Richland County, Ohio - Chapter 16, 1880

Chapter 16

HE climate of Ohio varies about four degrees. Though originally liable to malaria in many districts nhen first settled, in consequence of a dense vegetation induced by summer heats and rains, it has became very healthful, owing to clearing away this vegetation, and proper drainage. The State has became as favorable in its sanitary characteristics as any other in its locality. Ohio is remarkable for its high productive capacity, almost every thing grown in the temperate climates being within its range. Its extremes of heat and cold are less than almost any other State in or near the same latitude, hence Ohio sufters less from the extreme dry or 'wet seasons which affect all adjoining States. These modifications are mainly due to the influence of the Lake Erie waters. These not only modify the heat of summer and the cold of winter, but apparently reduce the profusion of rainfall in summer, and favor moisture in dry periods. No finer climate exists, all conditions considered, for delicate vegetable growths, than that portion of Ohio bordering on Lake Erie. This is abundantly attested by the recent extensive development there of grape culture.

Mr. Lorin Blodget, author of "American Climatology," in the agricultural report of 1853, says; "A district bordering on the Southern and "West. ern portions of Lake Eric is more favorable in this respect (grape cultivation) than any other on the Atlantic side of the Rocky Mountains, and it will ultimately prove capable of a very liberal extension of vine culture."

Of Ohio

Experience has proven Mr. Blodget correct in his theory. Now extensive fields of grapes are everywhere found on the Lake Erie Slope, while other small fruits find a sure footing on its soil.

" Considering the climate of Ohio by isothermal lines and rain shadings,it must be borne in mind," says Mr. Blodget, in his description of Ohio's climate, from which these facts are drawn, "that local influences often require to be considered. At the South, from Cincinnati to Steubenville, the deep river valleys are two degrees warmer than the hilly districts of the same vicinity. The lines are drawn intermediate between the two extremes. Thus, Cincinnati, on the plain, is 2° warmer than at the Observatory, and 4° warmer for each year than Hillsboro, Highland County - the one being 500, the other 1,000, feet above sea-level. The immediate valley of the Ohio, from Cincinnati to Gallipolis, is about 75° for the summer, and 54° for the year; while the adjacent hilly districts, 300 to 500 feet higher, are not above 73° and 52° respectively. For the summer, generally, the river valleys are 73° to 75°; the level and central portions 72° to 73°, and the lake border 70° to 72°. A peculiar mildness of climate belongs to the vicinity of Kelley's Island, Sandusky and | Toledo. Here, both winter and summer, the climate is 2° warmer than on the highland ridge extending from Norwalk and Oberlin to Hudson and the northeastern border. This ridge varies from 500 to 750 feet above the lake, or 850 to 1,200 feet above sea level. This high belt has a summer temperature of 70°, 27° for'the winter, and 49° for the year; while at Sandusky and Kelley's year 50°. In the central and eastern parts of the State, the winters are comparatively cold, the average falling to 32° over the more level districts, and to 29° on the highlands. The Ohio River valley is about 35°, but the highlands near it fall 'to 31° and 32° for the winter."

As early as 1824, several persons in the State began taking the temperature in their respective localities, for the spring, sammer, autumn and winter, averaging them for the entire year. From time to time, these were gathered and published, inducing others to take a step in the same' direction. long since, a general table, from about forty local-

Very imperfect observations have been made of the amount of rainfall in the State. Until lately, only an individual here and there throughout the State took enough interest in this matter to faithfully observe and record the averages of several years in succession. In consequence of this fact, the illustration of that feature of Ohio's climate is less satisfactory than that of the temperature. "The actual rainfall of different months and years varies greatly," says Mr. Blodget. "There may be more in a month, and, again, the quantity may rise to 12 or 15 inches ina single month. For a year, the variation may be from a minimum of 22 or 25 inches, to a maximum of 50 or even 60 inches in the southern part of the Stafe, and 45 to 48 inches along the lake border. The average is a fixed quantity, and, although requiring a period of twenty or twentyfive years to fix it absolutely, it is entirely certain and unchangeable when known. On charts, these average quantities are represented by depths of shading. At Cincinnati, the last fifteen years of observation somewhat reduce the average of 48 inches, of former years, to 46 or 47 inches."

Spring and summer generally give the most rain, there being, in general, 10 to 12 inches in the spring, 10 to 14 inches in the summer, and 8 to 10 inches in the autumn. The winter is the most variable of all the seasons, the southern part of the State having 10 inches, and the northern part 7 inches or less - an average of 8 or 9 inches.

The charts of rainfall, compiled for the State, show a fall of 30 inches on the lake, and 46 inches at the Ohio River. Between these two points, the fall is marked, beginning at the north, 32, 34, 36 and 38 inches, all near the lake. Farther down, in the latitude of Tuscarawas, Monroe and Mercer Counties, the fall is 40 inches, while the southwestern part is 42 and 44 inches.

The clearing away of forests, the drainage of the land, and other causes, have lessened the rainfall, making considerable difference since the days of the aborigines.

Survey Of 1878

ICHLAND COUNTY is situated on the highest part of the divide between the waters of Lake.Erie and the Ohio River. The surface on the north is comparatively level, but rises toward the south to the height, in places, of nearly one thousand feet above the lake. In the southeast part of the county there are chains of high hills, separated by narrow valleys, and exhibiting almost a mountainous character. The Black Fork of the Mohican River rises in the north part of the county, and, passing through the townships of Blooming Grove, Franklin, Weller, Mifflm and Monroe, and thence into Ashland County, flows in a deep channel which connects on the north with the channels of drainage into the lake. A similar channel, haying a similar northern connection, passes a little west of Mansfield, and, now filled with siltand gravel, forms the bed of Owl Creek. Between these valleys the hills rise in irregular chains, often quite abruptly, and in the southern and southwestern parts of the county to an elevation of from 200 to 500 feet above the valleys. In Jefferson Township a long '* chestnut ridge," traversed by the road leading west from Independence, reaches an elevation of

By M. C. Read

450 feet above the railroad at Independence. On the geologist's table of elevations this railroad station is given as 659 feet, but he sus:: pects this to be excessive. If correct, the elevation of the ridge is 1,059 feet above the lake, and is one of the highest points in the State. Two and a half miles northeast of Bellville, and near the north line of Jefferson Township, the hills reach,an elevation of 952 feet' above the lake. About two miles north, and on the direct road to Mansfield, the surface rises rapidly to an cleyation of 912 feet, and at three and a half miles, the summit between Bellville and Mansfield is 932 feet above the lake, or 370 feet above Manstield.* The descent from the top of this divide is much more gradual to the north than to the south, a characteristic of all parts of the water-shed in this neighborhood. The highest points to the north and toward Mansfield are, by the barometer, 320 fect. 300 feet, 190 fect, etec., above Mansficld. About seven miles west of the city, and near the western line of the county, is an isolated knob, which is designated by

* The height of Mansfield above the lake is, on the profile of the Atlantic & Great Western Railroad, 581 feet; on the profile of the Sandusky & Mansfield Railroad, 657 feet; on the profile of the Pittsburgh, Ft. Wayne & Chicago Railroad, 592 feet; part of the difference being due to the different elevations of the localities residents in the vicinity as the highest land ins the county and State. It is. however. by the barometer, only 240 feet above Mansfield. or 832 feet above the lake. while two and a half miles further east the surface rises by a more gentle inclination 30 feet higher.

Soil. - The soil over the greater part of Richland County rests upon the unmodified drift clays, and takes its general character from them. It contains a large quantity of lime. derived mainly from the corniferous limestone. fragments of which are everywhere mingled with the drift. The clay in the soil is also modified and tempered hy the debris of the local rocks, which is largely mingled with the drift, and is mostly siliceous. This character, combined with a high elevation and thorough surface drainage, furnishes a soil which renders the name of the county appropriate, and secures a great variety of agricultural products.

While all parts of the county are well adapted to grazing, the land is especially fitted for the growth of wheat and other cereals, and to the production of fruit. The profusion of rock fragments in the drift renders the soil pervious to water, and prevents steepest hills.

In the southeastern part of the county the higher hills are. in places. capped with a coarse ferruginous conglomerate, and are so covered with its debris as not to be susceptible of tillage. Nature has designated a use to which these sand-rock hills should be appropriated. as they are generally covered with a dense second growth of chestnut.

This timber prefers a soil filled with fragments of sand-rock. and the second growth is almostas valuable as red cedar for fence posts and other similar purposes. If upon all similar rocky hills the inferior kinds of timber and the useless undergrowth were cut away, and the growth of the chestnut encouraged. these now worthless hilltops would yield an annual harvest scarcely less valuable

Surface Deposits - The greater part of the county is covered by a thick deposit of unmodified bowlder clay, which, in many of the northern townships. conceals from view all the underlying rocks. Except upon the margins of the streams. this bowlder clay, which is often very thick, is wholly unstratified. The clay near the surface is yellow; at the bottom. blue. Granitic bowlders and pebbles. and fragments of the local, rocks are very abundant through the whole mass. In some places the line between the yellow and blue clay is sharply defined. but, aside from the difference in color, tliere is no distinction, except that the yellow is fissured by vertical, horizontal and oblique seams. through which the water readily percolates. while the blue is generally impervious to it. On this account, springs frequently mark the junction of these clays. Many of them. however. which afforded an abundant supply of water when the country was first settled. have dried up.. This is no indication of a diminished rainfall, but may be explained partly by the more rapid surface drainage. resulting from the removal of the forest, and partly by the deeper oxidization of the bowlder clay. which renders it porous, and depresses the junction between the yellow and blue clays. so as to change 'the line of drainage. or, from the deeper fissures of the clay. the water-bearing horizon has been carried below the outlets of the old springs.

The hard granitic and metamorphic bowlders and pebbles of this drift are well worn, and often striated with great uniformity along their greatest diameter. On the contrary, the soft and friable debris of the local rocks on the top of the hills is neither water-worn nor striated. The fragments are often as angular as if just broken up in a quarry. Away from the watercourses the surface of the land is undulating, consisting of depressions and cavities having no outlet, and indicating that the present contour of the surface is not the result of recent erosion. The surface drainage is now filling up and obliterating these cavities. some of which are still swamps, and generally the wash from the hills is carrying the silt and humus into these depressions. so that surface erosion is steadily diminishing instead of incréasing these inequalities. Over large areas the clay includes such an abundance of rock fragments that, wherever surface erosion is facilitated down the slopes of the hills by road-making or otherwise. the wash is arrested as soon as a shallow channel is formed by the accumulation of rock fragments on the surface. If erosion by rainfall excavated the depressions and ravines. the water would have had force sufficient only to carry away the clay, sand, and finer gravels, and the surface would now be covered with bowlders and fragments of rocks, but such a condition of the surface is nowhere found. A comparatively few isolated bowlders are scattered over the surface as though dropped upon it. In the deeper ravines, which should be filled with a mass of these bowlders, they are very rarely found, and are no more abundant upon the slopes than upon the tops of the hills.

On the margins of the streams there is frequently at the bottom a deposit of laminated or finely stratified clay, with rudely stratified eravel and bowlders above. The fragments of the local rocks are here rounded and globular ; no striated granitic fragments are found. In places, all the fragments of the local rocks are ground to powder, and. with all the clay and finer gravels of the drift, have been washed away, leaving only coarse. well-rounded granitic pebbles, with occasional bowlders of the corniferous limestone. In this material, also, cavities are occasionally found having no outlets, the character of the underlying rocks, and the form of the surface, indicating that they are not properly sink-holes, such as are often found in limestone regions. A little east of the railroad station at Lexington, two such cavities are quite conspicuous. They are on a long billowy ridge, filled with coarse gravel and bowlders, and covered with a forest of hard maple. In the deepest cavity the depression is twentyfive feet. in the other fifteen feet. The slopes in each are smooth, without rock fragments, and covered with the native forest trees. In both there is an accumulation of humus at the bottom, and the deeper one contains a little water. They afford a ready explanation of the origin of the small ponds having no outlet, found in other places along this divide, with dead forest trees standing in the water. In' the original cavity the drainage through the porous bottom was free, and the forests occupied the bottom and the slopes. The wash of the slopes and the fine material of the decomposed vegetation gradually accumulated in the gravelly bottom, which, like a filter long used, gradually' became impervious to the water, which encroached more and more upon the vegetation, ultimately destroying it, and the dry cavity became -a pond. The accumulation of vegetable debris, and the growth of water plants upon the margin, will finally convert the pond into a marsh, which in the end will be filled up and obliterated.

To account for the facts exhibited in the profile of Richland County, an agency is required which shall bring from their home in the far north the granitic bowlders and pebbles, the cornifer-

| ous limestone, and other hard rocks intervening; shall pulverize to clay the soft, argillaceous rocks; shall leave the hard rocks brought in from the north rounded and striated ; shall mingle all this material intimately with the debris of the friable local rocks, which are neither water-worn nor striated, but are sharp, angular fragments; and leave the whole entirely unassorted upon the high lands in undulating ridges, but upon the margins of the streams often washing away all the finer material, wearing to a sand the debris of the soft local rocks, materials having different specific gravities. The. question, what that agent 'probably was, will be discussed when other facts bearing upon its full solution shall be accumulated. Gold. - One of the most interesting surface deposits of the county, and one intimately connected with the discussion of the drift, is the gold found about Bellville and other places in the southern part of Richland County. The origin of the gold has been attributed to an ancient drift agency, which brought in the pebbles of the Waverly conglomerate; but the geologist is quite confident that it should be referred to the surface drift, and was brought in by the same agency that transported the granitic bowlders and pebbles. Ifreferred to | the Waverly conglomerate, it should be found at the base of this deposit. It is. in fact, found most abundantly about the level of its upper surface, and in perceptible quantities on the slopes of the hills fifty to one hundred feet above it. If it came from the Waverly congtomerate, it should be the most abundant where the quartz pebbles of this conglomerate are the most numerous, while at Bellville and the immédiate neighborhood this Waverly rock is comparatively free from pebbles. The gold is found in minute flakes, associated with black sand (magnetic iron ore), small garnets, and fragments of quartz. It is most abundant at the mouth of gorges opening to the south, rising rather rapidly toward the north, terminating of the hills two or three hundred feet high. On the table-land above, large quartz bowlders | are occasionally seen, and angular fragments of quartz are abundantly obtained in washing for gold. Pieces of native copper are also found, | some of them of considerable size. occasionally | copper ore, and, very rarely, minute quantities | of native silver.

what the miners call "wire gold," interlaced through it. It had evidently fallen from the gravel bed at the top of the quarry, which contained quartz fragments, mingled with other erratics. The most plausible theory of the origin of the gold is, that the transposing agencies which brought in and deposited the surface drift, passed over veins of gold-bearing quartz, which were crushed, broken up, and transported with the other foreign material, and scattered along a line extending through Richland, Knox, and Licking Counties. Over what is now the southern slope of the divide between the waters of the lake and the Ohio, a thick deposit of the drift has been washed away, the fragments of the quartz broken up and disintegrated, the gold of the drift concentrated probably a hundred thousand fold, so that in these protected coves the "color" of gold can be obtained from almost every panful of earth. The first discovery of this fact caused much local excitement, and experienced miners and others prospected the whole region in the confident expectation that these indications would lead to rich placer mining. One returned California miner spent the whole of one summer and fall prospecting, part of the time with one, and the rest with three, hired assistants. The gross amount of gold obtained was between twentyfive and thirty dollars. In the richest localities about one dollar per day can be obtained by steady work. As no gold-bearing rocks are to be found in the State, the occurrence of gold here can haye only a scientific interest connected with the theories of the drift.

Tron Ore- - The rocks of Richland County include a few deposits of iron ore, generally of little value, and the 'surface accumulations of this mineral are rare. In Plymouth Township, on a small stream near the center, and west of the railroad, is quite an extensive bed of hydrated oxide of iron. containing large masses of calcareous tufa. No spring of water is apparent which could deposit these minerals, and they probably indicate the bed of an old shallow swamp, now five or six feet above the pres- | ent channel of the adjacent stream. stratum is from two to three feet in thickness. but. not of sufficient extent to be of any great value, Geological Structure - The geological structure of Richland County is easily read, and has little variety. No single exposure discloses | all the rocks of the series. and as the dip is often quite considerable, and is without uniformity, the measurements of the different strata are only approximations. The subjoined section is the result of many observations and measurements, and will illustrate the general character of the geological structure:

Argillaceous and siliceous shales........... 170 to 250 feet Waverly conglomerate.................+.+.---100 to 190 feet Argillaceous and sandy shales, sometimes bituminous...............6. pa en arb 65 feet Shales with bands of flaggy sandstone... 235 feet Berea sandstone...... Sessions sao

The highest hills in the northeastern parts of the county are capped with the carboniferous conglomerate, which is, in general, quite thin, rarely attaining a thickness of twenty feet. It frequently contains fragments of chert, and a large quantity of iron ore. In many places it is a siliceous iron ore, and would be valuable if there were a local demand for it. This conglomerate contains, in many places, a great profusion of calamites - lepidodendra, sigillaria, ete.

erinoids and nodules of iron ore; and, in part, siliceous, containing the ordinary sub-carboniferous fossils. The transition is here apparent through which the varied strata composing the Cuyahoga shales pass in going southward into the homogeneous, sandy, olive shales of the Waverly; and this member of the scries is much more siliceous than it is further north, It

200 feet. and over. In places, the lower part of it becomes massive, and not distinguishable from the Waverly conglomerate upon which. it rests. Nowhere in it were minerals of any economic value observed.

The Waverly conglomerate is the characteristic rock formation of the county, and. from its lithological character in many places, it might, carboniferous conglomerate, but its horizon can be definitely traced at a varying distance of from one hundred to two hundred and fifty feet bereadily be mistaken for the ordinary

It is generally more thoroughly and evenly stratified than the carboniferous conglomerate, the pebbles are usually smaller; the grains of sand forming the mass of rock are mostly globular and transparent. When colored by iron it is oftener in regular bands or layers, as the result of more perfect stratification, and pebbles and grains of jasper are more The distinction between it and the carboniferous conglomerate of this immediate neighborhood is still more marked. The latter is quite coarse, containing large pebbles, some of them but little rounded fragments of fossiliferous, cherty limestone, and many coal plants, including sigillaria, calamites, lepidodendra, cordaites, ete. The plants of the Wayerly conglomerate are mainly fucoids. The iron in the latter, shown only by the color of the rock, is magnetic, preventing the use of the compass in the vicinity of its massive outabundant.

In Plymouth Township, about three miles southwest of Plymouth Village, there is a quarry in the Berea grit, showing something of a transition between this quarry rock and tbe coarse conglomerate. About twelve feet in thickness of the rock has been exposed, the upper layers yellow, thin, and much broken ; the lower ones more massive, blue in color and

Richland Corny

This is the southern exposure in this neighborhood of unmistakable Berea, and there is great difficulty in tracing its connection with the outcrops of massive sand-rock to the northsust, and in the central and eastern piurts of

On the fifteen feet of rocks are exposed, consisting of soft argillaceous shales, with hard, blue. tesselated bands which weather yellow, affording poor stone, but furnishing the only supply in this neighborhood. These present somewhat the appearance of the Bedford shales. belonging below the Berea, while, topographically. they are by the barometer 170 feet above the of Olivesbure. a well was sunk. passing through twenty-one feet of unstratified clay drift. then striking a hard, fine-grained. blue sandstone, underlaid with alternate bands of sandstone and argillaceous shales. These were penetrated to the depth of nineteen feet, when a sinall supply of water was obtained, and the explorations ceased. Four miles west, at Big Hill. the same sandstone is quarried. South of this. and in the hills immediately north of Windsor Station, in Weller Township, the Waverly conglomerate is quarried and exposed by outcrops and bluffs in several places. It is here 100 feet thick, and its surface, by barometer, is 400 feet above the exposure of the Berea in Plymouth Village.

taining many quartz pebbles. and presenting a strong resemblance to the ordinary conglomerate. In one quarry, about thirty feet of the structure of the ledge is exposed. broken up, ular stratification, and is all coarse. In places it is full of pebbles. and bears little resemblance to any of the northern exposures of the Berea. (Glacial striz are here observed. bearing south O23 HCASte

| the fact, but, from a comparison of all the observations made, it is pretty certain that it has no connection with the Berea, but is simply an ancient shore deposit of coarse material, haying no great horizontal range, and not always to be found on the same vertical horizon. The Waverly rocks in passing northward become much more siliceous. and the sandy layers are generally composed of coarser materials. tn places they consist entirely, so far as they are exposed, of thin, fragile layers of sandy shale. constituting the typical olive shales of the Waverly. These, in places. pass into a compact quarry rock. similar to the Logan sandstone of Fairfield County. and often. at a distance of from 120 to 250 feet below the coalmeasure rocks, are succeeded by this coarse Waverly conglomerate. This. it is true, is about the distance below the coal measures at which the Berea is found at the north. But there is a great thickening-up southward of the Waverly rocks. and this conglomerate has neither the persistence nor any of the lithological characters of the Berea. Its base. where well defined in Knox County, is shown by horings to be over three hundred and fifty feet above the top of the red or chocolate shales. which there is a well-defined horizon, and appears to be identical with the Cleveland shales of the Cuyahoga Valley. which are about seventy feet only below the Berea. These borins disclose the fact that the Huron. Erie, and Cleveland shales extend northward through these counties with little change in their lithological characters

'thickness ; that above them there is a marked thickening of the Waverly rocks, and such change in their mineral constituents and modes of deposition, as to make their subdivision into Cuyahoga shales, Berea grit, and Bedford shales. so clearly defined in the Cuyahoga, impossible. The interval between this rock and the coal measures also varies greatly, and it is evident that at different horizons the sandy shales of the Waverly pass into coarse conglomerate, which form long, narrow ridges, with a northerly and southerly bearing, and nowhere extending in broad sheets in an easterly and west- | erly direction. The fact is of interest. in this 'connection, that the whole body of the Waverly here is composed of coarser material, and is generally more homogeneous than further south.

The following sections will show the general character of the upper members of the Waverly, and the local character of the Waverly conglomerate :

Section from top of hill, near the southwest corner of Washington Township, to the " oilwell" on the banks of the Mohican, six miles south of Loudonville :

No. 4. Argillaceous shales, with nodules of iron ore, many fragments of crinoids, spirifers, etc. 20 An exposure half a mile west of No. 3 of this section shows a coarse and more massive sandstone, approaching to the Waverly conglomerate.

The upper part of the Waverly conglomerate is represented by the upper part of this section. The rock shows occasional seams of pebbles, and in places colored bands, not as marked, but of the same character as the Mansfield quury. It is firm and strong, splitting easily in the lines of stratification. and furnishes a very good quarry rock.

The lower 100 feet of this section compose the rock bluffs at Newville, which present a striking resemblance to some of the outcrops of the sub-carboniferous conglomerate. [t splits more readily into thin layers, and its true character as the Waverly conglomerate is apparent from its mineral composition, as well as from its stratigraphical position.

The rock of this exposure is much like the Logan sandstone, contains few pebbles, but is on the same horizon as the Waverly conglomerate. It affords a large amount of excellent building-stone, most of which is taken by the railroad company. This rock forms all the hills in this part of the county, which rise rapidly to the north to the height of thirty feet or more. Tt is in the coves and gorges cut down in this rock, and opening southward, that most of the gold of this county has been found, which is obtained not only at the bottom of the gorges, hut from the carth which covers the slopes to the top. These facts, coupled with that of finding many erratics of quartz in the tops of the hills to the north and northwest, indicate that this gold was brought in by the recent, and not hy the Waverly drift.

abundant. Northward from this locality. on the , road toward Mansfield, the hills rise through the olive shales of the Waverly to the height of 350 feet above the base of this quarry. The character of the rock is well shown in the hills ; is a yellow, fine-grained, shelly sandstone. and valueless as a quarry rock. Approaching Mansfield, it becomes coaxser, more massive, and more highly colored with iron, and _ finally passes into a coarse, massive sand-rock. evidently the Waverly conglomerate, the top of which is 145 feet above the base of the quarry at Bellville. Ninety feet below this, in the bed of a stream, alternate layers of argillaceous and sandy shales are exposed.

The top of the quarry east from Mansfield is twenty feet below the top of this coarse sandrock, and is a continuation of it, the town resting upon this formation, which crops out on all sides of it. About sixty feet of the rock is here exposed. It is all much broken; the upper thirty feet in thin layers, the lower thirty feet in layers of from one to six feet thick. Much of the rock is beautifully colored in waved bands and lines of black, yellow and red, as delicately shaded as the best artificial graining of wood. Very beautiful specimens can be obtained, and if it were harder it would make a very ornamental building stone. It dresses smoothly and endures exposure well, but is soft and easily worn away by abrasion.

On Brushy Fork, near Millsborough, about six miles west of Mansfield, and thirty-five feet above the Mansfield quarry, is the outcrop of the same rock, of which the following is a section :

Feet. No. 1. Coarse, shaly sandstone in broken layers. 12 No. 2. Ferruginous sandstone, with waved lines Of Atratiticationtx.tss.atsur sees npeee ee 6 to 10 No. 8. Coarse, massive sandstone, with irregular VOINS OL WEOW A caccccee- ates: cee eke: ates 6 No.4. Shelly sandstone. ...5.6..5..csss<sece-csvsuacase 8

The upper members are the thinning-out of the Mansfield rock, the equivalent of the Wayerly conglomerate. On the opposite side of the stream, the yellow sand-rock is about thirty-five feet thick, coarse, ferruginous. with black iron streaks. There are about ten inches of light-colored and firm stone. All the rest, so far as exposed, is worthless for building purposes.

The rock at the bottom is blue argillaceous shale, with hard, blue bands, bearing a close resemblance to the Krie shales ; no fossils discovered. In places, interstratified between the layers of the yellow sandstone, there is a layer of ten to twelve inches of white argillaceous shale, which, when disintegrated, bears a close resemblance to the fire-clays of the coal measures. Qutcrops of this rock are to be seen and many nodules of soft iron ore ; all the rock, in thin layers, extending to the tops of the hills, making the connection complete between the Mansfield and Bellville quarries. The Clear Fork here flows through a broad alluvial valley, bordered with heavy hills of modified coarse, water-worn pebbles and bowlders, the stream occupying the raised bed of the old channel, which passes west of Mansfield, and connects the waters of the lake with the Ohio.

Between the top of the argillaceous and siliceous shales, which very generally underlie the horizon of the Waverly conglomerate, there is an interval of something over three hundred feet, before the Berea, which is quarried in the extreme northwest corner of the county, is reached. The northern part of the county is comparatively level, the surface deeply covered with unmodified clay drift, except along the lines of ancient erosion, where the sand-ridges equally mark the geological structure. Hence isolated that the section cannot be constructed in detail. alternate strata of argillaceous and siliceous Shales having little economic value, though some of the layers afford a fair stone for ordinary foundation purposes.

Eeonomice Geology. - rom what has already been written, it is apparent that the mineral deposits of the county are not of very great economie value.

inexhaustible supply of stone of good quality for bridge and foundation purposes, which would also make a very fair building stone, but not equal in value to the Berea north of it, or to the more homogeneous and finer-grained sandstones of the Waverly, further south. The peculiarly rich, but rather gaudy, coloring of the rock from the quarry near Mansfield and other places would, if properly selected, make highly ornamental window caps, sills, etc., and might be used for the entire fronts of buildings.

The Berea is too far beneath the surface to be accessible, except at the northwest corner of the county, and does not there present its best characteristics.

The iron ore of the county consists of the siliceous ore occupying the horizon of the conglomerate at the tops of the highest hills. nodules of clay-iron stone found here and there throughout the rock formations, and bog ore found in a few places on the surface. None of these are in sufficient quantity or of sufficient purity to pay for transportation to parts where they could be economically used.

and to prevent frauds of this kind so far as it can be done, but not to assert that any partieular individual has attempted or practieed a fraud. This is the province of the courts, upon a proper case being presented to them. It is enough to say here that there is some mistake in regard to these pretended discoveries. 'Phin seams of carbonaceous matter, or thick beds of this vicinity, but no coal seams will ever be found beneath the city of Mansfield or the adjacent country, and all pretended discoveries of them may at once be set down as cither frauds or | mistakes. The only place where coal can possibly be found in the county is near the tops of the hills in the northeastern part. In none of the hills examined, were coal-measure rocks found, and the highest are capped with the carboniferous conglomerate, which is below the coal; so that the probabilities are that no coal will be found in any of the hills. Explorations in Holmes County have shown that hills of Waverly rock in places rose above the margin of the old coal swamps, and that coal is now found near them at a lower level. It is, therefore, barely possible that some outlying deposit may exist in this part of the county, and that these have not been discovered in making the survey. It may be positively asserted, however, that no extensive and valuable deposits of coal will ever be found west of the Holmes County line, in Richland.

Movunp Burtpers - Mounvs Ciassirigp - Mounps and Eartu-Works In RrcH~anp Counry - Re.ics - CopPer AND Stone ImpLEMENTS - AxeEs, Mauts, Hammers, ETc. - Morrars AND PesTLEs - PLaTES, THREAD SIZERS, Suurries, erc. - Wanps anp Bavers - Parnt-Curs, Prpxs.

HE archeology of any county forms one of its most interesting chapters. Who the ancient dwellers were, what they did, what lives they led, are all questions of conjecture now. 'Their history appears only in their silent monuments, as silent as the race they perpetuate. The relics they left are the only key to their lives now possessed, and these give a history whose antiquity seems almost Adamic. The principal remains left in this part of Ohio consist of earthworks, mounds and parapets, filled with the rude implements of the people who built them, and with the bones of these lost portions of humanity. From their proclivities to build these earthworks, these people are known as "Mound- Builders," the only name that now fits their peculiar style of life. The mounds erected by them are of all sizes and shapes, and range in height from three or four feet to sixty or seventy feet. In outline, they are of equal magnitude, though none of great height were ever known to exist in the confines of Richland County. What have been discovered are generally small in size and irregular in outline. They have, in nearly all instances, been much reduced in height,as the hand of modern man demands them for practical purposes. The earth mounds are classified as sepulchral, sacrificial, temple or truncated; mounds of ob- *The notes and material of this chapter were prepared by Mr. Edw. Wilkinson, who has given the subject some study, and who has one of the finest private cabinets in the county. The chapter servation, symbolical or animal - also known as emblematic - and mounds of defense. The first named, sepulchral, are the most common of any. Kmblematical or symbolical mounds are not known to exist in this county. If they did in the earliest days of the whites, all traces of them have been obliterated by that leveler of savage country - the plow. Sepulchral mounds were devoted to the purpose of burial, and were generally pyramidal in form, and usually contained layers of clay, ashes, charcoal, various soils and one or more skeletons, often very many.

Sacrificial mounds are usually stratified, the strata being convex layers of clay and loam, the layers alternating above a layer of fine sand. They also contain ashes, igneous stones, charcoal, calcined animal bones, beads, implements of stone, pottery and rude sculpture. They also have altars of burned clay or stone, resting in the center of the mound upon the original earth, on which the people offered sacrifice, employing fire for the purpose.

Mounds of observation - sometimes termed defensive - are found upon prominent elevations. They were, doubtless, alarm posts, watchtowers, signal stations, or outlooks. They commonly occur in chains or regular systems, and still bear traces of the beacon fires that once burned upon them.

In addition to the division of mounds already made, some add monumental or memorial mounds, not numerous, supposed to have been erected as memorials to the distinguished dead among the Mound-Builders.

Co. 4 =a = 9 HISTORY OF RICHLAND COUNTY. 177 But few of the mounds in Richland County | nothing of special interest was found. Numerhave been properly opened. The examinations have rarely been systematic, and hence much has been lost. Commonly, the plow has been run over the mounds, regardless of the history a careful search would develop, until almost all traces of their existence have been obliterated. This ruthless leveling of the mounds has not been accomplished, however, merely to gratify the iconoclastic propensities of the plowman - their cupidity moved them. They wanted the

Tn that part of Polk Township, in Crawford County, formerly a part of this county, about one and one-half miles southwest of Galion, there is an inclosure of about one acre. It is shaped like a horseshoe, which would bring it under the: head of symbolical mounds. This inclosure has never been well explored. Relics of corn the mounds would produce. Running the plowshare through the mounds was not a very successful method of obtaining a knowledge of their contents. Of the mounds examined in this county in a systematic manner, mention may be made as follows :

In the southeast quarter of Section 15, in that part-of Auburn Township formerly in this county, there is an inclosure of nearly four acres. There is a well-defined gateway at the eastern side, and near it a walled well. This well was dug out toa depth of nearly fifteen feet, but

About one mile southwest of this mound, is another, four or five feet in height, and about eighteen feet in diameter. It is supposed to have been a sepulchral mound, and has not, as far as is known, been opened.

In Springfield Township, on what is known as the Palmer farm, and just east of the Palmer spring, is a small mound, about five feet in height, and ten or twelve feet in diameter. It, also, has never been opened.

In Sandusky Township, near the line between Section 16, there is a double mound about Sandusky and Polk, exists a mound, six or eight | thirty feet high. It is supposed to be artificial, feet high, and, originally, twenty fect in diam- | but it has never been excavated. There is also eter. It has been greatly reduced by the plow. | a depression which the early settlers reported

Stone And Clay Pipes

It was undoubtedly a sepulchral mound, as | as a walled well. On the Lafferty farm, in this relics are often found about it to warrant such | same township, there is a large mound, seventy a conclusion. or eighty feet high, and as perfect as a sugar-

In Jefferson Township, on the farm of Mr. | loaf inform. It has never been excavated, but Reuben Eyarts, on the northeast quarter of | appears to be artificial. On account of its size, however, many have doubted the authenticity of the statements made concerning it. The pioneers say it was used by the Indians as a place of burial.

In Jackson Township, on John Palmer's farm (Section 29), there is a mound about four feet high and twenty feet in diameter. Craig took from this mound several spear-heads. There was also found burnt clay, with charcoal and bones, which evidenced that it was a sacrificial mound. A few miles to the east of this east of the city of Mansfield. The work consists of a well-defined oval embankment with aged oaks growing thereon, and is 594 feet long, 238 feet wide, and contains two and two-thirds acres. South 75 degrees, and west 710 feet, is a living spring of considerable power, and it was evidently here that the prehistoric man, who

From the lower end of the embankment to the spring is aravine, pethapg artificial, which made | avery convenient path. On the way to the spring is a "furnace," an excavated place walled with uncut stone. Several years ago a portion of this "furnace" was excavated, and a considerable amount of charcoal, stone implements, paint, etc., were discovered; but the work thinks it may have been fifteen feet high and | | of depressions, arranged geometrically, of vafifty feet in diameter. It had several large oaktrees growing on its top, showing it to have been of ancient formation.

hardly be located now. There is another mound in this township, on the farm of Solomon Balliet. It is about eighty rods southeast of Simpson's Schoolhouse. It is placed on a high ridge, is of stone, and is about three feet high and fifteen feet in diameter. It was, doubtless, a mound of observation, a place of outlook, or, did it exist in use to-day, would be termed a "sentinel mound."

A partial. investigation of this earthwork was made in September, 1879, by a few interested individuals, and a survey made by Mr. John Newman, the County Surveyor. Owing to a lack of funds, the work was only temporaily made. One of the depressions referred to was excavated to the depth of eight feet. The indications were that the ground had been excavated by the prehistoric man, but for what purpose was not made apparent. It is hoped that a full investigation will in time be made of this ancient earthwork, the principal one in Richland County. About two miles south of this "fort," as it may well be termed, there is a mound about five feet high and twenty feet in diameter, that has never been opened.

Outside of the present limits of this county, in that part now comprised in Ashland County, there are several remains, all of which have been examined by Dr. Geo. W. Hill, of Ashland, and descriptions of them made. Only an abridged description of each can be given here.

About one-fourth of a mile southwest of the village of Orange, in a sugar-grove belonging to the estate of the Norris family, exists an ancient mount, four or five feet high, and of considerable extent in outline. When the first settlers located here, large trees grew upon the mound. About forty years ago, Dr. Deming and others excavated the mound and found wellpreserved skeletons, with remnants of pottery,

Chisels, Gouges And Adzes

In Orange Township, about thirty-five years ago, while excavating a bluff on the creek, east of the residence of the late Patrick Murray, for the purpose of improving the road, a number of skeletons were unearthed, among which was one supposed to have been over seven feet high. The bones of this giant were in a good state of preservation, but it is a little doubtful if his height was equal to that given by his excited discoverers.

flints, etc. In 1850, George Barrick, when digging a well for Isaac Stull, near his residence, ' one-half mile south of Orange Village, at the depth of five feet below the surface found an earthen vessel that would hold perhaps two gallons. He unfortunately broke this valuable relic. It was found mouth upward, and resembled in many respects a common two-gallon crock. The rim around the top was artistically made and was intended to 'be used in lifting the vessel. It was formed of bluish earth, and seemed to have been subjected to the action of surface by finely pulverized white flint, somewhat resembling rice grains, which adhered firmly to it. A short time after the discovery of this vessel, Mr. Stull plowed up a fragment of the same kind of ware in a field northwest

Vermilion, Hanover and Green Townships possess but few remains of a prehistoric age. In the latter township, near Perrysville, was an inclosure of an oblong form, containing about of his house. He found several specimens of the same earthware on his place. The Indians are not known to have manufactured or used anything of the kind.

On the fifth tier of sections in Montgomery Township, the surveyors found an ancient inone acre. In this inclosure was a conical stone mound. About one-fourth of a mile east of this mound there was a similar stone mound, also one to the west of it. The purpose of these stone mounds is not clearly defined, unless they were sentinel posts.

Club-Headed Stones

In Mittin Township great numbers of artow and spear heads are found. Stone axes, wedges and other prehistoric signs, as well as Indian relics, are plentiful. In a ravine, in the northeast part of the township, an old stone mortar, twenty inches across the top and seven across the bottom, was found. It is about fifteen inches deep, and contains four distinct impressions of a drill, one and a fourth inches in diameter, and seven inches long. The inside of this block has been neatly dressed, and would answer well for the purpose for which it evidently was intended. Investigations proved the block to be the work of an old pioneer, frontlersman, by the name of Horrick, hence dispelling the romance of its supposed origin.

Clear Creek Township contains more relics for the archeologist than any in this part of the county. The nature of the soil enabled the Mound-Builders to erect earthworks that can yet be seen. On Section 36, there was an ancient embankment, known as the "Square Fort," very few of which have been found in Mr. John Bryte entered the land on which the fort was situated, about half a century ago. Then huge forest trees grew about and on the fort, showing its antiquity. At the time Mr. Bryte entered the land, the walls of this embankment were about three feet high, and probably twenty feet wide at the base. The east and west sides were about 300 feet long; the north and south 200. At the southwest corner was a gateway leading to a very fine spring. Dr. Hill thinks the walls were at one time probably seven feet high, as sufficient soil has been worn down to have made them that height, if not greater.

Two old and curiously constructed mounds were found by the pioneers on Section 35, An elevation, composed of well-rounded bowlders, gravel and light loam - ancient glacial drift - lifts its head over one hundred feet above the surrounding valleys. When the glacial flow occurred, this large mound, containing over six acres, was left intact, alone on the plain. The surface on the top is about one hundred and twenty-five feet long from north to south, and about one hundred feet wide. Mr. Thomas Sprott, one of the early pioneers of this section, owns the farm on which this mound is placed, and when he settled here, says he found on the summit two smaller mounds, about twenty-five feet apart, nearly four feet high, and about thirty feet in size at the base. Large forest trees grew on the summit of this mound, and on the mounds on its crest. In making excavations about one of the smaller mounds, he found bones, Indian paint, arrow heads, ete., showing that the locality: was used by the aborigines as a place of burial.

'The principal mounds in this county have now been mentioned. They open a wide field of investigation, and may throw light on the problem that shrouds their makers in the darkness of antiquity. It will also be well to notice the implements made by this race, especially those found in Richland County.

Very few, if any, copper implements have been found in this part of Ohio, owing partly to the fact of the unexplored condition of many of the mounds, and to the fact that little, if any, copper exists in this part of the United States. What does exist is in loose fragments that have been washed down from the upper lake region. When mounds are explored, great care is necessary lest these small utensils be lost, as they are commonly scattered through the:mass, and not always in close proximity to the skeletons. The copper deposits about Lake Superior furnished the prehistoric man with this metal, and, judging from the amount of: relics made of this metal now found, it must have been quite abundant. The population of the country then must haye been quite numerous, as occasional copper implements, tempered to an exceeding hardness, are still found about the country. These implements are small, generally less than half a pound in weight, and seldom exceeding three pounds. There were millions of these in use during the period of the ancient dwellers, which must have been thousands of years in duration. The copper implements left on the surface soon disappeared by decomposition, to which copper is nearly as liable as iron. Only a part of the |,sertion of a helve or handles, but were grooved dead Mound-Builders were placed in burial | to receive a withe twisted into the form of a mounds, and of these only a part were buried | handle. Under the head of axes, archeologists with their copper ornaments and implements on | include all wrought stones with a groove, a bit and about them. Of those that were, only a} anda poll. They are found unpolished, partly small part have been discovered, and, in many | polished and polished. The bit was made sharp instances, the slight depth of earth over them | by rubbing, and the material is hard and tough. has not prevented the decay and disappearance generally of trachyte, greenstone, granite, of the copper relics. quartz or basalt. Most of them are straight

Perforated Plates, Thread Sizers, Shuttles, Etc

Articles of bronze or brass are not found | on one edge. In 'Ohio, it is very rare that stone with the builders of the mounds. It is evident | axes are found in the mounds, indicating that they knew nothing of these metals in the Ohio | they are modern, or were not so much prized Valley, nor did they possess any of the copper | by the Mound-Builders as to be objects of that had been melted or cast in molds. burial. Occasionally, axes of softer material

Stone relics are very numerous and well | are found, such as slate, hematite and sandpreserved. Stone axes, stone mauls, stone | stone, but these are small in size and not comhammers, stone chisels, etc., are very plentifyl | mon. They appear to have been manufactured yet, and were the common implements of the | from small, oblong bowlders, first brought into prehistoric man in this part of the West. | shape by a pick, or chipping instrument, the None were made with holes or eyes for the in- | marks of which are visible on nearly all of pounds, but are generally less than three pounds. The very heavy ones must have been kept at the regular camps and villages, as they could not have been carried far, even in canoes. Such axes are occasionally found in the Indian _ towns on the frontier, as they were found in Ohio, among the aborigines. The Mound- | Builders apparently did not give them as much

Perforated Plates, Thread Sizers, Shutyiles, Etc

It is very seldom the material is hard enough to cut green and sound timber. The poll is usually round, but sometimes flat, and, rarely, pointed. It ismuch better adapted to breaking than cutting, while the smaller ones are better fitted for war-clubs than tools. Asa maul to break dry limbs, they were very efficient, which was probably the use made of them. In weight they range from half a pound to sixteen prominence among their implements as their savage successors. Double-headed hammers have the groove in the middle. They were made of the same material as the axes, so balanced as to give a blow with equal force at either end. Their mechanical symmetry is often perfect. As a weapon in war, they were indeed formidable, for which purpose they are yet used among the Indians on the Pacific Coast.

Implements, known as " fleshers" and "skinners," chisel-formed, commonly called " celts," were probably used as aids in peeling the skins of animals from the meat and bones. For the purpose of cutting tools for wood, they were not sufficiently hard, and do not show such use, excepting a few flint chisels. They may have been applied as coal scrapers where wood had been burned ;, but' this could not have been a general thing without 'destroying the perfect edge most of them now exhibit. The grooved axes were much better adapted to this purpose.

Stone pestles are not plentiful in this county, while stone mortars are rare, indicating that they were made of wood, which is lighter and more easily transported. Most of the pestles are short, with a wide base, tapering toward the top. They were probably used with one hand, and moved about in the mortar inacircle. The long, round instrument, usually called a pestle, does not appear to be fitted for crushing seeds and grain by pounding or turning in the mortar. It was probably used as a rolling-pin, perhaps on a board or leveled log, not upon stone. It is seldom found smooth or polished, and varies from seven to thirteen inches in length. In out- ' line they taper toward each end, which is generally smooth, and circular in form, as though it had been twirled in an upright position.

There is almost an endless variety of perforated plates, thread-sizers, shuttles, etc. They are usually made of striped slate, most of which have tapering holes through them flat-wise, the use cf which has been much discussed. The accompanying plates exhibit several specimens of these; but there are, doubtless, many other forms and styles. They are generally symmetrical, the material fine-grained, and their pro- | portions graceful, as though their principal use was that of ornamentation. Many of them may well have been worn suspended as beads or ornaments. Some partake of the character of badges or ensigns of authority. Others, if strung together on thongs or belts, would serve as a coat of mail, protecting the breast or back against the arrows of an enemy. A number of them would serve to size and twist twine or coarse thread made of bark, raw-hide, or sinew. The most common theory regarding their use is, however, lacking one important feature. None of them show signs of wear by use. The edges of the holes through them are sharp and perfect. This objection applies equally well to their use as suspended ornaments. Some of them are shuttle-form, through which coarse threads might have been passed, for weaving rude cloth of bark or of fibrous plants, such as milk-weed or thistles. There are also doubleended and pointed ones, with a cross section, about the middle of which is a circle, and through which is a perforation.

A great variety of wands or badges of distinction are found. They are nearly all fabricated from striped and variegated slate, highly finished, very symmetrical and elegant in proportion, evidently designed to be ornamental. If they were stronger and heavier, some of them would serve the purpose of hatchets or battle-axes. The material is compact and fine grained ; but the eyes, or holes for handles or staves, are quite small, seldom half an inch in diameter. Their edges are not sharp, but rounded, and the body is thin, usually less than one-fourth an inch in thickness.

The form of badges known as " double-crescents " are the most elegant and expensive of any yet brought to notice. They were probably used to indicate the highest rank or office. The single crescent perhaps signified a rank next below the double. In Mr. John B. Matson's* collection there is a rough-hewn double one in process of construction, the horns of which turn inward. In nearly or quite all the finished ones the points turn outward. The

* Mr. Matson resides in Springfield Township, not far from Spring Mills. He has one of the largest and finest collections in the county. Dr. J. P. Henderson, at Newville; Gen. R. Brinkerhoff, Dr. J. W. Craig, the Library Rooms, and Mr, Edward Wilkinson, at Mansfield, have large and interesting collections, showing quite tully the archeology, not only of this county, but of Ohio.

finish around the bore of all winged badges and the crescents is the same, and the size of the bore about the same. - from two-fifths to threefifths of an inch. On one side of all is a narrow ridge; on the other. a flat band, length-

| are also made of green striped slate, highly = polished. with a bore of about one-half inch in diameter. apparently to insert a light wooden rod or staff. | distinetion, wise, like a ridge that has been ground down to a width of one to. two tenths of an inch. Badges and crescents are invariably made of banded slate, generally of a greenish shade of color. The other forms of wands or badges, such as those with symmetrical wings or blades, with various colors, derived from different colored minerals. These compounds were mixed in hollowed stones or diminutive mortars - "paint cups,' - in which the mineral mass of colored clay was reduced to powder and prepared for application to the body. cups are not common in this county ; in fact, they are quite rare, but one being known to exist - that in the collection of Dr. Craig.

The comparative rarity of aboriginal smoking pipes is easily explained by the fact that they were not discarded, as were weapons, when those by whom they were fashioned entered upon the iron age. The advances of the whites in no way lessened the demand for pipes, nor did the whites substitute a better implement. The pipes were retained and used until worn out or broken, save the few that were buried with their dead owners. What was the ultimate fate of these can only be conjectured. In very few instances does an Indian grave contain a pipe. If the practice of burying the pipe with its owner was common, it is probable that the erayes were opened and robbed of this coveted article by members of the same or some other tribes.

It only remains to notice the " flints," in addition to which a few other archeological relics of minor importance are found about the country, but none of sufficient import to merit mention, or to throw additional light on the lost tribes of America. Arrow and spear heads and other similar pieces of flaked flints are the most abundant of any aboriginal relics in the United States. They are chiefly made of hard and brittle siliceous materials; are easily damaged in hitting any object at which they are aimed, hence many of them bear marks of violent use. Perfect. specimens are, however, by no means rare. The art of arrow-making survives to the present day among certain Indian tribes, from whom is learned the art practiced that produces them.

tempted by archeologists. The styles are almost as numerous as their makers. In gen-, eral, they are all the same in outline, mostly leaf-shaped, varying according to the taste of their makers. The accompanying cut exhibits afew of the common forms, though the number is infinite. They may have been chipped - probably most were - and some may have been ground. Spear-heads exhibit as large a variety as arrow-heads. Like arrow-heads, spear-heads were inserted in wooden handles of various lengths, though in many tribes they were fastened by thongs of untanned leather or sinews.

implements, selling them to, or exchanging them with, their neighbors for wampum or peltry. When the Indian desired an arrowhead, he could buy one of the "arrow-maker" or make one himself. The common method was to take a chipping implement, generally made of the pointed rods of a deer horn, from eight to sixteen inches in length, or of slender, short pieces of the same material, bound with

| sinews to wooden sticks resembling arrow shafts. The '"arrow-maker" held in his left hand the flake of flint or obsidian on which he intended to operate, and, pressing the point of the tool against its edge, detached scale after scale, until the flake assumed the desired form.

Note - Of the cuts used in this chapter, those on pages 177, 178, | 179, 180, 181, 184, 185, 187, 188, and that of the club-headed stoves, page 182, are from the collection of plates belonging to the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D. C.

Agriculture

AGRICULTURAL SocieTIES - TuHEIR History Anp Procress - Tue County Society, its EXHIBITIONS AND ITS SEVERAL Grounps - TuHeE Bevivitte Farr - Tur Prymocurn Farr - Horticu,Ture AND THE HorTICULTURAL Socirry, THEIR INFLUENCE ON THE GROWTH OF FRUIT CULTURE IN THE CoUNTY - STATISTICS OF AGRICULTURE, TAXABLE try in the West, from its settlement down to the present time. Ht only remains to notice the growth of the same industry in Richland County.

The first mention of any effort on the part of any citizens of this county to form a society, whose object should be promotive of agriculture, occurs in the columns of the old Mansfield Gazette, under date of July 8, 1829. Some person had been agitating the subject, evidently, from the tone of the article, as the paper in an editorial states that a committee has been appointed to draft a constitution and by-laws, and, further, that the citizens held an adjourned meeting July 4, for the purpose of forming an agricultural and mechanical society. "S. G. Bushnell was called to the chair, and 8. Ruggles, Esq., appointed Secretary. (en. Alex. Enos, of the committee heretofore appointed for that purpose, submitted a constitution, which, after some alteration, was adopted."

The constitution provided that members must be residents of the county, and that, as an admission to the Society, they should pay into the treasury, annually, fifty cents. After providing for the officers, the constitution further stipulated that the yearly meeting should be held on the "last Friday of October." ham Hufman. A committee of two was appointed in each township (twenty-five) to solicit subscriptions and "forward the views of the Society."

Very few towns and counties in Ohio at that date were in a position to maintain such things ; and, after a brief struggle, the Society died out.

such interests. From time to time, however, other and older localities began to hold such fairs, and gradually a spirit of improvement began to appear. This culminated in the law referred to, which gave additional impetus to the question. It revived it again in this county, now diminished in size by the creation of Craw- | ford and Ashland Counties, and the prospect of a further reduction by the proposed county of was formed. Three years after the passage of } The Secretary, Alex. McIlvain, speaks hopethe above-mentioned law, in 1849, a permanent agricultural society was organized. Its growth really began a year or so before, but the organization was not effected until that year. A fair was held that' autumn, which, for the first one, was very creditable. The exhibitions were, it is true, rather meager, yet they showed an advance in many regards. It is not likely that any admission fee was charged, as that was not the custom then. Probably a hat was passed around at the close of each day's exhibition, and what money could be collected was used to defray the light expense. Often the articles exhibited were sold on the ground at the close of the fair.

There is no account of the fairs from 1849 to 1857 ; neither can any one give any definite information. It is pretty certain, however, that the fair was held regularly during that period of eight years. The report of 1857 speaks of the "annual exhibitions.' The occasional papers preserved of that period refer to the fair in the same terms, hence the inference is in favor of a regular exhibition. In addition to this, no one remembers other than that the fairs were regularly held. In 1857, the first printed report of the Agricultural Board of the State appeared. Reports from nearly all the county societies are given. That from Richland County reads as follows:

"The eighth annual fair was held September 22 and 23,1857. The Society has been holding its anniversaries upon ground belonging to a private citizen, without any other right than a permit, and for no specified time. The Society has adopted measures to procure and fit up grounds. The County Commissioners have agreed to appropriate one-half of the money, and the citizens of Mansfield agree to furnish onehalf. of the remainder, the balance to be raised by subscription in the county. The Society is confident -of success in the enterprise." fully of the future and well of the past. He reports the total receipts from all sources, $223.- 86; the total expenditures, $211.90, leaving a balance of $11.96 in the treasury. Hzra Osborn was President of the Society that year.

year. The fair of 1858 was only a partial success. The fair at Plymouth started that year, and drew nearly all the patronage from the north part of the county. The receipts were, however, increased, and after paying all expenses (amounting to $726.58) there remained in the treasury $101.95. ;

The next year, the new grounds, on the south side of the city, were purchased, and there, on the 12th, 13th and 14th of October, 1859, the fair, the largest yet, was held. Over fifteen thousand persons were estimated to have been on the grounds. The receipts were $879 and the expenses $1,020.

'The county fairs continued to be held here with varying successes during the years that followed, when the civil war almost swallowed every other question. Its influence was discernible, however, as well as the Plymouth fair, and the Bellville fair, started in 1860. The close of the great war, and the return of prosperity, brought a change over agricultural, as well as other, interests. The sixteenth fair, held October 3, 4 and 5, 1865, was, considering the weather, a success. Ten cents admission was charged; 156 membership tickets sold, and 536 entries made. The next year the prosperity continued, and thoughts of new and larger grounds were entertained. The fair of 1867 was still better. The Society made enough to pay all premiums, and also a part of their indebtedaia a

The successes of the last two or three years determined the feasibility of the fair. The grounds, for the fair of 1868, were too small, and a committee was appointed to purchase a new location. Several localities were offered, ranging in price from $125 to $300 per acre. October 1, a contract was entered into, whereby Mr. E. Hade sold to the Society a fraction over twenty-four acres for $3,125.20, and Mr. A. C. Welch authorized to sell the old ground, which sale was afterward effected.

The purchase of the new grounds, and the opening of the fair of 1869, marked an era of prosperity heretofore unknown. The Society had introduced many improvements ; had built commodious halls for floral, mechanical and agricultural displays; and had completed a finely graded one-half-mile track. The entire expenditures for the year were $14,169.68. The receipts from all sources were $7,396.24, leaying a debt of $6,773.44, which the Society confidently expected to wipe out the following year. It will be remembered by the citizens of

The report of 1870 was still successful. All parts of the county were well represented, and, though the weather for the most time was unfavorable, the attendance was large. A few new halls had been erected for the further convenience of visitors, and pipes laid from a spring of water in an adjacent hillside, which now sent its waters into the midst of the fair grounds. The supply of water, however, proved insufficient, and steps were taken to increase the volume from other sources.

expected to convey abundance of water to the grounds. The meeting this year is declared in the Secretary's report to be the best ever held in the county.

- The next year, the State Fair was held in this county. The attendance to this was very large, and caused a decline in the receipts of the county fair, held shortly afterward. The Society lost money this year, though it gained somewhat in interest caused by the State Fair that had held its meetings on the Society's grounds. The additional buildings erected for the use of the State Fair were retained for 'the county society. The number of members this year was 132. The report of 1873 shows a depression. The Secretary says: "The Society now numbers only about twenty members, coming annual meeting of the Society. The State Fair having been held here for the past two years, has virtually killed the exhibitions of the county society, not enough being realized off the exhibitions of 1872 and 1873 to pay the premiums awarded. The Society has also largely involved itself' through the fitting up

That fall, the First National Bank failed. The President of the bank, Mr. W. 8. Hickox, was also Pfesident of the Society. His failure brought the climax of difficulties on the Society, and, though a fair was held the next fall, it was evident to all, particularly to the principal members of the Society, that it must succumb to hard times, its debt and the blow it received from the failure of the bank. The grounds were sold to pay the debts; and, at a meeting held January 2, 1875, it was,

" Resolved, That it is the sense of this meeting that the Richland County Agricultural Society has, by reason of financial difficulties, outlived its usefulness, and it is hereby declared formally disbanded." This resolution was

Richland County was now without an organized society as a county society. The Bellville fair had, several years before, ceased its exhibitions, but the Plymouth fair was still prosperous. Influential citizens, however, were determined not to let the matter die out, and, soon after the above resolution was passed, a call for those interested in a county agricultural society appeared in the city papers, asking all such'to meet in the rooms of the Richland Mutual Insurance Company, April 24. That day « number of citizens met there, and, after organizing and hearing the object of the meeting clearly stated, adopted a resolution forming a new agricultural society, using the constitution,and by-laws of the old one, changing the name only by emitting the word "county" from the new society. A committee was appointed to solicit members, and the 8th of May set as the day on which to meet and perfect the organization.

That 'day quite a large number of persons met, and completed the organization by electing officers and a Board of Directors. The committee reported 177 names of those who had put down their names and agreed to support the new society. The officers elected were: S. B. Sturges, President; Robert Darling, Vice President; M. E. Douglass, Treasurer, and J. W. Myers, Secretary. The old grounds were rented, and it was determined to hold a fair the coming autumn.

From that time forward, there is but little to be written. Annual exhibitions have been held) increasing in interest and attendance. The Society were enabled this last year to pay all premiums in full, and all current expenses, and have a margin over for future operations. Should the people of the county rally to the support of the Society, a few years hence will see it in full possession of its grounds, and in growing condition.

Incidental mention has already been made of other fairs in this county, viz., the Bellville and Plymouth fairs. _ The former of these dates its earliest inception in 1850. About the last of October in that year, Mr. Miller Moody obtained a charter, and, principally through his efforts, the fair was held. A lot of ground, just south of the elevator. was secured, where the out-door exhibition was held. The indoor exhibition was held in the Universalist church, then in an unfinished condition. The fair is well spoken of now by those who attended it, and was, undoubtedly, a good exhibition for that time. The Mansfield (county) fair was, however, coming into existence, and, being the principal agricultural. attraction, drew the major part of the patronage, and absorbed the society at Bellville, which seems to have held but one meeting.

Ten years after, in 1860, the citizens in the southern part of the county concluded a fair could be successfully maintained in Bellville, and, at an informal meeting, held in the summer of that year, organized the Bellville Agricultural Society. They leased a beautiful plat of ground about one-fourth mile from the village, and, October 24, 25 and 26, held an excellent exhibition. Mr. Nicholas Fleharty was among the prime movers in this fair. The Society held three exhibitions, but, owing to the war, could not maintain a paying organization, and allowed it to go down, and turned their attention to the county society, then, like all others, in a precarious condition. The end of the war brought new vigor to the county society ; but the Bellville organization was not revived.

The Plymouth fair was organized June 15, 1855, with the following list of officers: John Bodine, President; Mr. Barker and Levi B. Shaver, Vice Presidents; R. McDonald, Treasurer; D. R. Locke (Nasby), Secretary. Exhibitions of a good character were maintained nearly every year down to 1870, on rented, leased or donated grounds. That year, how- ever, a joint-stock company was formed, and not long after thirteen acres of land in the village purchased. The grounds were put in the best of order, and are now among the first in this part of Ohio. - The fair draws a large patronage from adjoining counties, especially from Huron and Crawford. Premiums are generally paid promptly, and bring a good class of exhibitors.

The present officers are John K. Brant, President; Joseph Conley, Vice President; A. B. Gilson, Treasurer; J. Frank Beelman, Secretary ; and P. S. Brink, Superintendent.

The foregoing history gives the county three distinct societies. Whether it can well support that number, remains a problem. Each one was a good one in its day; but at present only two maintain ar active existence. A good fair, well attended by the farmers, for whom it is primarily intended, cannot fail to be of great benefit to them. Strange as it may appear, however, generally that class is the last to move energetically in the matter, and does not uniformly give the fair that attention due to it by them.

Horticultural Societies - Horticulture, so near akin to agriculture, may well be noticed in this connection. From the earliest settlement of the county there have been those who took a deep interest in the cultivation of fruit. Probably the earliest horticulturist in. this county, if not in Ohio, was the famous John Chapman, better known as "Johnny Appleseed," whose singular history is elsewhere narrated. Many of the best nurseries in this and adjoining counties trace their beginning to his erratic wanderings. Following him, were those early emigrants, who, having become accustomed to rich fruit in their Eastern homes, planted seeds and sprouts, grafted fruits, and, from time to time, improved the varieties introduced into this region. Improvement in one place suggested improvement in another, and thus gradually better grades of fruit found their way into the farmers' cellars, and to the market. By and by,

Late in the season of .1873 (December. 11), a mecting of prominent fruit-growers in the county - decided that, on December 20, a .meeting of all those whose minds favored the idea, should be held in the county seat, and a horticultural society organized. That day, about thirty of those who were interested in fruit culture assembled, in defiance of the muddy roads, and proceeded: to the formation of the society. Dr. Perkins Bigelow was called to the chair, and J. KE. Wharton appointed Secretary. The Doctor explained the object of the meeting,.and called upon the | Secretary to read the constitution that had been prepared by the committee appointed for that purpose December 11. It was adopted. An election for officers then ensued, resulting in the choice of F. R. Palmer, President; Samuel Nail, Vice President; J. E.. Wharton, Secretary, and Dr. Bigelow, Treasurer. An .executive committee, consisting of the following gentle- | men, was also chosen: John Booth, C. Eliott, S. S. Smith, R. M. Coulter, and H. Golliday. By-laws were then submitted and. approved, aad the "Richland Horticultural Society" was-an actual fact. Before adjourning, it:was, decided that the first meeting for discussion should. be | held February 14, 1874, in the library rooms,

That day quite a number of persons assembled, and, after the opening addresses by the elected officers, an interesting and instructive | exhibition of fruits was shown, exhibiting the |, varieties grown in the county. These were discussed, and views regarding their best-modes of culture given. Subjects. for the next meeting were selected, and the meetings, it-was deter- | mined, should be held each month. i

Since that time regular monthly. meetings: are - held during the year, save in-the winter, where all kinds of fruits are exhibited and discussed; the best modes of cultivation noted; the ravages of climate, insects and other drawbacks given; the best modes of overcoming all difficulties stated, and the results obtained in each individual case.

The effect of the Society's labor has greatly advanced the standard of fruit in this county. It has brought ,other societies here at different times, and has awakened a general interest in most parts of the county, not easily measured by the standard of money.

Mr. Palmer continued President till the early part of 1875, when he was succeeded by Adam Moore. At the same time, Mr. Palmer was elected Vice President; John Booth, Secretary; and Dr. Bigelow continued as Treasurer.

' Regarding the beneficial results of the horticultural society, Mr. Palmer, its President, furnishes the following: "In the early settlement of the county but little attention was given to the eultivation of small fruits, such as strawberries, raspberries, grapes, etc. Not till 1860, was any considerable quantity grown for market."

The soil proved to be well adapted to the growth of these wholesome and delicious fruits, | and very fine crops were grown. The fruit met a ready sale at good prices. The acreage increased for several years, until about fifty acres each of strawberries and raspberries were grown in the vicinity of Mansfield. Since 1865, the home market has been well supplied, and thousands of bushels have been shipped to other parts of the State.

Grape-growing is also comparatively a new industry in this county. For a long time, it was the general opinion that grapes could not be grown with success, except in certain localities, and near large bodies of water, $800 an acre have been paid for land on Kelley's Island and elsewhere about Sandusky City, for vineyard purposes. Experience has proven that the hills of Richland County will grow as many tons of grapes per acre, and of as good quality, as could be raised in any of these localities. The first vineyard planting in the county was done in years later, John Oswald planted a vineyard. All these vineyards. bore fine crops of choice fruits. The fifth year-after planting, Mr. Oswald gathered twelve tons of grapes from five acres; and the next year, gathered the enormous crop of twenty-seven tons from the same ground. This fruit sold readily for $100 per ton. The other vineyards were not allowed to bear so heavily, being pruned, and yielding about three tons per acre. The fruit was larger and of much better quality, and sold in Fort Wayne and Indianapolis for $140 per ton.

The success of these vineyards encouraged others to plant, and in the spring of 1874, more than seventy thousand Concord grapevines were planted in Richland County. There are now (1880) 150 acres of vineyard in the county, whose average crops are two and one-half tons per acre, or nearly four hundred. tons, worth $500 ; surely a profitable investment. But little wine is made in the county, the fruit being principally used for table purposes. of the crops have been principally shipped to Cincinnati, where they have commanded good prices.

The first vines planted in 1863, by L. W. Pittenger, bore an excellent crop the third year after planting, and for thirteen years the vines have yielded an annual remunerative supply. | In 1878 and 1879, many of the vineyards lost their fruit by reason of rot. This does not ap- pear to be the result of any defect in the soil nor infirmity in the vine: but of some peculiar atmospheric agency, which growers as yet do not understand. The prevailing opinion is that it is the result of excessive rainfall, followed by hot, sultry weather, and that it will disappear as the seasons change.

The total value of all stocks, bonds, moneys and credits, is estimated at $3,062,289, there are 3,440 dogs, whose value (fixed by owners), is $4,334.

From the above reports the entire value of personal property is estimated at $4,838,879. This, added to the value of real property, gives a total value of taxable property in thé county of more than $14,000,000.