The Borden Base Line is a historic survey line (7.42 miles, long) running north–south through Hatfield and

South Deerfield, Massachusetts South Deerfield is a census-designated place (CDP) in Deerfield, Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. It is home to the Yankee Candle Company. At the 2010 census, the population of South Deerfield was 1,880. South Deerfield is part of ...

. It was completed in 1831. It was designated a

National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark __NOTOC__ The following is a list of Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks as designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers since it began the program in 1964. The designation is granted to projects, structures, and sites in the United State ...

by the

American Society of Civil Engineers American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

in 1981. The baseline measurement was the first project of its kind undertaken in America, and essential for Massachusetts' pioneering Trigonometrical Survey, performed under chief engineer Robert Treat Paine. Its careful measurement was critical since the accuracy of the whole triangulation network depended on it. The baseline was measured with greater accuracy than previously possible by using a new measuring device invented by

Simeon Borden Simeon Borden (January 29, 1798 – October 28, 1856) was an American inventor, engineer, and noted surveyor. Borden was born in Freetown, now Fall River, Massachusetts, to Simeon and Amey Briggs Borden, he was the 4th great gra ...

, which employed a bi-metallic measuring instrument to provide constant readings despite temperature variations. His apparatus was long, enclosed in a tube, and employed with four compound microscopes. Borden was a highly competent engineer whose ability was widely recognized. Indeed, the entire project became generally known as the Borden Survey. He measured the baseline with a nominal accuracy of better than one part in 5 million. As Professor A. D. Butterfield has written, "The work performed and results obtained far surpassed in magnitude and attainment of any previous work of this kind in America." It appears that the north end of the baseline lies just south of the intersection of today's Route 116 and Route 5 in

. According to the Valley Historians, the south end is still marked by a copper plug set into a boulder, located in the back yard of the house at 30 Bridge Street, Hatfield, Massachusetts.

External links

American Society of Civil Engineers -Borden baseline 1831 landmark

References

* Butterfield, A. D., "History and Development of Triangulation in Massachusetts", in ''The Journal of the Worcester Polytechnic Institute'', Volume I, Nos. 3 and 4, pp. 285–299 and 335–355, 1898. * * * {{cite web , url=http://vhist.com/ma/ma_bor_baseline.htm , title=Notes on the Borden Baseline , author= , website=Valley Historians , date=December 31, 2006 , access-date=January 30, 2022 Surveying Geography of the United States Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks Hatfield, Massachusetts Deerfield, Massachusetts

See also

External links

References