Box 3, Folder 6: Typewritten Letters, 1849-1851

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will be soon and which I hope you will have a prominent part in from your actual knowledge of the country) it will be a deeply interesting portion, not only of Western, but of Natural History.****

I am under obligations to you for a copy of "Plants of Wisconsin."***

Respectfully yours &c. &c.

W.E. Guest.

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Milwaukee Nov. 26th, 1849................

Dear Sir,--

I learn by the circular of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, that you are chairman of the Committee appointed to memorialize the state governments on the subject of Geological surveys, and take the liberty of suggesting a few facts that may be important in your memorial to the Legislature of Wisconsin.

About 3/4 of the state has already been surveyed by Dr. D.D. Owen under the authority of the U.S. Government. There remains only a small portion bordering on Lake Michigan which has not been surveyed by any geologist in the employment of the government and in this portion the geological structure is so simple as to require comparatively but little field investigation. It consists mostly of several formations, from the corniferous down as far as the Inferior (Potsdam) Sandstone, which mostly have a dip towards the east.

Some valuable quarries, iron ore beds, hydraulic lime, marble and other sources of wealth would undoubtedly be discovered by a thorough examination of this district.

For several years I have been endeavoring to ascertain

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the geological character of this part of Wisconsin and have now a large amount of information in the form of notes, drawings, maps, and specimens of the rocks, minerals and fossils that would greatly facilitate such a survey, should it be ordered.

The very valuable reports of Dr. Owen were not published very extensively by Congress and it is almost impossible to obtain copies. They were made at different times. It would be highly advantageous to have all his reports revised, embodied in one and published in connection with the state survey.

The diffusion of accurate information of this kind, by the publication of such a general report would tend, very materially to make known to the world the resources of Wisconsin and thus secure a more rapid increase of population, wealth and business.

While other states are doing so much to make their peculiar advantages known, Wisconsin should not be behind, especially when it can be done at so comparatively small an expense.

Within the last year two more valuable mines of iron ore have been found in Dodge county, at which iron is now made in considerable quantities and preparations are making for more extensive works. No one knows the extent of these ore beds and the explorations of the geologist are needed to throw light on the subject.

No rocks belonging to the coal series have yet been detected in Wisconsin, and this negative fact if made extensively known at an early day may save much useless labor and expense in searching for coal in places where any geologist could pronounce with absolute certainty that none could be found.

The precise limit of the lead and copper regions [are] is not yet known, there may be rich mines in the eastern portion of the state and the survey would at least show whether there is a proba

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-bility of further discoveries.

Lead ore has been observed in connection with the rock in situ at Janesville and at Hustisford on Rock river at a great distance from the lead legion.

Our legislature will meet in January when your memorial may be presented.

Very truly yours,

I.A. Lapham.

Dr. R.W. Gibbs, Columbia S.C.

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Milwaukee Nov. 26th, 1849............

Dear Sir,--

I take the liberty of addressing you for the purpose of calling the attention of American Antiquarian Society to the subject of Antiquities of Wisconsin. You are probably aware that they present some features peculiar to this state and consequently demand special attention, for in order to adduce a correct theory of the origin of these works we must have all the facts before us. I refer more particularly to the animal shaped mounds scattered all over the southern part of Wisconsin. Some of these mounds have been described and figured.*** But there are hundreds of others that have not, some of them far more interesting.

Now I propose to visit and survey these mounds, opening occasionally one, provided the actual expense be defrayed by your society, charging nothing for my time, &c.

The whole country being surveyed into sections, towns, and ranges by the general government, the true geographical position of the mounds can be readily ascertained.***

The results of course to be communicated to the Society with the right to a certain number of copies, in case of publication

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by the society and of publishing, in case the society should refuse or neglect to publish.***

Should you deem it important you may refer to our Senators and Representatives in Congress as to my qualifications for such a task.

Yours truly,

I.A. Lapham.

S.F. Haven[s], Sec'y Am.Ant.Soc. Worcester, Mass.

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Milwaukee Dec. 24, 1849...........

Dear Sir,--

I have your favor of the 7th inst. requesting me to make an estimate of the probable cost of an examination and survey of the ancient mounds in the state of Wisconsin.

It would be difficult to do so without knowing to what extent and degree of minuteness the investigations are to be made.

It would be best to employ a horse and light wagon with a boy for an assistant, the daily expense of which including tavern charges would be about $4.00. If three months are consumed (say ninety days) and an addition for laborers to open twenty or thirty mounds, and another for the purchase of such articles as have already been dug out it will be safe to estimate the expense at about $500. For this sum a large amount of accurate data may be collected and perhaps as much as is desirable.

In my note books there are over fifty localities mentioned, where these works are now known to exist, extending over twelve counties. I am not able to say whether they extend to the northern and more unsettled portion of our state but presume they do not.

Very truly yours,

I.A. Lapham.

Sam'l F. Haven, Esq. Worcester, Mass.

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Geological Notes of a Tour to the Dells.

Oct. 22nd to Nov. 1st, 1849. I.A. Lapham, accompanied by Samuel Sircombe and Henry O. Hubbard.

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At Knapp's (Sec. 9? T.7 R. 21) a well dug 51 1/2 feet without getting through the blue clay hardpan. It contains bituminous shale, iron pyrites &c., &c.

The Waukesha limestone in Lisbon contains no fossils at least we could find none. A good quarry has recently been opened at Pewaukee, near the eastern extremity of the lake of that name.

The hilly country about the lakes west of Hartland is probably the out-crop of this rock. They are in many places made up of pebbles of it mixed but sparingly with those of other rocks.

From Oconomowoc we followed the new grade of the plank road to Watertown, at which place the "Cocinopora Limestone" appears. I could find no rock between these two. Game through this country is growing very scarce.

Near the west end of La Belle lake we crossed a sandy region, which may indicate a sandstone below, but may only be a sandy portion of the great Drift formation that spreads over this whole country.

At the northeast part (probably Sec. 12) of the town of Shields, Town 9, Range 14, is found a limestone which appears to be the same as that at Watertown. Found in it Leptoena deltoidea, same as at Blue Mounds.

At a place near the cross roads three miles west of the village of Lowell (on N.W. 1/4 18--10--14) is a well of moderate depth through rock, the upper part yellow, the lower blue, so that here we have the junction of these two widely different rocks.