> When the section lines were first ran and monumented, didn't the surveyor believe he was running due North/South or East/West? If the answer is yes, than following his footsteps would mean the section lines determine the directions.
Well....yes and no. The surveyor was trying to run "due" north on the range lines, then the each section line in a township was run "parallel" to the east range line. So the attempt may have been to run N0ºxx' west on the parallel section line. ...except in earlier instructions. To know what the original surveyor "thought" he was running, you need to look at the original township plat and/or the original notes. So if the original township plat shows the bearing of that section line to be N0º30'W, do you run a line that is due north based on that published bearing of the section line?
Another question, are we to "divine" what the scrivner was intending to say, or what s/he did say? "Due" north is a relatively certain term. There is case law showing that the called-for bearing holds over an assumed bearing when no basis of bearings was shown. Is that the right way to do it? It seems wrong to me. In this particular example, I would guess that the scrivener was presuming the section lines to be north-sout, east-west.
I think most of us would agree that you look for original marking of what that description was describing. I also think that if no original markings are found, and you set the corners based on a good, logical interpretation of the deed, most surveyors would tend to grab your monuments and hold them. Since this deed can be interpreted in numerous different ways, monuments that are found that are in a logical interpretation of the deed (in my opinion) should prevail. If I were tasked with staking that description and I found no evidence of original corners, I would come up with my best solution and write a narrative of what I did, how I did it, and why.
Theres a good little article about a similar situation in the December (Volume 10 Issue 12)issue of The American Surveyor. Page 52 "The Curt Brown Cronicles".
The gist of the story (if I remember correctly)is there is no clear cut answer and you shouldn't use the term "due" in descriptions.... kind of like what many people are saying here.
Gregg
:good:
That is a good point if bearings were called for the POB, however there isn't. The call is Beginning at a point that is 5xx feet from the north section line and 5xx feet from the east section line. No "due" call for those dimensions although one could argue them to be true or not over a half dozen beers.
CRAP! Now I have to go tie that sucker in. Did you file a monument record on it?:-P