This is my starter kit Guy

BubbaMax

New Member
Smithville_Batsto_and_the_road_to_Martha_066.jpg


Smithville_Batsto_and_the_road_to_Martha_067.jpg
 

Teegate

Administrator
Site Administrator
Sep 17, 2002
25,653
8,265
BubbaMax,

Wow, a great find! I can honestly say I have not visited that one. The number 6 tells us there was or is a stone 6 feet away from there in the direction of the arrow. Did you see one? There always is a possibility it is buried, so if you return there take a tape measure with you and measure it off. Or take your dad and lay him on the ground and put his head next to the monument in your photo and dig at his feet.

And there are at least 10 more in that area so I am waiting to see another one soon. Keep up the good work.

Guy
 

Teegate

Administrator
Site Administrator
Sep 17, 2002
25,653
8,265
BubbaMax,

Very nice finds! You have found two interesting National Geodetic Survey disk. Here is some info on them. The disk at the VFW was placed there way back in 1961. Back then it was the Coast and Geodetic Survey (CGS). The disk is named K 57 and it is important to know it is not K57. There has to be a space between them making it K 57. The actual datasheet on that disk is below.

The disk your dad took you to has a little history to it. It isn’t the first disk to be there. The first one was placed there in 1961 but in 1964 a local surveyor (LOCSUR) found it to be missing. So he did a “Reset” which means he placed a new one there, so now it is called F 57 Reset 1964. Again, there is a space between the F and the 57. And also below is the info on the first F 57 and the Reset that you photographed.

If you have any other questions or find some more, by all means write back and I will give you all the info I can on it.

Happy Hunting!

Guy



The NGS Data Sheet

***********************************************************************
DESIGNATION - K 57
PID -
STATE/COUNTY- NJ/ATLANTIC
USGS QUAD - MAYS LANDING (1989)

*CURRENT SURVEY CONTROL
___________________________________________________________________
* NAD 83(1986)- 39 27 42. (N) 074 43 21. (W) SCALED
* NAVD 88 - 6.300 (meters) 20.67 (feet) ADJUSTED
___________________________________________________________________
.The horizontal coordinates were scaled from a topographic map and have
.an estimated accuracy of +/- 6 seconds.

_MARKER: DB = BENCH MARK DISK
_SETTING: 34 = SET IN THE FOOTINGS OF SMALL/MEDIUM STRUCTURES
_SP_SET: CONCRETE FOOTING OF FLAGPOLE
_STAMPING: K 57 1961
_MARK LOGO: CGS
_STABILITY: C = MAY HOLD, BUT OF TYPE COMMONLY SUBJECT TO
+STABILITY: SURFACE MOTION
_SATELLITE: THE SITE LOCATION WAS REPORTED AS NOT SUITABLE FOR
+SATELLITE: SATELLITE OBSERVATIONS - July 13, 1990

HISTORY - Date Condition Report By
HISTORY - 1961 MONUMENTED CGS
HISTORY - 19900713 GOOD NJGS
HISTORY - 20040708 GOOD GEOCAC

STATION DESCRIPTION

'DESCRIBED BY COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY 1961
'0.4 MI NE FROM MAYS LANDING.
'0.45 MILES NORTHEAST ALONG U.S. HIGHWAY 50 FROM THE POST OFFICE
'IN MAYS LANDING. MARK IS 62 FEET SOUTH OF THE EAST CORNER OF
'V.F.W. BUILDING, 98 FEET NORTHWEST OF THE CENTER LINE OF HIGHWAY
'50, AND IT IS SET HORIZONTALLY 1 FOOT ABOVE GROUND IN THE EAST
'CORNER OF A CONCRETE FOUNDATION (4 1/2 BY 5 1/2 FEET) OF FLAGPOLE
'AT V.F.W. POST NORTHEAST OF MAYS LANDING.

STATION RECOVERY (1990)

'RECOVERY NOTE BY NEW JERSEY GEODETIC SURVEY 1990
'THE STATION IS LOCATED IN HAMILTON TOWNSHIP, SET IN THE SOUTHEAST
'CORNER OF THE FLAG POLE FOUNDATION OF THE MAYS LANDING VFW POST 220
'COMPLEX. TO REACH THE STATION FROM THE NORTH JUNCTION OF STATE ROUTE
'50 AND U.S. HIGHWAY 40, GO 1.28 KM (0.80 MI) NORTH NORTHEAST ON ROUTE
'50 TO THE STATION ON THE LEFT, ALSO 1.84 KM (1.14 MI) SOUTH SOUTHWEST
'FROM THE JUNCTION OF STATE ROUTE 50 AND U.S.HIGHWAY 322 TO THE
'STATION ON THE RIGHT, 0.9 M (3.0 FT) SOUTHEAST OF THE FLAG POLE, 18.9
'M (62.0 FT) SOUTHWEST OF THE EAST CORNER OF THE ONE STORY BRICK
'BUILDING, 23.25 M (76.28 FT) EAST OF THE SOUTH CORNER OF THE SAME
'BUILDING AND LEVEL WITH THE GROUND.

STATION RECOVERY (2004)

'RECOVERY NOTE BY GEOCACHING 2004 (STC)
'HANDHELD GPS COORDINATES N 39 27 44.1 W 074 43 20.7









The NGS Data Sheet

***********************************************************************
DESIGNATION - F 57 RESET 1964
PID -
STATE/COUNTY- NJ/ATLANTIC
USGS QUAD - EGG HARBOR CITY (1977)

*CURRENT SURVEY CONTROL
___________________________________________________________________
* NAD 83(1986)- 39 30 23. (N) 074 40 39. (W) SCALED
* NAVD 88 - 17.36 (meters) 57.0 (feet) RESET
___________________________________________________________________
.The horizontal coordinates were scaled from a topographic map and have
.an estimated accuracy of +/- 6 seconds.

_U.S. NATIONAL GRID SPATIAL ADDRESS: 18SWJ277730(NAD 83)
_MARKER: DB = BENCH MARK DISK
_SETTING: 30 = SET IN A LIGHT STRUCTURE
_SP_SET: CULVERT
_STAMPING: F 57 RESET 1964
_STABILITY: D = MARK OF QUESTIONABLE OR UNKNOWN STABILITY
_SATELLITE: THE SITE LOCATION WAS REPORTED AS NOT SUITABLE FOR
+SATELLITE: SATELLITE OBSERVATIONS - September 25, 2004

HISTORY - Date Condition Report By
HISTORY - 1964 MONUMENTED LOCSUR
HISTORY - 20040925 GOOD GEOCAC

STATION DESCRIPTION

'DESCRIBED BY LOCAL SURVEYOR (INDIVIDUAL OR FIRM) 1964
'2.2 MI SW FROM EGG HARBOR CITY.
'2.25 MILES SOUTHWEST ALONG U.S. HIGHWAY 50 FROM THE POST OFFICE
'IN EGG HARBOR CITY, 52.50 FEET WEST OF THE CENTERLINE OF THE
'SOUTHBOUND LANE OF U.S. HIGHWAY 50 AND SET HORIZONTALLY
'30 1/2 INCHES BELOW HIGHWAY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE WEST CONCRETE
'HEADWALL OF TWO 36 INCHES PIPE CULVERT. THE CULVERT IS 80.3
'FEET SOUTH OF THE SOUTHWEST PIER OF THE BRIDGE CARRYING THE
'ATLANTIC CITY EXPRESSWAY OVER U.S. HIGHWAY 50.

STATION RECOVERY (2004)

'RECOVERY NOTE BY GEOCACHING 2004 (STC)
'DISTANCE FROM EGG HARBOR CITY POST OFFICE TO STATION IS 2.5 MILES.
'HANDHELD GPS COORDINATES N 39 30 23.9 W 074 40 38.7.





The NGS Data Sheet

***********************************************************************
DESIGNATION - F 57
PID -
STATE/COUNTY- NJ/ATLANTIC
USGS QUAD - EGG HARBOR CITY (1977)

*CURRENT SURVEY CONTROL
___________________________________________________________________
* NAD 83(1986)- 39 30 23. (N) 074 40 39. (W) SCALED
* NAVD 88 - 17.933 (meters) 58.84 (feet) ADJUSTED
___________________________________________________________________
_U.S. NATIONAL GRID SPATIAL ADDRESS: 18SWJ277730(NAD 83)
_MARKER: DB = BENCH MARK DISK
_SETTING: 30 = SET IN A LIGHT STRUCTURE
_SP_SET: CULVERT
_STAMPING: F 57 1961
_STABILITY: D = MARK OF QUESTIONABLE OR UNKNOWN STABILITY

HISTORY - Date Condition Report By
HISTORY - 1961 MONUMENTED CGS
HISTORY - 19640709 MARK NOT FOUND LOCSUR

STATION DESCRIPTION

'DESCRIBED BY COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY 1961
'2.2 MI SW FROM EGG HARBOR CITY.
'2.25 MILES SOUTHWEST ALONG U.S. HIGHWAY 50 FROM POST OFFICE IN
'EGG HARBOR CITY AND 0.95 MILES SOUTHWEST OF E 57. MARK IS 23
'FEET NORTHWEST OF THE CENTER LINE OF THE HIGHWAY CLOSE TO POWER
'LINE POLE NUMBER ACE 3547. IT IS SET HORIZONTALLY 6 INCHES
'ABOVE HIGHWAY IN THE NORTHEAST END OF THE NORTHWEST CONCRETE
'HEAD WALL OF AN 18 INCH PIPE CULVERT ON U.S. HIGHWAY 50.

STATION RECOVERY (1964)

'RECOVERY NOTE BY LOCAL SURVEYOR (INDIVIDUAL OR FIRM) 1964
'MARK NOT FOUND.
 

BubbaMax

New Member
my dad took me to this one. It is near one of our fishing spots.



kids_at_the_park_003.jpg


1/1/1935 by CGS (MONUMENTED)

1/1/1961 by CGS (GOOD)
DESCRIBED BY COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY 1961 0.5 MI SE FROM MAYS LANDING. 0.5 MILE SOUTH ON U.S. HIGHWAY 50 FROM THE POST OFFICE IN MAYS LANDING THENCE 0.1 MILE EAST ON RIVER DRIVE. 43 FEET WEST OF THE PROLONGED CENTER LINE OF FARRAGUT AVENUE, 36 FEET NORTHWEST OF A POWER LINE POLE NO. ACE 13677, 29 FEET NORTHWEST OF THE NORTHWEST END OF A CONCRETE STORM DRAIN, 21.6 FEET SOUTH OF THE CENTER LINE OF RIVER DRIVE AND 1 FOOT SOUTH OF THE GUARD RAIL. SET IN THE TOP OF A CONCRETE POST LEVEL WITH THE GROUND.
7/13/1990 by NJGS (GOOD)
RECOVERY NOTE BY NEW JERSEY GEODETIC SURVEY 1990 THE STATION IS LOCATED IN HAMILTON TOWNSHIP, IN THE TOWN OF MAYS LANDING, SET IN THE PARKING AREA FOR THE GREAT EGG HARBOR RIVER WARF AREA. TO REACH THE STATION FROM THE NORTH JUNCTION OF STATE ROUTE 50 AND U.S. HIGHWAY ROUTE 40 IN MAYS LANDING GO 0.32 KM (0.20 MI) SOUTH ON ROUTE 50 TO THE JUNCTION WITH RIVER AVENUE, COUNTY ROAD 559, TURN LEFT AND GO 0.16 KM (0.10 MI) TO THE STATION ON THE RIGHT, 6.35 M (20.83 FT) SOUTHWEST OF THE CENTERLINE OF ROUTE 559, 0.6 M (2.0 FT) SOUTHWEST OF THE BITUMINOUS CURBLINE OF ROUTE 559, 8.7 M (28.5 FT) WEST OF THE NORTHWEST CORNER OF A CONCRETE U SHAPED CURBPIECE FOR AN INLET, 11.7 M (38.4 FT) WEST NORTHWEST OF POLE NUMBER BT 1550, 12.5 M (41.0 FT) NORTHWEST OF THE CENTERLINE OF FARRAGUT AVENUE EXTENDED, 5.2 M (17.1 FT) NORTHWEST OF 853 4468 TIDAL E AND FLUSH WITH THE GROUND.
 

Teegate

Administrator
Site Administrator
Sep 17, 2002
25,653
8,265
BubbaMax,

You can tell your dad he did not take you to the most important monument which is right near where you were.. Let me explain.

When you find a monument with an arrow on it such as yours does, that means there are more nearby. In your case you have visited an Azimuth Mark, but some monuments with arrows are also Reference Marks. These arrows actually point directly to the main station which will have a triangle on it. Back in the stone age of 1935 in order to properly monument these survey disks it was a major undertaking. A small army of men would build what was called a Bilby Tower at these locations. This tower was a tower inside of a tower with the inner tower holding the survey instruments, and the outer tower held the men who worked these instruments. Since the towers were inches apart and not touching each other, they could move around the outer tower and not cause the inner tower to move. During the night the men would climb the tower in various locations in the area, and using a light at the top as a guide they would be able to locate the other towers and properly work their magic. They would set the main station with the triangle using this method. Because it was such an undertaking to build these tower, and remove them when done, they also put the Reference Marks nearby with the arrows pointing at the station so in the event the station was damaged, they could use the arrows to properly place the station with the triangle back in it’s proper location. Since you found the Azimuth Mark, have your dad take you back to Gaskill Park and look for the station. Stand on the monument you found and walk in the exact direction the arrow is pointing for about 750 feet. Once you find that walk around some more and you will find at least three more. Post us the photo’s if and when you find them.

This should be a photo of it.

http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/get_image.prl?PROCESSING=get_image&IID=13740


Guy
 
Thanks Guy for your very informative reply,I know he is anxious to find more. We where going to locate the others there but his mother called and told us we where out of time. I forgot it was supose to snow today and told him we would go out there today, and he did not forget after school and was very disappointed.
maybe this weekend we will be able to go back and find them. Im sure he will have some more pictures.
 

Teegate

Administrator
Site Administrator
Sep 17, 2002
25,653
8,265
Oji and Chrisr,

I am glad you and others are interested. Since Atsion is a popular spot for many on this site, if you are interested in seeing a station, a Reference Mark, and an Azimuth, here is where to go. If you stand at the ranger station in Atsion and look north on 206, you will see the slight incline in the field ahead of you. Walk to the top of that and you will find the station. Then walk the edges of that area and you will find the Reference Mark with the arrow. And to visit the Azimuth drive down to the entrance to the state park at the lake. If you are on 206 looking down the entrance road to the park, just on the left side of the curb on your left side is the Azimuth. It was replaced so it is not the original, but it is the Azimuth.

Here are my photo’s.

http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/get_image.prl?PROCESSING=list&PID=JU4087


Guy
 

oji

Piney
Jan 25, 2008
2,099
484
63
Browns Mills
Guy, When the Bilby Tower was erected at Atsion and nighttime came, where were the other towers located? The straight lines plotted between the towers were borders/property lines? Was property plotted in triangles, squares, or rectangles? Did this technology replace stones, chains and rods?
 

Teegate

Administrator
Site Administrator
Sep 17, 2002
25,653
8,265
Guy, When the Bilby Tower was erected at Atsion and nighttime came, where were the other towers located? The straight lines plotted between the towers were borders/property lines? Was property plotted in triangles, squares, or rectangles? Did this technology replace stones, chains and rods?


I am not an expert so I can only give general answers to you.

On the datasheets for each station it is mentioned which other stations were used as a reference. On the Atsion sheet only the Atsion stations are mentioned so I can't say which others were used. It does say a 77 foot tower was needed to clear all obstacles so I would assume the tower there was at least 77 feet tall. The lines are grids and not property lines. I am still unsure exactly how that works.

Guy
 

Chrisr

Explorer
Sep 14, 2008
295
2
Cinnaminson, NJ
Thanks for the instructions/directions Guy. Next time I'm at Atsion (my favorite spot!) I'll give 'em a whirl and let you know how I make out.
 
Top