Original Pipes Versus Plat Distances in a 1957 Subdivision
Two rusted iron pipes with no caps, set in concrete, are found at the rear corners of Lot 12 of a 1957 Gloucester County subdivision. The plat's monument note describes iron pipes in concrete at those corners. The front corners are original concrete monuments that agree with the plat within 0.05 ft. The two rear pipes lie about 0.8 ft east and 0.8 ft south of positions computed from the plat bearings and distances, in a consistent direction, and the distance between them matches the plat rear-line distance to 0.02 ft. The lot's measured frontage is 100.8 ft against a record 100.00 ft. The title company asks the surveyor to hold the plat distances and show the pipes as 'offset monuments' so the Schedule B description can be written from the plat. A shed on the adjoining lot crosses the rear line by 1.2 ft using the plat line and by 0.4 ft using the pipe line.
1. Which controls here - the found pipes or the plat bearings and distances? What evidence would change your answer?
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General hierarchy. In a retracement, evidence of the original boundary location outranks the written record when the two conflict. Original monuments set by the subdivider when the plat was recorded ordinarily control over the courses and distances on the plat, because the physical act of setting the corners is what created the lots on the ground. The record is the best evidence only until better evidence - the original corners - is found.
Apply it. The pipes are corroborated as original: they sit in concrete, matching the plat's monument note; the distance between them matches the record rear line to 0.02 ft; the front corners are undisturbed originals; and the offset is consistent in direction, which suggests a systematic blunder or an unchecked bearing/transcription error at platting rather than random field error. Each of these supports identification with reasonable certainty. On that evidence, hold the pipes. The plat distances describe where the corners were intended to be, not where the subdivider actually put them.
What would flip the result. If the pipes were set later by another surveyor, carry no original identity, or are inconsistent with the occupation and with the adjoining lots' rear corners, they lose their status and the plat line governs. Check the adjoining rear corners: do they show the same uniform offset (supporting an original systematic error) or only Lot 12 (supporting a later, local disturbance)? Look for caps, pipe type, depth, and any later survey filed on the block.
On the wording. Do not label the pipes 'offset monuments' as a way of quietly privileging the plat. Show them as found, give the relationship to record, and state which line you hold and why.
2. How should the shed encroachment be resolved and reported, and what should the surveyor not decide?
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Measure from the boundary you hold. If the pipes control, the shed overlaps the rear line by about 0.4 ft, not 1.2 ft. Publishing the 1.2-ft figure based on a record line you have rejected is internally inconsistent and would mislead the parties.
Report both, label clearly. Show the pipe line as the boundary of record position, show the plat line as a record line for comparison, and dimension the shed to the line you hold. Add a note identifying the basis of the boundary and the fact that the occupation (shed and any fence) predates or coincides with the discrepancy. Report the encroachment and the uniformity of the offset to the client and the title company in writing.
What the surveyor must not do. Do not decide title, do not declare that the neighbor has acquired the strip, and do not declare that the encroachment is harmless. Whether a long-standing occupation ripens into a right depends on the statutory period and on the character of the use - questions for counsel and, ultimately, the court. The surveyor's job is to locate, measure, and disclose.
Practical options to hand to the client. A boundary line agreement or quitclaim resolving the 0.4 ft; a lot line adjustment if the municipality allows it; or removal of the shed. Flag that any resolution should be recorded so the next retracement is not run through the same dispute. Also note that if the pipes are later shown not to be original, the analysis changes and the 1.2-ft figure returns.