Interesting finds?

[foxtrot_xray]

So after enjoying the typos thread, and working on the next release of my program, I came across an odd mark, and wondered if anyone else had any. The one I saw was DX0606 "-189 T"

 

DESCRIBED BY COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEY 1955: AT MECCA. AT MECCA, AT THE SOUTHERN PACIFIC COMPANY RAILROAD STATION, INSIDE OF THE BAGGAGE ROOM, UNDER THE NORTHEAST SIDE OF A BOARD FLOOR, THROUGH WHICH ACCESS IS HAD THROUGH A 6- BY 6-INCH HOLE, 0.4 FOOT BELOW THE FLOOR, AND RIVETED ON THE TOP OF A 3 1/2-INCH IRON PIPE PROJECTING 0.4 FOOT ABOVE THE GROUND.

 

The depot is gone, according to GE, but I'd sill love to go hunt around for this one. Mounting it beneath the floor is an interesting way to protect a station - until the floor goes away.

 

Anyone else have some odd ones?

[+Klemmer]

Here's what you might call a serious monument:

 

It's about 2 feet across the hexagonal and about 3 feet tall. The actual mark is a bolt in the top. There are lots more pictures of it in my log on geocaching here. It's about the fifth log down. Quite a project for 1896! They must have used pack horses to haul the concrete & stuff up there. In those days, it would have been a 5+ mile trip from anywhere settled. It's a favorite hike of mine; been up there quite a few times.

 

P.S. Notice the dragonfly above the "A" in SAN?

Edited January 21, 2010 by Klemmer & TeddyBearMama

[foxtrot_xray]

Hey Klemmer - really interesting moument. I'm more impressed about the fun stuff in the logs. This may be worthy of posting in the Typos thread:

 

First in 1886 we had an underground mark as described in 1933:

IN 1886 UNDERGROUND MARK WAS CROSS IN COPPER BOLT LEADED INTO DRILL HOLE 2-1/2 FEET BELOW SURFACE.

 

Then ten years later the hexagon was erected with the same Copper Bolt:

IN 1896 HEXAGONAL CONCRETE PIER, 26 INCHES ACROSS AND PROJECTING 3.1 FEET ABOVE SURFACE, WAS ERECTED, AND COPPER BOLT WITH CROSS WAS PLACED IN TOP

 

Six years later some major chemical work was done:

STATION MARK IS BRONZE RIVET WITH CROSS IN CENTER SET IN TOP OF HEXAGON CONCRETE PIER 3 FEET HIGH.

 

Eleven years after the copper turned to bronze, the hexagon grew in size. It's now a bandstand:

FOUND BRONZE RIVET WITH CENTER PUNCH MARK NOT CHISELED CROSS, IN TOP OF HEXAGONAL CONCRETE PIER, 26 FEET ACROSS AND 3 FEET HIGH.

 

So, five years later we had some more chemical molecule rearranging, and our bandstand is gone:

THE STATION IS MARKED WITH A 3/4-INCH COPPER BOLT, PUNCH MARK IN THE CENTER, FLUSH IN THE TOP OF A HEXAGONAL CONCRETE PIER, 26 INCHES IN DIAMETER AND PROJECTS 36 INCHES ABOVE THE GROUND.

 

Two years after THAT, more indecision about what's there, and erosion seems to have taken its toll:

THE STATION IS A BRONZE RIVET WITH A HOLE IN THE CENTER, SET IN TOP OF A HEXAGONAL MONUMENT WHICH IS ABOUT 24 INCHES IN DIAMETER AND PROJECTS ABOUT 40 INCHES ABOVE THE GROUND.

 

I'm rambling, but the type of bolt switches again, and the size of the monument changes again as well. Quite amusing. WOuldn't mind seeing that one!

[+RazorbackFan]

While researching different areas, I've run across a few benchmarks that are now indoors. Guess it makes answering the question about satelite observability easy to answer!

 

How about one inside a library behind some books? (FH0276)

 

 

Here are a few more inside a building that I'm gonna try and go after one day: CS3037 & CS3036

[+Holtie22]

This one was quite unique - haven't seen anything like it before or since. It's about 3 feet in diameter, and gives the direction and distance to prominent landmarks in the 360 degree view.

 

 

It's located right next to the Lookout Tower (right of the steps) and causes confusion because the monument type is listed as tower.

 

edit: oops - linked wrong one!

Edited January 22, 2010 by Holtie22

[+Klemmer]

Holtie: That sure is a unique disc. Wow!

 

F-X: I never noticed the alchemy before. Funny! Of course, visually, I'm not sure I could tell the difference between lightly weathered (SoCal dry) copper and weathered bronze (and I used to be a Chemical Engineer!). Did you see in my other pics that later someone built three concrete tall skinny "stands" for tripod feet, so a normal tripod could be used over the mark. Unfortunately, one of them has been destroyed. Also note that it was a key mark in the California Primary arc of Triangulation (1904). Interesting place. Come on by sometime, and we'll go up there! Still a nice couple mile hike now.

[+succotash]

BR1462 :Darien Longitude Pier"

 

Edited January 23, 2010 by succotash

[TillaMurphs]

RazorbackFan's library wall mark is quite cool (should the descrption include the Dewey Decimal location of the mark?)

 

RD3210 is interesting. It is in historic Union Station (railroad station) in Portland, Oregon.

 

One geocacher (grantcampbell) mentioned this interesting story in his log:

Called the Superintendent of Union Station and told him what I was trying to do... met him there and I told him we needed to look in a storeroom. He knew the approximate area to look. We first went to a small door with a window, this leads to the stairs down to the electrical room. No mark there. Must be on the other side of the wall. Well, to get to the other side of the wall, you need to walk through the little deli/gift shop, in back of the checkout counter, into another little room (where an older woman was making deli sandwiches), and into the storeroom for the deli. There, on the floor, beside the boxes of bananas and breads and sodas, was the mark.

 

 

We went to look for this but the deli was closed. We plan to try again this summer.

[+Ashallond]

While researching different areas, I've run across a few benchmarks that are now indoors. Guess it makes answering the question about satelite observability easy to answer!

 

How about one inside a library behind some books? (FH0276)

 

 

 

Hey, that one's close to where I live...I may have to go after that one sometime soon.

[+2/3 Marine]

This one LE BOW was fun to find with the owners permission to move lots of stuff to get to it. Admission into what has to be the biggest junk shop in Colorado is $1 but well worth it to find the mark & see all the "stuff".

[Bill93]

Try this link for LeBow.

[AZcachemeister]

 

Just another knothole, eh?

 

 

Look again!

 

NC0857, 906 3032 MONROE A USLS

Edited January 23, 2010 by AZcachemeister

[foxtrot_xray]

Hah! all those are pretty darn neat.

 

Klemmer - if I get out that way I'll let you know! I love the chiseled crosses of the Cal Triang - it reminds me of the time 2/3 Marine and I found one on top of a hill out in Colorado. Rather worn, but once we saw it it was pretty obvious!

 

I like the hidden ones. Interesting way of preserving them without making them obvious!

[+Mega Scooter]

This is Kidder Astronomical Station near the Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico border. It’s a zinc cylinder filled with concrete. The cows use it for a back scratcher. GL1436

 

 

—MS

[+TheBeanTeam]

Here is an interesting one but its not in the NGS database. It does have a nearby geocache commemorating it though. 4 - Corners Oregon

 

It looks to be a flat marble monument with an etched map and inscriptions.

 

The top inscription says:

 

"In the State of Oregon of 36 counties this is the only corner common to four counties. Erected October 1982"

 

The bottom corner lists the names of the four respective county surveyors, while the mark itself is the point where the four corners meet on a map etched into the stone.

 

[foxtrot_xray]

This is Kidder Astronomical Station near the Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico border. It’s a zinc cylinder filled with concrete. The cows use it for a back scratcher.

—MS

That one's actually on my list to find as well - I got the new (and old) monuments north of there, at the OK, NM and CO borders.

[+LSUFan]

NGS Surveyor informed me of a neat one (at least to me) in New Orleans, that I got to visit last December. I have never seen one like this. It's PID is AU1063, just sitting out in one of the parks there. The actual bm is a copper bolt in the top of the monument.

 

 

Edited January 27, 2010 by LSUFan

[+jwahl]

That one has me wondering why it has a scaled position, and why the setting is listed as "unspecified". Not to mention that while it may not be ideal for GPS, it seems like it could be occupied and a position obtained with a little patience.

 

Wonder what the story is on this one.

 

- jlw

Edited January 27, 2010 by jwahl

[+billwallace]

Has anyone seen one of these or a log of one? I tried looking for Tidal Bench Marks around La Jolla and San Fransisco, Ca but none of them fit the description.

 

Basic Bench Mark excerpt from CGS Special Pub 226 1941.

[+Klemmer]

Hi BillWallace:

 

Tidal Benchmarks have their own database here. Although, I have seen a few that are tidal AND otherwise of geodetic importance seem to sometimes "sneak" into the main NGS database. Of course, the geocaching benchmark database is an old copy of the main NGS database, so very few tidal benchmarks can be logged on geocaching.com

 

Klemmer

[+Harry Dolphin]

CJ1491'DESCRIBED BY NATIONAL GEODETIC SURVEY 1993

CJ1491'STATION IS AT COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON CAMPUS IN DOWNTOWN CHARLESTON,

CJ1491'SC., AT THE LIGHTSEY CONFERENCE CENTER (FORMER SEARS BLDG.). TO

CJ1491'ACCESS FROM EAST END OF INTERSTATE 26 AT US 17, TAKE EXIT 221A. GO

CJ1491'0.4 MI (0.6 KM) TO KING ST., AND TURN SSE (RIGHT). GO 0.8 MI

CJ1491'(1.3 KM) AND TURN WSW (RIGHT) ONTO VANDERHORST ST. (AT ST. MATHEWS

CJ1491'CHURCH). GO 0.05 MI (0.08 KM) TO FIRST DRIVEWAY ON LEFT AND ENTER.

CJ1491'GO 0.05 MI (0.08 KM) TO CONFERENCE CENTER LOADING DOCK. STATION IS

CJ1491'ONE FLOOR BELOW LOADING DOCK, IN ELECTRICAL CONTROL ROOM AT WEST

CJ1491'CORNER OF BASEMENT, 25 M (82.0 FT) S37W OF FREIGHT ELEVATOR, 2.7 M

CJ1491'(8.9 FT) N37W OF S37E BRICK WALL AND 1.1 M (3.6 FT) N53E OF S53W

CJ1491'CONCRETE WALL AND WITNESS SIGN. PLUG IS EPOXYED FLUSH INTO CONCRETE

CJ1491'FLOOR. BUILDING ADDRESS IS 160 CALHOUN ST. CONTACT IS BOB RODWELL

CJ1491'AT 803-953-4120.

 

Wonder if I can get permission to hunt for it???

MARKER: L = ABSOLUTE GRAVITY STATION PLUG

[foxtrot_xray]

MARKER: L = ABSOLUTE GRAVITY STATION PLUG

Oh, try it. If you don't, I may. The location sounds darn interesting.

[+Harry Dolphin]

MARKER: L = ABSOLUTE GRAVITY STATION PLUG

Oh, try it. If you don't, I may. The location sounds darn interesting.

 

Go for it! My major interest is in coloring in counties. And a benchmark named Harry!

[+Michaelcycle]

AA3611 overlooks the Kilauea Caldera at the Hawaiian Volcanoes Observatory. What makes it interesting is that it is a pun: the mark is embedded in the top of a granite bench (far left of the second picure, I didn't think to get a better one, maybe next time)

Who says the USGS doesn't have a sense of humor

 

[+shorbird]

Quite a few interesting locations for marks here. Here's one inside a restaurant: MB1057. The former railroad station with the mark in the outside wall is now a larger building with the original wall with the mark now located inside the building in an open dining area. You can also see the mark by looking through the window.

[+shorbird]

Then there is the mark which has been almost completely covered with a metal base for railroad crossing lights. KY1041 was set in the concrete base for the original crossing lights.