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March 28, 2024 Rain | 49°F
The 193rd General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts

Why are Towns in Massachusetts odd shapes and square in other parts of the country?

The Original 13 Colonies used a system of measurement called metes and boundaries which relies on natural features such as streams to measure boundaries. Congress under the Articles of Confederation passed the Northwest Ordinance that became the model for subsequent land survey of United States territory. This survey system divided townships into an area of six miles square.

Northwest Ordinance

Land measurement systems

  • Metes and Bounds  - A surveying system used for the original 13 colonies that describes the perimeter of a parcel of land in terms of its bearings and distances and its relationship to natural features and adjacent parcels. 13 Colonies
    • New Hampshire
    • Massachusetts - included Maine (statehood 1820)
    • Rhode Island
    • Connecticut
    • New York - included Vermont (statehood 1791)
    • New Jersey
    • Pennsylvania
    • Delaware
    • Maryland
    • Virginia - included Kentucky (statehood 1792) and West Virginia (statehood 1863)
    • North Carolina – included Tennessee (statehood 1796)
    • South Carolina
    • Georgia
  • Public Land Survey System (PLSS) - A surveying system used in the United States to identify public land parcels normally in a rectangular area. A basic unit of this system is a township which contains 36 sections in an area six miles square. The PLSS may also use meandering. For example, the boundary meanders with a stream meaning the survey line follows the twists and turns of the stream.

State Survey Systems

StateSurvey System
AlabamaPLSS
AlaskaPLSS
ArizonaPLSS
ArkansasPLSS
CaliforniaSpanish Land Grants and PLSS
ColoradoPLSS
ConnecticutMetes and Bounds
DelawareMetes and Bounds
FloridaPLSS
GeorgiaMetes and Bounds
HawaiiKingdom of Hawaii system in place when annexed
IdahoPLSS
IllinoisPLSS
IndianaPLSS
IowaPLSS
KansasPLSS
KentuckyMetes and Bounds
LouisianaFrench and Spanish Boundaries and PLSS
MaineMetes and Bounds
MarylandMetes and Bounds
Massachusetts included Maine (statehood 1820)Metes and Bounds
MichiganPLSS
MinnesotaPLSS
MississippiPLSS
MissouriPLSS
MontanaPLSS
NebraskaPLSS
NevadaPLSS
New HampshireMetes and Bounds
New JerseyMetes and Bounds
New MexicoSpanish Land Grants and PLSS
New York included Vermont (statehood 1791)Metes and Bounds
North Carolina included Tennessee (statehood 1796)Metes and Bounds
North DakotaPLSS
OhioPLSS and Metes and Bounds
OklahomaPLSS
OregonPLSS
PennsylvaniaMetes and Bounds
Rhode IslandMetes and Bounds
South CarolinaMetes and Bounds
South DakotaPLSS
TennesseePLSS
TexasSpanish Land Grants and PLSS
UtahPLSS
VermontMetes and Bounds
Virginia included Kentucky (statehood 1792) and West Virginia (statehood 1863)Metes and Bounds
WashingtonPLSS
West VirginiaMetes and Bounds
WisconsinPLSS
WyomingPLSS

Information on public lands can be found at the US Bureau of Land Management and the General Land Office Records