Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

oldguy_on_the_wire t1_j7e374r wrote

Reply to comment by NotTRYINGtobeLame in Lead Plates and Land Claims in North America and Europe: When did the practice begin of burying lead plates to establish ownership of land, and why did it die out, and was it ever used successfully in a court of law to establish ownership? by whyenn

I would think any use of lead plates as boundary markers would have died out as iron (a ferromagnetic material and thus more easily located with a detector) became cheaper than lead.

30

NotTRYINGtobeLame t1_j7e49v8 wrote

Well, fuck. My second thought was going to be cost concerns. Guess I should've gone with that lol I just don't know which came first, chicken or egg.

7

Unique_Anywhere5735 t1_j7fc1a3 wrote

Lead holds up better in soil than most older ferrous metals. Also, it is easier to inscribe notations on lead plates. IIRC, there was a case years ago in southwestern Pennsylvania where someone dummied up some fake lead plates, "discovered" them, and fooled a local historical society.

3