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CHAPTER I.

TOPOGRAPHICAL, ETC.

BOUNDARIES, AREA AND POPULATION.

The boundaries of Jackson county, as defined in the introduction to the chapter on the "Transaction of the Supervisors," and remaining since unchanged, are Ingham and Eaton on the north, Hillsdale and Lenawee on the south, Washtenaw on the east and Calhoun on the west. Its area is set down at about 720 square miles, containing a population, according to the census of 1880, of 42,031 souls, by townships and wards as follows:

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Of these, 21,831 are males, 20,200 females; 36,429 natives, 5,602 foreigners; 41,513 white, 518 colored, 3 Chinese and 3 Indians.

The principal villages are: Springport, Tompkins, Berryville, Rives Junction, Henrietta, Waterloo, Devereaux Station, Parma, Sandstone, Van Horn's Crossing, Puddle Ford, Woodville, Leoni, Michigan Center, Grass Lake, Franciscoville, Concord, Spring Arbor, Spring Arbor Station, Napoleon, Norvell, Jefferson, Brooklyn, Baldwin, Hanover, Stony Point, Pulaski.

LAKES AND STREAMS.

The lakes and ponds of the county are Montague, Garley and Cooper's lakes in Springport; an expansion of Sandstone creek in Tompkins; Berry, Trumbull, Mud, and Allen lakes in Rives; Pleasant, Twin, White's, Mud, Baptiste, and Portage lakes in Henrietta; Big Portage, Little Portage, Clear, Merkle, Pond Lily, in Waterloo; Chase's pond in Parma; Heart's lake in Sandstone; Gillett's, Brill's, Goose, Eagle, Mud, and Grove lakes, and Mill pond in Leoni; Grass, Tims, Rielly's and Little Pleasant lakes in Grass Lake; expansion of Kalamazoo river in Concord; expansions of Sandstone creek in Spring Arbor; Sharp's, Vander

cook's, Brown's and Cone lakes in Summit; Ackerman's, Cranberry, Stony, Wolf, in Napoleon; Sweeney, South, Wampler's, Mud, Vineyard, Tamarack, and Bessy lakes, with expansion and Mill pond on Goose creek in Norvell; Clarke's, Vineyard (extension of) and Mill pond in Columbia; Skiff, Grand, Round, Mud, and Crispell lakes in Liberty; Farewell, Mud, Bibbins and other ponds in Hanover; Swain's, Wilbur, Long, and Goose lakes in Pulaski.

Jackson county forms the basin from which springs a large number of important rivers, and several creeks or streams. Grand river may be said to have its source in the extreme southern portion of Liberty township, in a marsh and pond southwest of Grand lake. Its course is northeast, toward Clarke lake, in Columbia; thence north by west through a series of windings, until it enters Jackson city at the southeast angle. Flowing north it meets the waters of the An Foin, or Portage branch, at Puddle Ford, in Blackman township, and flowing northwest forms a junction with Sandstone creek in Tompkins, north of the village. It flows north from sec. 4, R. 2 W., in Tompkins, and pursuing a northwesterly course, enters the lake at Grand Haven.

The Kalamazoo takes its rise a little south of Lake Farewell, in Hanover. Flowing through this township it enters Spring Arbor, courses northwest through Concord, and leaves the county at the southwest angle of Parma, entering the lake near the village of Saugatuck.

The Raisin river may be said to have its origin in Norvell township, where its main feeder flows from the mill-pond, and thus is it made a continuation of Goose creek, the source of which is found in Columbia, the adjoining township. The second feeder rises in Grass lake, and flowing south, forms a junction with the main branch, south of Sweeney lake, follows a southeasterly course, and enters Lake Erie at Monroe.

The creeks are numerous, comprising among others Wilbur, Swain, Stony, Goose, Marsh brook, Wolf, Rielly's, Baptiste, Orchard, Stowell, White's, Spring brook, Portage creek, Mackay brook, Sandstone and Raisin creeks.

Artesian water bursts forth at intervals, and courses down its bed to mingle with that of the creeks, lakes or rivers.

PRE-EMINENCE.

The "height of land" occurs in the township of Summit, immediately south of Jackson city. Here may be seen the effect of such an eminence on the waters of the locality, the waters of the Kalamazoo and Grand rivers flowing to the great Western lake, and those of the Raisin into Lake Erie, at Monroe. Summit has probably never been visited by the hydrographer. In all the reports at hand there is no mention made of it; yet that it exercises a very important influence on the streams originating in the immediate vicinity, cannot be questioned. Let the altitudes of a few principal

eminences in the State be taken. The computed elevation of Franciscoville is 446 feet above Lake Huron and 1,024 feet above the sea; that of Grass Lake reaches within 35 feet of the foregoing figures, and Leoni is 10 feet lower than Grass Lake. Jackson is only 400 feet above the lake, or 978 feet above the sea; Michigan Center, 363 feet; Barry, 362; Sandstone creek, 347 feet; Gillett's lake, 354 feet, and Grass lake, 377. This measurement would entitle Franciscoville to the name of Summit. The fact that it is the highest point arrived at by one man does not constitute it the highest eminence of the Lower Penisula or even of the county; nor do the people generally believe it to be; for they named the Summit under the conviction that it was fully 1,098 feet above the sea, or 520 feet above the level of Lake Huron.

The marsh lands of the county extend over 4,881 acres. Those stretching along the eastern branch of Grand river, and forming one of its feeders, are very extensive. All this land, if drained, is capable of the highest cultivation; and the wonder is that such an intelligent people have permitted it to lie waste so long. The surface of this county is generally undulating, and a very small portion may be said to be hilly. The soil is that known under the appellation of plains and openings. The west and southwest portion, constituting, perhaps, one-fourth of the county, is burr-oak plains; the greater portion of the rest of the county is oak openings and timbered land. There is no dry prairie. Small tracts of wet prairie are interspersed throughout the county, which are easily drained. This county is generally well timbered and watered, and has a large portion of superior farming land. The soil is mostly of a rich, sandy loam. The plains, much resembling orchards, are covered with a sparse growth of burr-oak, white and red oak and hickory trees, generally free from underbrush, and in the summer months with a succession of wild flowers. Wheat, oats, corn, barley and potatoes succeed admirably, and the magnificent orchards generally yield a rich harvest.

GEOLOGY.

The report of State Geologist Alex. Winchell, printed in 1861, deals briefly with the subject so far as it is connected with this county. From it, however, an idea of the formation of the district may be gleaned. He does not assert that outcrops of rock are unknown here, but rather is he inclined to think that from the arenaceous character of the Drift materials throughout the counties of Oakland and Lapeer, an arenaceous stratum may be found underlying the district known as Jackson county. Good exposures of the formation may be seen in the quarries at Jonesville and Hillsdale, and at many other points. In Jackson county the formation extends up into Liberty and Hanover, and has been pierced nearly through at the depth of 105 feet in the well of S. Jacobs, Jr., in the township of Pulaski.

Napoleon Group.-The report, in a direct reference to the county, says: "The next outcrop of these rocks is found at Napoleon, near Jackson, where they are quarried over an area of 88 acres, and expose a section of about 75 feet. The rock is for the most part of a grayish color, inclining to buff. The beds are generally of sufficient thickness and perfection to answer either for flagging or building. The following is the stratification :

4. Sandstone, buff and bluish-gray, composed of transparent and colored grains of quartz, thick bedded..

3. Sandstone, yellowish, thick bedded..

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40 feet.

4

2.

Sandstone, pale greenish, thick bedded.

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1. Sandstone, greenish-buff, composed of minute rounded grains of colored quartz, pretty firmly cemented with a very perceptible quantity of white calcareous matter.

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The higher beds are worked on the grounds into excellent window-sills and water tables. The compiler of the report saw some fine floated and molded stone steps and door-sills. The quarries at this place furnished the cut stone for the Union school buildings, and the city hall at Monroe, the Union school-house at Tecumseh, and for several public, private and commercial buildings in the vicinity. Some beds of this stone are sufficiently clean and sharp to answer the requisites of a coarse grindstone, and some years ago this manufacture attained here a considerable degree of importance.

The Napoleon sandstone outcrops at other places in the south part of Jackson county and further northwest. Being entirely free from fossils, it is not easily distinguished from the sandstones above and the unfossiliferous portions of the rock below. The sandstone of Napoleon bears à considerable resemblance to the conglommerate of Ohio, as seen at the gorge of the Cuyahoga at the falls; but it contains no pebbles, and occupies a position, moreover, below the carboniferous limestone. As a distinct formation, therefore, it has no satisfactory equivalent in the surrounding States, and there is no reason, except its negative paleontological characters, for separating it from the Marshall group.

Salt Group.-The Salt group thins out toward the southern portion of the State, and nearly disappears through Lapeer, Oakland, Washtenaw, Jackson and Eaton counties, thus forming another illustration of the thickening of our formations toward the north. The salt springs at Saline, in Washtenaw county, and at several points in Jackson, may possibly issue from the attenuated representative of the group; but I am more inclined to think that these waters, like similar ones in Branch, Oakland and the northern part of Huron counties, are supplied by the various formations outcropping at these localities. Borings for salt have shown the Napoleon and Marshall sandstones to be saliferous, while at Saginaw, water from the Coal Measures stood at one degree of the salometer in the upper part, and increased to 14 degrees before reaching the Parma sandstone. It is important to bear in mind that the occur

rence of a brine spring proves nothing more than that there is salt somewhere in the State.

On

Parma Sandstone.-In the townships of Parma, Springport and Sandstone is found a white or yellowish quartzose glistening sandstone containing occasional traces of terrestrial vegetation. the line between sections 18 and 19, in Sandstone township, this rock is seen succeeding upward to the ferruginous bed of the carboniferous limestone. On the N. W. of N. W. 1 of section 29 the rock presents a characteristic exposure. It is light colored, thick bedded, firmly cemented, and furnishes an excellent stone for building purposes. It presents the remarkable dip of 45 S. S. W., with vertical divisional planes running parallel with the strike. The rock is occasionally stained with iron, is of medium firmness, and glistens in the sun, owing to the glassy appearance of its quartzose grains. For caps and sills it is apparently superior to the Napoleon sandstone. This quarry occurs upon a ridge, elevated about 35 feet above the limestone. It has every appearance of a violent uplift, but the undisturbed position of the underlying limestone seems incompatible with this supposition, and we are forced to conclude that the apparent dip of the formation is nothing more than a very illusory example of oblique lamination. In the same township, near where the highway crosses Rice creek, this sandstone affords a calamite. The rock is nearly white, sometimes varying to a light straw color, and in some places is quite full of small, white quartzose pebbles. A portion of the Albion flouring mill was built of stone from this section. At Boynton's quarry, half a mile northwest of the Barry coal mines, is a fine exposure of massive sandstone, which, though occupying a higher geographical position than the coal, is believed to belong geologically below it. It is found above the limestone, in the vicinity of Chester Wall's quarry, and seems to be the highest rock in the interval between the Barry and Woodville coal mines. South of Woodville it may be recognized by its glistening character, to the vicinity of Hayden's coal mine, and thence to the region south of Jackson. It is separated in this part of the State by so short an interval from the Napoleon sandstone below and the Woodville sandstone above, that the geographical distribution of this formation has not been very accurately determined. This sandstone was pierced in the boring for salt at East Saginaw, and its thickness was found to be 105 feet. It cannot be one-third of this on the southern border of the basin. No fossils, except imperfect calamites and vegetable traces, have been detected in the Parma rock, but accompanying its outcrop are found angular fragments of flinty or cherty sandstone, abounding in impressions of sigillariæ. Unlike the Ohio conglomerate, it is separated from the Upper Devonian rocks by a considerable thickness of calcareous and arenaceous stratum.

The "Times" Building.-W. F. Storey, when meditating the building of the magnificent office in which his journal is printed and published, at Chicago, could not see where the

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