California Surveyors Forums

A question of Curiosity.

Who can tell me the difference between a LINE and LAND?

Thanks!

Property LINES define LAND boundaries.

One vowel and one consonant

I love it Ric! My kind of answer.

And then there's a LANDLINE...A landline (also known as land line, land-line, main line, home phone, landline, fixed-line, and wireline) is a phone that uses a metal wire or optical fiber ...

And, of course, a good fisherman will haul in their LINE and LAND their catch.

Yes! Good ones again!

Anyone else know the difference from a surveyors' perspective?

Unless defined otherwise, a line has zero width and only exists when marked on the ground. Land is a tangible thing that can be owned and has a quantifiable area.

As a follow up, if a line has zero width, how thick is land and what does land include?

Are you a LAND SURVEYOR or a LINE SURVEYOR?

Ah, yes, the many interests in land. Subsurface rights, servitudes, leases, prescriptive, appurtenant, ad valorum taxes, assessments, setbacks, liabilities, obligations, ad nauseum ...

Both.

I look all over the surrounding land trying to find out where to put that elusive line.

Is water land?

Most of San Francisco Bay is lotted up, so...

And air?

Are you looking for a logical answer such as the understanding of "Line of Occupation" vs "Deed Line"?

Try flying into military airspace. Or building into a view easement.

Questions: Can you touch LAND? Can you touch a LINE?

You can get your fingers muddy working on a water line ...

Yup!

Hi Keith,

I am seeking an authoritative response from the perspective of a land surveyor. The question is pretty basic.

Ahhhh Mikeeee . . .

You've done it again . . . teased our minds.

I went to Black's . . . and a cornucopia of line v land exists. (Bounty Land was a new one on me.) Same shotgun list exists in the ACSM terms 'n definitions.

Hope you're not trying to nail those two words down to a single definition . . .

Crazy Phil - Surveyor to Recorder

Thanks! There are some codified definitions out there under California law.

Still seeking a surveyor's perspective/understanding.

A line is a piece of the land pie.

I believe lines should be defined on their individual merits, typically a factor of original intent, historical occupation and relationship to other lines. The location of a line is based on judgment of evidence.

Now if you put a few of those together then you might enclose some land. This is what I call a boundary survey