Crown Boundary - Coursework Example

Cadastral Studies Module Name: Institution: Table of Contents Introduction 3 “Crown Boundary” in Relation to Freehold Properties 3 Survey Procedures for the Original Crown Boundaries’ Marking 5 Limitations in Equipment, Methods and Accuracy 8 Current Survey Problems caused by the Early Inaccuracies 9 Impact of the Royal Commission on Legislation 10 Conclusion 11 References 11 Introduction In many English Common Law jurisdictions, the land tenure system is made up of a variety of types of tenure, and Australia is no different. These types of tenure include crown land, freehold, leasehold, and indigenous customary lands. In many parts of Australia, however, the original land tenure system empowered the Crown as the authoritative owner of virtually all land in Australia. It could only be freed from the Crown (“Crown Land”) through an exercise commonly called a Crown Grant in which the Crown Land was then translated into a “Freehold Land.” Alternatively, Crown Land could as well be transferred into “Leasehold Land” which was slightly different from Freehold Land due to the several restrictions in leasehold land. In modern Australia, however, the Cadastral Survey System is majorly used in Victoria to alienate land. A Cadastre may be defined as a parcel-based system of land administration in which every parcel of land has a unique identifier. Through this system, one is able to understand their responsibilities, rights, and restrictions in a particular parcel of land. This paper, therefore, provides a detailed discussion on the crown boundary in relation to freehold properties, original survey procedures for corn boundaries, and the limitations in methods and equipment of survey. Also discussed herein are the current survey problems due to the early inaccuracies, and the impact of the Royal Commission on the legislation. “Crown Boundary” in Relation to Freehold Properties In order to understand what constitutes a Crown Boundary in relation to Freehold Properties, it is critically important to define what is meant by Crown Land and Freehold Properties. Some history of land tenure systems in Australia is also worth discussion, at least briefly. At the onset, land in Australia was owned by the Crown in which case it was referred to as Crown Land. It was then that through an exercise called Crown Grant, that such land was transferred into private hands and, therefore, referred to as “Freehold Land.” It was also possible to lease out this Crown Land into what was commonly known as the “Leasehold Land,” though with limitations. From the brief history above, it is evident that essentially crown boundary is what encloses the parcel of land which has not been alienated from the original ownership i.e. the Crown ownership. In relation to freehold properties, therefore, “Crown Boundary” may be taken to mean a separation between a parcel of land that is still under the ownership of the Crown and the one which has undergone alienation and is now under private ownership. Obviously, in relation to leasehold land, Crown Boundary would have been defined slightly differently. A clear description of a Crown Boundary is illustrated in figure 1 below: Figure 1: An illustration of a Crown Boundary using alienation Survey Procedures for the Original Crown Boundaries’ Marking In marking the original Crown boundaries, several survey procedures were typically employed. All these were systematically carried out with a view of complementing the Cadastral Survey which essentially entailed establishing, measuring, and pegging boundaries on the ground. In a nutshell, the survey procedures involved locating of boundaries, subdivision of land contained therein, and documentation of procedures. The first procedure in the surveys carried out in the early days in Victoria entailed the demarcation of the various boundaries of different parcels of land. This was then followed by the survey of the boundaries of those parcels of land. This entailed quite a number of procedures as well. The third procedure had to do with the preparation of cadastral plans that indicated the various dimensions of the boundaries including such aspects as areas of the parcels of land. The very last procedure in the surveys was the generation of cadastral maps that illustrated clearly all the parcels of land including the way they actually related to each other. The very first survey that was carried out happened in central Melbourne and was carried out by Hoddle and two other assistants after Governor Bourke dropped Robert Russell due to his shoddy work. Despite the theodolite having been invented then, its use was extremely limited. In this first survey, therefore, the instruments used were a surveyor’s chain, and a magnetic compass or a circumferenter. After some time, Russell discovered that this first method employed crude strategies. According to Russell Robert, when the chain was stretched, there was a difference of close to a link in a bush since these surveys were hurriedly done for quick land sales. The surveys began with land being subdivided into sections of close to a Square mile. In instances when there was need for smaller subsections, allotments of half or quarter subdivisions were carried out. Areas for public including townships were reserved accordingly for such use as health, churches, or even public schools. Even though Robert Russell’s feature drawing was dismissed by Governor Bourke, it formed the foundation for Robert Hoddle’s grid. Hoddle used it to trace the outline of a township in general covering Flinders Street to Lonsdale Street, and from Spencer Street to Spring Street. A grid pattern was then developed almost in a parallel manner with respect to the Yarra River. Hoddle, however, put more emphasis on the principal streets being made 99 feet wide. On his part, Governor Bourke insisted that the smaller lanes intended to furnish back entrances be made 33 feet wide. Crown Allotments were done in three main forms as illustrated below: “Crown Allotment 98, Parish of Mulgrave, County of Bourke” “Crown Allotment 6, Section 4, Parish of Moorpanyal, county of Grant,” and “Crown Allotment 1, Section 5, Township of Sorrento, Parish of Nepean, County of Bourke”. In the period 1839 to 1840, there arose land boom and the need for survey and sale of crown allotments near Melbourne and Geelong equally rose. Then, Governor Gipps gave a command that all surveys be done using a theodolite. This is where “Special Surveys” came in. Through these surveys, land was surveyed and pegged for sale according to the buyer’s deliberations. These surveys covered 8 square miles and commenced with Dendy’s Special Survey which took place in 1841. Dendy paid £5,120, even though it was estimated that the value of the land stood at £100,000. Other special surveys to come were tied to one block per each land owner. Dendy’s Crown Special Survey is shown in Figure 2 below: Figure 2: Dendy’s Crown Special Survey Other special surveys carried out in Victoria are summarized in Figure 3 below: Figure 3: Other special surveys carried out in Victoria Limitations in Equipment, Methods and Accuracy Even though these early Crown Boundary surveys were necessary at the time, there were so many discrepancies in the methods used, equipment used, and accuracy of the surveys. One such limitation in the survey methods used was the fact that allotments were usually sold with little regard to the legal access to those parcels of land despite Hoddle’s instructions that roads be marked prior to being sold. Additionally, many road boundaries were not considered as allotment boundaries, nor was the urge to adopt ridges and other natural features as boundaries of allotment considered. In the years to follow, the areas of parcels of land on the allotments as shown in the surveyors’ plans were found to be smaller than the actual areas of those parcels of land. This limitation was brought about by the extremely liberal allowance provided when the length of Crown land was being measured. In fact, some subsequent surveys went as far as indicating as much in excess as 5% in comparison with the length indicated in the surveyor’s plan with regard to the early surveys. In terms of the equipment used, the length, for example, of the measuring chain used by the surveyors had an equivalent length of one hundred links, and their accuracy was extremely low. It was also almost impossible for the chains used to stick to a consistent length with sag being the most common problem. This occurred due to the heavy weights of the chains used. In a different angle, the chains were sometimes dragged in instances when distances were being measured in scrubs. In such cases, some of the links would bend hence reducing the length of the chain. This definitely caused inaccuracies in measurements taken. The use of the magnetic compass instead of the theodolite suffered limitations as well. These included the compass’ secular variableness and the variableness caused by the local attraction. There also arose inaccuracies caused by the surveyors showing straight lines in their plans when whatever is drawn on the ground is in fact inclusive of bends. Another discrepancy in the early Crown Land Surveys was the fact that the deeds only provided a rough description of the land, without indicating the location, or the acreage, or Crown descriptions. Current Survey Problems caused by the Early Inaccuracies As was discussed previously, the Crown boundaries created in the 19th Century and early 20th Century had their fair share of inaccuracy. These inaccuracies have translated into a myriad of problems for most surveyors in the modern Victoria. Due to the highly variable spatial accuracy in the early Crown boundaries, modern surveyors experience problems in the sense that a parcel of land surveyed today may be just a few centimeters when the old surveys show a stone-throw distance. This extreme variation in the spatial accuracy tends to bring about a lot of confusion to surveyors today. It leaves them doubting their values at times. Secondly, despite their poor accuracy, these early Crown boundaries still have the same legal status as the very latest modern sophisticated tools used by surveyors currently. This in itself is a source of confusion to surveyors who tend to assume that their improved accuracy in measurements is not appreciated as much as it should. Modern surveyors also face the problem of ascertaining whether indeed the boundaries of crown land are straight lines as marked out in the early surveyors’ plans. In the original surveys, whether there were bends in the measurements taken or not, surveyors ended up making it look like it was a straight line. Because of this, therefore, most surveyors today do the surveying as if it was being done for the very first time. This means that in actual sense, the original surveyors’ plans are essentially meaningless since the surveyors do everything from scratch. Impact of the Royal Commission on Legislation The findings of the Royal Commission brought about fundamental changes in the legislations surrounding properties in Australia. The most important impact, however, was the introduction of principles to handle any differences in survey. These findings also propelled the amendments of the title dimensions. These changes are largely what form the Property Law Act 1958. The other major change that was brought about as a result of the findings of the Royal Commission was the possibility of subdividing land in vertical layers as postulated under the Victorian Subdivision Act 1988. The findings also led to the introduction of computerized land records. Through this finding, it became necessary for the Transfer of Land Act to be adjusted accordingly to accommodate these alterations. Conclusion From the discussion above, it is evident that so many discrepancies in early Crown surveys have caused quite a lot of problems not only to the current surveyors, but to potential land owners as well. So many land owners have ended up buying parcels of Crown land only to realize later that their dimensions are not similar to the ones in the original surveyors’ plans. Surveyors, on the other hand, have experienced problems of updating the inaccurate data from early surveyors into the modern computerized systems. In conclusion, therefore, a lot of caution has to be taken when one intends to purchase land that has not yet been alienated from the Crown land. In so doing, it would become easier to avoid falling prey to varied land measurements after purchase. References Chappel, K.L. (1966). Surveying for Land Settlement in Victoria 1836-1960. Office of Surveyor- General, Victoria. Curnow, P.D. (1984). The Boundaries of Victoria. Australian Surveyor. 37(3). Dendy Crown Special Survey. (1967, December). Traverse, pp. 10-11. The Institution of Surveyors Victoria. Dendy story. (1968, March). Traverse, pp. 4-5. The Institution of Surveyors Victoria. Grant, D.B. (2015). Topic 3a: Creating Victoria’s early cadastral boundaries. Lecture Notes, Cadastral Studies Module, Surveying 2. RMIT University, Melbourne. Grant, D.B. (2015). Topic 3c: Crown boundaries and the 1885 Royal Commission. Lecture Notes, Cadastral Studies Module, Surveying 2. RMIT University, Melbourne. Jacoby, J.K., Benewell G.L. (1989). The Formation of the Victorian Parish System. Australian Surveyor. 34(7). Powell, J. M. (1970). The public lands of Australia Felix: Settlement and land appraisal in Victoria 1834-91 with special reference to the western plains. Melbourne: Oxford University Press. RMIT University Library. (2015). APA referencing – Library extended guide. Retrieved from http://mams.rmit.edu.au/hzouvczmm9kn.doc Turner, H. G. (2011). A history of the Colony of Victoria: From its discovery to its absorption into the Commonwealth of Australia in two volumes. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. Weaver, J. C. (2003). The great land rush and the making of the modern world: 1650-1900. Montreal [u.a.: McGill-Queen's Univ. Press. Read More