VPRS 16687 Surveyors' Field Books, Miscellaneous Sequence

VPRS 16687 comprises the field books known by the Department of the Crown Lands and Survey as the Miscellaneous Sequence. It is not known why these particular field books were considered miscellaneous. Some of the books are continuation of earlier field books from either the black or red sequence (not noted in the books) and will provide a reference to the earlier book and page number and survey mark. Surveyors in the field used small standard books to record both survey data and notes as surveys were carried out. They often contain notes about topography and environment, bearings and distances, astronomical and sun observations for charting coordinates, boundary marks and other non cadastral detail which is not necessarily incorporated in to parish and township original plans and record plans held in VPRS 16306. This series, along with VPRS 16685 and VPRS 16686 contain field books that collectively span the period 1837-1927, although the majority of these span the period 1837-1879. The field books contain the survey work from which plans, known as the ‘original plans’, were forwarded to the Original Plan Room in Melbourne. The original plans in turn formed the basis of parish and township record plans produced since the late 1860’s/early 1870’s to define the status of land and to support the orderly alienation and management of Crown Land. Field were also used by surveyors to create plans known as ‘abstracts of field notes’ (or ‘survey field notes’ or simply ‘field notes’)  which were used to make changes to record plans.  All original plans/field notes until 1942 and every hard copy parish and township record plan created until the introduction of electronic records in 2001 are held in VPRS 16306. Field notes created after 1942 are still  in the custody of Land Use Victoria as at April 2024, which were then used to produce the parish and township Record Plans in VPRS 16306. Early instructions to Robert Hoddle from the Surveyor-General of the Colony of New South Wales, Sir Thomas Mitchell advised that the field book of each surveyor and assistant surveyor was to be considered a journal, in which he was required to specify, besides the survey data, any other work carried out and a general description of the environment. Hence details of general conditions in the field, hours worked and supplies carried are also recorded in the field books as well as the survey data. Instructions also made clear that the Field Books were public property and each surveyor and assistant surveyor was accountable for delivering the Field Books back to the Department. It is unclear for how long these instructions remained in force. For the most part, regulations issued under Lands Acts from at least 1870 to 1930, the Survey Coordination Act 1940, Surveyor (Cadastral Survey) Regulations from 1985 and the Survey Handbook Victoria all appear to have placed the onus on surveyors (or the agencies that employed them) to retain these books and only produce them for inspection by the Surveyor General if required.  Detailed instructions for current and historical survey practices are available in the Survey Practice Handbook Victoria, The Surveyors Board, Victoria 1994, ISBN 07306 50154. As at 2011 the Survey Practice Handbook was available on the Land Victoria website and from the Surveyors Registration Board. Field Books may include the following information; Purpose of the survey Dates Location names - portion or allotment and section number; parish and county; municipality or shire; township A diagram to illustrate the survey to assist the preparation of a plan Details about the physical character, geological formation, soil types, variety and density of timber, grazing and agricultural potential Water supply - rivers, creeks, lakes, shorelines, watercourses Details of ownership - license, lease, or freeholders Position of improvements - buildings, houses, fences, roads, streets, lanes Datum line of the survey and the azimuth adopted, bearings in degrees, minutes and seconds of arc, angles Weather conditions Lengths as measured, corrections for slope and temperature Position of permanent marks Sketches of surrounds Astronomical observations Occasionally a table of contents is also included. ORIGINAL PLANS AND FIELD NOTES Cadastral information recorded in the field books was used to produce plans sent to the Original Plan Room in Melbourne, known as original plans.  From the late 1860’s/early 1870’s, these original plans were used to create the record plans held in VPRS 16306. Original plans are referenced on the record plans and are stored with them in VPRS 16306  with alpha numeric or annual single number references from c.1860 until 1942, and then in a single number sequence from 1942. (Original plans ceased to be stored in VPRS 16306 during 1942.) The practice of producing field notes/original plans is still used today where surveyors record their field measurements in a field book or on field cards and the information is subsequently compiled as an "Abstract of Field Records" that becomes the registered survey document. These records created since 1942 are held in a sequence of files known as the survey field notes file at Land Use Victoria, as at April 2024.

VPRS 16687包含王室土地及测量署（Department of the Crown Lands and Survey）所称的"杂项序列"野外手簿。目前尚不清楚为何将这批特定的野外手簿归类为杂项序列。其中部分手簿是黑色或红色序列早期野外手簿的续册（手簿内未标注），并会标注对应早期手簿的编号、页码及测量标志。

野外测量员在作业时会使用小型标准手簿记录测量数据与观测笔记。这类手簿通常包含地形与环境记录、方位与距离数据、用于绘制坐标的天文及太阳观测记录、界址标志及其他非地籍（cadastral）细节，此类细节未必会纳入VPRS 16306所藏的教区与镇区原始图纸及记录图纸中。

该序列与VPRS 16685、VPRS 16686均包含野外手簿，整体覆盖1837年至1927年的时间段，其中大部分手簿的记录时段为1837年至1879年。这些野外手簿承载的测量工作成果，即所谓"原始图纸"，会被送交墨尔本的原始图纸室。自19世纪60年代末/70年代初起，这些原始图纸成为后续教区与镇区记录图纸的编制基础，用于明确土地权属状况，保障王室土地的有序出让与管理。

测量员还会利用野外手簿编制被称为"外业笔记摘要"（或"survey field notes"，简称"field notes"）的图纸，用于对记录图纸进行修改。1942年以前的所有原始图纸/外业笔记，以及2001年引入电子记录前编制的所有纸质教区与镇区记录图纸，均由VPRS 16306收藏。1942年之后编制的外业笔记截至2024年4月仍由维多利亚州土地使用局（Land Use Victoria）保管，其后续被用于编制VPRS 16306所藏的教区与镇区记录图纸。

新南威尔士殖民地测量总监托马斯·米切尔爵士（Sir Thomas Mitchell）曾向罗伯特·霍德尔（Robert Hoddle）发布早期指示，要求每位测量员及助理测量员将其野外手簿视为日志，除记录测量数据外，还需注明所开展的其他工作及环境的总体描述。因此，野外手簿中除测量数据外，还会记录野外总体状况、工作时长及携带物资等信息。此外，指示明确规定野外手簿属于公共财产，每位测量员及助理测量员需负责将手簿交还部门。目前尚不清楚该指令的有效时长。

从至少1870年至1930年依据《土地法》发布的条例、《1940年测量协调法》（Survey Coordination Act 1940）、《1985年测量员（地籍测量）条例》（Surveyor (Cadastral Survey) Regulations 1985）以及《维多利亚州测量手册》（Survey Handbook Victoria），总体上均要求测量员（或其雇主机构）保管此类手簿，仅在测量总监要求时才可提供查阅。

维多利亚州测量师委员会1994年发布的《维多利亚州测量实务手册》（Survey Practice Handbook Victoria, The Surveyors Board, Victoria 1994，ISBN 07306 50154）中包含了现行及历史测量实务的详细指引。截至2011年，该手册可在维多利亚州土地局官网及测量师注册委员会处获取。

野外手簿通常包含以下内容：
- 测量目的
- 日期
- 位置名称——宗地或地块编号及区段编号；教区与郡；自治市或乡郡；镇区
- 用于辅助编制图纸的测量示意图
- 物理特征、地质构造、土壤类型、林木种类与密度、放牧及农业潜力的相关信息
- 供水情况——河流、溪流、湖泊、岸线、水道
- 权属信息——许可证、租赁权或自由持有者情况
- 改良设施位置——建筑、房屋、围栏、道路、街道、小巷
- 测量基准线及采用的方位角，以度、分、秒表示的方位、角度
- 天气状况
- 实测长度、坡度及温度修正值
- 永久标志位置
- 周边环境草图
- 天文观测记录
- 部分手簿还会包含目录表。

# 原始图纸与外业笔记
野外手簿中记录的地籍信息被用于编制图纸并送交墨尔本的原始图纸室，即所谓"原始图纸"。自19世纪60年代末/70年代初起，这些原始图纸被用于编制VPRS 16306所藏的记录图纸。原始图纸会在记录图纸上标注引用信息，并与记录图纸一同收藏于VPRS 16306，1860年左右至1942年采用字母数字或年度单编号引用规则，1942年起改用单一编号序列。（1942年期间，原始图纸不再由VPRS 16306收藏。）

如今，测量员仍沿用编制外业笔记/原始图纸的实务流程：测量员在野外手簿或外业卡片上记录野外测量数据，后续将信息整理为"外业记录摘要"，作为正式登记的测量文件。1942年以来编制的此类记录，截至2024年4月，均收藏于维多利亚州土地使用局的测量外业笔记档案序列中。

搜集汇总

背景与挑战

背景概述

该数据集是维多利亚州公共记录办公室收藏的测量员野外记录本，属于'杂项序列'，记录了1837年至1927年（尤其是1837-1879年）的测量数据和环境观察。这些记录本包含地形、天文观测、土地边界等详细信息，用于生成原始计划和记录计划，支持土地管理和历史研究。