59.74 Perpetuation of section corners, landmarks.

(1) Relocation and perpetuation of section corners and division lines.

(a) If a majority of all the resident landowners in any section of land within this state desire to establish, relocate or perpetuate any section or other corner of any section, or in the same section a division line of the section, they may make a formal application in writing to the circuit judge for the county in which the land is situated. The circuit judge shall file the application in his or her court and shall within a reasonable time give at least 10 days' notice in writing to the owners of all adjoining lands, if those owners reside in the county where the land is situated and if not, by publication of a class 3 notice, under ch. 985, stating the day and hour when the circuit judge will consider and pass upon such application. The circuit judge shall hear all interested parties and approve or reject the application at that time. If the application is approved, the clerk shall notify the county surveyor who shall within a reasonable time proceed to make the required survey and location. If a corner is to be perpetuated, the surveyor shall deposit in the proper place a stone or other equally durable material of the dimensions and in the manner and with the markings provided under s. 60.84 (3) (c), and shall also erect witness monuments as provided under sub. (2). The surveyor shall be paid the cost of the perpetuation from the general fund of the county.

(b) All expense and cost of the publication of the notice and of the survey and perpetuation shall be apportioned by the clerk among the several parcels of land in the section upon the basis of the area surveyed, shall be included by the clerk in the next tax roll and shall be collected in the same manner as other taxes are collected.

(2) Perpetuation of landmarks.

(a)

1. No landmark, monument, corner post of the government survey or survey made by the county surveyor or survey of public record may be destroyed, removed, or covered by any material that will make the landmark, monument, or corner post inaccessible for use, without first having erected witness or reference monuments as provided in subd. 2. for the purpose of identifying the location of the landmark and making a certified copy of the field notes of the survey setting forth all the particulars of the location of the landmark with relation to the reference or witness monuments so that its location can be determined after its destruction or removal. The certified copy of the field notes shall be filed as provided under par. (b) 2.

2. Witness monuments shall be made of durable material, including cement, natural stone, iron or other equally durable material, except wood. If iron pipe monuments are used, they shall be made of 2 inch or more galvanized iron pipe not less than 30 inches in length having an iron or brass cap fastened to the top and marked with a cross cut on the top of the cap where the point of measurement is taken. If witness monuments are made of cement, stone or similar material, they shall be not less than 30 inches in length nor less than 5 inches in diameter along the shortest diagonal marked on the top with a cross where the point of measurement is taken.

(b)

1. Whenever it becomes necessary to destroy, remove, or cover up in such a way that will make it inaccessible for use, any landmark, monument of survey, or corner post within the meaning of this subsection, the person including employees of governmental agencies who intend to commit such act shall serve written notice at least 30 days prior to the act upon the county surveyor of the county within which the landmark is located. Notice shall also be served upon the municipality's engineer if the landmark is located within the corporate limits of a municipality. The notice shall include a description of the landmark, monument of survey, or corner post and the reason for removing or covering it. In this paragraph, removal of a landmark includes the removal of railroad track by the owner of the track. In a county having a population of less than 750,000 where there is no county surveyor, notice shall be served upon the clerk. In a county with a population of 750,000 or more where there is no county surveyor, notice shall be served upon the executive director of the regional planning commission which acts in the capacity of county surveyor for the county. Notwithstanding par. (c), upon receipt of the notice the clerk shall appoint a professional land surveyor to perform the duties of a county surveyor under subd. 2.

2. The county surveyor or executive director of the regional planning commission, upon receipt of notice under subd. 1., shall within a period of not to exceed 30 working days, either personally or by a deputy, or by the municipality's engineer make an inspection of the landmark, and, if he or she considers it necessary because of the public interest to erect witness monuments to the landmark, he or she shall erect 4 or more witness monuments or, if within a municipality, may make 2 or more offset marks at places near the landmark where they will not be disturbed. The county surveyor shall make a survey and field notes giving a description of the landmark and the witness monuments or offset marks, stating the material and size of the witness monuments and locating the offset marks, the horizontal distance and courses in terms of the references set forth in s. 59.45 (1) (a) 2. that the witness monuments bear from the landmark and, also, of each witness monument to all of the other witness monuments. The county surveyor may also make notes as to such other objects, natural or artificial, that will enable anyone to locate the position of the landmark. The county surveyor upon completing the survey shall make a certified copy of the field notes of the survey and record it as provided under s. 59.45 (1). The municipality's engineer upon completing the survey shall record the notes in his or her office, open to the inspection of the public, and shall file a true and correct copy with the county surveyor. In a county with a population of 750,000 or more, the certified copy of the field notes of the survey shall be filed in the office of the regional planning commission which acts in the capacity of county surveyor for the county.

(c) In those counties where there are no county surveyors a petition can be made to the board by any resident of this state requesting the board to appoint a professional land surveyor to act in the capacity of the county surveyor. The board, upon receipt of this petition, shall appoint a professional land surveyor to act in the capacity of the county surveyor. In counties with a population of 750,000 or more, the board may appoint a governmental agency to act in the capacity of county surveyor.

(d) The cost of the work of perpetuating the evidence of any landmark under the scope of this subsection shall be borne by the county or counties proportionally, in which said landmark is located.

(e)

1. Except as provided in subd. 2., any person who removes, destroys or makes inaccessible any landmark, monument of survey, corner post of government survey, survey made by the county surveyor or survey of public record without first complying with this subsection shall be fined not to exceed $1,000 or imprisoned in the county jail for not more than one year.

2. Any person who removes railroad track as provided in par. (b) 1. without first complying with par. (b) 1. shall be subject to a forfeiture not to exceed $1,000.

(f) Any person who destroys, removes or covers any landmark, monument or corner post rendering them inaccessible for use, without first complying with pars. (a) 1. and (b) 1. shall be liable in damages to the county in which the landmark is located, for the amount of any additional expense incurred by the county because of such destruction, removal or covering.

(g) Every professional land surveyor and every officer of the department of natural resources and the district attorney shall enforce this subsection.

(h) Any professional land surveyor employed by the department of transportation or by a county highway department, may, incident to employment as such, assume and perform the duties and act in the capacity of the county surveyor under this subsection with respect to preservation and perpetuation of landmarks, witness monuments, and corner posts upon and along state trunk, county trunk, and town highways. Upon completing a survey and perpetuating landmarks and witness monuments under par. (b) 2., a professional land surveyor employed by the state shall file the field notes and records in the district office or main office of the department of transportation, and a professional land surveyor employed by a county shall file the field notes and records in the office of the county highway commissioner, open to inspection by the public, and in either case a true and correct copy of the field notes and records shall be filed with the county surveyor. In a county with a population of 750,000 or more where there is no county surveyor, a copy of the field notes and records shall also be filed in the office of the regional planning commission which acts in the capacity of county surveyor for the county.

(i) The records of the corners of the public land survey may be established and perpetuated in the following manner: commencing on January 1, 1970, and in each calendar year thereafter, the county surveyor or a deputy may check and establish or reestablish and reference at least 5 percent of all corners originally established in the county by government surveyors, so that within 20 years or less all the original corners will be established or reestablished and thereafter perpetuated.

(j) The county surveyor may employ other professional land surveyors to assist in this work and may accept reference checks for these corners from any professional land surveyor.

(k) The cost of perpetuating these corners shall be paid out of the county road and bridge fund or other county fund under s. 83.11.

History: 1995 a. 201 ss. 395, 396, 423; 2013 a. 358; 2017 a. 207 s. 5.

Resurveys of the public lands under s. 59.635 (8) [now s. 59.74 (2) (i)] are discussed. 66 Atty. Gen. 134.

A city or village engineer acting under s. 59.635 (2) [now s. 59.74 (2) (b) 2.] need not be registered as a land surveyor. 68 Atty. Gen. 185.