Imágenes de páginas
PDF
EPUB

401

76

BOUNDARIES OF THE

UNITED STATES AND THE SEVERAL STATES

Valentine and Collins line of 1772 (p. 64) from the middle of Lake Champlain to the St. Lawrence. From Lake Champlain westward the survey was commenced by Collins and Sauthier in 1773 and completed by Collins the following year (Mayo, 1923, p. 255-265). The boundary as thus marked is far from being a straight line (fig. 18). It is in places half a mile north of the 45th parallel, and that parallel is crossed by it in two places west of Rouses Point; but it was finally accepted and confirmed by the treaty of 1842 as part of the north boundary of the United States. (See p. 20 for reference to the St. Lawrence and lake parts of the boundary.)

The boundary between New York and New Jersey was plainly stated in the grant by the Duke of York to Berkeley and Carteret. (See p. 75.) In 1719 attempts were made to have the line run and marked, but nothing seems to have been done till 1769, when the King appointed commissioners, who fixed on substantially the present line. In 1772 this line was accepted by both colonies, and in 1773 it was confirmed by the King in council. Commissioners were appointed

[blocks in formation]

to survey and mark the line, which was described as follows (New Jersey Stat., 1821, p. 29-34):

A direct and straight line from the fork or branch formed by the junction of the stream or waters called the Machackamack with the river Delaware or Fishkill, in the latitude of 41°21′37′′, to a rock on the west side of the Hudson River, marked by the said surveyors, in the latitude of 41°-said rock was ordered to be marked with the following words and figures, viz: "Latitude 41° north;" and on the south side thereof, "New Jersey:" and on the north side thereof, "New York;" also to mark every tree that stood on the line with five notches and a blaze on the northwest and southeast sides thereof, and to put up stone monuments, at 1 mile distance from each other, along the said line, and to number such monuments with the number of miles; the same shall be from the before-mentioned marked rock on the west side of Hudson's River, and mark the words "New Jersey" on the south side and the words "New York" on the north side of every of the said monuments.

In 1833 commissioners were appointed by New York and New Jersey for the settlement of the territorial limits and jurisdiction of the two States. The commissioners reached an agreement, which was ratified in 1834 by each State and was confirmed by Congress by an act approved June 28, 1834, (4 Stat. L. 708; New York Rev. Stat., 1882, v. 1), providing as follows:

ARTICLE FIRST. The boundary line between the two states of New York and New Jersey, from a point in the middle of Hudson river, opposite the point on the west shore thereof, in the forty-first degree of north latitude, as heretofore ascertained and marked, to the main sea, shall be the middle of the said river, of the Bay of New York, of the waters between Staten Island and New Jersey, and of Raritan Bay, to the main sea; except as hereinafter otherwise particularly mentioned.

72°

[merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small]

BOSTON CORNER CESSION 1853

C

[blocks in formation]
[blocks in formation]
[blocks in formation]

76°

St. Lawrence

A River

[blocks in formation]

LAKE CHAMPLAIN

REDUCTION OF 1791

Connecticut

Hudson River

NH

SS

N

N J

COLN N

LONG ISLAND

75°

[ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][ocr errors]

74°

150 MILES

150 KILOMETRES

[blocks in formation]

43

FIGURE 18.-Historical diagram of New York.

ARTICLE SECOND. The state of New York shall retain its present jurisdiction of and over Bedloe's and Ellis's islands; and shall also retain exclusive jurisdiction of and over the other islands lying in the waters above mentioned and now under the jurisdiction of that state.

ARTICLE THIRD. The State of New York shall have and enjoy exclusive jurisdiction of and over all the waters of the bay of New York; and of and over all the waters of Hudson river lying west of Manhattan Island and to the south of the mouth of Spuytenduyvel creek; and of and over the lands covered by the said waters to the low water mark on the westerly or New Jersey side thereof; subject to the following rights of property and of jurisdiction of the state of New Jersey; that is to say:

1. The state of New Jersey shall have the exclusive right of property in and to the land under water lying west of the middle of the bay of New York, and west of the middle of that part of the Hudson river which lies between Manhattan island and New Jersey. [248 U.S. 328.]

2. The state of New Jersey shall have the exclusive jurisdiction of and over the wharves, docks, and improvements, made and to be made on the shore of the said state; and of and over all vessels aground on said shore, or fastened to any such wharf or dock, except that the said vessels shall be subject to the quarantine or health laws and laws in relation to passengers, of the state of New York, which now exist or which may hereafter be passed.

3. The state of New Jersey shall have the exclusive right of regulating the fisheries on the westerly side of the middle of said waters, Provided, That the navigation be not obstructed or hindered.

ARTICLE FOURTH. The state of New York shall have exclusive jurisdiction of and over the waters of the Kill Van Kull between Staten Island and New Jersey to the westernmost end of Shooter's Island in respect to such quarantine laws, and laws relating to passengers as now exist or may hereafter be passed under the authority of that state, and for executing the same; and the said state shall also have exclusive jurisdiction for the like purposes of and over the waters of the sound from the westernmost end of Shooter's Island to Woodbridge creek as to all vessels bound to any port in the said state of New York. ARTICLE FIFTH. The state of New Jersey shall have and enjoy exclusive jurisdiction of and over all the waters of the sound between Staten Island and New Jersey lying south of Woodbridge creek, and of and over all the waters of Raritan Bay lying westward of a line drawn from the light-house at Prince's bay to the mouth of Mattavan creek; subject to the following rights of property and of jurisdiction of the state of New York; that is to say:

1. The state of New York shall have the exclusive right of property in and to the land under water lying between the middle of the said waters and Staten Island.

2. The state of New York shall have the exclusive jurisdiction of and over the wharves, docks, and improvements made and to be made on the shore of Staten Island, and of and over all vessels aground on said shore or fastened to any such wharf or dock; except that the said vessels shall be subject to the quarantine or health laws in relation to passengers of the state of New Jersey which now exist or which may hereafter be passed.

3. The state of New York shall have the exclusive right of regulating the fisheries between the shore of Staten Island and the middle of said waters: Provided, That the navigation of the said waters be not obstructed or hindered.

Bedloes Island and Ellis Island, although on the New Jersey side of the boundary, are under the jurisdiction. of the State of New York and are a part of Greater New York City.82

83 See New York State Laws of 1909, chap. 59, sec. 7 and Greater New York charter, 1897, chap. 1, sec. 2.

77

BOUNDARY LINES OF THE STATES NEW YORK

In 1876 commissioners were appointed to relocate the land boundary between New York and New Jersey and either to replace monuments that had become dilapidated or destroyed or to erect new ones. The commissioners found slight discrepancies between some of the original marks and the published descriptions, thereof, and the legislature of each State ordered that the original monuments should be considered the true boundary. (See New York S. Doc. 17 of 1875 and New York S. Doc. 20 of 1882.)

In 1874 the New Jersey Geological Survey retraced the land boundary between New Jersey and New York. The report by the State geologist, published at New Brunswick in 1874, contains a plat showing the divergence between the line as run and marked in 1774 by compass and the true arc of a great circle between the two terminals. The greatest divergence is at Greenwood Lake (mile 26 from the Hudson River) and is 2,415 feet. Throughout its length the accepted boundary is south of the straight line and thus gives to New York about 10 square miles of territory that was originally intended to be a part of New Jersey.

After this survey New Jersey proposed that New York should consent to a relocation of the boundary on the arc of a circle, but New York failed to concur. Later the two States accepted the line as marked in 1774 as a valid boundary and appointed commissioners, who re-marked the entire line in 1882 with granite monuments placed at each highway and railroad crossing and at the end of each mile, measured from the bank of the Hudson (Laws of New York for 1880 and Laws of New Jersey for 1881).

In 1887 a joint commission of the two States was appointed to determine and mark the boundary through Raritan Bay. This commission came to an agreement, the terms of which are as follows:

First. From "Great Beds light-house," in Raritan bay, north, twenty degrees sixteen minutes west, true, to a point in the middle of the waters of Arthur Kill, or Staten Island Sound, equidistant between the southwesterly corner of the dwelling house of David C. Butler, at Ward's Point, on Staten Island, in the State of New York, at the southeasterly corner of the brick building on the lands of Cortlandt L. Parker, at the intersection of the westerly line of Water street with the northerly line of Lewis street, in Perth Amboy, in the State of New Jersey.

Second. From "Great Beds light-house," south, sixty-four degrees and twenty-one minutes east, true (S. 64°21′ E.), in line with the center of Waackaack or Wilson's beacon, in Monmouth County, New Jersey, to a point at the intersection of said line with a line connecting "Morgan No. 2" triangulation point, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, in

78

BOUNDARIES OF THE

UNITED STATES AND THE SEVERAL STATES

Middlesex County, New Jersey, with the "Granite and Iron beacon," marked on the accompanying maps as "Romer stone beacon," situated on the "Dry Romer shoal;" and thence on a line bearing north, seventy-seven degrees and nine minutes east, true (N. 77°9′ E.), connecting "Morgan No. 2" triangulation point, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, in Middlesex County, New Jersey, with said "Romer stone beacon" (the line passing through said beacon and continuing in the same direction), to a point at its intersection with a line drawn between the "Hook beacon," on Sandy Hook, New Jersey, and the triangulation point of the U.S. Geodetic Survey, known as the Oriental Hotel, on Coney Island, New York; then southeasterly, at right angles with the last-mentioned line to the main sea.

Third. The monumental marks by which said boundary line shall be hereafter known and recognized are hereby declared to be as follows:

1. The "Great Beds light-house."

2. A permanent monument marked "State boundary line New York and New Jersey," and to be placed at the intersection of the line drawn from the "Great Beds light-house" to "Waackaack or Wilson's beacon," Monmouth County, New Jersey, and the line drawn from "Morgan No. 2" triangulation point, U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, in Middlesex County, New Jersey, to "Romer stone beacon."

3. Eight buoys or spindles, to be marked like the permanent monument above mentioned, and placed at suitable intervening points along the line from the said permanent monument to the "Romer stone beacon."

4. The "Romer stone beacon."

In 1774 commissions were appointed by New York and Pennsylvania to fix the "beginning of the 43d degree" of north latitude (the 42d parellel) on the Mohawk or western branch of the Delaware River, which is the northeast corner of Pennsylvania, and to proceed westward and fix the line between Pennsylvania and New York. These commissioners reported in December of the same year that they had fixed the northeast corner of Pennsylvania and marked it as follows (Pennsylvania Dept. Internal Affairs, 1887, p. 495):

in a small Island marked B in the Draught planted a Stone with the Letters NEW-YORK, 1774 Cut on one side and on the Top LAT. 42° VAR 4°20'. Thence due West on the West side of Delaware River, We collected a Heap of Stones at High Water mark and in the said West line 4 Perches distant, planted another Stone as at C with the Letters PENNSLYVANIA 1774 Cut on the South side and on Top Lat 42° Var. 4°20' and from thence due West 18 P. marked an Ash Tree. But the rigour of the Season prevented us from proceeding further.

Nothing further seems to have been done until 178687, when commissioners were appointed to finish the work thus begun, and the lines were run and monuments erected. The line was ratified by Pennsylvania in 1789, but no action was taken by the New York Legislature until the adoption of the revised statutes in 1829. The line is described as follows (Pennsylvania

Stat. L., 1908, v. 13 p. 378-379, Harrisburg, Mitchell & Flanders; New York Rev. Stat., 1882, v. 1, p. 130, Albany, Banks & Bros.):

A meridian line drawn through the most westerly bent or inclination of Lake Ontario; then south along said meridian line to a monument in the beginning of the forty-third degree of north latitude [on the forty-second parallel], erected in the year 1787, by Abraham Hardenburgh and William W. Morris, commissioners on the part of this state, and Andrew Ellicott and Andrew Porter, commissioners on the part of the state of Pennsylvania, for the purpose of marking the termination of the line of jurisdiction between this state and the said state of Pennsylvania; then east along the line established and marked by said last mentioned commissioners to the ninetieth milestone in the same parallel of latitude, erected in the year 1786, by James Clinton and Simon DeWitt, commissioners on the part of this State, and Andrew Ellicott, commissioner on the part of Pennsylvania; which said ninetieth milestone stands on the western side of the south branch of the Tioga River; then east along the line established and marked by said last-mentioned commissioners, to a stone erected in the year 1774, on a small island in the Delaware river, by Samuel Holland and David Rittenhouse, commissioners on the part of the colonies of New York and Pennsylvania, for the purpose of marking the beginning of the forty-third degree of north latitude; then down along said Delaware river to a point opposite to the fork or branch formed by the junction of the stream called Mahackamack with the said Delaware river, in the latitude of 41°21'37'' north; then in a straight line to the termination, on the east bank of the Delaware river of a line run in the year 1774, by William Wickham and Samuel Gale, commissioners on the part of the then colony of New York, and John Stevens and Walter Rutherford, commissioners on the part of the then colony of New Jersey.

The meridian line forming part of the west boundary of New York was surveyed and marked in 1790 by Andrew Ellicott. In order to fix the initial point for this line, Ellicott ran a traverse line from the west end of Lake Ontario along the lake shore to the Niagara River, up and across that river, thence southwest along the south shore of Lake Erie to the computed longitude of the starting point. The notes of this survey have been lost. (New York [State] Univ., 1874, v. 1, p. 324.) The total length of the meridian line from a stone post set on the shore of Lake Erie to the Pennsylvania north line was later found to be 98,525 feet. In 1869 a large granite monument was set at a point 440 feet south of the lake-shore mark. (See fig. 2C.)

Positions on 1927 N.A.D. for some of these monuments are given below. They fall south of the parallel of 42° latitude.

The initial monument, of granite, is 600 feet west of the center of the Delaware River, lat 41°59′58.26" N., long 75°21'43.07" W.

Boundary mark 6:41°59'56.95", 75°28'39.79''.
Boundary mark 54:41°59′54.72".

Monument 221, 3.8 miles east of the southwest corner of New York, lat 41°59′55.90" N., long 79°41'12.84" W. The New York-Pennsylvania boundary line was resurveyed in whole or in part in 1877-79; between 1881 and 1885 all missing marks were replaced with granite posts. There are now 519 stone monuments on the 42d

83

parallel line, 224 of which are milestones. There are 18 milestones and 32 other marks on the meridian boundary. The marks between milestones on these lines are mostly at county corners and highway crossings.s These boundaries as now located were confirmed by congressional act of August 19, 1890,84 which contains a brief history of the lines.

In order that the transportation and terminal facilities in the area including New York City and the adjacent part of New Jersey might be systematically developed, the legislatures of the two States in 1921 created a Port of New York District, within which three commissioners from each State should constitute a Port of New York Authority for the preparation of plans for tunnels, bridges, and railways, which, when approved by the States, should be constructed under their supervision. This compact by the States was approved by Congress August 23, 1921 (42 Stat. 174), and the general plans prepared by the commissioners were approved by the State legislature and Congress in 1922 (42 Stat. 822). The Port of New York District is irregular in outline. It includes near its borders parts or all of Paterson, Summit, Plainfield, New Brunswick, and Sandy Hook, N.J., and Rockaway Beach, Jamaica, Rye, and White Plains, N.Y., and covers a total area of about 1,540 square miles.

NEW JERSEY

Although the original grant of 1606 from the English sovereign covered the territory forming the present State of New Jersey, the first grant that directly related to New Jersey was that given in 1664 to Lord John Berkeley and Sir George Carteret, by the Duke of York, two months before the setting out of his expedition to take possession of New York. The following extract from that grant defines the boundaries (Thorpe, 1909, v. 5, p. 2534):

all that tract of land adjacent to New England, and lying and being to the westward of Long Island and Manhitas Island, and bounded on the east part by the main sea and part by Hudson's river, and hath upon the west Delaware bay or river, and extended southward to the main ocean as far as Cape May, at the mouth of the Delaware bay, and to the northward as far as the northermost branch of the said bay or river of Delaware, which is forty-one degrees and forty minutes of latitude, and crosseth over thence in a straight line to Hudson's river, in forty-one degree of latitude; which said tract of land is hereafter to be called by the names of New Caeserea or New Jersey.

83 For a description of each mark, see Pennsylvania Dept. Internal Affairs (1893, p. 49A-134A).

84 26 Stat. L. 329. For references to Pennsylvania-New York boundary surveys and marks, see Cary and Riorden, Laws of Pennsylvania, v. 3, p. 392, and Reports of the Regents of the University of the State of New York: New York S. Doc. 108 for 1873 (pub. in 1874), Assembly Doc. 91 for 1879, Assembly Doc. 49 for 1870, Assembly Dpc. 100 for 1880, S. Doc. 20 for 1882, S. Doc. 71 for 1886; 26 Stat. L. 333. The southwest corner of New York is described in New York S. Doc. 71, 1886, p. 258.

85 This point, now called the Tri-State Rock, has since been found to be at lat 41°21 22.6" N. and long 74 °41'40.7" W.

79

BOUNDARY LINES OF THE STATES NEW JERSEY

In March, 1673, Lord Berkeley sold his undivided. moiety of New Jersey to John Fenwick, by whom, in the following year, it was again sold. On July 1, 1676, was executed the famous "Quintipartite deed" by which the eastern part was given to Sir George Carteret, to be called east New Jersey, and the western part to William Penn and 11 other proprietors, to be called west New Jersey. The dividing line between the two parts as described in the act of March 27, 1719, was a straight line from the northwest corner of the province, on the Delaware River, to the most southerly point of an "island of sand known by the name of Little Egg Harbour."

[ocr errors]

Sir George Carteret, at his death in 1678, left his land to be sold. It was sold in 1682 to the 12 proprietors of west New Jersey, who admitted other partners. Confirmation grants were made to the proprietors of both provinces by the Duke of York and confirmed by the King, but between 1697 and 1701 the proprietors repeatedly made petitions to be allowed to surrender their right of government to the Crown. In 1702 the surrender was made and was accepted by Queen Anne, and the two parts were united and made the province of New Jersey. (Thorpe, 1909, p. 2585.)

For the history of the northern and eastern boundaries, see New York, pages 76, 77.

The grant from the Duke of York to Berkeley and Carteret defined the west boundary of New Jersey to be the Delaware River (see above).

The line between New Jersey and Delaware is thus described (Revised Statutes of Delaware, 1874, chap. 1, sec. 2).

Low-water mark on the eastern side of the river Delaware, within the twelve-mile circle from New Castle; and the middle of the bay below said circle.

In 1876 the Legislature of New Jersey authorized the governor to commence a suit in the Supreme Court of the United States to settle the boundary between New Jersey and Delaware. New Jersey claimed jurisdiction and title to the middle of the Delaware River and Delaware Bay within the 12-mile circle, while Delaware claimed the area to the low-water mark on the east shore. The suit commenced under this act was "dismissed without prejudice" in April, 1917 (205 U.S. 550).

Meanwhile the questions of jurisdiction and ownership of the tract had been under discussion by commissioners representing the two States, who in 1905 entered into a compact providing for concurrent juris

80

BOUNDARIES OF THE

UNITED STATES AND THE SEVERAL STATES

diction over the disputed area, but they could not agree on the proper location of the boundary line. This compact was ratified by the legislatures and approved by Congress by act of January 24, 1907.

Suit was again entered in the Supreme Court at its October term, 1929, in an attempt to obtain a final settlement of this long-standing controversy. New Jersey's bill of complaint and Delaware's answer contain considerable historical matter relating to the two States. The adverse claims to the area in question were reviewed at great length in Senate Executive Document 21, Thirtieth Congress, first session, published in 1848. Although the total area involved was only about 22 square miles, it included valuable oyster beds and was therefore of importance to New Jersey. The decision of the Court, handed down February 5, 1934, validated the claim of Delaware that the boundary is the lowwater mark on the eastern shore of the river within the 12-mile circle. It further decreed that the boundary is the main channel of navigation below the circle. This decree granted the claim of New Jersey (291 U.S. 361). Commissioners were appointed by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to settle the jursdiction over the Delaware River and the islands within it, and their report (Revision of the Statutes of New Jersey, 1877, p. 11811182), ratified in 1783, is in part as follows:

First. It is declared that the river Delaware from the station point or northwest corner of New Jersey, northerly' to the place upon the said river where the circular boundary of the State of Delaware toucheth upon the same, in the whole length and breadth thereof, is and shall continue to be and remain a common highway, equally free and open for the use, benefit, and advantage of the said contracting parties, etc.

Secondly. That each State shall enjoy and exercise a concurrent jurisdiction, within and upon the water, and not upon the dry land between the shores of said river.

The rule for apportioning the islands was that they should be assigned to the State

to which such insulated dry land doth lie nearest, at the time of making and executing this agreement; and that all other islands within said river between the falls of Trenton and the State of Delaware, which are not hereinafter particularly enumerated, shall be hereafter deemed and considered as parts and parcels of the State, to which such island doth lie nearest at the date hereof; islands hereafter formed shall be classed and annexed according to the same principal. The islands between the falls of Trenton and the Delaware line were divided as follows: Biles Island,

[ocr errors]

86 This is a mistake. The line runs south.

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

near Trenton; Windmill Island, opposite Philadelphia; League Island, Mud or Fort Island, Hog Island, and Little Tinicum Island were assigned to Pennsylvania. To New Jersey were given Biddles or Newbolds, Burlington, Pettys, Red Bank, Harmanus, Helms, Chester, and Shiverses Islands.

In 1786 other commissioners were appointed by New Jersey and Pennsylvania for more accurately determining and describing the islands in the Delaware from the northwest corner of New Jersey down to the falls of Trenton. Their report was ratified and confirmed by Pennsylvania and New Jersey in 1786. The New Jersey act of March 16, 1786 (Laws of New Jersey, ed. of 1821, p. 78-79), mentions 75 of the islands by name.

PENNSYLVANIA

87

The Swedish West India Co., chartered by the King of Sweden in 1625, established the first permanent settlement on the west bank of the Delaware, occupying a part of the territory now in Pennsylvania and Delaware; the Dutch had previously established trading posts there, which had been destroyed by the Indians. The Swedes acquired, by successive purchases from the Indian chiefs, all the land extending from Cape Henlopen to the great falls of the Delaware and called it New Sweden. In 1655 this territory was surrendered to the Dutch. (Hazard, 1850, p. 185.)

By the conquest of the New Netherlands, in 1664, the Duke of York seems to have claimed successfully the settlements on the west bank of the Delaware as part of his dominions.

In 1681 Charles II of England granted to William Penn the Province of Pennsylvania. The following extract from the charter defines the boundaries (Thorpe, 1909, v. 5, p. 3036):

all that Tract or Parte of Land in America, with all the Islands therein conteyned, as the same is bounded on the East by Delaware River, from the twelve miles distance northwards of New Castle Towne unto the three and fortieth degree of Northerne Latitude, if the said River doeth extende so farre Northwards; But if the said River shall not extend soe farre Northward, then by the said River soe farr as it doth extend; and from the head of the said River the Easterne Bounds are to bee determined by a Meridian Line, to bee drawne from the head of the said River, unto the said three and fortieth Degree. The said Lands to extend westwards five degrees in longitude, to bee computed from the said Easterne Bounds; and the said Lands to bee bounded on the North by the beginning of the three and fortieth degree of Northerne Latitude, and on the South by a Circle drawne at twelve miles distance from New Castle Northward and Westward unto the beginning of the fortieth degree of Northern Latitude, and thence by a streight Line Westward to the Limitt of Longitude above mentioned.

The following explanation regarding the use of the word "beginning" in connection with degrees of latitude in this grant is given by Donaldson (1884, p. 46):

87 The full legal title for Pennsylvania is "the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania."

« AnteriorContinuar »