Beginning at these points, the surveyors established lines every 6 miles North, South, East and West of the crossing point. In Florida for instance, they cross at a point in Tallahassee. The principal meridians running North-South and East-West intersect at these locations. There are geographical locations all over the US that serve as a base reference. It is used in all states except for the original 13 colonies, the states created from these colonies and Kentucky, West Virginia and Texas. The rectangular land survey system was adopted by the federal government in 1785. The example below is a more complicated metes and bounds legal description. Writing a metes and bounds description is a job for a land surveyor.Ī typical metes and bounds description is as follows:īeginning at a point (POB) on the North side of James Street 50 feet East from the corner formed by the intersection of the East boundary of Peter Road and the North boundary of James Street thence East 90 degrees 200 feet thence North 300 feet thence West 200 feet thence direct to the POB. A critical feature is the Point of Beginning POB. Metes refers to distance and bounds to direction. So here are some pictures to help out.There are 4 types of legal descriptions used in real estate in the USA. That may still seem like a bunch of confusion to you at this point. Everything in the middle adds up to 8.549 acres of land, give or take a few feet. Now, go straight back to the beginning from there by going North 77 degrees E along that North line of Section 32. It is also back in the north line of the SW quarter of the NE quarter of Section 32.
Now, go North 13 degrees W 582 feet to another 1 ¼ brass cap in some more concrete. Now, go South 76 degrees, West 640 feet to a brass cap about 1 ¼ in diameter set in some concrete.
Now the actual SE corner of the property is South 75 degrees West about a ½ a foot from the center of that post. Once there you will find some concrete around an iron pipe post. You consequently will be on the North line of the SW quarter of the NE quarter of Section 32. From there go South 77 degrees, 00 minutes, and 05 seconds West and then you will be at the NE Corner of the land in question. If you go to the NE quarter of the Section 32, and then go to the SW quarter of that NE quarter, then go to the NE corner of that SW quarter for your starting point, then you can start to look for the actual starting point of the land in question. This legal description by the way is from a search and post I did about the Cell Towers of Doom! Anyway, the description of boundaries that make up this land are as follows: The 8.549 acre lot of land we are talking about is in Section 32, Block 26, of the T&P Railway Company Surveys that were done in Mitchell County, Texas. Now, you can see, this starts off giving the starting reference using the Public Land Surveying System, so you would have to have a copy of the survey or some form of it on hand to start, but here is a translation of the above. Put that together with distances and you have a basic metes and bounds description that looks like this. The majority of your metes and bounds legal descriptions will stick to common standard and use a quadrant notation system for direction.
With that much money on the line you’d think they would want to re-survey and bring the legals up to date. And this is part of a large piece of land that makes up a ski resort in Maine.