the cow tied to it"(We found the tree and the chain was still there). A common description would be as follows:"A parcel of land in Newton, New Hampshire containing 5 acres and bounded on the west by land now or formerly of Nason. On the north by land now or formerly of Smith. On the east by the shoreline of Great Pond. On the South by the road leading from Salem to Exeter." There are probably 2 good reasons why drawings weren't used. 1. Attorneys prepared deeds and it was easier for them to write the description, however vague, than to draw a map. 2. There was no good way to reproduce a drawing other than tracing until the early part of the 19th century and you couldn't get a certified copy. The early drawings at the Rockingham County Registery od Deeds are pasted into plan books. Last we knew, the pages had to be photocpied. Don't know if they are available on fiche at this time. >Where could one find the "legal descriptions" of these grants. Who would have these records? Any grants prior to 1679 would probably be found in Salem, MA or Plymouth, MA. You start with a current parcel and go back to the beginning. It is impossible to start with the land grant and come forward unless someone has given you a lot of the research. It's not unlike a jigsaw puzzle. Hope that this makes sense to you. I personally would research titles at Salem, MA and would often get side tracked reading the descriptions. Sue Lang Warming Anchorage, AK