Witness trees of the Monongahela National Forest: 1752-1899

This data publication contains a shapefile of points created from 1930s maps of the first land grants within the Monongahela National Forest (MNF) proclamation boundary. Corner or witness trees are those trees listed in a land survey to describe the survey corner for future re-establishment of the corner or property line. Witness trees listed in the deeds were added as attributes to the digital point locations. Deed dates range from 1752 to 1899. If no trees were listed in the deed to witness the corner, the corner was created in the point file, but no species was assigned. The deeds and surveys were created under the metes and bounds method of land survey common in the colonial era. The entire area was not surveyed in any systematic method as is found in the Western United States so there are areas of the MNF with no witness trees. Also included are the scanned images of the maps used to create the database of corner points. Each map covers a portion of the Monongahela National Forest, WV and includes latitude and longitude reference lines. On each map are the individual parcels of land drawn by draftsmen in the 1930s from the original deeds or grants. With each tract is the name of the grantee, the data of the deed or grant, the size of the tract of land (in acres), and a unique identification number that references the deed/grant from which the sketch was made. This data publication also includes two location maps (north and south) showing the location and area covered by the individual map sheets. The base map is a 1936 map of the Monongahela National Forest, WV produced by the USDA Forest Service.
This database was developed to help characterize the forest at the time of European settlement.
Original metadata date was 10/09/2014. Scanned images of the maps used to create the database of corner points were added on 09/15/2016 along with a few minor metadata updates. Minor metadata updates on 12/13/2016.