During settlement of Upper Canada (now Southern Ontario) from 1784 to 1859, land surveys were conducted along transects at roughly one-mile intervals. Handwritten notes, and a few accompanying maps depicting these surveys, have been used only sparsely in modern research. These records represent pre-European settlement baselines, useful in such fields as land-use and heritage planning, forestry, ecology, hydrology, archaeology, and agriculture. Though early survey data (ESD) exhibit deficiencies and surveyor bias, they comprise a unique source of spatial environmental data that is best suited to large-scale resolution studies. A few researchers have generated pre-settlement vegetation maps from ESD, each using independent methodologies. We chronicle efforts to assemble ESD-based vegetation maps generated by various authors in Ontario. Using Google Earth, a web-based database of existing maps was developed along with meta-maps illustrating coverage across Ontario. We briefly review early survey techniques and assess validity of ESD for modern applications. We consider issues such as low map resolution, cartographer interpretation, map access, permissions and rights, and computing technicalities concerning access to and use of these pre-settlement vegetation maps. We hope that greater access to existing vegetation maps generated from ESD will encourage their use in various research disciplines, and that the database will be updated as scholars add to the collection.
Resume
La conception de cartes de la vegetation precoloniale a l'aide des archives d'arpentage de l'Ontario : une base de donnees en ligne ameliorant l'acces aux cartes pour les chercheurs
Lors du peuplement du Haut-Canada (le Sud de l'Ontario d'aujourd'hui) de 1784 a 1859, des releves d'arpentage ont ete effectues le long de transects a des intervalles d'environ un mile. Les travaux de recherche actuels utilisent peu les notes manuscrites et les quelques cartes connexes illustrant ces releves. Ces dossiers fournissent les donnees initiales sur le peuplement precolonial et peuvent servir des domaines tels que la planification du territoire et du patrimoine, la foresterie, l'ecologie, l'hydrologie, l'archeologie et l'agriculture. Bien que les donnees des archives d'arpentage comportent des lacunes et des biais d'arpenteur-geometre, elles constituent neanmoins une source originale de donnees sur l'espace et l'environnement, lesquelles sont bien adaptees aux etudes menees a des resolutions de grande echelle. Quelques chercheurs ont concu des cartes de la vegetation anterieure au peuplement a partir des donnees issues des archives d'arpentage, mais en suivant leur propre methodologie. Nous rendons compte des tentatives visant a reunir des cartes de vegetation concues par un certain nombre d'auteurs de l'Ontario a partir des archives d'arpentage. A l'aide de Google Earth, une base de donnees des cartes disponibles a ete publiee sur Internet et accompagnee de meta-cartes presentant le couvert forestier de l'ensemble du territoire ontarien. Nous brossons un tableau des premieres techniques d'arpentage et menons une evaluation de la pertinence d'utiliser des donnees des archives d'arpentage dans les applications contemporaines. Nous traitons ici des questions telles que la basse resolution des cartes, l'interpretation du cartographe, l'acces aux cartes, les autorisations et les droits, et les aspects techniques lies a l'informatique pour acceder et utiliser ces cartes de la vegetation precoloniale. Nous esperons que l'amelioration de l'acces aux cartes de la vegetation concues a partir des archives d'arpentage contribuera a leur utilisation par un eventail de domaines de recherche, et que la mise a jour de cette base de donnees sera assuree dans la mesure ou les chercheurs continueront d'alimenter ce fonds d'archive.
[1]
M. Fortin,et al.
An early forest inventory indicates high accuracy of forest composition data in pre‐settlement land survey records
,
2014
.
[2]
Hong S. He,et al.
Adjusting Forest Density Estimates for Surveyor Bias in Historical Tree Surveys
,
2012
.
[3]
D. Arseneault,et al.
Change from pre-settlement to present-day forest composition reconstructed from early land survey records in eastern Qu´ ebec, Canada
,
2011
.
[4]
W. Baker,et al.
Bias and error in using survey records for ponderosa pine landscape restoration
,
2010
.
[5]
J. Wood.
THE WOODLAND-OAK PLAINS TRANSITION ZONE IN THE SETTLEMENT OF WESTERN UPPER CANADA
,
2009
.
[6]
F. Pinto,et al.
Changes to preindustrial forest tree composition in central and northeastern Ontario, Canada
,
2008
.
[7]
M. Aubé.
The pre-European settlement forest composition of the Miramichi River watershed, New Brunswick, as reconstructed using witness trees from original land surveys
,
2008
.
[8]
I. Thompson,et al.
Historical Changes in White Pine (Pinus strobus L.) Density in Algonquin Park, Ontario, During the 19th Century
,
2006
.
[9]
A. Perera,et al.
Presettlement forest in southern Ontario: Ecosystems measured through a cultural prism
,
2003
.
[10]
Brian J. Naylor,et al.
A comparison of historical and current forest cover in selected areas of the Great LakesSt. Lawrence Forest of central Ontario
,
2002
.
[11]
Marc D. Abrams,et al.
Eastern White Pine Versatility in the Presettlement Forest
,
2001
.
[12]
L. Schulte,et al.
The Original US Public Land Survey Records: Their Use and Limitations in Reconstructing Presettlement Vegetation
,
2001
.
[13]
E. Nordheim,et al.
Assessing large-scale surveyor variability in the historic forest data of the original U.S. Public Land Survey
,
2001
.
[14]
M. Abrams,et al.
INFLUENCES OF NATIVE AMERICANS AND SURVEYOR BIASES ON METES AND BOUNDS WITNESS-TREE DISTRIBUTION
,
2001
.
[15]
R. Brugam,et al.
Application of a Geographic Information System to Mapping Presettlement Vegetation in Southwestern Illinois
,
1996
.
[16]
J. Clarke,et al.
Colonial survey records and the vegetation of Essex County, Ontario
,
1984
.
[17]
M. Moss,et al.
Forest Associations in Extreme Southern Ontario ca 1817: a Biogeographical Analysis of Gourlay's Statistical Account
,
1983
.
[18]
C. D. Freitas,et al.
THE SETTLEMENT OF MONO TOWNSHIP1
,
1975
.
[19]
R. Gourlay.
Statistical account of Upper Canada
,
1974
.
[20]
P. Maycock.
THE PHYTOSOCIOLOGY OF THE DECIDUOUS FORESTS OF EXTREME SOUTHERN ONTARIO
,
1963
.
[21]
S. W. Bromley.
The Original Forest Types of Southern New England
,
1935
.