Benchmarks

Actually, I just discovered it is a real “thing” while researching for this post!   Who knew?!  I am not so strange afterall.  Good to know.

Today’s survey markers (also called benchmarks, marks, monuments, and geodetic marks) are placed by the National Geodetic Survey (NGS.)The National Geodetic Survey , as it is currently known, is a United States federal agency.  Over the years, the agency has gone through a few name changes.  The agency started out as the United States Survey of the Coast (1807–1836), the United States Coast Survey (1836–1878), then the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey (1878–1970) before arriving at it’s current monike in 1970.  

They are usually round silver or bronze colored metal discs set in relatively immovable objects such as boulders and cement.  In days past, the markers could be as varied as a mark chiseled into a mountain or a bolt drilled into granite.  These markers are used as an aid in map-making, among other things, and originated with a plan to map the coast line of the United States.

According to 18 U.S. Code 1858 “Whoever willfully destroys, defaces, changes, or removes to another place any section corner, quarter-section corner, or meander post, on any Government line of survey, or willfully cuts down any witness tree or any tree blazed to mark the line of a Government survey, or willfully defaces, changes, or removes any monument or bench mark of any Government survey, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than six months, or both.”  So that pretty much nixes me ever getting a genuine one for a souvenir, however you can find replica and custom survey markers available for purchase online.  Happily, there is nothing wrong with taking a picture of a survey marker…and I have many of those!

My fascination with these markers started even before we went RVing.  The first one I ever found was on the Appalachian Trail.  It remains the screen saver on my phone to this day. I get a thrill knowing that the exact spot where I am is an important one in the measurement or the documenting of something.   I also enjoy the thrill of the hunt.  We use clues from the National Geodetic Survey database to search for the markers. So far, my most memorable find was in Galveston, TX and involved having to dig under years worth of build up of sand and grass to find the marker buried underneath. In addition to a picture of the monument, I have started taking pictures trying to show the location of the monument in relation to other stationary objects to help others find them. I would liken this hobby to geocaching.  There are also various state and other agencies that also place benchmarks, and I will never pass up the opportunity to photograph those either.  I am not a “purist”…I love them all!

If you would like to know more about survey markers, visit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Survey_marker

The website geocaching.com has a concise description of the various types of markers and their meaning and usage.  To see it, visit https://www.geocaching.com/mark/#kinds

If you would like to know more about the fascinating history of the U.S. National Geodetic Survey, the federal agency that manages the national coordinate system, visit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._National_Geodetic_Survey

Finally, if you would like to search for one of these fascinating markers for yourself, visit https://www.ngs.noaa.gov/datasheets/