Home | Mount Diablo Diablo Surveyors Historical Society

Welcome to Mount Diablo Diablo Surveyors Historical Society!

California's Initial Points

Three initial points, the Mount Diablo Base and Meridian (est. 1851) (center), the San Bernardino Base and Meridian (est. 1852) (bottom), and the Humboldt Base and Meridian (est. 1853) (top) are the starting points for the property grid covering California and Nevada.

Read About:

The Mt. Diablo Initial Point
The San Bernardino Initial Point

Membership

The Mount Diablo Surveyors Historical Society (MDSHS) was created to enrich the general public by collecting, preserving and displaying the knowledge, technology and artifacts of the land surveying profession. The Society is a nonprofit public benefit tax-exempt corporation, and any donations of monies, grants or artifacts are fully tax deductible.

To become a member, please contact us.

California's Initial Points

Protecting, preserving and displaying artifacts of the land surveying profession.

Next Meeting!

Tue, 02/10/2026 - 7:50pm by JustThe411

We currently have regular meetings on Zoom.