Metes and Bounds

[Oriental]

Are you finding it near the dam at the Chatsworth lake outlet? Is most of the settlement just downstream on the west side of the river? This seems to be one of the forgotten forges.

Almost all of the 3000 acres lay on the west side of the West Branch. The eastern boundary line passed within 4 chains (less than 100 yards) of the forge dam. The property seemed to have extended to the north as much as it did to the south. Subsequent owners expanded the tract so that it eventually went as far west as Apple Pie Hill.

Sorry, I have nothing to describe the locations of any of the outbuildings or dwellings.

 

[RednekF350]

Redneck350
Thanks for the info. Isn't there a keystone or something somewhere where the major lines are taken from? Haines resurveyed his property some years ago. Some of the new survey lines appear to start at the same place then angle off. Others are way off in the hundreds of feet in both the North and West directions from the old survey lines. Your job must be challenging at times.

Is there an accuracy "standard" such as inches or feet? I realize accuracy is closer in cities andr towns because there are many points to take measurements from. What about what we're talking about, vast expanses of land where you must cut survey lines?

Accuracy standards are complex mathematical solutions not units of measurement. A simple explanation of calculating accuracy is determining ratios of calculated error in closure, both vertical and horizontal. If I surveyed a 20 acre square parcel, it would have a perimeter of 3,733.52 linear feet. If I ran a closed traverse and turned back into my beginning point there will be accumulated error. The distance error between the point as measured and the point as calculated is divided by the perimeter distance to obtain a ratio. Keep in mind that this is a little over-simplified. The ratio determines the horizontal accuracy. If a survey has an error of closure of 1:10,000 it essentially means you will accumulate 1' of error in every 10,000' surveyed. It is not simple to explain.

Angular error is determined by comparing the sum of all interior angles turned in a traverse compared to the geometric rule where (N - 2) x 180 = the sum of all interior angles, where N is the number of sides. A four-sided figure would have an interior angle sum of 360 degrees. If my field angles totaled 359 degrees 59 minutes and 35 seconds my angular error is 25 seconds or 6.25 seconds per angle station.

Here is a document with some explanations:

https://www.cedengineering.com/userfiles/An%20Introduction%20to%20Accuracy%20Standards%20for%20Land%20Surveys.pdf

I can tell you the age of the survey has little to do with accuracy. An old transit and chain survey is no less accurate than one done by GPS. It all relates to the care taken in performing the work.

 

[RednekF350]

I believe I asked Scott that one time. It was like asking a politician to take a stand on something he didn't agree with. He said things, but a clear-cut answer never reached my ears. I'd probably use the same tactic if I worked in the field.

See my long-winded post #22.

 

[1Jerseydevil]

LOL, now I see what Bob meant. I'll read the link when I have more time. I realize the accuracy depends greatly on the surveyor, thus I can understand a survey line tapering off from a previous one. I'm using Haines because that area is what I'm most familiar with and see the changes from the old to the new survey lines. There is an area on Brownies rd and beyond where the parcels were "moved" I'm guessing 300' N and maybe the same or more to the West. The shape remains the same. Did one of the surveyors start from the wrong location?
I don't know if true, I've heard iron deposits in the pines can alter the accuracy of a compass used by earlier surveyors?