WEBVTT - Short Stuff: Mason-Dixon Line

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<v Speaker 1>Hey, and welcome to the short Stuff. I'm Josh, there's

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<v Speaker 1>Chuck and there's Jerry. You can hear air conditioning in

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<v Speaker 1>the background, and this is short stuff. I got this

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<v Speaker 1>idea just a couple of days ago. Emily and I

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<v Speaker 1>were watching Jeopardy, as we don't do every night, but

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<v Speaker 1>we try to make it that appointment viewing. We have

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<v Speaker 1>a good time watching that show together. Yeah, it's great.

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<v Speaker 1>Do you remember the time we were on Jeopardy? I

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<v Speaker 1>know how about that? Uh, it's funny because my daughter

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<v Speaker 1>will walk through the room occasionally be like you were

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<v Speaker 1>on that shows. Um. So it was a question a

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<v Speaker 1>couple of nights ago or I guess an answer. A

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<v Speaker 1>clue is what they call them. And it said something

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<v Speaker 1>about these two gentlemen, and I can't remember exactly how

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<v Speaker 1>it was worded, um, but something about like surveying, and

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<v Speaker 1>I was like Lewis and Clark, and it was Mason

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<v Speaker 1>and Dixon. And being from the South, you always hear

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<v Speaker 1>about the Mason Dixon line are not always, but it's

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<v Speaker 1>a enough term to where I was like, wait a minute.

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<v Speaker 1>I was like, Mason and Dixon were people, and I

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<v Speaker 1>never really thought about it. Of course, they were, but

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<v Speaker 1>I knew nothing about this at all. So this popped up.

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<v Speaker 1>The House of Works had a pretty actually really good

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<v Speaker 1>article on it. So, um, here we go and away

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<v Speaker 1>we go. Because I thought Mason and Dixon were probably

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<v Speaker 1>politicians of some sort, I had no idea they were

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<v Speaker 1>the surveyors. You've got to be a pretty amazing surveyor

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<v Speaker 1>for somebody to name your survey after you, especially when

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<v Speaker 1>it's the one that's as important as the Mason Dixon line,

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<v Speaker 1>because as we'll see, it's the line that divided the

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<v Speaker 1>north and the south. But even before that, decades before that,

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<v Speaker 1>it was a really important line that settled the decades

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<v Speaker 1>long boundary dispute between William Penn and the Pennsylvania Colony

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<v Speaker 1>and um Lord Baltimore Charles Calvert of the Maryland Colony

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<v Speaker 1>to the south. And those two were really going at it.

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<v Speaker 1>And the reason they were going at it was because

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<v Speaker 1>Penn was given the land down to the parallel fortieth

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<v Speaker 1>degree latitude north latitude, and Calvert, Lord Calvert was given

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<v Speaker 1>the land from I think like the Potomac up to parallel.

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<v Speaker 1>The problem is the earliest maps that map Parallel got

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<v Speaker 1>it kind of wrong, and Philadelphia by these early maps,

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<v Speaker 1>was in Maryland, about five miles within the Maryland border,

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<v Speaker 1>and William Penn said, that just can't stand. We need Philadelphia.

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<v Speaker 1>It's really important. Yeah, like everyone wanted Philadelphia. One day,

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<v Speaker 1>those great people will throw batteries at Santa Claus. I

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<v Speaker 1>forgot about. We need to claim this wonderful city. Don't

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<v Speaker 1>make this show it's always sunny in Philadelphia. It's gonna

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<v Speaker 1>be pretty great and last a thousand years. Also, at

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<v Speaker 1>Stake was about four thousand square miles, so it was

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of land. And this was a dispute for decades,

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<v Speaker 1>and the people of these two areas started to kind

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<v Speaker 1>to worry that things were getting so heated that they

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<v Speaker 1>would be like double text on their property, because both

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<v Speaker 1>places would claim that they're in their part of the world.

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<v Speaker 1>And so finally in seventeen sixty three, the King of

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<v Speaker 1>England said, all right, I'm gonna get in here. We're

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<v Speaker 1>gonna commission this survey. I got a couple of crack

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<v Speaker 1>uh surveyors. Once an astronomer named Charles Mason. One is

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<v Speaker 1>a surveyor named Jeremiah Dixon. There from England. They've got

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<v Speaker 1>all this fancy, fancy modern equipment that they're gonna bring along.

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<v Speaker 1>They're gonna need a ton of booze and a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of people, and it's gonna take years, but we're gonna

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<v Speaker 1>finally settle this. Yeah. They spent fifty eight months from

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<v Speaker 1>what I can tell, basically straight through living in tents

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<v Speaker 1>surveying a two hundred and thirty three mile or three

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<v Speaker 1>seventy four kilometer stretch, and they settled that boundary dispute.

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<v Speaker 1>And did they ever because even still today, surveyors, modern

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<v Speaker 1>surveyors who used geosynchron satellites to do their surveying, are

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<v Speaker 1>in awe of how accurate Mason and Dixon's survey line

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<v Speaker 1>and their their boundary line work was. That it was

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<v Speaker 1>just almost precisely dead on because they've gone back, modern

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<v Speaker 1>surveyors have gone back and recalculated it, and they're like,

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<v Speaker 1>it's basically exactly right. Yeah, And I think some of

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<v Speaker 1>the techniques they use informed surveying that we still see today.

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<v Speaker 1>So it's it's a pretty cool story. Um, so let's

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<v Speaker 1>take a break. We'll talk a little bit about that

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<v Speaker 1>booze and uh, how they accomplished this feat a little

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<v Speaker 1>more right after this, it's they got drunk a lot, apparently,

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<v Speaker 1>I guess, so I don't want to harp on it,

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<v Speaker 1>but it is pretty funny. One of the footnotes in

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<v Speaker 1>this article that you sent, Uh, where did that come from?

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<v Speaker 1>It was good. I will tell you later on okay. Um,

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<v Speaker 1>the supply list from seventeen sixty four, and it's just

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<v Speaker 1>one of the years had twenty twenty gallons of whiskey,

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<v Speaker 1>forty gallons of brandy, and eighty gallons of wine. Uh.

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<v Speaker 1>In the end, they were paid about thirty five hundred

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<v Speaker 1>pounds uh sixteen pounds and nine shillings, which would be

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<v Speaker 1>about three hundred grand today or about sixty dollars per year.

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<v Speaker 1>But they did a lot of hard work drawing this line.

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<v Speaker 1>It was very meticulous. They had some Native Americans helping

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<v Speaker 1>them as guide, some Iroquois people. Uh. They had about

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<v Speaker 1>a hundred and twenty people in their party, and they,

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<v Speaker 1>like I said, they had sort of the state of

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<v Speaker 1>the art equipment at the time, which, um, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>I think informed later equipment, but it is pretty pretty

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<v Speaker 1>cract stuff at the time. Yeah. There's one in particular

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<v Speaker 1>called a zenith sector and it had a plumb line

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<v Speaker 1>that ran vertically straight, vertically to the ground, and then

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<v Speaker 1>it had a telescope that you could, you know, put

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<v Speaker 1>to different degrees at different angles, and then you had

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<v Speaker 1>to get on the ground and look up through the

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<v Speaker 1>telescope to find the star you were looking for. And

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<v Speaker 1>then you could measure the angle of the star um

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<v Speaker 1>with the zenith of the sky, the highest point of

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<v Speaker 1>the sky, and calculate an angle here on Earth. And

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<v Speaker 1>that's the kind of stuff that they were doing again

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<v Speaker 1>over fifty eight months. And one of the reasons why

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<v Speaker 1>the survey was so advanced for its time is that

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<v Speaker 1>it was the first geodetic survey carried out at least

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<v Speaker 1>in North America. And geodetic surveys are the ones that

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<v Speaker 1>are so precise. They calculate the lumps and bumps and

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<v Speaker 1>um irregular spheroid shape of the Earth into its calculations

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<v Speaker 1>to make it that precise. That's why it was so precise.

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<v Speaker 1>But again, these guys weren't using satellites and computers. They

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<v Speaker 1>were using telescopes and plumb lines that they had to

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<v Speaker 1>get on the ground to look up to find stars with,

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<v Speaker 1>and their noodles to calculate their findings. I wonder if

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<v Speaker 1>the the King of England's like, we really just needed

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<v Speaker 1>you to walk left and drop some bird seed. Uh,

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<v Speaker 1>So what happened along the way? They they didn't drop

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<v Speaker 1>bird seed. This is kind of even more impressive. Is

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<v Speaker 1>that reference to something dropping bird seed? Well, I mean

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<v Speaker 1>the old stories of dropping bird seed to find your

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<v Speaker 1>way back? But yeah, you never heard that? No I haven't.

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<v Speaker 1>Is it like the joke is because like the birds

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<v Speaker 1>would come eat the seed. I think it was probably

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<v Speaker 1>from some fairy tale. Originally, I don't know. I totally

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<v Speaker 1>ruined this. I really think we're going to edit this

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<v Speaker 1>part out because I think I'm just going to leave

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<v Speaker 1>it as is. It was so beautiful and hilarious, I

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<v Speaker 1>think we should leave it. Um. So, what they did

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<v Speaker 1>drop was limestone posts that they brought over from England

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<v Speaker 1>every mile along the way, and I think it was

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<v Speaker 1>like two hundred and thirty something miles UH in total,

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<v Speaker 1>as well as an eighty three mile uh north south

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<v Speaker 1>border between what was Pennsylvania or what is now Delaware

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<v Speaker 1>what was then Pennsylvania in eastern Maryland. But they dropped

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<v Speaker 1>these limestone posts along the way, and then every five

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<v Speaker 1>miles dropped a crown stone, which is a very very heavy,

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<v Speaker 1>like a five to seven hundred pounds stone that they

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<v Speaker 1>carved a C on one side for calvert and a

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<v Speaker 1>P on the other side for pen um. Sometimes they

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<v Speaker 1>even had coat of arms and stuff like that until

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<v Speaker 1>they got to the Appalachian Mountains and then they were like,

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<v Speaker 1>we can't do these crown stones anymore. We can't carry

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<v Speaker 1>these up over the mountain. And also it's hilarious they

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<v Speaker 1>shipped these over from England, like, we're not sure if

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<v Speaker 1>there's stone in America, so we're just gonna cover all

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<v Speaker 1>those came from England because I know the posted I

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<v Speaker 1>think the stones did as well. Okay, yeah, I'm pretty sure,

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<v Speaker 1>which is hilarious but also really unnecessary. Sure, well, I

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<v Speaker 1>didn't know what was over here. So, like I said,

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<v Speaker 1>the Mason Dixon Line has been recalculated, much to the

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<v Speaker 1>thrill of modern surveyors. And I think one of the

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<v Speaker 1>first surveys of the Mason Dixon Line was carried out

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<v Speaker 1>by the Mason Dixon Line Preservation Partnership, which is adorable

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<v Speaker 1>because there's surveyors from Pennsylvania and surveyors from Maryland involved

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<v Speaker 1>in that partnership, and they went around to do an

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<v Speaker 1>inventory of all of those um milestones and crown stones

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<v Speaker 1>as well. Yeah, and they found a lot of them,

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<v Speaker 1>which is really cool. I think they found all but ten. Uh,

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<v Speaker 1>and they reckon just maybe flooding apparently. Uh. In the

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<v Speaker 1>Civil War they would use them for target practice and

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<v Speaker 1>stuff like that, or just the Civil War in general

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<v Speaker 1>destroyed them. But all but ten is not too bad, No,

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<v Speaker 1>it's not so. The Mason Dixon Line was established the

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<v Speaker 1>boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland and also Delaware and then

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<v Speaker 1>what would become West Virginia, and that in and of

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<v Speaker 1>itself was pretty great considering how acurate they were. The

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<v Speaker 1>reason why it divides the North and the South had

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<v Speaker 1>nothing to do with Mason and Dixon had to do

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<v Speaker 1>with the fact that um Maryland was a slave state.

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<v Speaker 1>It was the northernmost slave state, and in eighteen twenty

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<v Speaker 1>the Missouri Compromise was passed that basically said the slave

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<v Speaker 1>states are considered in the South, and all the South

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<v Speaker 1>states are slave states, the North states are free states.

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<v Speaker 1>And that's that. And because Maryland was a slave state,

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<v Speaker 1>it was considered the South, and since it south of

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<v Speaker 1>the missing Mason Dixon line, the Mason Dixon Line was

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<v Speaker 1>used to distinguish the North and the South between eighteen

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<v Speaker 1>twenty on, and that's kind of it. I'm sure Maryland

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<v Speaker 1>today is like, oh, kind of not really though, Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>I think most of the South says the same thing too.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean one of the biggest shocks I've ever gotten

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<v Speaker 1>in my life, but a really dull life, was finding

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<v Speaker 1>out that Maryland was technically in the South. I had

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<v Speaker 1>no idea. Yeah, I mean, if you're from Georgia. I

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<v Speaker 1>even remember growing up thinking Virginia was pushing it right. Um,

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<v Speaker 1>But then I met Virginians and many I think maybe

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<v Speaker 1>because they're fairly far north geographically on the East Coast,

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<v Speaker 1>uh are sometimes very adamantly Southern. Yeah, they really love

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<v Speaker 1>horses too. That's pretty southern. And then one other little tidbit,

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<v Speaker 1>so from eighteen twenty to eighteen fifty, when the Fugitive

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<v Speaker 1>Slave Act was passed, Um, if you were enslaved in

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<v Speaker 1>Maryland and you can make it just across the border

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<v Speaker 1>to Pennsylvania, you were free, amazing, and you would eventually

0:11:32.720 --> 0:11:37.400
<v Speaker 1>become a Philadelphia Eagles fan. And boo Santa Claus. I

0:11:37.400 --> 0:11:39.000
<v Speaker 1>don't know if they threw batteries at Santa Claus. They

0:11:39.000 --> 0:11:42.600
<v Speaker 1>threw batteries at somebody. I feel like it was Santa Claus. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>that that shows up in our Black Friday episode if

0:11:46.160 --> 0:11:50.840
<v Speaker 1>you want to go listen to that one dedicated fans

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<v Speaker 1>there in Philly. That's all I'll say. Right, And by

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<v Speaker 1>the way, Chuck, that um the post that we were

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<v Speaker 1>talking about, it's called the Survey of Mason and Dixon,

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<v Speaker 1>Granddaddy of all titled disputes, and it's hosted on the

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<v Speaker 1>Maryland Bar Association's website that m has be a dot org.

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<v Speaker 1>So look it up. Fantastic and you'll be like, this

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<v Speaker 1>is great. I love it, Okay, And I guess that's it, right, Chuck.

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<v Speaker 1>I think that means you know what it means. Short

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<v Speaker 1>stuff is out. Stuff you should know is a production

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<v Speaker 1>of I Heart Radio. For more podcasts my heart Radio,

0:12:25.280 --> 0:12:28.280
<v Speaker 1>visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever

0:12:28.320 --> 0:12:29.720
<v Speaker 1>you listen to your favorite shows.