Surveyors Chain

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James Chesterman

Overview

This Surveyor's chain or Gunter's chain, is an instrument used for measuring length. It comprises 100 pieces of straight metal wire, looped together end to end, and fitted with swivel handles with tally marks every ten links. Its overall length is one chain (22 yards or 66 feet) - the same length as a cricket pitch!
The Gunter's chain was named after its inventor, Edmund Gunter (1581-1626), an English clergyman, mathematician, and astronomer. He made an actual chain of 100 links that surveyors could easily carry to measure and survey ground accurately for both legal and commercial purposes. This chain was made in England by James Chesterman & Co, Sheffield, which had been established in 1829. The company manufactured other measuring instruments, including tape measures and rules. The company was founded by James Chesterman, a metalworker who invented a spring-loaded tape measure in 1829.
The Gunter’s chain was used in Australia for all types of land survey work and to peg railway centre lines. It was eventually superseded by the steel tape measure. Engineer's chains were used in the construction of works and differed from surveyor's chains in that they were 100 feet in length with each link being one foot long.

Details

Registration number

cwa-org-124-2025.1

Item type

Objects

Themes

Social History

Material

Steel

Height or length

20.1168 mm

Inscriptions and markings