& specifically re the pt roberts & nw angle exclaves or enclaves
uncannily i chanced to make visits also yesterday within or very close to
all 3 of the other international outlands of this sort that occur along the
caus boundary
similarly 2 of these cases are also comprised of unconnected american
territory
but the last is a unique reverse instance of a canadian outpost or exclave
if anyone would like to find or name or discuss further any of these 3
topologically equivalent yet curiously forgotten members of what is
actually a caus enclave quintet
then 3 clues to them are the following
all 3 of these exclaves are like the nw angle cut off by fresh water
2 of them are like both pt roberts & the nw angle closely associated with
what could fairly be called major international tripoints
& the least of the 3 may not even have a name yet
m
>
>
>On Sun, 16 Jul 2000, Peter Hering wrote:
>
>> Bill, thanks for your info on Point Roberts. Actually, I didn't express
>>myself properly: I know quite a lot about PR, have been there myself,
>>taken a lot of pictures as well - BUT: I'd like to know about the
>>background for the decision to put the border quite there: why should the
>>southern tip of this peninsula belong to the US - with all the
>>difficulties involved..? And why did the southern part of Vancouver
>> Island not become American as well - would be logical in my opinion...!
>> Any material on this border and the decision made accordingly...?!?
>
>The basic point is that the European powers often negotiated boundaries
>without knowing the local geography. Or when the new USofA negotiated
>about the West. (See Barry Smith's "On Drawing Lines on a Map"
>(<http://wings.buffalo.edu/philosophy/faculty/smith/articles/drawing.html)> htt
>p://wings.buffalo.edu/philosophy/faculty/smith/articles/drawing.html)
>for a general treatment but nothing about Point Roberts.)
>
>Anyway, in the mid 1800s, the United States wanted all territory on the
>Pacific Coast up to 54 degrees 40' noth, the S limit of Russian territory.
>Britain on the other hand wanted the border to the Columbia River (or was
>it 42 latitude?) Anyway, eventually, the compromise was negotiated to be
>the 49th parallel of latitude west to the Pacific. Britain was so solidly
>settled in to Vancouver Island that they convenced the US to let them
>retain control of the Island. The wording of the treaty was something
>like, "the 49th parallel west to the ocean, thence through the principle
>channel between Vancouver Island and the mainland. There was later
>argument about whteher the principle channel was east or west of the San
>Juan islands but eventually the US won and the San Juans became US
>territory.
>
>Back to Point Roberts. When the treaty was worded and signed, presumably
>no-one realized that the 49th parallel intersects the mainland shoreline
>three times! A similar case of drawing lines on maps without knowing the
>local geography led to Kentucky having a disconnected piece due to the
>fact that the parallel selected for the KY-TN border crosses the
>Mississippi 3 times. And a piece of Minnesota (the Northwest Angle)
>similarly can be reached by land only through Canada and forms the
>northernmost part of the 48 continguous states, is US territory largely
>because when the treaty wording was plotted out on the geography, there
>were some surprises!
>
>David
>
>David Mark
>dmark@...
><http://www.geog.buffalo.edu/~dmark/> http://www.geog.buffalo.edu/~dmark/
>
>
>
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