Box 2, Folder 7: Typewritten Letters, 1811-1828

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March 22. I employed most of my time to day in making two plans of the bridge over the canal. The meteorological tables for Jan, and Feb. appeared in the Louisville Public Advertiser this week.

March 23. Judge B. kept me nearly all the time drawing plans of the bridge, in the following manner,- He would suggest an improvement, and I must draw a plan exhibiting that improvement. Thus I have already drawn three different plans and only in one instance has he made more than one improvement to a plan: And I have even now no hope of being more than half done.

March 23. Martins appeared a few days ago.

March 24. Was engaged nearly all day in assisting Mr. B[?] and Mr. Henry examining patterns of the arch stone of the new stone bridge over the canal. Mr. Audubon says that he hopes the meteorological tables for this month will look more fair than the two preceding months (fair days).

March 25. I had two more plans of the bridge to draw to day, but as I had no paper I was under the necessity of going to Louisville to buy more. In my return I observed three plants in flower of neither of which I do know the name.

The birds that ornamented the fields were the black bird and the martin,-the flocks of pigeons which flew overhead did little more than excite our wonder at their numbers.

Father is now out of business. He had been employed to build the gates of the locks,-about three months ago he started the idea of building an iron gate for the locks, which is now adopted and the building of them is to be done by the directors, not by contractors, so father has in this way thrown himself out of business entirely. Darius brought from the woods east of Louisville two small plants in flower.

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March 26. The wind is very high and boisterous, notwithstanding this I was on the canal lock all the forenoon for the sole purpose of seeing whether the masons do their duty.*** Judge B[?] left a small job for Father to do, which is the making of the patterns for the hollow quoin post, which are to be of cast iron.*** The river is now so low that the noise of the rapids can be heard at our house very distinctly in clear weather.

March 27. The leaves of the Liriodendron tulipifera and Acer rubrum (water maple) begin to expand. Pyrus malus in flower, the leaves having appeared several days ago. Several other plants are beginning to unfold their flowers and leaves, but as I do not know their names I cannot record any of my observations on them. The excursion which furnished the occasion of these observations was made this morning in the rain to the upper end of the canal.

March 28. Drew a plan of the bridge for Mr. Berthoud.*** Received a letter from Pazzi in which he describes one of the remains of ancient works in Ohio and a pond, supposed to have been caused by the sinking of the earth by an earthquake,-- which he visited.

March 30. Sunday., went to the woods in the afternoon to the southward of this place where I had the pleasure of finding several plants in flower which I collected for my herbarium. Among them are Viola Cuculata, Viola ochroleuca, Trillium sesside, Sanguinaria Canadensis, Claytonia Virginiea, Thalietrum anemonides. When I brought them home, I brought into my room the same stone to press them with that I used all last summer.

March 31. Worked on the lock, then went up the canal. The leaves begin to appear on the Platanus occidentalis, the Populus angulata and the Ulmus Americana. Went out in the afternoon with Darius to set some slope stakes for the contractors. In our return we observed in flower the Leontodon taraxacum.

April 1. Went to Louisville for the double purpose of delivering my meteorological table, for March and of purchasing some drawing

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paper. On my return I kept to the south which brought me into the woods where I found several plants in flower,--one of these I found to be the Stellaria pubera. The petals of this plant are so deeply bifed, that a person who, like myself, has had but little experience in practical botany would think that it had ten, and this is the error into which I fell today, not finding it however in its proper, class and order containing ten petals, I went into a more thorough examination of them and soon found that they were connected at the base.

Worked on the lock in the afternoon. Frost last night. Yesterday morning when I went up the canal, I found in a boat load of coal a small piece of sandstone containing small glimmering scales of mica.

April 4. Wind blew hard from N.W. last evening and great was our surprise this morning to find ice and one quarter of an inch of snow on the ground.

April 5. Snow fell last night about half an inch deep, and as it was a cold day, the snow was still on the ground at noon.

April 6. A cold windy day. No more snow.

April 7. Finished plan of locks today, then drew a plan of the bridge. Father went to New Albany to day,--brought home with him two specimens of Ranunculus abortivas. This grows on the open fields (commons) between this place and Louisville. It commenced flowering March 24th, 1828.

April 8. Went to Louisville, got some corrosive sublimate (Chlorate of mercury) dissolved in alcohol to wet the plants which I dry for my herbarium to prevent the attacks of insects, &c. Euphorbia ipecacuanha is said to grow on the Knobs in Indiana.

April 9. Father took a job yesterday of building a bridge over Bear Grass Creek, where Marker street would cross it, were it continued eastward, for $2,000.

April 10. Went up to the head of canal to get a list of the men's time. I found a Arona_________ in flower, growing on the bank of the river. In the afternoon I went over to Gravel Island, it is immediately in front of the village and it is so called in consequence of the extensive beds of gravel which project above and below it, they only appear when the water is low. The island itself is made up on sand and mud, supporting a great number of herbaceous plants, which are now beginning to make their appearance above the sand. It was all overflowed this spring at the time when the water was the highest. The trees are very

*Two cleft.

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tall cottonwood, elm, sycamore, and willow; the acer rubrum and the acer negundo are common, the latter was in flower. Among the herbaceous plants only three are now in flower, viz.: Viola cucullata, which here grows larger than on the commons, Ranunculus abortivus and the other unknown to me. I went over with Father and Darius, our principal object was to by some fish, which are caught plentifully on this island at this stage of the water (middling low). Among the fish, which were thrown away as useless, is the spade fish having a triangular snout, the mouth being placed underneath; it has a somewhat angular body. Three or four species of fish are caught and sold.

Apr. 11. In looking over the list of plants found by Dr. Baldwin on the banks of the Ohio, I find that those which I have seen here, are mentioned as seen in flower about one month later than I saw them. This corroborates the statement made in this diary Feb. 8th last, viz.; that this season was about one month earlier than common.

Worked with Mr. Henry copying his reports until noon. Was on the lock part of the afternoon and part of the time I was drawing on the plan of the lock and bridge for Carrol, sub-contractor or lock builder.

April 12.****** Went to Louisville to get some drawing paper and speak for a blank book in which I intend to write all such notices and memoranda relating to canalling as will be of use to an engineer.*** On my return I kept to the south which brought me into the woods. On the way to the woods, in the old fields, I collected the Stellaria pubera and many others of which I can not find the name. There had been an appearance of rain all day [but now] and it began to thunder and lighten, [though as] while I was in the Beechwoods, and I thought myself quite out of the way of the electric fluid.

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In the woods the ground is almost covered with two species of violets, which I have supposed to be v. cucullata and v.___________ and found a species with white flowers; the first of the above have blue and the second yellow flowers.****** As I left the woods and was coming across the newly cleared land I found by the side of an old decaying log and among some blackberry bushes, the Larkspur (Delphinium tricorne) in flower. I also found Trillium erecturm in flower in a similar situation.

In the afternoon I received the first number of Vol. 14th Sillimans Journal of Science, containing my description of the canal and geology of the vicinity; also a description of the Welland canal in Upper Canada by W.H. Merritt, Esq.

Apr. 13. It rained some in the night, but this morning was very clear from clouds and we had a prospect of a fair day; accordingly we proposed to go to Indiana on a botanizing excursion and on our way take in the boiling spring and the Knobs. We procured a skiff belonging to the canal contractors and father, Darius, and I embarked for the mouth of Silver Creek, where we in a few moments found ourselves without having experienced any difficulty. We here left our skiff and went on foot through the woods to new Albany, here we fell in with some of father's acquaintances, who accompanied us to the Boiling Spring, which is some distance from the bank of the Ohio.

We covered the spring (which is but small) with flat stones, and having plastered it well with mud, made a small hole through the top and set the gas on fire. It did not burn with much brilliancy.

Sandstone forms the bed of the creek opposite the spring, no water runs from the spring.