Final answer:
The legal description of land detailing its boundaries and angles is called a survey. It originates from the metes and bounds system used by English settlers and is designed to prevent property disputes by providing a precise description.
Step-by-step explanation:
The legal description of land that sets forth all the boundary lines with their terminal points and angles is known as a survey. With its origins in the metes and bounds cadastral system introduced by English settlers, a survey provides a legally binding, precise, and detailed description of the property's boundaries. This detailed representation would be created by a licensed surveyor and is used to establish legal ownership and prevent disputes over property lines.
The system of metes and bounds often resulted in irregularly shaped land parcels that were defined using natural landmarks like trees or boulders. These natural markers could move or change over time, leading to confusion and potential disputes. Later land division systems, such as those introduced by the Ordinance of 1785, sought to organize land into more regular, rectangular plots and simplify the process of buying and selling land.