HomeMy Public PortalAboutTOL PR 2012-02-15 TBL Land Survey Collections
Town of Leesburg
News Release
For Immediate Release
Historic Land Survey Documents Now Available to Researchers
at Leesburg’s Thomas Balch Library
Leesburg, VA (February 15, 2012) –
Two important collections,
documenting land surveys recorded in
Loudoun County in the mid 19th
century, are now available to
researchers at Thomas Balch Library in
downtown Leesburg.
The Asa Jackson Collection contains the
survey book and measuring tape of Asa
Jackson. Jackson, an independent
surveyor, regularly surveyed parcels
involved in land transactions in
Loudoun County and for the Chancery
Court of Loudoun County. His
notebook contains 85 surveys from the years 1860-1866 and an index. In addition to the
notebook of surveys, the collection includes a 50 foot cotton measuring tape in a leather case,
likely used by Asa Jackson in the course of his surveys.
The Yardley Taylor Surveying Notebook belonged to Yardley Taylor, a Loudoun County surveyor
famed for his “Map of Loudoun County, Virginia, from Actual Surveys,” published in 1853. No
mention of the map is made in the notebook. It is made up entirely of surveys of parcels in
Loudoun County, however, and was in use during the years Taylor was working on his map. The
notebook continues beyond the date of Taylor’s death with surveys in another hand, possibly
that of his nephew, Bernard Taylor. The Yardley Taylor Surveying Notebook contains an
alphabetical index at the front of the volume, and is bound in the original leather.
These two collections are a rich source of information for genealogists and historians searching
for information on land ownership. In addition, they offer a look into surveying methods in
Loudoun County in the mid-19th century, a pivotal time as Virginians established farms, towns,
and roads, and began to indelibly shape the land.
(more)
TOL PR 2012-02-15 TBL Land Survey Collections
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About the Thomas Balch Library: Thomas Balch Library is a history and genealogy library
owned and operated by the Town of Leesburg. A designate Underground Railroad research site,
the Library’s collections focus on Loudoun County, regional and Virginia history, genealogy,
military history with special emphasis on the American Civil War, and ethnic history. For more
information, please visit www.leesburgva.gov/ThomasBalchLibrary.
Contact:
Alexandra S. Gressitt, Library Director
agressitt@leesburgva.gov • 703-737-7196
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