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Re: Metric Time (was Re: Why not 13 months? (Was La Systeme Metrique))
Dik T. Winter (dik@cwi.nl)
Mon, 23 Oct 1995 01:13:03 GMT
In article <DGvIFz.59L@cwi.nl> I wrote:
> In article <46ea3b$997@shore.shore.net> Whittet@shore.net (Whittet) writes:
> > For those who actually study the history of things like the French Revolution,
> > less the propaganda and with some knowledge of the behind the scenes games
> > people play, the major impact of a change in standards of measure is not
> > scientific advance, but big orders for retooled machinery.
>
> Oh come on. The biggest impact was on trade. It was made much easier as
> it was no longer necessary to use different measures each few kilometers
> you travelled.
To proof my point, a small follow-up to my own article.
This is factually true. Before 1820 (standardization on metric) in
the Netherlands the most common length measures were foot and rod.
Below I give the lengths of the feet in use at that time including
the places where they were used. Some places occur more than once;
that is not an error, the foot used depended on what you measured or
simply on the wimp of the measurer. A rod was 7, 10, 12, 13, 14, 16,
18, 19, 20 or 21 feet, again depending on where you were and what you
measured and possibly on the wimp of the measurer. It is *not*
a fact that the lower values were associated with longer feet vv.
For instance, in Uitgeest two different feet and two different rods
were in use, one rod had 12 feet of 0.283 m, the other had 14 feet
of 0.296 m. Try to find all places below and see whether you can find
a pattern (but you will have difficulty finding some of those places).
Agreed, there is some structure, but not very much.
For those who do not want to read the complete list below, a summary.
A foot ranged from 0.258 m to 0.395 m with most values between 0.275 m
and 0.330 m. All values from:
J.M. Verhoeff, De oude Nederlandse maten en gewichten, Amsterdam, 1983.
Similar lists can be made for volume, area etc. For countrywide trade
most commonly used where the Amsterdam foot (0.283 m) and the Rijnland
(neighbourhood Leiden) foot (0.314 m). With rods consisting of 12 or
16 of either feet. Surveyors used local rods but divided in 10 feet
for simplicity; those surveyor-feet are not given here.
0.258 m Gelderland
0.268 m Utrecht
0.269 m Buren
0.271 m Gelderland, Nijmegen
0.275 m Zeeuws Vlaanderen
0.276 m Akswijk, Haarlem
0.277 m 's Hertogenbosch, Hoorn, Middelie
0.278 m Haarlem, Waterland
0.279 m Alkmaar, Haarlem
0.280 m Heilo, Klundert, Lekkendijk, Limmen, Maastricht, Wijk (Limb.)
0.282 m Holwerd
0.283 m Almelo, Amsterdam, Almelo, Barsingerhorn, Beverwijk, Castricum,
Doetinchem, Friesland, Gronsveld, Harderwijk, Haringhuizen,
Hoogland, Mastenbroek, Muiden, Nijmegen, Oldebroek, Ommen,
Oudhuizen, Putten (Geld), Salland, Uitgeest, Vlieland, Wielree,
Woerden
0.284 m Almelo, Bakkum, Breda, Roosendaal
0.285 m Akersloot, Hondsbos, Huisduinen, Niervaart, Noordbrabant, Oostzaan,
Schagerkogge
0.286 m Winkel
0.287 m Asten, Graft, 's Hertogenbosch, Heugem, Roermond
0.288 m Castricum, Weert
0.289 m Graft, Rijp, de, Zwolle
0.290 m Geesterambacht, Limmen, Meer, Otterdijk, Schagerkogge, Schermerhorn,
Veenhuizen
0.291 m Gooiland, Hilversum, Limburg, Westzaan
0.292 m Eindhoven, Groningen, Muiden, Noordwolde, Nijeveen, Obergum,
Oostwold, Termunten, Weesp
0.293 m Sloten (NH), Valkoog
0.294 m Assen, Breda, Diever, Drenthe, Gasselternijveen, Holstein,
Hijkersmilde, Limburg, Steenwijk
0.295 m Bergen, Geesterambacht, Graft, Grootkamp, Huisduinen
0.296 m Balk, Betterwird, Blije, Damwoude, Deventer, Ee, Enschede, Ferwerd,
Friesland, Gorredijk, Hallum, Heerenveen, Holwerd, Lemmer, Marsum,
Meden, Rauwerd, Uitgeest
0.300 m Bloois, Goes, Gorcum, Huisduinen, Middelburg, St. Philipsland,
Vlissingen
0.302 m Waterland
0.305 m Emmikhoven, Veere
0.307 m Duiveland, Oude Pekela, St. Annaland
0.308 m Achterland, Ammers, Nieuwpoort
0.309 m Sloten (Fr.)
0.310 m Dordrecht, Gorcum, Schouwen, Steenbergen, Wieringen
0.312 m Briel, den, Rotterdam, Voorne, Willemstad
0.313 m Almelo
0.314 m Hattem, Oudhuizen, Rijnland, Schagerkogge, St. Johannesga, Sloten (NH)
0.315 m Geesterambacht, Nijmegen
0.316 m Leerdam, Maassluis, Wieringen
0.317 m Stein (ZH)
0.318 m Loosdrecht, Oudorp, Steenwijkerkarspelen, Velsen
0.320 m Heerenveen
0.321 m Bolsward, Lemmer, Loosdrecht
0.323 m Edam, Hardegarijp, Heerhugowaard, Oostermeer, Oosthuizen
0.324 m Briel, den, Buitenpost
0.325 m Harlingen, Menaldum, Workum
0.326 m Beetsterzwaag, Drechterkand, Enkhuizen, Friesland, Gorredijk, Kollum,
Lippenhuizen, Medemblik, Terschelling
0.327 m Ameide, Texel, Vijhoevekapelle
0.328 m Noorderkogge
0.330 m Heenvliet, Purmerend, Zuid Holland
0.340 m Duiveland, Putten (ZH)
0.341 m Abcoude
0.350 m Gooiland, Hilversum
0.376 m Utrecht, Wijk bij Duurstede
0.377 m Mastenbroek
0.389 m Zevenbergen
0.395 m Heerenveen
--
dik t. winter, cwi, kruislaan 413, 1098 sj amsterdam, nederland, +31205924098
home: bovenover 215, 1025 jn amsterdam, nederland; e-mail: dik@cwi.nl
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