Historical Benchmarks

[+Neweyess]

I've just started finding a few benchmarks and find it facinating. But those that are just on the side of any road don't interest me so much as those that are associated with historical places. Here are a few that I visited recently in the area where I live: EC0171, EC0170, EC1642. The first two are attached to commercial buildings listed on the Historical Register and the third is a smokestack at a former cotton mill. Additionally, these are all not too far from the birth place of Andrew Jackson. Others found them first and uploaded good pictures. Another one I visited as a virtual geocache: GCE55. It's attached to a huge rock in the southwestern corner of NC at the border of SC. There is also a picture of that at the site.

 

During Geocaching, I've also visited and old church where Jackson's parents are inconspicuously burried and another church graveyard in Charlotte, NC with 1700's graves and having a separate section for slaves. I had passed this area frequently and never knew it was there.

 

Do others find benchmarks (or perhaps geocaching) associated with historical places especially interesting? Does anyone collect these finds in particular? I'm new to this and just wondered what appealed to others?

 

Neweyess

[mrh - terre haute]

Neweyness

 

I'd say the answer to your question "Do others find benchmarks (or perhaps geocaching) associated with historical places especially interesting? Does anyone collect these finds in particular?" is, absolutely.

 

When you have some time check out this topic:

 

New Mexico,colorado Discussion, MOVED TO ITS OWN THREAD

 

mrh

[+Kewaneh & Shark]

You'll find that many of the people who like benchmarking enjoy the more historical and/or technical aspect of benchmarking over caching. Caching is fun, and as a family, we tend to focus on it. My wife and I really like to find caches, especially virtual caches that show us some historical place or event that we wouldn't see otherwise. Benchmarking is more of an individual pursuit, but my wife does like the historic slant it has, particularly when the mark is attached to a building or place with some degree of importance. We don't collect historically biased caches or benchmarks, but given the choice between a historical site vs. tupperware hidden in a log, we'll always go for the history.

 

I don't discriminate between benchmarks. Those on the side of the road are as important to me, historically or otherwise, as the marks located on the top of a 100 year-old train trestle. For me as a surveyor, the history of the mark, whether 10 years or 100 years is the same. (Although, there certainly is a higher 'wow' factor with the 100 year marks.) But, believe it or not, one of my favorite finds was a pipe cap mark set in 1902 that is still found on the side of a road. (See GT1644.)

 

One of my wife's caches, GCD754 - Do not pass GO. Do not collect $200, was placed during one of my benchmark hunts. I'd found a 1901 USGS elevation station (GU1072) on the side of an old county courthouse. The spire on the courthouse was used as a triangulation station (GU3368). On the cache page I've incorporated and identified both marks for the cache finder to see. Many cachers have 'found' their first benchmark at this cache.

 

Welcome to the game and the addiction.

 

- Kewaneh

[+seventhings]

Neweyess -

 

Like Kewaneh, I'll go after a 1765 Mason-Dixon stone or a very recently-set survey disk with equal gusto (although I do tend to plan my benchmark hunting trips around the old stones).

 

Two interesting historical benchmarks I've found are:

 

JV5557

 

the flagpole at Fort McHenry in South Baltimore, MD. The modern pole stands at or near the position of the original flagpole on which was hung the flag that inspired Francis Scott Key to write the Star Spangled Banner. There are several other benchmarks in the NPS site, as well.

 

and,

 

HU1686

 

the 20-mile marker for the Transpeninsular Survey of 1751-1754 (southern boundary of Delaware). This stone (and at least one other like it) has its own PID. They are are the two oldest benchmarks (I think) still in their original positions. Other marks may have earlier monumented dates, but I don't think that there are any that were set into position earlier than 1754. There are four other accessible 1751-1754 stones along the TP Line: one doesn't have a PID (35-mile), one has a PID but it has been moved from its original position (25-mile) and two support modern disks that have PIDs (HU1443 at Mile 0 and HU1543 at Mile 10).

 

Will

Edited January 3, 2005 by seventhings