![]() The following narrative will take the reader through the creation of a polygon with a geo-referenced starting point and compass bearings. We will next explore a method for using the Editor to create a high-accuracy GIS polygon from a survey. ![]() Part 2: Creating a High-accuracy Polygon in the Editor Practically speaking, the GIS practitioner faces multiple challenges when attempting to use a metes-and-bounds description: 1) How to efficiently and accurately capture the bearing and distance data conveyed by the “calls” and 2) How best to geo-reference the polygon to a coordinate system, and where necessary, align or rotate the shape to 'true north'. Further, if the survey does not include at least two geo-referenced corners along the boundary-as is likely-the property’s precise location on the surface of the earth is a second unknown factor. If, however, the survey is based on compass bearings-as is likely- the metes-and-bounds description does not address the equally important aspect of the property’s physical orientation. For a variety of reasons relating to practical, legal, and traditional aspects of the surveying profession in northern New England, however, the bearings created in such a process are typically magnetic rather than true north, and boundary points are seldom geo-referenced.įrom the perspective of GIS practitioners, on the other hand, a modern metes-and-bounds property description is the authoritative data source that may be used to precisely define the polygonal shape of a given property. The following excerpt from a recently recorded deed is a good example of such a high-precision metes-and-bound description:įrom the perspective of the surveyor and landowner, the fundamental task of a boundary survey is to identify and/or establish physical monumentation around the perimeter of a given property and then document the entire process with a plan. Though not nearly so evocative of “old times,” most contemporary metes-and-bounds descriptions are based on a professional survey in which bearings have been taken in degrees, minutes and seconds, and distances measured to one-hundredth of a foot. For example, the recorded deed for the May 2023 sale of a heavily forested woodlot located in my town contained the following metes-and-bounds description: Here in New England, some properties are still described by an archaic style of metes-and-bounds description in which the calls reference long-lost physical features and neighboring landowners. Part 1: Introduction to Use of Metes-and-Bounds Descriptions in GIS MappingĪs a matter of introduction, a metes-and-bounds description begins at a given point on a property boundary and then follows a step-by-step series of “calls”, i.e., recitations of bearing and distance, that trace the boundary line around the perimeter of the property and back to the point of its beginning. ![]() Then I will expand into the process I have developed for employing TatukGIS Editor to convert a metes-and-bound property description into a geo-referenced GIS polygon. ![]() In the following narrative, which is composed of four sections, I will begin with a brief review of the strengths and shortcomings of the metes-and-bounds property description as is commonly encountered in New England and many other areas of the United States. In 2016 I contributed feedback about the usefulness of the Editor in my real estate appraisal business here in New Hampshire. My name is Chris Mumford and I have been a user of the desktop TatukGIS Editor since August 2011. Metes-and-Bounds Survey Descriptions in GIS Mapping
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