This morning as I tried to solve this puzzle, I noticed that I was turning to Amy Gilreath's books for accurate descriptions of land; the vessel may be gone but the spirit will live as long as any of us research Shenandoah County. Now, then, I need help on two questions (really the same one, but from different points of view): 1. I have a reprint of the Lake Atlas of Shenandoah and Page Counties. The map scale is not correct, leading me to think they must have copied at a different magnification. Does anyone know the correction for this? 2. Santa brought me a copy of the 1815 Directory of Virginia Landowners for Shenandoah County. Does anyone know how the distances from the courthouse were calculated? The ones coming down the Valley Pike make perfect sense, but crossing the Massanutten confuses me, not that it takes much. Anyhow, thanks, and Happy New Year! Tom > >

Distance measured. They put a gage on the wheel of a wagon and measured the miles that way. From the Old Court House to the property. Had to go by way of McInturf Gap/Edinburg Gap to a Fort Property. OR did they go across Mt at Burnshire's Dam east of Woodstock. Not a "road" that way until later probably after 1800. Not sure.....But remember that the road to Fort cut down from Old Valley Pike/US11 at Aileen Road, crossed river and angled up to meet present road from Edinburg a little more than half way up west side Massanutten Mt to get to Fort Valley. As far as each page goes. It's a different scale. What page/Map are you interested in? Lena

on 12/28/03 5:45 PM, Robert Fuller at rfuller@shentel.net wrote: > Distance measured. > > They put a gage on the wheel of a wagon and measured the miles that way. > From the Old Court House to the property. Had to go by way of McInturf > Gap/Edinburg Gap to a Fort Property. OR did they go across Mt at Burnshire's > Dam east of Woodstock. Not a "road" that way until later probably after > 1800. Not sure.....But remember that the road to Fort cut down from Old > Valley Pike/US11 at Aileen Road, crossed river and angled up to meet present > road from Edinburg a little more than half way up west side Massanutten Mt > to get to Fort Valley. > I have been interested in the discussion of measuring distances and old roads. . .the earliest map of which I made a copy is Boye's 1825. This map shows the N-S wagon road, back road, a road going east just north of Woodstock to Millford; a road from Woodstock crossing Narrow Passage Creek and going southeasterly through southern Powell's Big Fort Valley to a point meeting a road coming from between MJ and New Market and then this road on to Luray. Map also shows road from Woodstock to Columbia Furnace and onto Lost River; road NW from Woodstock to Little North Mountain. I'm assuming all these were the major roads, but that there were others. I'm wondering if there is an earlier map which would show roads in this same area. Sandra