I discussed this with a veteran reporter at the NJ Herald in Sussex
County. She called me back today and said they ran a story once about
the issue. The town founders wanted a shape to the town instead of
following natural features or roads as boundaries, so they sunk an
iron post in the middle of the town and decided to run eight
essentially equally spaced lines radiating from the post for 2.500
feet each. Once they monumented the end points of the eight lines,
they joined those end points with straight lines rather than arcs that
would have made a circle. Why, she didn't know. They just did.
--- In BoundaryPoint@yahoogroups.com, "Flynn, Kevin" <flynnk@r...> wrote:
> I may make a few more calls... but the woman who answered the phone
seemed
> dumbfounded when I asked her if she or any local history buff there
could
> tell me why here borough was shaped like a stop sign. It was almost
like she
> didn't know that it was. Perhaps she thought it was only a Yield
sign and
> that she could roll through without coming to a complete stop.
>
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: aletheiak [mailto:aletheiak@y...]
> > Sent: Tuesday, March 15, 2005 12:33 PM
> > To: BoundaryPoint@yahoogroups.com
> > Subject: [BoundaryPoint] Re: STOP Sign in Northern New Jersey
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > hahahahaha
> > nice play
> >
> > were they surprised or amused or anything
> >
> > & how about the library
> >
> > --- In BoundaryPoint@yahoogroups.com, "Flynn, Kevin"
> > <flynnk@r...> wrote:
> > > I just talked to the borough clerk's office and the woman told
> > me that
> > > neither she, nor the mayor, nor anyone in the office at the
> > moment has any
> > > idea why their town is shaped as an octagon.
> > >
> > > > -----Original Message-----
> > > > From: aletheiak [mailto:aletheiak@y...]
> > > > Sent: Tuesday, March 15, 2005 12:12 PM
> > > > To: BoundaryPoint@yahoogroups.com
> > > > Subject: [BoundaryPoint] Re: STOP Sign in Northern New
> > Jersey
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > http://tinyurl.com/59fvv
> > > > narrows the difference between the longest & shortest sides
> > of
> > > > the octagon to perhaps as little as 125 feet
> > > > or only about 6 percent
> > > > & all the angles measure close to perfect regularity too
> > > >
> > > > the directional offset of the octagon appears to follow the
> > general
> > > > direction of the main drag
> > > > on which a pair of its diametric extremities evidently do fall
> > > >
> > > > but i guess theres nothing left to do but call boro hall
> > > > & just ask them if they know what the deal is
> > > >
> > > > there is after all at least half a chance that the boro was
> > formed &
> > > > surveyed within living memory
> > > >
> > > > & another half a chance that local pride has remained aware
> > of
> > > > or somehow actually commemorated the unusual shape
> > > >
> > > > like what if they get several calls a week on this very question
> > &
> > > > have a faq already prepared
> > > >
> > > > --- In BoundaryPoint@yahoogroups.com, "aletheiak"
> > > > <aletheiak@y...> wrote:
> > > > >
> > > > > handsome & fascinating find mike
> > > > >
> > > > > & tho further info on this municipality is elusive
> > > > > its absence from a 1903 topo indicates it is relatively recent
> > > > > & thus presumably had a fairly accurate border survey
> > > > >
> > > > > curiously enough tho
> > > > > the octagon only gives the impression of having a perfectly
> > > > > cardinal orientation
> > > > > yet is actually off by several degrees
> > > > >
> > > > > &
> > > > > measurements indicate the octagon isnt so nearly
> > equilateral
> > > > as
> > > > > it looks either
> > > > > what with the longest sides being about 200 feet longer
> > than
> > > > the
> > > > > shortest
> > > > >
> > > > > all of which suggests someone may well have tried for but
> > > > > somehow not quite achieved geometric perfection
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > but if the powers that were really did want to make the
> > easiest
> > > > > possible work of an otherwise hard job
> > > > > as you surmise
> > > > > then such minor inexactitudes as these come as no great
> > > > > surprise either
> > > > >
> > > > >
> > > > > circular municipalities are actually fairly common tho
> > > > > especially in the postbellum south
> > > > > nor do they even necessarily require any demarcation
> > > > > as an examination of plains georgia for example has
> > revealed
> > > > > http://egroups.com/group/BoundaryPoint/message/1550
> > > > >
> > http://topozone.com/map.asp?lat=32.03389&lon=-84.39278
> > > > >
> > > > > --- In BoundaryPoint@yahoogroups.com, spookymike@a...
> > > > > wrote:
> > > > > > For reasons unknown to me, the Borough of Sussex, in
> > > > > Sussex County, New
> > > > > > Jersey, is octagonally shaped. As with many other NJ
> > > > > boroughs, towns, etc., it is
> > > > > > completely surrounded by another municpality. Perhaps
> > the
> > > > > powers what be
> > > > > > wanted to make a circular borough, but found it easier to
> > > > > survey the eight
> > > > > > straight segments of the octagon, rather than risk
> > duplicating
> > > > > the boundary mess in
> > > > > > northern Delaware?
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Have a look: http://tinyurl.com/5r68d
> > > > > >
> > > > > > Mike Schwartz
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
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