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Measuring America : How an Untamed Wilderness Shaped the United States SIGNED

Paul’s Books and Treasures
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US $24.99
Approximately£18.86
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Condition:
Very Good
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Located in: Miamisburg, Ohio, United States
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eBay item number:145289195253

Item specifics

Condition
Very Good: A book that has been read and does not look new, but is in excellent condition. No ...
Country/Region of Manufacture
United States
Type
Novel
Signed
Yes
Book Series
Historical
Narrative Type
Nonfiction
Features
Dust Jacket
Original Language
English
Intended Audience
Adults, Young Adults
Edition
Na
ISBN
9780802713964
Book Title
Measuring America : How an Untamed Wilderness Shaped the United States and Fulfilled the Promise of Democracy
Publisher
Walker & Company
Item Length
8.5 in
Publication Year
2002
Format
Hardcover
Language
English
Illustrator
Yes
Item Height
1.1 in
Author
Andro Linklater
Genre
Law, Technology & Engineering, Social Science, History
Topic
Demography, Land Use, Surveying, United States / State & Local / MidWest (IA, Il, in, Ks, Mi, MN, Mo, Nd, Ne, Oh, Sd, Wi), United States / General
Item Weight
19.6 Oz
Item Width
6.3 in
Number of Pages
288 Pages

About this product

Product Identifiers

Publisher
Walker & Company
ISBN-10
0802713963
ISBN-13
9780802713964
eBay Product ID (ePID)
2273212

Product Key Features

Book Title
Measuring America : How an Untamed Wilderness Shaped the United States and Fulfilled the Promise of Democracy
Number of Pages
288 Pages
Language
English
Topic
Demography, Land Use, Surveying, United States / State & Local / MidWest (IA, Il, in, Ks, Mi, MN, Mo, Nd, Ne, Oh, Sd, Wi), United States / General
Publication Year
2002
Illustrator
Yes
Genre
Law, Technology & Engineering, Social Science, History
Author
Andro Linklater
Format
Hardcover

Dimensions

Item Height
1.1 in
Item Weight
19.6 Oz
Item Length
8.5 in
Item Width
6.3 in

Additional Product Features

Intended Audience
Trade
LCCN
2002-073573
Dewey Edition
21
Dewey Decimal
973
Synopsis
Measuring America is the fascinating, provocative, and eye-opening story of why America has ended up with its unique system of weights and measures--the American Customary System, unlike any other in the world--and how this has profoundly shaped our country and culture. In the process, Measuring America reveals the colossal power contained inside the acres and miles, ounces and pounds, that we use every day without ever realizing their significance. The most urgent problem facing the newly independent United States was how to pay for the war that won the country its freedom; America's debt was enormous. Its greatest asset was the land west of the Ohio River, but for this huge territory to be sold, it had first to be surveyed--that is, measured out and mapped. And before that could be done, a uniform set of measurements had to be chosen for the new republic. English, Scottish, German, Dutch, Scandinavian, and other settlers had all brought their own systems with them (more than 100,000 different units are reckoned to have been in daily use), and in his first address to Congress, George Washington put the establishment of a single system of weights and measures immediately after a national defense and a currency as the United States' most urgent priority. The debate on this vital measure took place at a critical moment in the history of ideas, when the traditional, subjective view of the world was being increasingly challenged by objective, scientific reasoning. Thomas Jefferson--supported by Washington, Adams, Madison, Monroe, even Hamilton--championed the new idea of a scientific 10-based system derived from some universal constant such as time or the size of the earth. Such an alliance should have ensured a decimal America, but ranged against them was the invisible genius of Edmund Gunter, the seventeenth-century English mathematician whose twenty-two-yard surveying chain, introduced in 1607, had revolutionized land ownership in Britain and was still used by every surveyor in America--including Thomas Hutchins and his successors in charge of the land survey on the Ohio frontier. How we ultimately gained the American Customary System--the last traditional system in the world--and how Gunter's chain indelibly imprinted its dimensions on the land, on cities, and on our culture from coast to coast is both an exciting human and intellectual drama and one of the great untold stories in American history. At a time when the metric system may finally be unstoppable, Andro Linklater has captured the essential nature of measurement just as the Founding Fathers understood it. Sagely argued and beautifully written, Measuring America offers readers nothing less than the opportunity to see America's history--and our democracy--in a brilliant new light.
LC Classification Number
E161.3.L46 2002

Item description from the seller

Paul’s Books and Treasures

Paul’s Books and Treasures

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Registered as a private seller
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  • by citynerd
    06 Sep, 2006

    Measuring America by Andro Linklater

    This is a great book about the historical aspects and concepts of measuring land. I would recommend that every land surveyor consider it a "must read" book, to better understand the concepts behind the colonial measures, as well as the Public Land Survey. I have used this book extensively when educating others about land measurement concepts, especially land surveying. Very well written, easy and interesting to read. David Heim, L.S. (Land Surveyor - MN) webmaster - www.landsurveyor.us

  • by ohio_diver
    04 Apr, 2018

    Fascinating read

    If you’re interested in American history this is a “must have” book. It’s my 2nd copy! Full of great information about how and why surveying techniques were developed, and employed to make land available to those wishing to establish their own claims in our growing nation.

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-ownedSold by: archivesbooksinc

  • by dempsoid
    30 May, 2019

    excellent historical account

    Bok was in excellent condition

    Verified purchase: YesCondition: Pre-ownedSold by: coasbooks

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