Distinctly Montana Magazine

64 D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA N A M A G A Z I N E • FA L L 2 0 2 6 the north shore of the Ohio River. From that initial point, ca- dastral survey crews set a base line running east and west and a meridian running north and south. The intersection of those two lines is called the initial point. With base lines and meridians es- tablished, they could then survey and record lands moving west, making public lands ready for sale to private owners. Survey crews at that time used a compass and a sixty-six-foot measuring chain—eighty chains to a mile. The chains were heavy and difficult to handle. The crew had to walk the chain out to its full length, trying to avoid skewing the measurement by too much up and down or winding through trees, then record the location and move on. They had to battle difficult terrain, heat, cold, rain, snow, and sometimes, Indian tribes who op- posed the encroachment onto their lands. It was a time-consum- ing, challenging, and at times, dangerous process. The Bureau of Land Management, in a section on their website called Cadastral History, notes "Over the past two centuries, al- most 1.5 billion acres have been surveyed into townships and sections and monumented. This represents the greatest land surveying project ever undertaken, requiring vast human en- ergy for carrying heavy equipment, dragging chains, cutting trails, climbing mountains, placing monuments, digging pits, and blazing 'witness' trees." As could be expected, errors were made, and the government soon realized that an endless number of complaints could arise from these mistakes. The rule became that the results of the sur- veys were final, even if wrong. Settlers were pushing ahead, and the surveys needed to keep up. Using the Point of Beginning, the initial point in Ohio, would take too long, too many years to get to the land people SURVEY CREWS AT THAT TIME USED A COMPASS AND A SIXTY-SIX-FOOT MEASURING CHAIN—EIGHTY CHAINS TO A MILE. www.blacktieskis.com | 406-995-3372 | info@blacktiebigsky.com Aspen/Snowmass • Banff • BIG SKY/MOONLIGHT Boone, NC • Breckenridge/Keystone Crested Butte • Jackson Hole • Mammoth North Lake Tahoe • Park City/Deer Valley Schweitzer • South Lake Tahoe • Steamboat • SUN PEAK Telluride • Tremblant • Vail • Whistler Whitefish, MT • Winter Park • FREE DELIVERY, CUSTOM FITTING, AND UNPARALLELED SERVICE WORLD-CLASS EQUIPMENT, DELIVERED TO YOU. USE COUPON CODE DISTMT26 AND RECEIVE 20% OFF* ALL SEASON LONG! N O R T H A M E R I C A' S L A R G E S T N O R T H A M E R I C A' S L A R G E S T BEST SKI RENTALS IN MONTANA IN-ROOM FITTING SLOPE-SIDE SERVICE COMPLIMENTARY RETURN o f BEST M O N TA N A A S V O T E D B Y R E A D E R S O F 2022-26 Y E A R S WO N *Black Out Dates Apply

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