Survey monument marker opinion wanted

[chim]

My guess is that pipe cap was made by Grinnell. They had a foundry near here some years ago.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

my luck that pipe cap would be connected to a 1,000 gallon underground tank full of waste engine oil......

 

[ctfjr]

I've been on the hunt for the markers for this property that we bought almost 2 years ago. It only just under 3 acres and the neighbors have been very friendly but. . .
As the previous owner, an old friend of mine, found out, that means squat. When his neighbor on the north side died his heirs wanted to subdivide his lot, about 20 acres, and sell them off. Long story short, My friend's surveyor really fubared the initial survey. Joe, my friend, had the property line running through his house - the survey was off by 50'
iirc his title insurance company paid over $250k to buy a strip of land from the heirs.

I have the plot plan Joe left for me with the markers called out on it. I have been able to find 2 of them in the woods. One must be from the original plan from many many years ago. It shows the marker in the corner of a stone wall. Its still there buried under the detritus of the forest. I put 4' orange / white fiberglass snow markers in next to both of them.

My neighbor on the south side has a couple of tractors and we are on good terms. When I was clearing an area in the woods on his side I made it a point to ask where the property line was. He was very nonchalant about it. Told me not to worry and do whatever I wanted in there. Not a good idea.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

My property line story:
When we bought our place our neighbor was at one time the original owner of our land, and he had a super wide easement across our property. The easement amounted to over an acre and cut right through the middle of the property.

I'll spare you all the details (long and drawn out) of issues with the old neighbor, but he passed and the family sold the property to a company.
The company has been the greatest neighbors anyone could ask for.
Turns out the Old man had moved every single property corner 30+ feet in his favor many many years ago around 1940.
He used a very old Idaho farming law (1840 iirc) that said that any farm owner could use 30 feet of any adjoining property to turn mule teams around, and used that to justify his "taking".
Well it's not an active law and the new owners got enough complaints and inquires about "real property corners" that they did a full survey, I offered to pay for my line but they said it was no problem they would pay for it.
Turns out they lost 24 acres in total on all the property lines, I gained 1 1/4 acres out of it.
Oh and they didn't want or need the easement across my property and "sold" it back to me for a really good "price".
So I have great neighbors, with Zero issues and no more easement across my property and gained 2 1/4 acres.

 

[ken erickson]

My property line story:
When we bought our place our neighbor was at one time the original owner of our land, and he had a super wide easement across our property. The easement amounted to over an acre and cut right through the middle of the property.

I'll spare you all the details (long and drawn out) of issues with the old neighbor, but he passed and the family sold the property to a company.
The company has been the greatest neighbors anyone could ask for.
Turns out the Old man had moved every single property corner 30+ feet in his favor many many years ago around 1940.
He used a very old Idaho farming law (1840 iirc) that said that any farm owner could use 30 feet of any adjoining property to turn mule teams around, and used that to justify his "taking".
Well it's not an active law and the new owners got enough complaints and inquires about "real property corners" that they did a full survey, I offered to pay for my line but they said it was no problem they would pay for it.
Turns out they lost 24 acres in total on all the property lines, I gained 1 1/4 acres out of it.
Oh and they didn't want or need the easement across my property and "sold" it back to me for a really good "price".
So I have great neighbors, with Zero issues and no more easement across my property and gained 2 1/4 acres.

Sounds like a great outcome!

 

[The Evil Twin]

Don't open the cap. It's the gateway to Hell.

 

[DustyRusty]

My neighbor pulled the pin that the surveyor put in the week before and did it right before me, saying it was in the wrong place. I hammered it back in place and it is down far enough that it will take a backhoe to get it out the next time. I thought about calling the State Police, but that would have just exasperated the situation even though it is illegal to mess with property markers.

 

[skeets]

See what happens when you start cutting line trees !

 

[Pjridge]

That is a survey/monument well…the actual marker is under the lid.

OP, there are rules regarding what gets set in the field. Check with the county and they will have recorded maps and various documents that will help you figure out what the monument represents.

I owned a survey firm at one time and have found the county surveyors very valuable in helping discern what field conditions represent.

There are usually notes about what instruments are set in the field (pipe, iron pipe, monument, brass discs and wells (like above) that contain various types of monuments). There are also things like Witness Monuments, Section, township and range monuments, property corners, ROW and more…

That pipe should be identifiable in the county records, including when and who set it and what it specifically represents.

Great advice. I was a surveyor for 20 yrs in Tennessee. Each state has their own laws and regulations to govern licensed surveyors. In Tn since the early 90’s the surveyor’s license number has to be attached to whatever monument they set as a property corner with a minimum size of 1/2” diameter. The description of the survey should describe each and every offset and/or corner monument. location, pointers (if any), size, type and type of identification cap or tag. Look up all documentations you can find. I would be surprised if your 1999 survey description doesn’t describe that monument in more detail. That’s what survey descriptions are for.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

See what happens when you start cutting line trees !

neighbour destroyed his BRAND NEW rider when he cut the grass next to the treeline. Square bar did some serious damage.. like L-shaped blades, shattered spindles.... he 'buried' the bar....yes, it's now 6 FEET below grade. pretty sure them new fancy detectors won't find it. yes, his lawn looks GREAT under the trees !!

 

[lynnmor]

neighbour destroyed his BRAND NEW rider when he cut the grass next to the treeline. Square bar did some serious damage.. like L-shaped blades, shattered spindles.... he 'buried' the bar....yes, it's now 6 FEET below grade. pretty sure them new fancy detectors won't find it. yes, his lawn looks GREAT under the trees !!

Not sure what good can come of a marker that cannot be found.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

It can't destroy any more riders !!!
FYI there's 4 others nearby, it was only the corner one that's now 'vertically challenged. Anyone should be able to draw 2 straight lines, find the intersection and then dig down. it's there,been there for 39 years.

 

[Pjridge]

Not sure what good can come of a marker that cannot be found.

Nothing good.

 

[Pjridge]

It can't destroy any more riders !!!
FYI there's 4 others nearby, it was only the corner one that's now 'vertically challenged. Anyone should be able to draw 2 straight lines, find the intersection and then dig down. it's there,been there for 39 years.

New neighbor? I mean if it’s been there 39 years and I thought there was a chance I would forget about it and hit it with a mower I believe I’d just marked it better or drove a fence post beside it. Thats just me though. I guess as long as both parties agree to drive it 6’ deep ok.

 

[North Idaho Wolfman]

neighbour destroyed his BRAND NEW rider when he cut the grass next to the treeline. Square bar did some serious damage.. like L-shaped blades, shattered spindles.... he 'buried' the bar....yes, it's now 6 FEET below grade. pretty sure them new fancy detectors won't find it. yes, his lawn looks GREAT under the trees !!

That's a stupid remedy IMHO.

For one, he should not have been On Top of or over that marker period, That's just proof that he was trespassing.

 

[JimDeL]

New neighbor? I mean if it’s been there 39 years if I thought there were a chance I would forget about it and hit it with a mower I believe I’d just marked it better or drove a fence post beside it. Thats just me though. I guess as long as both parties agree to drive it 6’ deep ok.

I have a t-post driven adjacent to all of my corner markers, and I've painted the posts dayglow orange.

 

[Pjridge]

I have a t-post driven adjacent to all of my corner markers, and I've painted the posts dayglow orange.

So do I All my corners have steel fence post beside the actual survey monuments except the natural monuments used such as trees.

 

[GreensvilleJay]

He wasn't trespassing, owns BOTH properties. Big issue were the 75 year old sugar maples kinda grew since the bars were first installed. corner tree is almost 4' in diameter.Maple leaves are GREAT compost !
BTW city here 'drowned' ALL of our records when they 'annexed' us, so unless YOU have a survey, you're into 10-15K to have one done.