USA > Indiana > An illustrated history of the state of Indiana: being a full and authentic civil and political history of the state from its first exploration down to 1875 > Part 20
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1858
318,204,964
844,416.84
1,363,728.04
1859
435,367,862
1,288,445.72
1,218,185.64
1860
1 350,428
455,011,378
1,658,217.88
1,621,107.48
1861
441,562,339
3,672,657.64
3,546,224.07
1862
421.406,936
3,486,304.55
2,974,976.46
1863
443,455,036
2,232,899_33
2,503,246_53
1864
516,805,999
2,391,291.15
1,752,529.70
1865
567,381,553
2,742,989.19
8,899,993.02
1866
578,484,109
3,957,035.23
8,663,179.63
1867
577,869,079
4,210,336.44
4,446,691.09
1868
587,970,549
4,279,687.07
3,842,342.52
1869
655,521,479
4,197,489_21
4,473,129.66
1870
1,680,637
662,283,178
3,589,889_40
3,532,369.04
1871
3,605,639.23
2,943,416.90
1872
2,415,269.59
2,686,601.70
1873
831,955.26
1846
122,265,686
1848
128,960,986
1,245,306_36
1,177,218.73
1843
103,709,853
1823
35,643.44
27,044.02
1825
21,544.18
41,170.01
988,416
CHAPTER XXXVI.
AGRICULTURE- PIONEER HISTORY.
-
T HE first object of the pioneer settler of Indiana was to provide the means of subsistence, and for a considerable time all the surplus produce was limited to a few articles, and usually disposed of to other settlers. Every one, as soon as possible, prepared a corn field, a garden, procured a few swine, one or two horses, and a few cows. These made up the capital of the pioneer farmers of Indiana. Many of the citizens of the State who are now rich, can to-day point back to a beginning of this kind, and we doubt not they often do so with pride, as they justly should. They frequently entered on the public lands with even less stock than that above enumerated; they were generally protected in the improvements they made, and after accumulating sufficient means, entered and purchased the lands. Many of the wealthy farmers of to-day in Indiana can look back to the period when they began to erect the little log cabin with only an ax and some provisions- their capital consisting wholly in a persistent energy. They rented land on improvement leases, by which they were to have the use of from ten to twenty acres from seven to ten years, and, in most cases, at the end of that time, they were abundantly able to buy land for themselves.
It was an easy matter in those days to maintain stock. The wild grass, nutritious roots, and several kinds of nuts and acorns, were so abundant that neither horses, cattle, nor hogs required much grain; and often, after a few years residence, the flocks and herds of the settlers were very numerous. This condition of things soon produced a surplus of corn, beef, pork, etc. Low prices created a market, and even before the
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298
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
farmers were fully aware of it, a profitable commerce was established. Fluctuations soon crept into the market, how- ever, and the farmers became much exercised as to what arti- ckes of produce to expend the most labor on. This led to a greater diversity of crops, and as a consequence, a wider range of commerce; and thus, step by step, year by year, the pro- duce market of Indiana has been extended, until to-day it is one of the largest in the Union - certainly the best regulated. Many causes combined to render a great diversity of crops necessary. The soil, though very rich, demands this, as it will not yield a large crop of one kind of produce for many years in succession, frequent changes being required. Hemp has been tried, and although at first unsuccessful, owing to an injudicious management, will eventually result in profit to the producer. Flax, tobacco, fruit of various kinds, and a great variety of seeds from which oil can be manufactured, are now cultivated to a great extent, and many valuable experiments are being made yearly in beet and corn sugar. The cultiva- tion of grapes in many parts of the State, is attended with profitable results.
Corn is the great staple of the State; many farmers have become wealthy in raising it. It is easily cultivated, and almost every farmer has from forty to one hundred and fifty acres. Two persons can prepare the ground, plant and attend to and gather from forty to fifty acres, and the product is gen- erally from thirty to seventy bushels an acre, averaging, per- haps, forty or forty-five. Good land, with the proper prepara- tion and care, will, in a good season, produce from seventy to ninety bushels to the acre. Corn, in former days, say from 1840 to 1850, usually sold at from ten to thirty cents a bushel. Millions and millions of bushels have been used at the former price to fatten hogs in the interior; but in this respect things have undergone a change- a change in favor of the farmer. As we pen these lines, September twenty-fifth, 1874, corn is in good demand in New York city at from 95c. to $1.00, while in the western markets the price is firm at from 85 to 95c., according to quality. This year, however, is not a representa- tive in regard to the price of corn of the last decade. The
299
AGRICULTURE - PIONEER HISTORY.
prices are ranging unusually high, owing to the lightness of the crop, in many parts, and, also, to the great demand exist- ing among pork producers for this cereal.
The cultivation of corn is admirably adapted to the climate and soil of the State, and to the customs of the farmers. The
CROSSCUP &WEST.PHILA.
G. W. ROBBINS, ESQ. See page 21.
soil is very rich, loamy, and with proper cultivation the corn does not often suffer either from cold, rains or drouth.
Following are statistical tables showing the growth of agri- culture in all its branches, from the year 1841 down to the present time:
AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS OF INDIANA FROM 1841 TO 1870.
Productions.
1841.
1850.
1860.
1869.
1870.
Bushels of wheat
4,049,375
6,214,458
16,848,267
30,600,000
27,190,000
Bushels of Indian corn
28,155,887
52,964,363
71,588,919
73,000,000
79,205,000
Bushels of rye.
129,621
78,792
463,495
575,000
437,468
Bushels of oats
5,981,605
5,655,014
5,317,831
12,413,000
11,784,000
Bushels of barley_
28,015
45,483
382,245
411.000
352,000
Bushels of buckwheat.
49,019
149,740
396,989
303,000
154,000
Bushels of potates.
1,525,794
2,083,337
3,866,647
4,750,000
5,436,000
Pounds of tobacco
1,820,306
1,044,620
7,993,378
7,000,000
9,316,000
Pounds of butter
12,881,535
18,306,651
22,506,470
22,915,385
Pounds of cheese.
624,564
605,795
590,213
283,807
Number of horses.
241,036
314,000
520,677
690,340
497,883
Number of asses and mules
6,599
28,893
35,340
43,259
Number of sheep
675,982
1,122,493
991,175
1,011,120
1,612,680
Number of swine.
1,623,608
2,263,776
3,099,110
3,580,120
1,872,230
Number of cattle.
619,980
714,666
1,069,384
1,744,850
1,026,184
Value of domestic animals
$22,478,555
$41,855,539
$58,125,360
$83,594,222
Pounds of wool.
1,237,919
2,610,287
2,552,318
2,478,235
5,029,022
Pounds of hops_
38,591
92,796
27,884
16,280
63,884
Pounds of honey and beeswax_
30,647
935,329
1,259,014
2,018,047
407,337
Tons of hay-
178,029
403,230
629,426
1,200,000
1,026,009
Pounds of sugar made_
3,727,795
2,921,192
1,541,761
1,049,321
1,332,332
Value of farms and implements
$367,270,072
$402,033,219
$673,049,280
1
1
1
1
1
I
I
1
I
I
I
1
1
1
1
I
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.
1
1
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1
-
-
-
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
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300
301
AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS.
AGRICULTURAL STATISTICS OF 1850, 1860 AND 1870 COM- PARED.
1850.
1860.
1870.
Acres of land in farms, improved.
5,046,543
8,242,183
10,104,279
Acres of land in farms, woodland.
7,189,334
Acres of land in farms, other unimproved.
7,746,879
8,146,109
82,635
Present cash value of farms.
$136,385,173
$356,712,175
$634,804,189
Present cash value of farm implements
6,704,444
10,457,897
17,676,591
Total amount of wages paid during the year, in- cluding value of board.
9,675,348
Total value of all farm products.
122.914,302
Orchard products.
324,940
1,258,942
2,858,086
Produce of market gardens.
72,864
546,153
487,479
Forest products
2,645,679
Value of home manufactures
1,631,039
986,393
605,639
Value of animals slaughtered or slaughter
6,567,935
9.824,204
30,246,962
Value of all live stock
22,478,555
41,825,539
83,776,782
Number of horses on farms
314,299
520,677
497,883
Number of horses not on farms
39,425
55,320
Number of mules and asses
6,599
28,893
43,259
Milch cows on farms.
284,554
363,533
393,736
Working oxen, number of, on farms
40,221
117,687
14,088
Other cattle, number of, on farms.
389,991
588,144
618,360
Swine, number of.
2,263,776
3,099,110
1,872,230
Wheat, winter, bushels
6,214,458
16,848,267
27,585,231
Rye, bushels
78,792
463,495
457,468
Indian corn, bushels
52,964,363
71,588,919
51,094,538
Oats, bushels
5,655,014
5,317,831
8,590,409
Barley, bushels.
45,483
382,345
356,352
Buckwheat, bushels
149,740
396,989
80,231
Tobacco, pounds
1,044,620
7,993,378
9,325,392
Cotton, bales
14
3
Wool, pounds
2,610,287
2,552,318
5,029,023
Wool, average of fleeces, pounds
257-100
312-100
Peas and beans, bushels.
35,773
79,902
35,526
Potatoes, Irish, bushels
2,083,337
3,866,647
5,399,044
Potatoes, sweet, bushels
201,711
299,516
150,705
Wine, gallons.
14,055
102,895
19,479
Butter, pounds.
12,881,535
18,306,651
22,915,385
Cheese, pounds
936,903
Milk sold, gallons
283,807
605,795
624,564
Hay, tons ...
403,230
622,426
1,076,768
Clover seed, bushels.
18,320
60,726
61,168
Grass seed, bushels
11,951
37,914
17,377
Hops, pounds
92,796
27,884
63,884
Hemp, tons
4,222
22
Flax, pounds
584,469
97,119
37,771
Flaxseed, bushels
36,888
119,420
401,931
Sugar, maple, pounds.
2,921,192
1,541,761
1,332,332
Molasses, sorghum, gallons
881,049
2,026,212
Molasses, maple, gallons
180,325
292,908
227,880
Beeswax, pounds
34,525
12,049
Honey, pounds
939,329
1,224,489
395,278
79,340
156,804
Sheep, number of
1,122,493
991,175
1,612,680
Wheat, spring, bushels
161,991
Cattle not on farms
sold for
.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
MANUFACTURES AND COMMERCE.
T THE manufacture and trade of the State will be more par- ticularly noticed in the descriptions of the towns and places where they are carried on. Madison and some of the other towns on the Ohio, above the falls, have good natural advantages for manufactures. These are being employed to a good advantage, and every year carries the prosperous State of Indiana further along the highway of commercial prosperity. In the whole southwestern part of the State, and for three hundred miles up the celebrated Wabash, coal exists in good quality and abundance; and in the central portion of the State, as well as in the north, there is every facility for water power, and in the latter inexhaustible beds of bog-ore, so that when- ever labor for agriculture ceases to be in demand, it can be turned to manufacturing with good results. And, indeed, it is true that much labor is being profitably employed in the latter, while yet the pursuit of agriculture is on the advance. This is one of the many evidences of the steady growth in all the great industries of civilization applicable to the resources of the State. The wheat raised within the State is almost entirely manufactured into flour within its limits, though large quantities in the southeastern part are sent to Cincinnati, and some is transported north by the Wabash and Erie canal, and by the lakes to Canada and western New York.
There is no commanding position in the State at which even a fifth of the whole business will ever be concentrated. Madi- son, Indianapolis, Richmond, Fort Wayne, Logansport, Lafay- ette, Terre Haute, South Bend, Michigan City, Evansville, and many places on the Ohio, are all fast becoming great commer-
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303
MANUFACTURES AND COMMERCE.
cial centers, and the railroads and other improvements now in progress, and the facilities that shall hereafter be afforded to the enterprising business men of the State, point to no par- ticular city with any assurance of its precedence. All parts and sections are progressing. It has truthfully been said that " the public convenience and the general good, not State pride, is building our cities."
The principal articles of export from the State, at the pres- ent time are pork and flour. The former is mostly produced in the southern, and the latter in the northern part of the State. To these great staples may be added horses, mules, fat cattle, corn, poultry, butter, most of the agricultural products of the West, and a wide range of articles of manufacture. The numerous canals and railroads which intersect each other at many points in the State, afford great facilities for trans- portation, so that our producers can reach any market desired at a nominal expense.
The disposition to monopolize in the trade of the State does not exist to a greater degree than is desirable or necessary in a healthy commercial State. During the civil war many attempts of this kind were made, which resulted either in making very large profits or in the utter failure of the specu- lator who engaged in them. The prospect of securing a large profit in a vast amount of produce which was made reasonably certain by the increasing demand for this merchandise became very exciting, and the flour and pork trader found it quite impossible to practice moderation in their calculations. The result was always damaging on the general trade. When the trader failed the farmer generally suffered in pocket, and when he made heavy profits their feelings were outraged. This state of things led to a better regulated commerce. Farmers united in maintaining prices and protecting each other, and so great has been their strength and influence in the making and administration of the laws touching matters of trade that they have been enabled to regulate the cost of transportation, and to prevent, in a great measure, damaging fluctuations in the markets.
Commerce in the productions of the soil, for many years,
304
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
absorbed the attention of traders and speculators; but no sooner had the prosperity of trade created a demand for a general development of the agricultural resources of the State, than a special interest was directed to manufacturing. This was manifested as early as 1840, and, from that year down to the present, a general prosperity has attended almost every manufacturing establishment in the State. It is said that the largest carriage factory in the whole world, to-day, is located in the State of Indiana, at the flourishing city of South Bend. This is the greater evidence of the enterprise of Indiana man- ufactures, when taken in consideration with the celebrated carriage factories of Connecticut, many of which have sup- plied, to a great extent, the markets of the old world. Fol- lowing are some statistical observations.
MANUFACTURING STATISTICS.
Classes.
1875.
1870.
1860.
1850.
Mfg. establishments
16,812
11,847
5,323
4,392
Steam engines employed
3,684
2,881
Total horse power
114,961
76,851
Total No. waterwheels
1,641
1,090
Hands employed.
86,402
58,852
21,295
14,440
No. males over 16 years.
81,621
54,412
20,563
13,748
No. females over 15 years
3,791
2,272
732
692
No. of youths-
2,000
2,168
Capital employed
$117,462,161 $ 52,052,425
$18,451,121 $ 7,750,402
Wages paid
35,461,987
18,366,780
6,318,335
3,728,844
Cost of material
104,321,632
63,135,492
27,142,597
10,369,700
Value of products
301,304,271
108,617,278
42,803,469
18,725,423
Horse power waterwheels
38,614
23,518
The above statistics of manufacturing in Indiana, for the years 1850, 1860, and 1870, were compiled from the re- ports of the Bureau of Statistics; those for the year 1875 have been gathered by the compilers of this work, while trav- eling through the State, and are, in nearly all cases, as correct as those taken from the reports. The column representing 1875 will show the unparalleled increase in manufactures in Indiana during the last five years. As a manufacturing State, Indiana is now considerably in advance of Illinois and Mich- igan, in proportion to her population, and she is rapidly leaving them in the rear in this great branch of industry,
305
MANUFACTURING STATISTICS.
which must, in some future day, become the great source of wealth in the States, instead of agriculture.
From careful estimates by the compilers of this work, it is shown that there is over $100,000,000 now invested in manu- facturing in this State. Five years ago Illinois had less than
H. BATES, ESQ. See page 21.
$90,000,000 invested in this branch of business, while at the same time Michigan had but $70,000,000. Indiana, in the same year had but little over $50,000,000 invested in her fac- tories. How has this comparison been affected by a growth
20
306
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
of five years! It was estimated, in 1874, by one of the leading journals of Illinois, that the manufacturing capital of that State had increased thirty per cent. in five years. This would give Illinois $117,000 000 in manufacturing, in 1875, against $100,000,000 in Indiana. From this basis it will be safe to predict that in 1880 Indiana, in proportion to her population, will greatly exceed the State of Illinois in manufacturing enterprise. The comparison with Michigan, during the same period, is still more flattering to Indiana, than that with Illinois.
The same increase of prosperity is noticeable in the pro- ducts of Indiana factories. In 1870 they were estimated at $103,617,278. From careful estimates by the compilers of this work, it appears that the products of the various factories in the State, for the year ending September thirtieth, 1874, will exceed $300,000,000, showing an increase in five years of nearly $200,000,000. These estimates have been made with the greatest of care, and although they seem to overstate the pros- perity of the State during the last five years, yet they may be regarded as reliable.
It is true that the inquiries as to the amount of capital invested, and the amount of products, were not always suc cessful, but means have been employed to correct errors, into which the answers of over-ambitious persons were calculated to lead us.
But the manufacturing industry of Indiana has not pros- pered in the last five years more than it will in the next. There is a brilliant prospect for a great future advancement in this branch of business. Indeed, this department of enter- prise cannot be regarded as more than fully begun; and from the present indications, its future growth is guaranteed.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
THE MINERAL WEALTH OF INDIANA.
SI YECOND in importance among the material resources of Indiana are her minerals, as yet only partly discovered, and almost entirely undeveloped. In agricultural wealth the State has no equal, acre for acre, in North America; in min- eral wealth she is scarcely behind the richest States in the Union. In short, she possesses within her borders every ele- ment required to produce wealth, and stimulate progress. Physically, the surface of the country is, for the most part, gently rolling. In the southern portion, along the Ohio river, there are a few hills ranging from fifty to four hundred feet in height, but the average height is probably not more than one hundred feet. About one-eighth part of the State is prairie land, and the remaining seven-eighths, when in a state of nature, was set with a dense forest .*
About one-third of the State is still well timbered. The surface of the territory is well supplied with water courses. The Ohio river, one of the largest tributaries of the Missis- sippi river, flows along its southern border, and is navigable by the largest class of steamboats during the greater part of the year. The Wabash river rises in the State of Ohio, crosses Indiana in a southwesterly direction, and thence to its junction with the Ohio river forms the boundary line between Indiana and Illinois. For a part of the season this fine stream is navigable for steamboats as far up as Lafayette, about three hundred miles above its mouth. When the improvements now going on under authority of the General Government,
* We have been kindly permitted to use, in this chapter, the materials embraced in a pamphlet edited by Prof. E. T. Cox, State Geologist.
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HISTORY OF INDIANA.
are completed, it is believed by competent engineers that it will be navigable as far up as Terre Haute, at all times except when stopped by ice.
Lake Michigan, one of the chain of great lakes between Canada and the United States, extends down into the north- west corner of Iudiana, and furnishes ship communication with the immense iron ore deposits of the Lake Superior regions, as well as a channel of commerce with the Atlantic seaboard. In the northern part of the State there are numer- ous small fresh water lakes, from half a mile to ten miles in length, and from a quarter of a mile to a mile in width; the water is clear and pure, and in many of them very deep. They abound with fish of the finest quality for table use, and together with flocks of wild ducks and geese that frequent them in the fall and spring, afford fine amusement for sports- men, as well as an abundance of cheap and wholesome food. It must be borne in mind that in this country there are no laws against hunting or fishing on the public domain, water courses or lakes, but they are open alike to all .*
But more particularly as to the mineral resources. Coal, the most valuable of all minerals, exists in the State in great abundance. The measures, says Prof. E. T. Cox, cover an area of about six thousand five hundred square miles, in the south- western part of the State, and extend from Warren county, on the north, to the Ohio river, on the south, a distance of about one hundred and fifty miles. The following counties lie within its area: Warren, Fountain, Parke, Vermillion, Vigo, Clay, Sullivan, Greene, Knox, Daviess, Martin, Gibson, Pike, Dubois, Vanderburg, Warrick, Spencer, Perry, and a small part of Crawford, Monroe, Putnam and Montgomery. The coal is all bituminous, but is divisible into three well marked varieties: Caking-coal, non-caking-coal or Block coal, and Cannel coal.
The total depth of the seams or measures is from six hun- dred to eight hundred feet, with twelve to fourteen distinct seams of coal, though they are not all to be found throughout the entire area of the field. The seams range from one foot
* Prof. E. T. Cox.
309
MINERAL WEALTH.
to eleven feet in thickness, and the field may, from the charac- ter of the coal, be divided from north to south into two zones; the western contains the seams of caking coal, and the east- ern the non-caking or block coal.
There are, continues Prof. Cox-and this gentleman is our authority on questions pertaining to minerals - from three to four workable seams of caking coal, ranging from three and a half to eleven feet in thickness. At most of the localities, when these are being worked, the coal is mined by adits driven in on the face of the ridges, and the deepest shafts in the State are less than three hundred feet; the average depth to win coal being not over seventy-five feet. The analysis of samples of caking coal, from different counties, are here inserted, and will serve to indicate its value.
The five feet seam at Washington, Daviess county, is as fol- lows: Specific gravity, 1,294; one cubic foot weighs 80.87 lbs.
Coke
64.50
Moisture @ 212º F 5.50
Fixed Carbon 60.00
Ash, white. 4.50
Volatile matter . 35.50
Gas
30.00
100.00 100.00
This is a bright black coal, makes a very fair quality of coke and yields four cubic feet of gas per pound, with an illu- minating power equal to fifteen standard candles. The five feet seam in Sullivan county is as follows: Specific gravity, 1,228; one cubic foot weighs 76.75 lbs.
Coke
52.50 § Moisture @ 212º F 2.85
Fixed Carbon. . 51.10
Ash, white .80
Volatile matter 47.50 S
Gas 45.25
100.00. 100.00
This is a glossy, jet black coal, makes a good coke and con- tains a very large percentage of pure illuminating gas. One pound of coal yields 4.22 cubic feet of gas, with a candle- power equal to fifteen standard sperm candles. The average calculated calorific power of the caking coals is 7745 heat
310
HISTORY OF INDIANA.
units; carbon being equal to 8080. Both in the northern and southern portions of the field, the caking coals present similar good qualities, and will be a great source of private and pub- lic wealth.
The eastern zone of the coal measures has an area of more than four hundred and fifty square miles. It is here that we find the celebrated Block coal, a fossil fuel which is used in the raw state for making pig iron. In fact this coal, from its physical structure and freedom from impurities, is peculiarly suited to metallurgical purposes. It has a laminated structure with carbonaceous matter, like charcoal, between the lamina, slaty cleavage and rings under the hammer. It is free burn- ing, makes an open fire, and without caking, swelling, scaf- folding in the furnace or changing form, burns like hickory wood until it is consumed to a white ash and leaves no clink- ers. It is likewise valuable for generating steam and for household uses. Many of the principal railway lines in the State are using it in preference to any other coal, as it does not burn out the fire-boxes and gives as little trouble as wood.
There are as many as eight distinct seams of block-coal in this zone, three of which are workable, having an average thickness of four feet. In some places this coal is mined by adits, but generally from shafts, forty to eighty feet deep. The seams are crossed by cleavage lines and the coal is usually mined without powder, and may be taken out in blocks weigh- ing a ton or more. When entries or rooms are driven angling across the cleavage lines, the walls of the mine present a zig- zag notched appearance, resembling a Virginia worm fence .*
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