The border between the Australian states of South Australia and Victoria was established in 1836 by imperial letters patent "as the 141st degree meridian of longitude east of Greenwich". In 1836 the land in what is now called Victoria was part of the colony of New South Wales, the original Victorian border was drawn between the colonies of South Australia and New South Wales. There was an error in establishing the position of the 141st meridian, and it took more than 75 years and a protracted legal dispute before the precise placement of the border was settled, resulting in the forfeiture of more than of territory from South Australia to Victoria. Tyers survey In 1839 Charles Tyers was transferred from the Royal Navy to the Colonial Service and instructed by Sir George Gipps, the Governor of New South Wales, to ascertain the precise longitude at the mouth of the Glenelg River so that a distance to the 141st meridian (the eastern border of South Australia) could be measured. Several months later, Tyers completed a survey from Melbourne to the Glenelg River and on an expanse of sandy beach he formed a broad arrow with limestone rocks. This became known as Tyers' Mark and was used to determine the starting point for the border survey. Due primarily to inadequate equipment, this was later determined to be 2 miles and 4 chains (3.3 km) in error. Following the proclamation of government in the province of South Australia in 1836, the region between the coast and the Murray River was rapidly being settled by Europeans through squatters selecting large runs for sheep grazing. With no clear border, legal oversight was impossible; an accurate position needed to be defined. The earliest relevant reference to the boundary of South Australia was in a despatch dated 30 September 1844 from the South Australian governor, George Grey to the British Secretary of State for War and the Colonies, Lord Stanley. Grey stated that it would be extremely difficult to determine with accuracy a number of points on the Earth's surface through which the 141st degree of east longitude passes, and pointed out that in addition to that difficulty there would be attendant expense. Wade–White surveys For several years following Tyers' survey no action was taken to extend his work but by 1845 the need to have the boundary line defined on the ground had become urgent, particularly