Record Group 103.5
KING COUNTY AERIAL SURVEY
ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY In 1935 King County Assessor Roy Misener inaugurated a comprehensive land use survey, funded by the federal Works Progress Administration (WPA), for the purpose of accurately identifying taxable property and equalizing county tax assessments. One component of the King County Land Use Survey was the creation of a master set of property record cards (Series 051-58). Another component was the King County Aerial Survey. King County contracted with Pacific Aerial Surveys (1936) to produce a systematic set of aerial photographs from which accurate tax assessment (cadastral) maps could be prepared. The resulting photographs contained inaccuracies of scale and azimuth; these could have been corrected, had the photographs contained a sufficient number of reference points whose relative positions were known. Rural King County at this time proved to have too few of the requisite reference points to make good maps from the photographs. With guidance from the U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, King County engineering staff attempted to extract information from previous surveys, existing triangulation data (trigonometric measurements), and other documentation. When these data could not be adequately correlated with the photographs, the county decided to undertake a new land (traverse) survey. The primary purposes of the Engineering Land Survey were to produce close control for the photographic mosaics, and to determine accurately the relative positions of section and quarter section corners. The survey was to cover all parts of King County outside Seattle that contained significant amounts of taxable property. Field and office work was carried out (under Coast and Geodetic Survey oversight until early 1939) by staff from the Road Engineer's office. The uncompleted project was terminated on July 3, 1941. Most of Ranges 3, 4, and 5 had been surveyed and some work had been done on Range 6. Ranges 7 and 8 were represented only by partial triangulation surveys. King County Commissioners approved the official transfer of project records from the Assessor's Office to the Road Engineer in July 1941. SERIES DESCRIPTIONS
(click on series title to see container list) 103.5-15 Abstracts of corrected tape measurements, 1935-1941
Corrected distance measurements from traverses. Includes tape and line numbers, date, page and volume numbers of corresponding field book data, location, forward and backward measurements, elevation, correction, tape sag and temperature. Some records contain drawings. Arranged by field book number. Areas covered: A-G, J, L, N and W. Volume: 6 cu ft 103.5-17 Abstracts of direction, 1935-1941
Typewritten, bound corrected horizontal angle measurements computed from lists of directions, including location, traverse area, instrument number, date and volume number. Areas included: E, F and J. Volume: 0.1 cu ft 103.5-16 Abstracts of levels, 1935-1941
Corrected level measurements from traverses. Data elements include line, rod and level numbers, description of the section, observer, date, time, temperature, rod readings, elevation and a volume number that refers to the field book location. Both first and secondary measurements are recorded. Areas included: A-G, J and W. Volume: 1 cu ft 103.5-27 Astronomical azimuth determinations, 1935 - 1941 Workbooks including information on stations, instrument number, date and measurements.Volume: 0.1 cu ft 103.5-25 Control levels - first and second order, 1935 - 1941 Control Levels, contained in bound books, used to connect traverses with U.S. Coast and Geodetic Survey triangulation stations. Data include date, forward and backward measurements, time and station number.Volume: 0.1 cu ft 103.5-14 Engineering Land Survey description cards, 1936 - 1941
Handwritten drafts on 4X6 graph paper containing information on ties to monuments and hubs. Includes location, date, weather, surveyors and a sketch of the area. Each card contains notes stating the degree of success in recovery and notes concerning the monuments. Volume: 0.2 cu ft 103.5-23 Extension of lines - levels and angles, 1935 - 1941
Data includes date, weather, time, station, instrument number and measurements forward and backward. Volume: 0.1 cu ft 103.5-28 Field books, 1935 - 1941
Field records of traverses, including tape measurements, levels and angles. Tape measurements include location, station, forward and backward measurements, temperature, tape number and tension, date, page number and remarks. Levels include date, forward and backward measurement, rod number, time, location, station and elevation. Angles include data on the observer, station, instrument, date, backward and forward measurements, remarks and some sketches. Includes local control survey records. Arranged by survey area and type of measurement. Volume: 20 cu ft 103.5-22 Inverse position computations between triangulation stations, 1935 -1941
Inverse position computations are loose forms that provide computation formulas to be followed. Data elements include station names and a formula for deriving inverse computation. Volume: 0.1 cu ft 103.5-143 KCAS miscellaneous files, 1935 - 1941
Miscellaneous small files including a brief history of KCAS, index of Lambert Coordinates of triangulation stations in King Co., description of monuments in area A, and section corners and monuments recovered. The history of the KCAS is a twenty-seven page document written in 1942 which includes a description of the extent of completed survey areas, definitions and descriptions of terms and practices, organization of working parties and descriptions of each record. Volume: 0.1 cu ft 103.5-18 List of directions, 1935 - 1941
Corrected horizontal angle measurements from traverses. Each measurement refers back to area and page number in field book. Includes location, date, directions, corrections and a drawing indicating measurements and monument. Areas included: A-H, J-M and W. Volume: 1.5 cu ft 103.5-24 Tape standardization records, 1935 - 1941 Data include card, comparison tape and standard tape numbers, length of tape, date, long or short of standard and true length of standard. Volume: 0.2 cu ft 103.5-19 Ties to monuments, 1935 - 1941
Include location, date, description of monument and/or tie and sketches. Areas included: A, B, D-F and J. Volume: 0.1 cu ft 103.5-21 Traverse computations, 1935 - 1941
Typewritten forms containing section grid with traverse lines drawn in and labeled, location, traverse line number, area, date, beginning and ending points and corrections. Includes traverses 1-490. Volume: 2 cu ft 103.5-26 Triangulation computations, 1935 - 1941
Reference materials on triangulation monuments and calculations. Areas included: A-H, J, K, N, S. Volume: 0.1 cu ft
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