Measurement Tables - City of Boston

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Measurement Tables

Kitchen Measures
Linear Measures
Nautical Measures
Square or Area Measures
Cubic or Volume Measures
Liquid or Fluid Measures
Dry Measures

Kitchen Measures

Standard	Equivalent
One pinch or dash	1/16 teaspoon
3 teaspoons	1 tablespoon (1/2 oz liquid)
4 tablespoons	1/4 cup (2 oz liquid)
1/3/cup	5 tablespoons plus one teaspoon
1/2 cup	8 tablespoons (4 oz liquid)
1 gill	1/2 cup (4 oz liquid)
1 cup	18 tablespoons (8 oz liquid)
2 cups	1 pint (16 oz liquid)
2 pints	1 quart (32 oz liquid)
4 quarts	1 gallon
8 quarts	1 peck
4 pecks	1 bushel
16 ounces	1 pound (dry measure)
1 pound of butter	2 cups

All measurements quoted are level.

Linear Measures

Standard	Equivalent
12 inches	1 foot
4 inches	1/3(4/12) foot = 1 hand
9 inches	1 span
3 feet	1 yard
5 1/2 yards	16 1/2 feet = 1 rod, pole or perch
40 poles	220 yards = 1 furlong
8 furlongs	1,760 yards = 5,280 feet = 1 mile
3 miles	1 league
69 1/8 miles	1 degree
320 rods	1 mile
Vara (Spanish)	33 1/3 inches

Nautical Measures

Standard	Equivalent
6,028 feet	1 nautical mile
6 feet	1 fathom
120 fathoms	1 cable length
1 nautical mile per	1 knot of speed

Square or Area Measures

Standard	Equivalent
144 square inches	1 square feet
9 square feet	1 square yard
30 1/4 square yards	1 square rod, pole or perch
160 square rods	1 acre
10 square chains	1 acre
640 acres	1 square mile = 1 "Section" of U.S. Government surveyed land
1 chain	66 ft
1 acre (square)	208 feet 8 1/2 inches X 208 feet 8 1/2 inches

Cubic or Volume Measures

Standard	Equivalent
1,728 cubic inches	1 cubic foot
27 cubic feet	1 cubic yard
1 cord of wood	128 cubic feet
1 board foot	144 cubic inches = 1/2 cubic foot
1 perch of stone or brick	24 3/4 cubic feet

Fireplace wood is rapidly becoming one of the most expensive fuels for the household and one which the homeowner least understands how to buy by measurement. Do not buy firewood by the "Pickup Load" or by the "Rick", which are not legal standards. Ask for the exact dimensions of the wood when it is stacked at your home, and buy accordingly. A legal cord of wood is 4 feet high, 4 feet wide and 8 feet long or 128 cubic feet. Number of board feet in a log = 1/4(d-4) L, where "d" = diameter of log (taken inside the bark at the small end) in inches, and L = length of log in feet. The 4 inches subtracted are an allowance for slab. Remember to square the formula before multiplying by the length.

Liquid or Fluid Measures