The miners' express. (Dubuque, Iowa) 1849-1854, 1854-03-08
GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF
WISCONSIN.
BY PROF. DANIELS


WISCONSIN,.
BY PROF. DANIELS.
We copy from the Madison Journal the fol.
lowing interesting notice Of the forthcoming
Report Of Prof Daniels. the State Geologist OF
Wisconsin.
The Act authorizing the Survey required that
the district known the "l.e I'D Region should
be first surveyed. This district embraces all the
counties Of Gran. Lafayette, Iowa, and the
western part Of Green and Dane-cdhlaining
an area Of about $500 spare miles. Having fur.
nery published descriptions Of the more prom
inent physical features Of the country, it is not
necessary to give them further notice.
| III" ordtr OF succession, position, and rea
tive thick mess OF the rocks of the district will be
seen on an inspection Of the following vertical
section
LIST, Clay. from 10 to 90 feet thck-say IS
| feet.
2nd, Thin bedled hard white limestone, 800
| feet.
| Sd, Shale Of blue or brown color.
4th, Thick brdded gray limestone. 900 feet.
| 9Th, Thin bedded blue or brown limestone,
with layers Of shale, 50 feet
9th, Yellowsh thick bedded limestone, %
feet
9TH. Sandstone Of various colors, generally
light gray or red, 40 feet.
| 9Th, Limestone wi Il irtercala:ions Of sand.
stone.
The qualification of these beds is conrorma-
bic, or very nearly so. The whole series have
south westerly drip at The rate Of abou, ten IT.
to the mile.
| Perhaps the most interesting deposite, geolo-
! gcally considered, and which, as yet, has been
but little studied, is the clay 1t attains its max
imum thickness in the south western p r,on OF
the district, where it assumes tn, form OF pipe
clay, presenting several distinct beds. The in
cluccd fossils which are often ioui d III great
abundance, proves this to be fresh water orr
GIN But The fossils Of greatest interest pecu
liar to this deposte, are the gigantic bones which
have al several places been found imbedded IN
it. Those found at Farplay belonged to an ell
ephant and Mastodon, and similar on's were
! dug UP at Potosi. The remains OF an elephant
| have also been discovered at Sextnnvllle, Rich
land county. These discoveries prove that in
ages immeasurably remote the elephant and
| mastodon roamed over Wisconsin, and found
favorte places of refreshment and repose on hills
and valleys, and even on the sites OF our popu.
lous towns the antiquity of their era may be
ina z med when, TO quote the language OF the
report, "the lakes and rivers from which they
drank are now dry and the forest amid which
they wandered, and upon whose luxurant veg
citation their colossal forms were fed, have dis.
appeared for ever" Reader! our prairies were
not always praries nor was the "gnarled oak
chief forest tree The silent proct sses % change,
opening from age to age, level the "everlasting
hills" turn mountains and rocks to dust, lift
continents from the bosom Of oceans, alter cir
mates and the conditions Of organic existence,
fitting for new, and uniting old creations,
which enjoy their epoch reach their circulating
point, decline aud pass away like dream -
this is the law Of progressive develoPement, the
| nd m cfp,On n
our lndi,n mounds ancient and relatively
| they are--but compare them with the age OF
these gigantic mammalia Yet these mamma.
liza are themselves but recent creations in geolo'
g,cal chronology 1t is but proper TO add, that
| very recent scoveres seem 10 settle the origin
of the human race as contemporaries with ihe
mastodon. Fossil human teeth and number OF
perfect skulls have been found in the Swaban
Alps during the past year in strata OF the man
moth period, proving the creation OF the human
race at period very much earlier than has gen
orally been believed or admitted
The clay seems to have been formed by the
decompositpIs Of the rock whose place it occu
pies. Its peculiar characteristic is its fresh wa.
ter origin; and render it quite certain that a
lake once covered large portion Of the district
whose bottom was two three hundred fee,
higher than the present level Of the Mississippi
There is no "drift,' properly-that is, sand
gravel, powders, &c.-in any part OF the dis
trct nor any evidence Of dinavial action, Sc
manifest over large portion of the state. Had
such depositors covered the mining country, the
discovery of mineral had, possibly, never been
made. 1t is, indeed, probable, that at the drift
period the mining region was an extensive isl
and, upon whose shores impnging icebergs
dropped their loads OF i.neous debris, Judging
from the present appearance of the deposite
along the eastern margin
But we cannot give place 10 any extended no
tce Of the several strata. Their mineral con
tents aud practical value, are the main objects
of the report. Let US examine for c little, some
of The facts Of especial importance it has pretty
defina,cly siabished Mining, until quite re
Gently, has been confined to the Upper Mag
nesian Limestone" Of Owen. This is known
as the "lead rock )" Immediately underlying
which is the Blue Fosslliferous Limestone, diff
iering from it entirely in composition, texture
&c. Now it has been generally supposed tina
the metallic veins would be lost when the blue
limestone was reached, with no hope of finding
them beneath. The survey has established the
fact that extensive VEINS are now being WORKED
below the blue, in buff colored limestone, is
layer Of sandstone, above the Lower Magnetism
and the question has long anxously been asked
by miners, whether the inlerposed sandstone
was not an effec,ual ar to all hope finding min
not only that the Lower Magnetism is lead bear
ing, bu, that at one locality alone over zoe ,0Ol
lbs. Of mineral have been raised within a year OF
two-the miners themselves not being aware o
the deposite they were working in Thus there
on three instead Of one lead bearing dep,ste, al
forme.l y supposed. They may be thus arrang.
ed or classified
| Metaliferous. Non -MetalierOus.
Upper Magnetism 400 #. Blua Limestone, so n
Buff Cord Limestone 40 =" Upper Sandstone, 40 :
Lower Magnetism, $50 4"
In practical view, this discovery more thar
doubles the mineral ground, to speak. IL
other words, it holds out definite inducement
to deep mining, rendering profitable return
safely probable. At present the deepest shafi
scarcely exceed $50 feet.
We have not space or we would give entir'
: the chapters devoted to lead veins &c. The
have been critically examined, and the subjec
is ably treated, and is one of great Importance.
LEAD.
The following table exhibits the amount o
lead shipped f.om Wisconsin, illinois, ant
Iowa from 1923 10 1854.
Pounds.