12 Mile Circle Monument - 8 Mile

This Stone monument was placed in this spot nearly 125 years ago and marks the 8 mile point for the 12-mile circle border that composes the northern border between Delaware and Pennsylvania. There is a D on the south face and P on the North face. The West face of the stone reads 8 for the mile marker it is and 1892 is carved on the East side for the year the survey of the border was performed by W.C. Hodgkins. Delaware's Northern border with Pennsylvania was originally declared to be formed by a 12-mile Circle with the center point being the Courthouse in New Castle, DE. This originated from a deed granted to William Penn from the Duke of York, Charles II, in 1682. In 1701 a survey was done by Thomas Pierson and Isaac Taylor, they used tree blazes to mark the 12-mile circle, Nearly all these marks did not survive long. In 1892 W.C. Hodgkins resurveyed the 12-mile circle. Hodgkins initially began his survey by heading due east from the point where the North line meets the West line that Mason and Dixon had marked previously. The original stone was lost and replaced in 1849 by Lt Col J.D. Graham. This Stone Marker is now known as the Tri-State marker for DE/MD/PA, but at the time, was only claimed officially by MD and PA. W.C. Hodgkins placed a marker known as the Arc Corner Stone along this eastwardly line that was exactly 12 miles from the Courthouse in New castle. Hodgkins would place a stone monument every half mile along the arc until he reached the Delaware River. He reused the few remaining markers that were available, none of which were exactly 12 miles from the New Castle County Courthouse cupola. This caused the 12-mile circle to not be an exact arc, but rather a compound circle formed with two different radii, Neither of which is centered on the Courthouse, but are both in New Castle, DE. This survey was not ratified by the State of Delaware and the US Congress until 1921 because the disputed territory known as "The Horn" contained land owners that thought they were in Delaware and suddenly found themselves in Pennsylvania and did not want to be part of Pennsylvania.