Historian Dewey Livingston first became aware of the mysterious “Grippi Tube 18” map after reading a book by his predecessor, Jack Mason, over 30 years ago. Mr. Mason mentioned it in a footnote while discussing Charles Webb Howard’s desire to split up the ranches on the Point Reyes Peninsula, but the whereabouts of the 1879 map were uncertain. The only clue was the name of a land surveyor who once owned it: Joseph Grippi. 

The…