Glossary
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A call is one segment of a metes-and-bounds boundary. Most calls are a course — a bearing (direction) and a distance, such as "N 45°30′ E, 210.00 feet." A call can also be a curve, or a reference to a monument or an adjoining parcel. Walked in order, the calls trace the whole boundary.
Also called: course · bearing and distance
Reading a bearing
A quadrant bearing reads from north or south, toward east or west: "N 45°30′ E" means start facing north and rotate 45 degrees 30 minutes toward the east. Bearings use degrees, minutes, and seconds (60 minutes to a degree, 60 seconds to a minute).
The distance follows the bearing and is usually in feet (sometimes chains, poles, rods, or varas in older deeds). A "chain" is 66 feet; a "rod" or "pole" is 16.5 feet.
Curves and monument calls
Some boundaries follow a curve, described by a radius, arc length, and chord rather than a single straight bearing and distance. Other calls reference a physical feature — "to an iron pin," "along the centerline of the creek," or "thence along the line of Lot 4" — which can introduce uncertainty when the feature has moved or cannot be found.
Related terms
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