Century-old benchmark in Ranier recovered after many decades

In 1906, government workers took a hammer and chisel and hollowed out a vertical space in the bedrock of the Sand Bay shore in then unorganized Ranier.
A small bronze disk called a geodetic marker was dropped into that opening and then embedded in a cement cylinder. It served as a benchmark for the International Boundary Waters Commission.
These historical benchmarks are part of the National Geodetic Survey ’s system of stable heights, based on a level surface that approximates the surface of the ocean. Nationwide, 750,000 marks form a geographic framework for the mapping and charting of the United States.
Marks are very important in monitoring water elevations. This is done by measuring the height difference from the benchmark (which is stable) to the changing water surface.
The NGS is a federal agency charged with defining the system of latitude, longitude and heights for the United States and its public. Geodetic markers are located near bodies of water and other places where heights are important, such as bridges, dams, highways and stream gages.
Recovering historical markers is of interest to both the U.S. and Canadian government, and also to members of the public who as a hobby or vocation (geocaches) are interested in maintaining them. These people understand that benchmarks are important references for water-level monitoring, according to David Zenk, NGS advisor in St. Paul.
Recently, a member of the public searched for “1111 IBC” (the Ranier mark) and was confounded. He was not the first — the last unsuccessful search for the marker was 35 years ago in 1973. For decades, the 1906 Ranier marker has been lost to international agencies.
Realizing its importance, this citizen contacted the NGS, who contacted Zenk to once again investigate the welfare and location of that marker.

The continuing search
“The horizontal positions of those benchmarks were usually not surveyed with any great precision,” said Zenk, explaining that vertical marking was the priority and the horizontal position often merely scaled from a map, leading to several hundred feet of possible error.
“The actual latitude-longitude scaling from maps years ago shows the benchmark to be in the water, which we knew wasn’t correct,” said Zenk.
Original descriptions recorded the Ranier marker to be “at the foot of main street, on shore of Rainy Lake, 200 feet west of pier in lake, 150 feet east of mill building, 85 feet west of burned boat shop, 6 feet back from edge of water.” These old landmarks had become difficult to locate with certainty, putting the mark’s location in doubt, according to Zenk.
Zenk contacted Minnesota Department of Transportation technician Dan Sursely of Big Falls to investigate the area more thoroughly. During his visit, Sursely was advised by Mark Rognerud to ask a Ranier historian who grew up on its shores. That is Arden Barnes, who was found nearby eating at Grandma’s Pantry.
Barnes remembered playing around the brass disk as a child; its image remained in her memory as childhood markers often do. The burned out boathouse had belonged to her father, John Erickson. The landmarks tied into the old description were long gone.
But Barnes led Sursely right to the marker’s location.

Recovery
Finding the marker was one thing — viewing it was another.
Oh, it’s still there. Embedded in the rock. On the Ranier shore. Under resident Lynn Naeckel’s house.
“I had no idea anyone was looking all this time,” says Naeckel who was not at home on the day of the search. According to Barnes, a motel built by Hubert Oster covered the marker in 1973 when the last search was made. The motel evolved into the private residence which now stands over the benchmark.
Access to the marker is possible through a vent about the size of a basement window in the concrete foundation under the north end of Naeckel’s house. Sursely called Zenk with the news. “Mr. Zenk was delighted that I knew where the marker was,” said Barnes.
“I still have to go under there, recover it, and take pictures,” Sursely told The Daily Journal. Sursely, Zenk and Naeckel all agree that getting intimate with the spiders that likely live in the crawl space seems rather unappealing.
“We need to determine its value as a benchmark, and document a better horizontal position,” said Zenk, who added that Naeckel has given permission to access for official purposes. Zenk said a simple transfer elevation of the mark is very possible.
The satisfaction of using her childhood memories to aid in the recovery of the marker was clearly evident in Barnes, who remarked: “How nice that this marker was rediscovered in 2008, our centennial year.”

THE PUBLIC AND GEODETIC MARKERS
Residents of the area who may come across geodetic disks are advised that they are valuable tools in managing water levels and other activities. More modern marks are read by satellite. Preserving all marks and protecting them from accidental damage will avoid the public expense of replacing a mark and resurveying its height.
Often these marks are miles apart and will require miles of surveys to replace. Residents are reminded that these marks are not outmoded curiosities. They are still in use, and are legally protected public property with penalties for vandalism or theft.
The NGS makes available charts and maps of the nation’s coastline and participates in managing the Global Positioning System.
Any resident who needs to report on a mark which is in danger due to construction or other activity may contact Zenk at the following address:

David Zenk PE, PLS
National Geodetic Survey Advisor
Office of Land Management,
Geodetic Unit
395 John Ireland Blvd., MS 641
Transportation Building
St. Paul, MN 55155
Phone: 651-366-3523
www.ngs.noaa.gov