A history of the Mason-Dixon line profiles surveyors Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon as they overcame the dangers and hardships of the eighteenth-century American frontier to survey the famous border.
The second edition of
Drawing the Line: How Mason and Dixon Surveyed the Most Famous Border in Americaupdates Edwin Dansons definitive history of the creation of the Mason - Dixon Line to reflect new research and archival documents that have come to light in recent years.
- Features numerous updates and revisions reflecting new information that has come to light on surveyors Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon
- Reveals the true origin of the surveys starting point and the actual location of the surveyors observatory in Embreeville
- Offers expanded information on Mason and Dixons transit of Venus adventures, which would be an important influence on their future work, and on Masons final years pursuing a share of the fabulous Longitude prize, and his death in Philadelphia
- Includes a new, more comprehensive appendix describing the surveying methods utilized to establish the Mason-Dixon Line
| List of Figures |
|
ix | |
| Acknowledgments for the Revised Edition |
|
xii | |
| Introduction to the Revised Edition |
|
xiii | |
| 1 In the Reign of George the Third |
|
1 | (5) |
| 2 The Fortieth Degree |
|
6 | (8) |
| 3 Kings and Queens |
|
14 | (6) |
| 4 Entirely at a Stand |
|
20 | (14) |
| 5 Curious Knowing People |
|
34 | (17) |
| 6 The Transit of Venus |
|
51 | (14) |
| 7 Mr. Bird's Contrivances |
|
65 | (6) |
| 8 Persons Intirely Accomplished |
|
71 | (9) |
| 9 The Southernmost Point of the City |
|
80 | (18) |
| 10 15 Statute Miles, Horizontal |
|
98 | (11) |
| 11 The Tail of Ursae Minoris |
|
109 | (7) |
| 12 Fine Sport for the Boys |
|
116 | (7) |
| 13 From the Post mark'd West |
|
123 | (8) |
| 14 The Pencil of Time |
|
131 | (9) |
| 15 King of the Tuscarawa |
|
140 | (10) |
| 16 From Hence; to the Summit |
|
150 | (10) |
| 17 At a Council of the Royal Society |
|
160 | (7) |
| 18 Vibration of the Pendulum |
|
167 | (9) |
| 19 Not One Step Further |
|
176 | (13) |
| 20 A Degree of Latitude |
|
189 | (7) |
| 21 The Last Transit |
|
196 | (6) |
| 22 A Very Helpless Condition |
|
202 | (14) |
| 23 Finishing the Job |
|
216 | (9) |
| Appendix |
|
225 | (20) |
|
|
|
225 | (3) |
|
Longitude, Latitude, and the Shape of Earth |
|
|
228 | (2) |
|
|
|
230 | (9) |
|
Degrees of Latitude: A Short History |
|
|
239 | (3) |
|
The Mystery of the MasonDixon Mile |
|
|
242 | (3) |
| Bibliography |
|
245 | (6) |
| Index |
|
251 | |
Edwin Danson is a geodetic surveyor with over 45 years of experience working on assignments in many countries, including the United States. He is a Chartered Surveyor of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and a Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineering Surveyors. He has made many contributions to professional journals and books and is a prominent authority in his field. He lives near Bristol, England.
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