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This is a sad story about the stone survey marker shown in the photograph. A story that is all too common in these times. It makes me wonder if people would be more resistant to disturbing survey markers such as this stone if they could only return to realizing how important they are in their original position. Perhaps they would realize the importance if they knew that finding them undisturbed may reduce the work necessary to locate a boundary and hence the cost.
We can speculate, based on the historical record that this stone marked an angle in a town highway layout dated 1892 and was undisturbed until recently. In the photograph there is evidence of a surveyor??s flagging tape around the stone. There are also two survey witness stakes tied with similar flagging tape in the vicinity of the stone that are not shown in the photograph.
As flagging tape ages it loses its color, becoming whitish and brittle. The flagging tape in the photograph and on the stakes reclining nearby indicate that the stone and its accessories may have been disturbed a few years ago. The presence of the survey flagging and stakes should have alerted those who maliciously removed the mark.
The area of the stone??s current location shows evidence of landscaping activity, and prominent wood chips. Sadly wood chips have seemingly become more important than ancient survey markers. In conclusion it would be my advice to land owners that what obviously appears to be a survey marker should not be treated as something insignificant. ?ÿOnce removed, a survey mark can never be returned to its original position.
Historic boundaries and conservation efforts.
That is indeed a sad ending to a beautiful monument....
To those who are clueless, it appears to be something of no particular value, therefor there is no problem with removing it.
Had a guy who wanted me to come out to his place to lower a DOT concrete ROW monument so he could shave off his side of the road ditch to make it much easier to mow.?ÿ He not only wanted it lower, he wanted only the very top to be visible but low enough to run over with his mower.?ÿ I told him to call the DOT and see if they would agree to do that for him.?ÿ I already knew what their answer would be, because he was wanting to mess with THEIR rights.?ÿ BTW, he did nothing.
A kind gentleman hired me to survey his one acre in NH.?ÿ I quickly found the rear corners then moved roadside.?ÿ After ringing and digging to no avail, the owner casually walks over and asks what I'm looking for.?ÿ I tell him I'm looking for a piece of rebar or a pipe or something similar that should be marking his corner.?ÿ He gets a funny look on his face then tells me that when he first moved there from Rhode Island he saw two pipes sticking out of the ground and pulled them out since they seemed so out of place.?ÿ I laughed it off as I could see he was embarrassed, and thanked him for telling me before I'd spent any more time digging.?ÿ Needless to say, he didn't whine about the bill.
He not only wanted it lower, he wanted only the very top to be visible but low enough to run over with his mower.?ÿ I told him to call the DOT and see if they would agree to do that for him.?ÿ
I wouldn't have any problem doing that work, as long as I got paid.?ÿ I'd file a Corner Record just for good measure, though it's arguable whether or not one is required (in CA) in that circumstance. But the notion that a monument marking the limit of one party's rights can't be touched by a professional representing the other party's rights doesn't carry much weight with me.
At least he asked.?ÿ In similar situations with a monument (in this area that describes the concrete or stone post, the rest are just "pins") owners around here would just break or cut it off, or have their landscaper or excavator dig it up and haul it away.?ÿ On the slim chance they "knew it was important," they might dig it up and reset it where it is not in their way.?ÿ?ÿ?ÿ?ÿ ugghhhhhh....
Ken
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On the other hand, I shake my head when I see a subdivision bound sticking up a foot or more in someone's lawn.?ÿ I wonder why the homeowner hasn't broken the top off by now, down to grade.?ÿ?ÿ There's no reason it should've been set that high in someone's front yard.?ÿ Crew must've hit a rock and stopped digging.