Have you ever wondered why our township roads are (mostly) so straight?
Wouldn’t it have been easier to build them following the contours of the land? Why are they called Lines? Why do some townships call them Concession roads? And what about these Quarter lines? Isn’t that just a short line? To answer these questions, blame the British.
After the conquest of New France, these lands were now considered property of the British Crown (ie- Crown Lands). The new colonial administration decided to open up these lands to settlement (notwithstanding the fact of the First Nations already on these lands).
In Upper Canada, it was decided to divide these lands into parcels, or lots, alongside lines or usually in an east-west orientation. Teams of surveyors (in Cavan, led by Samuel Wilmots) were given the task of laying out the lines. The standard length of measurement was the surveyors’ chain of 66 feet length. Roadway width was one chain and to this day local road allowances are 66 feet. Lots, usually of 100 or 200 acres, were marked off along the side of these roadways.
Survey work was gruelling. Just imagine trying to mark a straight line through forests, across streams, swamps, ravines and other obstacles, in all sorts of weather, while carrying all your food, gear and survey instruments. Biting insects could drive the crews to distraction. Many insect repellents were tried, some rubbed onto the skin and these usually stank to high heaven. Others were taken as a drink and these usually had a high percentage of alcohol. Some of the off kilter roads in Dummer Township were blamed on the effects of these repellants, memorialized in local band Tanglefoot’s song the Drunken Dummer Survey.
Sometimes, curves in the road were due not to imbibing a powerful bug repellant but because an obstacle was too difficult to pass straight across. An example of these “forced” roads is the section of the Zion (4th) Line between County Road 10 and the 4th Line Theatre, as the road winds its way down a steep hill.
Along with the east-west lines, other roadways were surveyed in a north-south direction, named Boundary roads at the edges and side roads within the township (some townships still call them by this name). In Cavan there are three side roads. The Boundary roads of Cavan are now Dranoel and Glamorgan on the west, County Road 28 on the east. The middle side road (the Centre Line) is now County Road 10. Two other side roads (along with the Centre Line) divide the township into quarters; so, our Quarter Lines. To the west, these are now Tapley and Winslow Quarter Lines, to the east McCamus and Howden Quarter Lines as well as Hutchinson Drive.
Surveyed lots of land were “conceded” by the Crown to settlers who would have to make their way along the (still imaginary) Line/Concession roads to their new home. Most Cavan settlers started out from Port Hope along the few developed roads in Hope Township. These trails soon faded out and they were left to bushwhack their way following the marks left by the survey crews to their appointed lot of land.
In addition to often paying a sum of money, to obtain a lot of land the settler agreed to clear and plant a certain acreage and construct a dwelling. In addition, he (title holders were all male back then) also had to open up and maintain the stretch of road across his property frontage. It must be remembered that nearly all this work was done manually with hand tools. Some, but not all, settler families had oxen to help them and only a rare few had horses.
So, this is why Cavan roads are Lines, though not always straight because sometimes they’re forced; Quarter Lines are not just short lines; and drinking early 19th century bug juice can make surveyors and roads wobbly.
Then and Now by Daniel Bourgeois