USA > Illinois > Lee County > History of Lee County, Illinois, Volume I > Part 7
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Circuit Judges-Dan Stone. 1837-40: Thomas C. Browne, 1840-48; Benjamin R. Sheldon, 1848-51; I. B. Wilkinson, 1851-56; J. W. Drury in 1856; John V. Eustace, 1856-61; William W. Heaton, 1861-78, when he died; John V. Eustace 1878 to 1888,
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY
when he died; John D. Crabtree, 1888 to 1902, when he died; Richard S. Farrand, 1902, present incumbent. Of course it should be stated that there have been three judges from each cir- cuit since about 1875. But in this work it has been thought best to mention only those elected from Lee county.
One a year of the county commissioners retired and a suc- cessor was elected. In 1840, George E. Haskell, was elected. In 1841, Joseph Crawford; 1842, O. F. Ayres; 1843, J. C. Morgan; 1844, D. Baird; 1845, D. H. Birdsall; 1846, James Goble, to fill vacancy caused by death of Baird ; 1847, W. Badger ; 1848, Stephen Fuller,-to fill vacancy.
STATE'S ATTORNEY'S OFFICE CREATED 1870
William E. Ives, 1872-76; Abalino C. Bardwell, 1876-80; Charles B. Morrison, 1880-96; Edward H. Brewster, 1896-1900; Charles H. Wooster, 1900-08: Harry Edwards, 1908, present incumbent.
LEE COUNTY OFFICIALS, 1913-14
County Officers-County judge, Robert H. Scott; county clerk, William C. Thompson; county . treasurer, Frank C. Vanghan; state's attorney, Harry Edwards ; sheriff, C. P. Reid; clerk circuit court and recorder, W. B. McMahan ; superintendent of schools, L. W. Miller ; coroner, George B. Stephan ; county surveyor, L. B. Neighbour; master in chancery, A. C. Bardwell; superintendent of county home, C. L. Wicher; chairman board of supervisors, John J. Wagner.
Clerks of Appellate Court-First district, Alfred R. Porter, Chicago; second district, C. C. Duffey, Ottawa ; third district, W. C. ITippard, Springfield; fourth district, A. C. Millspaugh, Mount Vernon.
Supervisors elected in 1912 for two years-Bradford, John J. Wagner, Ashton; Dixon, Luther Burket, Chas. T. Self, Dixon; E. Grove, Ralph E. Hanson, Ohio; Hamilton, Jos. Bauer, Harmon; L. Center, Kyle Miller, West Brooklyn: Marion, C. F. Welty, Amboy, R. 6; May, James Buckley, Amboy ; Nelson, C. C. Bucka- loo, Dixon, R. 6: S. Dixon, F. L. Young, Dixon; Viola, U. Grant Dysart. West Brooklyn: W. Creek, John H. Grove, Lee.
Elected in 1913 for two years-Alto, Morris Cook, Steward; Amboy, W. J. Edwards, Amboy; Ashton, Chas. Heibenthal, Ash-
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY
ton; Brooklyn, Jolin W. Banks, Compton; China, C. Gross, Frank- lin Grove; Dixon, O. B. Anderson, J. M. MeCleary, Dixon; Harmon, E. J. Mannion, Harmon; Nachusa, F. G. Emmert, F. Grove, R. F. D .; Palmyra, Jno. P. Drew, Dixon, R. 1; Reynolds, Chas. Ewald, Steward; Sublette, Wm. Brucker, Sublette; Wyo- ming, A. S. Wells, Paw Paw.
Supervisors for 1913-Alto, Morris Cook, Steward, term expires 1915; Amboy, W. J. Edwards, Amboy, 1915; Ashton, Chas. Heibenthal, Ashton, 1915; Bradford, J. J. Wagner, Ashton, 1914; Brooklyn, Jno. W. Banks, Compton, 1915; China, Chris Gross, F. Grove, 1915; Dixon, O. B. Anderson, Dixon, 1915; Dixon, J. M. McCleary, Dixon, 1915; Dixon, Luther Burket, Dixon, 1914; Dixon Chas. T. Self, Dixon, 1914; E. Grove, Ralph E. Hanson, Ohio, 1914; Hamilton, Joseph Bauer, Harmon, 1914 ; Harmon, E. J. Mannion, Harmon, 1915; L. Center, Kyle C. Miller, W. Brooklyn, 1914; Marion, Chas. F. Welty, Amboy, 1914; May, James Buckley, Amboy, 1914; Nachusa, F. G. Emmert, F. Grove, 1915; Nelson, C. C. Buckaloo, Dixon, 1914; Palmyra, Jno. P. Drew, Dixon, 1915; Reynolds, Chas. Ewald, Steward, 1915; S. Dixon, Frank L. Young, Dixon, 1914; Sublette, Wm. Brucker, Sublette, 1915; Viola. U. Grant Dysart, W. Brooklyn, 1914; W. Creek, Jno. H. Grove, Lee, 1914; Wyoming, A. S. Wells, Paw Paw, 1915.
Standing Committees-Judiciary, Gross, Bauer, McCleary, Welty, Edwards ; finance, Dysart, Wells, Banks, Heibenthal, Drew; claims, Cook, Miller, Heibenthal, Hanson, Anderson ; county home, Wells, Emmert, Buckaloo, Drew, Self; pauper claims, Banks, Young, Edwards, Gross, Mannion; fees and salary, Buckaloo, MeCleary, Banks, Welty, Ewald ; public buildings, Emmert, Grove, Dysart, Buckley, Anderson; contingent expense and purchasing, Drew, Heibenthal, Welty, Grove, Brucker; education, Self, Han- son, Bauer, Buckley. Ewald; town accounts, Young, Miller, Edwards, Burket, Mannion ; old soldiers, Grove, Cook. Heibenthal, Buckaloo, Brucker; printing, Bauer, MeCleary, Gross, Hanson, Grove; roads and bridges, Buckley, Welty, Self. Burket, Ewald; rules. Wagner, Cook, Dysart, Wells, Young; Grand DeTour bridge, Burket.
Town Clerks-Alto, S. J. Whetston, Steward; Amboy, J. E. Lewis, Amboy; Ashton, Geo. B. Stephan, Ashton; Bradford, A. Aschenbrenner, Amboy, R. 2; Brooklyn, William Dishong, Comp- ton ; China, A. B. Wicker, Franklin Grove; Dixon, W. V. E. Steel, Dixon ; E. Grove, Wesley Peach, Harmon : Hamilton, B. G. Reed, 701. 1-5
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY
Walnut; Harmon, Jno. L. Porter, Harmon; L. Center, P. L. Berry, Lee Center; Marion, W. J. McCarty, Amboy ; May, J. G. Hall, Jr., Amboy ; Nachusa, Geo. Weyant, Nachusa; Nelson, Walter W. Gei- ger, Dixon, R. 6; Palmyra, H. M. Gilbert, Dixon, R. 1; Reynolds, Herman C. Conrad, Rochelle; S. Dixon, J. W. Cortright, Dixon, R. 5; Sublette, Paul Bieber, Sublette; Viola, Andrew Anderson, West Brooklyn; W. Creek, Geo. M. Herrmann, Steward; Wyo- ming, E. P. Fleming, Paw Paw.
Assessors elected in 1912 for two years-Alto, A. J. Larson, Steward ; Amboy, B. McCaffrey, Amboy ; Ashton, S. T. Zeller, Sr., Ashton; Bradford, Chas. W. Wagner, Franklin Grove, R. 2; Brooklyn, Chas Stont, Compton; China, A. M. Carpenter, Frank- lin Grove; Dixon, J. A. Whitish, Dixon; E. Grove, Jolm McFad- den, Amboy ; Hamilton, W. E. Hopkins, Harmon ; Harmon, Geo. Smith, Harmon ; L. Center, A. B. McCrea, West Brooklyn, R. D .; Marion, Thomas Halligan, Dixon; May, P. G. Tyrrell, Amboy; Nachusa, Geo. R. Emmert, Nachusa; Nelson, James B. Stitzel, Nelson ; Palmyra, Wm. Leivan, Dixon, R. 1; Reynolds, Marcus Ventler, Ashton : S. Dixon, Frank Siefkin, Dixon, R. 2: Sublette, Andrew J. Laner, Sublette ; Viola, Julius Delhotel, West Brook- lyn; W. Creek, IL. II. Risetter, Lee; Wyoming, Frank McBride, Paw Paw.
Collectors elected in 1912 for two years-Alto, E. T. Corwin, Steward : Amboy, Chas. J. Kiefer, Amboy ; Ashton, Fred O. Beach, Ashton: Bradford, Frank Mehlhausen, Ashton; Brooklyn, Wm. Wigum, West Brooklyn ; China, Jesse O'Neal, Franklin Grove; Dixon, Jonas Stultz, Dixon; E. Grove, Robert Smiley, Ohio; Hamilton, Sidney Ilaffenden, Harmon; Harmon, W. H. Smith, Harmon ; L. Center, A. J. Fuller, Amboy, R. D. ; Marion, John Fin, Amboy; May, John Minnich, Jr., Amboy; Nachusa, W. F. McClanahan, Dixon, R. 5: Nelson, Clarence Bnzard, Dixon, R. 6; Palmyra. II. F. Gilbert, Dixon, R. 1 ; Reynolds, Chas. E. Becker, Ashton: S. Dixon, V. D. MeClanahan, Dixon, R. 2; Sublette, Norbert G. Michel, Sublette; Viola, L. F. Rees, Steward; W. Creek, Vernon Noyes, Lee ; Wyoming, Fred Lilly, Paw Paw.
Commissioners of Highways-Alto, J. H. Walker, Steward, term expires 1914; B. Chambers, Steward, R. 1, 1915; I. Peter- son, Steward, R. 2, 1916. Amboy, G. M. Finch, Amboy, 1914; JJ. I. Thompson, Amboy, 1915; W. P. Long, Amboy, 1916. Ashton, C. W. Bowers, Ashton, 1914: II. W. Reitz, Ashton, 1915; E. J.
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY
Howey, Ashton, 1916. Bradford, C. Wagner, Ashton, 1914; Adam Wendal, Franklin Grove, R. 2, 1915; H. Weishaar, Ashton, R. 1, 1916. Brooklyn, M. F. Beemer, Compton, 1914; Wm. A. Derr, West Brooklyn, 1915; A. Mehlbrech, Compton, 1916. China, Eli G. Hull, Franklin Grove, 1914; Chas. Seebach, Amboy, 1915; G. 11. Kreger, Franklin Grove, 1916. Dixon, W. H. Lenox, Dixon, 1914; T. F. Rosbrook, Dixon, 1915; F. W. Fisher, Dixon, 1916. E. Grove, C. B. Rogers, Walnut, 1914: E. Friel, Amboy, 1915; G. H. Reuter, Amboy, 1916. Hamilton, P. L. Pope, Walnut, 1914; H. McDermott, Harmon, 1915; Denis Foley, Harmon, 1916. Har- mon, A. C. Clayworthy, Harmon, 1914; F. E. Smallwood, Harmon, 1915; John Wolf, Harmon, 1916. L. Center, G. P. Miller, West Brooklyn, 1914; Clem Miller, Amboy, R. D., 1915; HI. Herrick, Lee Center, 1916. Marion, H. Blackburn, Amboy, 1914; B. Bush- man, Dixon, 1915 ; James McCoy, Amboy, R. 5. 1916. May, Ervin Groth, Amboy, 1914; John Fisher, Amboy, 1915; Chas. McFad- den, Amboy, 1916. Nachusa, G. H. Killmer, Amboy, R. 5, 1914; J. Feldkirschner, Dixon, R. 4, 1915; E. D. Weigle, Nachusa, 1916. Nelson, J. T. Emmitt, Rock Falls, 1914; G. S. Ranson. Dixon, R. 6, 1915; T. F. Drew, Dixon, R. 6. 1916. Palmyra, F. Landis, Dixon, R. 1, 1914 ; J. W. Lawton, Dixon, R. 1, 1915; F. W. Brauer, Dixon, R. 7, 1916. Reynolds, N. Schaneberg, Ashton, 1914: L. B. Miller, West Brooklyn, 1915; G. Zimmerman, Steward, 1916. S. Dixon, J. P. Brechon, Dixon, R. 8. 1914: W. H. Remmers, Dixon, 1915; Peter Hoyle, Dixon, 1916. Sublette. B. H. Full, Sublette, 1914; Otto Koehler, Sublette, 1915; G. Stephenitch, Sublette, 1916. Viola, F. E. Halsey, West Brooklyn, 1914: E. H. Ellsworth. West Brooklyn, 1915; August Gehant, West Brooklyn, 1916. W. Creek, L. Heckman, Paw Paw, 1914: O. L. Hillison, Lee, 1915; P. O. Boyd, Lee, 1916. Wyoming, P. Neibergall. Paw Paw, 1914; Jay M. Smith, Paw Paw, 1915; Roy Blee, Paw Paw, 1916.
Justices of the Peace-Alto. A. Richolson, W. M. Ravnass, Steward: Amboy, Chas. E. Ives. A. A. Virgil, Jno. C. Appleman, Amboy ; Ashton, Squire T. Jennings, Ashton : Bradford, Joseph Baldwin, Ashton; Brooklyn, H. A. Bernardin, West Brooklyn, J. F. Beitz, Compton; China, Willis L. Riegle, F. H. Hausen, Franklin Grove; Dixon, A. H. Hanneken. Jno. B. Crabtree, Edw. J. Condon, G. W. Gehant, Geo. W. Hill, Dixon: E. Grove, Jas. Donovan, Ohio ; Hamilton, C. H. Larkin, B. H. Peterson, Harmon ; Harmon, H. M. Ostrander, Harmon, Elmer H. Hess, Van Patten; L. Center. Richard Gooch, Monroe Shaw. Lee Center: Marion,
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY
Jolin Leonard, Dixon, R. D .; Palmyra, Harvey M. Senneff, Dixon, R. D .; S. Dixon, James Bollman, Dixon, R. D .; Sublette, Peter H. Kolde, S. C. Leffelman, Sublette; W. Creek, W. H. Herrmann, Scarboro; Wyoming, Ed. P. Fleming, Paw Paw.
Police Magistrates-Alto, S. J. Whetston, Steward; Amboy, John Holleran, Amboy; China, A. B. Wicker, Franklin Grove; Dixon, W. G. Kent, Dixon.
Constables-Alto, Jno. Buckley, Wm. J. Bowles, Steward; Amboy, Chas. E. Stanard, W. L. Eddy, Amboy ; Ashton, Jno. W. Weishaar, Joel C. Wetzel, Ashton; Brooklyn, Chas. Carnahan, Compton; China, E. O. E. Orner, Wm. F. Miller, Franklin Grove; Dixon, Jno. H. Howell, Wm. S. Fletcher, Wm. V. E. Steel, Wm. Dykeman, Dixon; Hamilton, W. C. Hardesty, Walnut, Joseph Knapp, Harmon; Harmon, Wm. T. Camery, Harmon; L. Center, Joseph Miller, Clem B. Miller, Lee Center; Nelson, Fred Ohda, Nelson; Palmyra, Robert J. Drynan, Dixon, R. D .; W. Creek, F. A. Schoenholtz, Scarboro; Wyoming, L. A. Coss, W. J. Valentine, Paw Paw.
Township School Treasurers-Town 22, R. 11, N. A. Petrie, Ashton; 37, 2, Frank Wheeler, Paw Paw; 20, 11, Philo L. Berry, Lee Center; 19, 8, Geo. Hermes, Harmon ; 37, 1, J. S. Richardson, Compton; 19, 9, Philip Erbes, Amboy; 19, 11, A. H. Lauer, Sub- lette ; 22, 10, C. D. Hussey, Franklin Grove; 21, 9, Ira W. Lewis, Dixon; 39, 1, Henry Salzman, Ashton; 22, 9, E. B. Raymond, Dixon; 20, 9, Ed. Lally, Dixon; 22, 8, Fred A. Lawton, Dixon; 39, 2, G. A. Ruckman, Steward; 38, 1, H. Berscheid, Compton; 20, 8, T. H. Mannion, Harmon ; 21, 8, H. W. Phillips, Dixon ; 21, 11, Clas. Wagner, Ashton; 19, 10, Andrew Spohn, Amboy ; 38, 2, Geo. W. Yetter, Lee ; 20, 10, H. H. Badger, Amboy ; 21, 10, S. A. Durkes, Franklin Grove.
ASSESSMENT 1912
Following is the assessed valuation of lands, lots and personal property of Lee county, by townships, for the past year, 1912.
First are given the returns as made by the assessor; next are given the values as fixed by the board of review.
This is the last valuation spread upon the records. Substan- tially the lands and lots for the present year will be the same. The personal property list however will be approximately half a mil- lion dollars more.
-
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY
Gain in
Logg in Lands
Township
Lands by Assesor
Lands by
Lots by Assessor
Lots by Board Review
Personal.by Personal by Assessor
Lands and Lots
and Lots
Gain in Personal
Alto
567,030
567,030
37,160
37,160
86.460
90,905
4,445
Ashton
.328,155
328,155
135,375
135,375 194,470
186,475
195,955
75
9,480
Bradford
.646,975
646,975
6,900
Brooklyn
.571,540
571,540
94,695
94,695
143,870
154,705
10,835
China
.521,370
. 618.405
617,400
1,861,700
1,860,355
25,520
25,520
4
Harmon
.388,795
388,795
19,615
19,615
60,435
61,435
1,000
Lee Center
.364,940
364,940
30,970
30,970
88,760
89,220
460
Marion
379,895
379,895
865
1,200
50,860
50,860
335
May
. 313,845
313,845
35,085
35,085
Nachusa
443,985
443.985
14,840
14,840
89,530
90,460
930
Nelson
342,440
242,385
8,860
8,860
57,235
59,170
55
1,935
Palmyra
657,086
657,080
2,730
2,730
128.160
128.410
250
Reynolds
.544,760
544,760
74.560
75.565
1,005
South Dixon . .. 516,940 Sublette 655,495
655.495
37,450
37,450
127.850
127,975
125
Viola
528,250
528,250
75.555
78,220
2,665
Willow Creek .. 568,630
568,630
25.250
24,285
162,710
174,175
965
11,465
Wyoming .. . . 601,400
601,400
107,500
107.500
173,895
175,835
1,940
10,589,515
2,682.500
3.298,805
635
3,445 124,765
270
Amboy
.363,185
363,185
194,545
108,100
108,100
233.935 908,590
975,020
2,350
66,430
East Grove
.296.120
296,120
Hamilton
370,985
370,985
41,310
41,310
99,695
106,595
237,240
3,305
Dixon
521,370
517,240
4,895
4,895
101.060
102,385
300
1,325
Board Review
Board Review
222,490
222,760
WHIPPLE CAVE
STEAMBOAT ROCK
CHAPTER VI
THE GEOLOGY OF LEE COUNTY
In attempting to give the rock formation of counties, the his- torian, generally speaking, is compelled to gather his information from sources not at all reliable, and naturally that portion of his book is unsatisfactory to himself and misleading to the reader. How fortunate therefore it was that I was enabled to secure a reliable as well as learned and exhaustive treatment of the sub- ject. Ira W. Lewis, one of the associate editors, discovered the document and referred me to it. I have copied and embodied it in this work and I may say with truthfulness that no more valu- able information will be found between these covers than the essay of Doctor Everett.
Dr. Oliver Everett, who came to Dixon in the year 1836, beyond any doubt was the most learned man who ever lived in Lee county. In the fifty odd years of active practice, he came to be beloved by every person who ever met him, and that acquaintance extended to the four corners of the county.
Night and day, for over half a century he rode the country administering to the sick. Nights and days he traveled, first the trackless prairies, then the muddy roads. Many times he had driven for forty-eight hours at a stretch before seeking his pil- low. To the rich and the poor he ministered alike. If the patient was poor his name never found its way into Doctor Everett's account book and thus a fortune was scattered over the county of Lee as his contribution towards building up this community.
In that long and busy practice, he assisted something like five thousand children into this world, and it is with pride that I place my name in the long, long list of children who so early greeted the good old doctor, whose presence and assistance at such a period was so important.
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY
During such a busy life it scarcely seems possible that he should find time to delve into the subject of geology and natural history. But he did and at the second county fair ever held in Dixon-in 1858, his great collection of natural history specimens attracted state wide attention. He also collected a large number of exces- sively rare American coins. Where could all of them have drifted ? To deposit them to his memory would have been the appropriate thing to do, but they were neglected after his death, and now all of his specimens have perished. But so long as there is any Dixon, the memory of Doctor Everett will be cherished.
He was an historian of rare merit and nine-tenths of the old items of our history were snatched from oblivion and collected by Doctor Everett. The little book of events, arranged chronologie- ally, and published in 1880, by the Dixon Telegraph, is a priceless thing. And for it we may thank Doctor Everett. He and John Moore, long with the Telegraph, cooperated together in bringing the little book into the world. He gathered the data and John Moore arranged them. That little book contains an account of every important event which goes to make up our history.
Full of years, he passed away beloved by all and more especially by every member of that great family of "his children" which he assisted into this world of so many uncertainties.
GEOLOGY
From Oregon, in Ogle County, to Sterling, in Whiteside County. By the late Oliver Everett, M. D.
Read before the Illinois Natural History Society, June 27, 1860
My objeet, in this paper, is to give some of the results of obser- vations made by me upon the geology of the Rock river valley, in Lee county, and a part of Ogle and Whiteside counties, or from about Oregon, in Ogle county, to Sterling, in Whiteside county. The surface in this part of the country is nich more rolling, or undulating, than in most parts of the state. This is particularly the case in the upper portion of the section alluded to in Ogle county and part of Lee county, where it is frequently cut up into deep ravines, on the sides of which the underlying rocks are often exposed to view ; and the banks of Rock river and its tributaries frequently present bold, perpendicular bluffs of rock, from fifty
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY
to two hundred feet high, thus giving a tolerably good opportunity for geological investigations. These features are most prominent in the region of one member of the geological series of which I shall hereafter speak, viz., the Upper or St. Peter's sandstone. In another section, where the Trenton lime rock underlies the drift. there are frequently found deep pits in the ground. These pits are generally more or less circular, and are from one to two or three rods in diameter, at the surface of the ground, and rum to a point below. They are from ten to twenty and sometimes thirty feet deep, and have, evidently, been produced by the earth, in these places, falling into and being carried away by subterranean streams of water in the loose rock below.
Below Dixon, although the surface is considerably undulating, it is not so abruptly broken by deep ravines, and the prairies gen- erally slope gradually to the banks of the river, seldom exposing the rocks at all. Below Dixon there is very little woodland along the banks of the river, while above, between Dixon and Oregon, a considerable portion of the country along the river is covered with timber. The timber is not generally of very heavy growth. although, in some places, on the bottom lands, it is quite large. It consists of the various species of oak and hickory common to the state, the black and white walnut, the sugar and silver-leaved maple, box-elder (Negundo accrifolium), sycamore, the red and white elm, hackberry, ash, linden, cottonwood, etc. The red cedar. the white pine, the ground hemlock (Taxus Americana). the black and the paper or canoe birch (Betula lenta and Betula papy- racea), are found on the extreme verge of the rocks overhanging the river and creeks, beyond the reach of the prairie fires. All these last mentioned species, except the red cedar, are found, as far as I have observed, only upon the bluffs formed by the St. Peter's sandstone.
We should naturally expect to find on a soil produced from the disintegration of this sandstone, some plants which are not com- mon to the rich alluvial and clayey soils of a large portion of the state. Accordingly I have found several species not included in Doctor Lapham's catalogne, and some of them not in the addi- tional lists subsequently made by Doctors Brendell and Bebb, and which I presume are not often found in other parts of the state. Among which I might name two species of vaccinium, the Are- tostaphylos uranisi, Lupenn perremis. Campanula rotundifolia, Talinum teretifolium, Lobelia kalmii, Cerastium oblongifolinm, Linaria canadensis, Fragaria vesca, and the Viola lanceolate,
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY
which grows on the borders of ponds, or in wet places in this sandy soil.
The drift formation, through this section, is probably not so thiek nor so uniform in depth as in most parts of the state. There are many things in relation to it which have peculiar interest, but my object in this paper is to speak of the rock beneath it.
There is in this section of about thirty miles of the Rock river valley, a pretty good opportunity to study several important mem- bers of the lower Silurian system and some of the lowest strata of the upper Silurian series.
Commencing at Oregon, with the St. Peter's sandstone, and ascending the geological scale, as we go down the river, we find the Buff limestone (of Owen), the Trenton limestone, the Galena limestone, and the shales, ete., representing the Hudson river group of the lower Silurian system, and the Niagara limestone of the upper Silurian series.
ST. PETER'S SANDSTONE
The lowest rock which we find in the section under considera- tion, is the Upper or St. Peter's sandstone. It is the prevailing rock along the river, from a mile above Oregon to about three miles below Grand Detour, a distance of thirteen or fourteen miles. On the northwest side of the river, I think that in no place does this rock appear on the surface more than two or three miles from the river. On the southwest side it extends several miles baek from the river. I should think that the thickness of this rock could not be less than two hundred feet, and probably more. The country where this rock prevails is characterized by great uneven- ness. It is frequently ent up into deep and sharp ravines, and, in many places, there are bold, precipitous bluffs, from one to two hundred feet high. I have not often found these bluffs capped with the Trenton limestone, as spoken of by Professor Hall as being the case in Lowa. In many places this sandstone is inter- spersed with numerous horizontal bands or layers of iron, or sand- stone so impregnated and cemented with the oxide of iron, as to be very firm and resisting. These layers are from less than half an inch to two inches in thickness, and ocenr, one above another, in some places but a few inches, and in others several feet apart. These layers resist the action of the atmosphere for a great length of time, and only give away from the disintegration and wearing away of the rock beneath, when they break off and fall from their
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HISTORY OF LEE COUNTY
own weight. Between these layers the rock is sometimes very loose and friable, easily worked away with the pick.
It appears as it, during the deposition of this rock, that occa- isonally, in these localities, the surface was in some way covered with a sediment of the oxide of iron, which acting as a cement, rendered this portion of the rock much harder and firmer than other parts of it. If you will examine one of these layers with a magnifying glass, you will see that they are made up principally of the same minute peculiarly formed grains of quartz, of which other portions of the rock is composed, stained and partially cov- ered with the oxide of iron. We frequently find very beautiful ripple marks on these ferruginous layers. On some of them the impress of the eddies and ripples of the old Silurian ocean appear as fresh and palpable as if produced but yesterday. These mark- ings are sometimes very singular and enrions, mimicking the forms of organized life. Here is a specimen which I have been at a loss to determine whether it has been produced by the action of the water or is an impression of some organized being. This rock is composed of small rounded grains of pure limpid quartz, which have a singular uniformity in their size and shape, in some places cohering so slightly as to erumble in the hand, and in other locali- ties so firmly cemented as to make a good building stone. This rock is in some places of almost chalky whiteness, but more com- monly it has a grayish aspect, while in other localities it has a reddish appearance, being stained with the oxide of iron.
As to the economical uses of this rock. There are several quar- ries in the Franklin creek, in Lee county, and in Ogle county, where it has been pretty extensively used for building, and ent into window and door sills and caps. There was a beautiful arched bridge of cut stone, from one of these quarries, built over Franklin creek, for the Chicago and Fulton railroad, when it was first con- structed. Professor Hall says that this rock would make an excel- lent material for making glass.
It will be perceived that this rock, as it is found in the valley of Rock river, varies considerably from the description of it given by Professor Hall as it occurs in Towa. Instead of its being uni- formly the loose, friable rock, spoken of by Mr. Hall, with scarcely cohesion enough to enable him to obtain cabinet specimens of it. we frequently find it forming bold, perpendicular, and sometimes overhanging cliffs, with strength and tenacity enough to make a good building stone. There are places where the rock is flinty and
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