Surveying Office
A History of the surveying office can be a fascinating read. This book traces the history of surveying in Britain from the dawn of the Industrial Age right up to the First World War. It provides an interesting insight into the surveying profession, particularly how the surveying profession developed during the Industrial Revolution. The importance of surveying was highlighted at the time as Britain became an industrial powerhouse. surveying was responsible for mapping British territories and laying the basis for the nation’s railways. It also marked the beginning of official cartography.
Land surveys were responsible for creating a vital tool in the management of resources during the Industrial Age. They showed where large deposits of wealth were located and told the governments how to best exploit these resources for economic development. Although there were many difficulties involved in the process of mapping land, it was an important first step toward creating an infrastructure that would make the world a better place.
In the years before surveying became a professional profession, private individuals and families made maps and traced land boundaries on their own. As more people became interested in creating maps, the surveying profession took off. This gave way to the first official surveying companies in the nineteenth century. At this point, it was necessary to have an official commission to take the job over from the self-made cartographers.
A History of the Surveying Office
The land surveyor was responsible for determining boundaries, locating gold mines, mapping river bottoms, preparing maps of areas of natural importance, determining fault lines, and creating plans for roads, canals, harbours and bridges. A basic course required students to demonstrate knowledge of compass points, angles, right and left bearings, and terrestrial surveying fundamentals. Courses also taught students the significance of topography, topo charts, and the reading of natural monuments like watermills and ancient tree stumps.
Surveyors would need to take on-the-job training as well. In the days before computers, they were still required to do manual labour like measuring elevations, making measurements of trees and digging canals. Modern technology has made the work of surveyors much easier. Students can learn to read maps, calculate measurement points, determine angles, and plot routes by using a variety of computer programs.
Today, the field of surveying is much more diverse than it was in the past. One day, the surveying technology will probably be as advanced as the laser systems used by surveyors in the modern world. Or, the days of standing in the office getting numbers will be an ancient technology. Learning a history of the surveying office is a great way to better appreciate the role land surveys play in our everyday lives.