Kingsbury County independent. (DeSmet, Kingsbury County, S.D.) 1894-1929, 1905-09-08
Washington Star.

to the famous Mason and Dixon line,
which has played an important part
in the history OF the country. The
work OF remarking this ancient bonn
Diary was carried on under the direction
Of DIR. William Il. Clark OF the Mary
land geological bureau and the secre-
! tary of internal affairs of Pennsylvania.
The Pennsylvania Legislature in 1889
appropriated 81, 900 ITO repair and reset
the monuments on the boundary line
between his commonwealth and he
adjacent state OF Maryland on the
south In 1900 the legislature Of
Maryland made a like appropriation of
s 5000 to carry on it's share OF the work.
Surveying parties were sent into the
field in 1898 and the major part OF the
work was done some five years ago,
but the commission encountered unex-
pected difficulties in the search for
some OF the original marking stones
and the task was not completed and
reported 10 the governors of the two
states until this year.
Mason and Dixon's line received it's
name from the original surveyors,
Charles Dixon and Alexander Dixon.
They were sent TO America from Lon
don in 1863 10 lay down the boundary
between the CSta,c3 Of Lord Cecilus
Calvert n William Penn, to avert
what at one time threatened TO be a
civil war between the followers Of the
Lwo great land holders.
The surveying was begun in 1864
and pursued until stopped by the In
dians at Dunkard creek, now in the
state OF West Virginia, in the autumn
of 1867. Through the greater part of
the distance from the eastern end of the
line to Dunkard creek, 244 miles west
of Delaware, the line was marked by
stones one mile apart, in which the
letter "P' was cut in the north SIDE
and the letter NJ in the south side.
At each five-mile mark a stone was
placed with the arms of Penn engraved
on the north side and those OF Calvert
on the south side. Fortunately for
posterity, the original surveying party
ran the line by the stars and did not
depend upon the fluctuations of the
magnetic needle. II ii had been sur
veyed by a compass in 1900 II would
have shown a deviation of az least two
miles, and were the line to be run over
again at the present time with an UNI
corrected compass, according TO the
records of the original survey, the de-
Walton would reach about nineteen
miles south of where 1t now is and the
rich coal mines of the Maryland coun-
ties would belong 10 Pennsylvania. The
later surveyors soon discovered the
trick of their predecessors and followed
the same course
The agreement which furnished the
basis OF the original survey was made
between the colonists of Penn n
those OF Calvert and was contained in
the charter given by King Charles III.
TO William Penn in 1881. A semi-circle
with q tWelve-mile radius was to be
drawn around the Town of New Castle,
Del, and beginning at the Delaware
river and extending north n west. A
right line was to be run from Cape
Henlopen on the coast OF New Jersey,
due west to the middle point of the
peninsula between the chesapeake
n Delaware bays. From this point a
meridian line was TO be run u north
so as to form q tangent with the semi
circle drawn around New Castle. From
the point where the tangent touched
the circle the meriden was TO run due
north until IL reached the latitude OF a
point fifteen miles south of Philadel-
phla. From this point a line running
due west was to be the boundary be-
tween the two estates.
According to the record kept by the
original surveyors the work necessary
to establish these several points was
accomplished with great difficulty
through the forests and marshes across
the intervening rivers. 1t consumed
three years, beginning with 1860, TO es-
tablish the line across the peninsula
and to fix the tangent point. Then the
London surveyors took up the work.
Nearly a year more was consumed to
make sure OF the latitude of the point
fifteen miles south of Philadelphia.
Finally the point was established where
the three corners of the states Of Della
ware, Pennsylvania and Maryland
nieet.s.and this point was duly marked
by a suitable stone and the survey OF
the celebrated Mason and Dixon line
was begun in the sumner of 1854.
Tha year the line was run and
partially marked to the Susquehanna
river. The next year 1t was continued
to the Allegheny river and a little fur
TO the westward, blu by a decree
OF the Indians 1t was brought abruptly
to a stop, and the surveyors returned
to fhiiadeiphia.
In 1S49 a desire to test the survey
took shape and the legislatures of the
three states interested made a~ppropria-
lions and appointed commissioners TO
perform the work. The survey was
placed in the hands of of Colol III James
ID. Graham of the United States topo-
graphical survey. Colonel GrahaEs
went over the work and in h main
c~orroborated ii. He found that the
radius OF twelve miles used to estab-
lish the arc of the circle was two feet
and four inches short and that the tan
gent poinI had been placed 15T feet too
far south. M corner stone of the
three states was reset according 60 this
survey and Maryland received 1877
acres of land as the result. Since then
there has been no effort seriously to
question the accuracy OF the original
iurvey.
The mile stones used to mark the
boundary were brought from England.
dressed und ready Tor setting UP. The
labor OF transporting them over the
trackless wilderness was found almost
insurmouutable and had to be aban-
doned over a part of the line. Where
the posts could not be carried piles OF
stone four feet square and eight feet
high were built In their place. n In
some instances wooden posts We're used
on some OF the inaccessible hills OF
western Maryland. The marking posts
were about twelve inches square and
varied In length from three To five feet.
The stones are ooiite and are supposed
to have been quarried near Portsmouth.
England.
The work of restoring the old mark
ings. and, where they could not be
recovered. OF setting up iron posts, was
Entrusted to w. G.. Hodgkins of the
coast and geological survey. Mr.. Hodg,
kins and his assistants had many
strange experiences In their recovery or
some OF the missing mile stones. Two
OF the crownstones, as the fivc-mile
markers were called, were found serv-
ing as door steps OF the Mutual Rights
church. Il queer old house of worship
on Licking creek near Hancock, Md.
The surveyors replaced them with
Maryland stone at the church and set
them up again In their original places.
Othe.s were with greater
difficulty.
III washington county. Md. a crown
stone was missing. and inquiry dcvei-
oped the fact that It had been secured
81 i cnrfo- hunting Baitimorean and