Daily AncestorFurlong
A furlong is 660 feet, one eighth of a mile, equal to 40 rods or 10 chains.
The word comes from Old English for the length of a furrow. It fits neatly into the surveyor's units: 40 rods or 10 Gunter's chains make a furlong, and 8 furlongs make a mile.
Furlongs appear in older descriptions of distances and roads. Today the unit survives mostly in horse racing.
As seen in a recordDeed description, 1700s
situate about three furlongs from the meeting house
Sources
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Furlong." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/money-measures/furlong. Last checked 2026-10-03.