Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1891-12-24
THE FLATIRON is Nor ours
Pennsylvania Has Owned II
Since 1882.
CHANCELLOR HARDwlCK'S DECISION
An Interesting Letter From
John G. Jackson.
The Circular Boundary Has Not Been Re-
traced Throughout Since I701--Isut tho
Sites Of the Marked Trees Are still As
ccrtAInable.

have read with interest the articles
in the EVERY EVENING of November
Both and December I'd on the estate
Boundary &c, the former giving the
views Of an antiquarian fellow-citizen,
Amos O. Brinton, the latter those OF
your correspondent, an"
Doubtless Mr.. Brinton has read much
and knows many rusty facts touching
long mooted historical questions bearing
upon the subject, and makes several
very positive statements; but am com
PEELED 10 say for reasons now 10 be
given that the correspondent an" is
much nearest the truth as finally decided
and established.
II Mr.. Brinton and all other inquirers
will read chapter HI Of Vol l. Of the
late History of Delaware, published
1888, headed boundary Disputes and
Settlement" they will find an able his.
tory Of the long and sometimes bloody
contentious or border warfare, between
the citizens of Maryland and Pennsyl-
vania, extending back to the chickering's
between the Dutch and English as early
as 1921 accompanied with statement Of
dates and historical books of reference.
throwing full light upon the causes
thereof and u complete definition of the
final settlements had and established.
Mr. Binton's reading must have been
too limited or he never could state that
the "ilat-iron," as they call ii, belonged to
Maryland.
The decision of Lord Chancellor Hard
wick in May 1850, defined the final set
Element between Frederick, I.ork Bnlti-
more and the descendants Of William
Penn, and was buta ratification Of Lord
Baltlmores agreement with the Penns
dated May 10th, 1882
This agreement, confirmed hy de-
cree in chancery in 1850, as above stated,
was not run out and marked upon the
ground until II was finished by the
scientists, Mason and Dixon.
These gentlemen were selected and
employed by Lord Baltimore and
Thomas and Richard Penn, III 1868. 10
carry out and mark on tile land, The
lines agreed upon in the elaborate
agreement between the Penns and Lord
Baltimore under date of 1860. as CON
iirmed BY the chancery decree; and the
work was done and approved by Joint
commission of Marylanders and Penn
sylyanians, being finished In 1868.
AS an exhibit of the full settlement Of
the "Flat-iron" question, as well as
other questions, here quote an abbre-
waited but substantial statement from
the elaborate report Of Mason and
Dixon, namely:
we have run out, settled and de
termined q straight line beginning at the
middle of the east and west line defined
in articles of July 4th, 1850, us run by
other commissioners of Lord Baltimore
and the Penns, across the Peninsula
from Cape llenlopen to dChesapeake
bay, thu exact middle of which llno Il
at the distance Of "a miles, 1903 pcrches
from the verge of the main ocean. And
that we have extended a straight line
from said middle point 81 miles, rs
chains and 30 links up the Peninsula
until II Touched and maap a tangent to
The western part of the periphery of
circle described at The horizontal dis
lance OF II statute miles from the centre
OF the town Of New Castle, and have
marked and perpetuated said tangent
line by setting upene stone at the be-
ginning thereof as described; ana have
also erected In said tangent line remark.
able stones ut the end Of every mile,
every fifth one thereof being graved on
tie cast by the arms OF the Penns, and
on the west by the arms Of Lord Balti.
more, and all the other intermediate
stones being marked with d letter z on
the easterly side and with letter NJ on
the westerly side. And we have fixed
II tie l2-nile circle at the tangent point
Aforesaid stone with the arms of Lord
baltimore grayed on the Nest side and
the arms OF said Penns grayed on tile
east side"
Before proceeding with the quota
tions from Mason and Dixon's report. a
special point may here be defined, that
may have sometimes been overlooked,
y is this: When the tangent line M the
Peninsula, above described, was located.
u was found necessary 10 run it about
~ degrees west of north, that it might |
cxactly touch the Delaware circle as n
tangent thereto. This caused the tangent
point to be 5S.05 chains south from al
exactly west line from tile centre Of |
New Castle.
The consequence WIS that when
Mason and Dixon on coming to the |
tangent point, where, according to The |
agreement, they were locating by, they |
were forced to turn the boundary line
due north, it required a DETECTION of |
about "a degrees to the right, causing |
sand line to cut u small segment from |
the territory nul II Delaware, (as |
alluded to by dependent MI. Ii |
extends about ll6 chlins long BY l75
chains wide in the middle, pointed III I
each end, and contains only one full |
acre Of land.
Correspondent M. is correct in saving
that this small segment still belonss tx |
Delaware; for the circular boundary |
was fixed in 1852 BY deed from III |
Duke Of York to William pennand was
not a matter 81 dispute as appears to be
aud acknowledged by Mason
and Dixon in the third paragraph Of 7
their report Of 1868, wherein thew sav /
that they have run out the westerly side |
Of that small segment and marked IL |
with three stones zone of whichn (near
the middle thereby is marked with the
letter L on the east and the letter M an
the west side thereof" thus showing
mat their meaning and decision was
that the arc and not the chord Of that
small segment Of the l2-mile circle. was
e remain intact as the boundard Of |
Pcnn's lands-now the territory of Del. |
aware. But as regards the "lat-ironn
$50 termed) We repeat there can be no |
doubt, since Mason and Dixon 20 on us
follows, to tell as in tho second para
graph Of their report what they did,
That from the end of said straight
line Or tangent point p we have run |
out, settled and determined due north
line Of the length If five miles, one
chain and fifty links % aparullel ii lati-
tnde Is miles due snnth frn1n ~ ,r.l,s.