arpent—A unit of area, approximately 0.85 acre. Land grants of the French crown were usually delineated in terms of the arpent. When used as a linear term, arpent refers to the length of a side of one square arpent. The determination of the length of the arpent depends on whether the original grantor was of French or English descent. For instance, in Arkansas and Missouri, 1 arpent = 0.8507 acre; a side of 1 sq. arpent = 192.50 feet. In Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and northwestern Florida, 1 arpent = 0.84725 acre; a side of 1 sq. arpent = 191.994 feet approximately.

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Source: NSPS “Definitions of Surveying and Related Terms“, used with permission.

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