Surveyor says Va., W.Va. boundary at top of Allegheny

Editor, The Recorder,

This letter is written in response to the article "Pocahontas assets its rights on Va. border" in the Aug. 13 issue of The Recorder.

The article states: "HNWD had a local surveyor relocate the state line differently from U.S. Geological Survey maps." That is an incorrect statement. I did survey the county and state line — I did not relocate, move, shift or change the county and state line.

The survey was made as a result of the request by the Technical Review Committee for detailed information as to the location of turbine site 1T and its proximity to the state and county line. It was my understanding that they wanted to know the physical location of the actual state and county line, not the approximate line shown on the U.S. Geological Survey topographic map.

The line that became the western boundary of Highland County, Virginia was in existence before the formation of Highland County. Highland County was formed in 1847 from Bath and Pendleton counties. The survey of Highland County is recorded in Surveyors Record Book 1 page 1 in the courthouse at Monterey. A copy of the survey is also found in Morton's History of Highland County Virginia on pages 399, 400 and 401.

The northwestern corner of Highland County is described as "eight hemlocks and three small beeches and a small maple on the top of Allegheny Mountain in the Pocahontas County line." The line then runs southward "along the main top of said mountain with said county line to the plum orchard," where the surveyors "marked one plum tree on the top of said mountain." That plum tree was the southwest corner of Highland County. The western boundary of Highland County is the Pocahontas County line, located along the top of the Allegheny Mountain.

Pocahontas County was formed in 1821. An excerpt of the 1821 Acts of the General Assembly obtained from the book "History of Pocahontas County, West Virginia" states the Pocahontas County line ran "a straight line to the top of the Allegheny Mountain opposite the head of the east fork of Greenbrier River; thence with the top of said mountain to the Pendleton line, and thence with the top of said mountain to the beginning."

The top of the Allegheny Mountain is the line between Pocahontas and Highland counties and that is the line surveyed. I did not relocate, move, shift, or in any way change the location of that line. It is fixed in position by the top of the mountain. That is where the line of Pocahontas County has been since 1821 and that is where the line of Highland County has been since 1847. To my knowledge, that is where the line is today.

I am very doubtful if the West Virginia "Boundary Commission" ever moved the county line from the top of the mountain. If Mr. Neidig, of the USGS, or anyone reading this letter has information that the county line was moved from the top of the mountain, I would greatly appreciate seeing it.

According to The Recorder, Mr. Neidig is under the impression that I moved the county line, which is an incorrect assumption. I did not move the line, relocate the line or in any way change the line from the top of the mountain.

As far as I know, there is no dispute that the county line is the top of the mountain. To determine the exact top of the mountain, I ran cross-sections to find the high points. Those points were marked with wooden stakes and were then located with GPS surveying equipment. Virginia State Plane Coordinates were determined for each point. I used this data to prepare my plat presented to the Technical Review Committee.

As far as I am concerned, the Pocahontas County surveyor can check any of my survey work. After he does the research and runs the cross sections, I am sure he will find the county and state line is the top of the mountain, as called for in the 1821 Acts of the General Assembly and in the survey of Highland County, regardless of any line shown on a USGS Topographic Map.
Jeff Hiner, Land Surveyor
Monterey, Va.