The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1859-12-31
Select 1fIigfcIIo
MASON AND DiXON'S LINE.

MASON AND DiXON'S LINE.
A briefa}'uSion to this dividing line between
the slave-holaing and non. slave holding
States Of the Union may not DC unacceptable
to the general r2a der.
No aphca line. real or imaginary, has
been more talked of within the last a!f cen
fury, or perhaps less generally understood
than this not that men cared for the terri
torial boundary it described, hut because of
its political significance as the present Nor
thcrn limit Of slavery.
Being so intimately connected with the
adverse interests it divides the names Of the
old Surveyors Mason and Dixon who located
it, are inStvcrably associated with it's i'm.
p0rtauce. Most other great engineering
works outlaSt the name and fame of their
constructors, bur the memory Of Mason and
. Dixon is destined to a perIctri'v at least CO.
equal with the institution Of Sllvcrv.
W Without pursuing the history Of toe grants
TO CccIlmS Calvert Lord Baron Of Baltimore.
and to William Penn, or Of the Dutch settle
| ment and occupation Of Delaware, we pass on
to deed of boundary settlement. executed
July 4lh, lIGG, between the heirs Of Penn and
| Frederick, Lord Bnlnmorc, under which.
! together with the previous decisions of Lord
llardwichc Of the English Court Of Chancuv
I Commissioners were appointed to run the
boundary line between Mary land on the one
| hand. and Delaware on The other Tie
! surveyors, under that deed were Thomas
| GArnrtt jonathan Hall. John Iukcns. Arrhi.
bald MCLEAN. John +. 4. pI~eS. Archibald
Emory, john Watson anl William ShunklanA:
! whose original !i,ll notes are still preserved
] IN, 4 4
| At the cul of tlIcc years ,h,sc Surveyors
had accomplished hut litlc more than the
adjustment of he southern line Of Delaware.
hnit way ACROSS the peninsula ,hr peninsula,
| hnr North TO the intersection Of the tangent
point Of the Northern circular coniinc OF
Delaware, and the tracing Of the lively,
nllc circle"
Before proceeding further, it is necessary
to premise that on the 4Dh Of March. 1851
! Penn obtained giant Of land which made
pant Ct his Southern boundary 10 consist ot
- circle drawn at twelve miles distant FROM
! Newcastle uorthwarl and wc>twaI,!S unto the
beginning Of the .s0.h 4. -,lc G: Norhcrr,
hi'9de:" ard to the djii,uiy Of tracing
'!s's In" satuil.ulnhie the presence Of Masoi,
and bIXon in America.
1t was from the " tangent point " on Til,
North to point, lltccH miles South Of phila.
d,Iphja, whence should nr traced the parallel
OF latitude westward, that was 10 divide til,
provinces.
Ik~IarohelG rlo!.'ude is Nason and D,r2a's
lane.
On The Ih Of August. 1868, Thomas and
N''hnd Pom, aud LoId Baltimore. being
together i'll London, agreed with Chas Ma>cl
an Al 80. :, l -
or Surveyors - to mark, r',n ont. settle fix
ana determine all such pats Of the circle
marks, lines and boundaries. as were mcn-
toned in the several articles ~ commissions
and were not yet conglc'vd." Mason and
Dixon landed in rhjlllelp hin on the 18th 0
NuNcmh"r allowing. aud began the worl; AT
umce. They adopted the pcnjusular lines
ard the radius and tangent point of til,
circle, Of their predecessors They next as.
ccriaincd The north eastern corner of Mary
land, and preceded to run the dividing par.
alle| Of latitude. They pursued this par4lI,l
! distance of go miles, Is chains and q
links from the place Of beginning at the y
f. corner q Naryland. to the bottom Of Il
valley on Duukard $ crc,k, where an ludial
war Fath crossed their roa'c: ard here or
the oh Of November G7,-nncrv tive
Yeats ago,-thcII Indian escort told lhcm. il
was TIE will Of tbe Six Nations, that the
surveys should cease; and they tc inmate
nrcardiMgly. leaving SO mi,cS, E chains anC
80 links, as the exact distance rclnainiuw It
be lun west, TO the South West auglc O
Pennsylvania, not far from the BoaId Tret
Tunnel on the T. d o. Railroad.
BY agreement Of the parties and the deere,
Of Lord ilaldwickc, the SurycY ors, Mason 4
Dixon planted ut fine end nf ,y,rv iif, ,riIn