Daily AncestorThree hundred poles to (B)
October 3, 2026 · Wills and land · Past records
Northern Neck Grant to Francis Awbrey, Stafford County, Virginia, 1729 (Library of Virginia, Grants C, p. 30)Today
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Strutfield and bounded as followeth viz. beginning at (A) an
Hiccory on the East side of a Branch of Four Mile Run; and extending thence down
the said Branch South four and a half Degrees, Weſt three hundred Poles to (B)
the Lower Side of the Run, opposite to the Mouth of the Branch; thence up the said Four
The first boundary line runs "South four and a half Degrees, West three hundred Poles" from corner A to corner B. How long is it?
Correct
Not quite
This is a metes and bounds survey: a compass bearing (S 4.5 degrees W) plus a distance, from corner to corner, starting at a marked hickory. A pole (also rod or perch) is 16.5 feet, so 300 poles is 4,950 feet, a little under a mile. Plotting these calls on paper lets you redraw your ancestor's land and match it to neighbors' grants.
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