History of Hancock county, Indiana; its people, industries and institutions, Part 3

Author: Richman, George J
Publication date: 1916
Publisher: Indianapolis, Federal publishing co., inc.
Number of Pages: 1272

USA > Indiana > Hancock County > History of Hancock county, Indiana; its people, industries and institutions > Part 3

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I'ater Supply .- An abundance of water may be secured at most places in the county by sinking a well to a depth not to exceed thirty to forty feet. The exceptions to this are those points where there is exposed at the surface a thick layer of unassorted drift composed largely of rock particles, of the the fineness of clay, which obstructs the ready flow of the water. Even in such places as that, some water is usually found, but not in sufficient quantity to afford a continuous supply. In general, however, such strata of nearly im- pervious drift are not thick enough to make the sinking of a satisfactory well too expensive or difficult.

The minimum depth of wells varies according to location, being least near streams and in the level areas which were formerly covered by water for

HANCOCK COUNTY, INDIANA.

almost the whole year. In such places the surface of the ground water may be within four or five feet of the surface throughout the year. This depth. although small, is, nevertheless, in the marshy areas a reduction of ground water level since the settlement of the county by almost its own amount, due to the opening of ditches and the increased evaporation because of the re- moval of so large a proportion of the forests. Wells sunk only to the level of ground water, while still numerous, are now being replaced by tubular wells which pass through the layers of sand and gravel near the surface and. after penetrating more or less impervious layers of glacial till, draw their supply of water from strata of sand and gravel lying seventy-five to one hun- dred feet or more below the surface. The additional first cost of such wells is more than justified by the added security to health thus obtained, and by the certainty of an ample supply of water even in seasons of greatest drought.

Artesian, or flowing, wells occur at a number of points in the county : (1) in the northern and northeastern parts near Shirley and at various points from three to six miles to the north and northwest; (2) in the central and west central parts, as at Greenfield and near Philadelphia, and (3) at several points from three to six miles southward and southeastward from Green- field. Most of these flowing wells are abandoned natural gas wells in which the casing has been allowed to remain because of the abundant flow of excel- lent water, which is thus brought up from the surface of the underlying bed rock one hundred to two hundred feet below. The exact number and loca- tion of flowing wells which have been produced in this way in the operations of natural gas companies is difficult to ascertain, because in many cases the wells have been destroyed by the drawing of the casings when the yield of gas became too small to pay for the expense of cleaning out, repairs, etc. Investigations in this county alone are not sufficient to determine the source from which the water supplying these wells comes. It is, however, known from well-borings that the general slope of the surface of bed rock is here in a southerly direction ; it is also reported that in certain cases in the northern part of the county the flow of one well seems to be affected by the opening of another well as much as two or three miles away along a north-south line. These two facts would indicate that the head causing the overflow lies some- where to the northward. Furthermore, the abundant flow from so large a number of wells in which the pipe conveying the water ends at the surface of bed rock, would indicate that there is a continuous stratum of sand and gravel lying on bed rock and extending in a somewhat winding, irregular course across the county from the northeastern, through the central, to the southeastern part. Flowing wells in the parts of Madison and Shelby counties

GEOGRAPHY, SOIL SURVEY, ETC.

adjacent to the areas in Hancock county where flowing wells occur, indicate that the portion of this water-bearing stratum underlying Hancock county is but a part of a continuous deposit of sand and gravel extending in a north- south direction across this part of the state; and, if so, the water which per- meates this stratum is to be considered as an underground stream flowing on the surface of bed rock, whose position has been determined by drainage conditions which existed possibly in part before the first ice-sheet which cov- ered this part of the state appeared : existed certainly, at least in part, subse- quent to the withdrawal of that earliest member of the series of glaciers that once covered this county.

CLIMATE.

The general characteristics of the climate of the county are shown in the following tables, data for which has been supplied by V. H. Church, section director of the United States weather bureau at Indianapolis :

TABLE I-MEAN TEMPERATURE AND AVERAGE PRECIPITATION AT GREENFIELD).

Mean

Average

Temperature Precipitation

Month

Degrees F.

Inches.

January

29.9

2.97

February

. 29.7

2.68

March

43.2

4.80

April

.50.8

3.08

May

61.6

4.22

June

70.6

3.52

July

73.8

3.46

August

73.2

2.78

September

68.2

3.18

October

53.9

3.40

November

42.5

2.56

December

32.1

2.59

Annual

52.5

39.24

TABLE II-MAXIMUM AND MINIMUM TEMPERATURES.

Highest temperature recorded from 1904 to date: 100 degrees, in July, 19II.

Lowest temperature recorded from 1904 to date: - 17 degrees, January 7, 1912.

NOTE-The lowest previous record was :- 16 degrees in February, 1905.

HANCOCK COUNTY. INDLAVA.

TABLE III-AVERAGE DATES OF KILLING FROSTS AT GREENFIELD.

Last in spring April 21

First in autumn October 16

It will be observed from the above tables that the precipitation is well distributed throughout the year, so that crops do not ordinarily suffer. Occa- sionally, however, unusual conditions result in a reduction of the amount of rainfall, which cuts down the yield in certain crops for the season : but such losses can, to a considerable degree, be prevented by a more careful manage- ment of the soils, in drainage, and in methods of cultivation adapted to the special conditions present at a given time. (Suggestions at the close of chapter. )

The maximum and minimum temperatures given are ordinarily of short duration, as may readily be inferred from the table of mean temperatures given. Temperatures of zero and below often occur when the ground is well covered with snow, which thus acts as a protection to winter wheat and to low fruit plants, such as the strawberry plant. In general. however, the fact that zero weather and below is likely to occur each winter is taken into account in determining what varieties of fruit trees, plants, etc., shall be de- pended upon, and only those are chosen for extensive planting as have proved themselves capable of withstanding the lowest temperatures named.

AGRICULTURE.

Of the 196.480 acres in the county, 94.8 per cent., or 186,190 acres, is in farms, varying in size from less than three acres to 500 or more. As ascertained by the census of 1910. there are 2,154 farms in the county, of which about one-third include 50 to 100 acres each. In the ten years from 1900 to 1910 the farming lands in the county increased nearly 100 per cent. in value, being listed in the latter year at a total valuation of $16.598.947. or an average of nearly $90 per acre : while the total valuation of farm property. including buildings, implements, domestic animals, etc .. adds over $5,000,000 to this amount, making an average of land and farm property together of about $120 per acre.

The following tables, taken from the report of the census of 1910, show in condensed form the principal crops raised, the acreage, and the yield per acre : and the number and valuation of the principal kinds of domestic animals and poultry :

GEOGRAPHIY, SOIL SURVEY, ETC.

TABLE IV-PRINCIPAL CROPS.

Acres

Bushels

Tons

Corn

.61.637

2.950,148

Oats

15.190

347.295

Wheat

27,853

343.144

Timothy hay

10,283

13.334

Clover alone

3,295

3.549

Timothy and clover mixed

3.273

4.073

Clover seed

837

TABLE V-DOMESTIC ANIMALS AND POULTRY ON FARMS

Number

Value

Cattle

13.380

$404.592.00

Horses

9.406

996.940.00

Mules

530

68,575.00

Swine

43.707

282,080.00

Sheep

IO.9II

46.448.00

Poultry

147.540

87.357.00 -

It will be seen from Table IV that the average yieldl for corn is a little less than fifty bushels per acre : for oats, not quite twenty-three; for wheat. between twelve and thirteen bushels, and for hay, about one and one-fourth tons per acre. It is to be noted, however, that on many farms the average yield is much higher than this; from reports received from farmers in re- sponse to questions sent out by the state geologist, and from interviews with farmers while the field work was in progress, it is known that yields of eighty bushels per acre for corn, and twenty bushels for wheat, are not uncommon under favorable conditions. It is recognized, however, that the county as a whole does not produce wheat as profitably as corn, and even in the case of the latter crop the yield is not yet up to the average that may be expected when the possibilities of the soil are fully realized. Definite suggestions as to the best methods to be pursued to increase the yield per acre are given at the close of this chapter.

Of the crops not yet much grown which promise excellent results, alfalfa should probably receive most attention. It is not, however, so much in the introduction of new crops as in more careful work in the case of crops already being grown, that the greatest increase of wealth may be expected.

As a whole. the soil of the county is best adapted to heavy farming :

HANCOCK COUNTY, INDIANA.

nevertheless, truck farming is engaged in successfully in some places, and might be profitably extended to the more sandy soils near the streams ; even the level to slightly rolling inter-stream areas may, with careful treatment, be made to yield profitable crops of small fruits and vegetables, as is being done in some sections to an increasing degree.

Dairying is not as a rule carried on except in a small way in connection with general farming. The total number of dairy cows in 1910 was re- ported as 6.301 : of these, but few were in large herds. In most cases where an attempt is made to maintain a herd the milk or the cream is shipped to neighboring cities; the same method of disposing of the product is used by many who wish merely to have a convenient means of turning into cash the surplus milk for a part of the year. The use of centrifugal separators has very generally replaced the various gravity systems of separating the milk from the cream, wherever the amount of milk to be handled is large enough to justify it.

The chief obstacles to successful agriculture in this county may be enumerated as follows (a part of these obstacles have been largely removed. but much yet remains to be done before the possibilities of production from the soils of the county are realized) :

I. The forest growth. This originally covered almost the whole county, consisting principally of oak, ash, walnut, beech, sugar maple. elm and hick- ory. In a few places the original growth of timber has remained untouched by the lumberman's axe, as, for example, in a part of section 23, township 15 north, range 5 east; but about eighty-eight per cent. of the farm land is now free from forests. Some further work in removing forests may possibly be clone to advantage ; but. on the other hand, some work in reforestation should be undertaken, especially in some of the more hilly belts.

2. Marshes and swamps. Areas over which water stood for a consider- able portion of the year are found in the inter-stream areas near Buck creek. Brandywine creek, Sugar creek, and their tributaries. Of these marshes. but few now remain. The opening of large ditches, the deepening and straight- ening of many small stream channels, and the use of a large amount of tile in underdrains, have resulted in providing adequate means for the rapid re- moval of water, so that in but few places does it accumulate to the disad- vantage of farming operations as it did generally a generation ago. This does not mean, however, that the work of drainage is complete : it merely. means that a prime difficulty, that of getting rid of water on and very near the surface, has been overcome.

3. Lack of sufficient air in the soil. This difficulty is closely associated

GEOGRAPHY, SOIL SURVEY, ETC.

. with the presence of conditions which permit water to stand. Much of the soil is a clay loam which contains a sufficiently large percentage of very fine mineral particles to cause the soil to form into very compact layers or masses, and, especially when well moistened, to become more or less impervious to air. The work of carth worms and other forms of animal life, the growth and decay of the roots of plants, and the alternate freezing and thawing in winter, all contribute something to the process of opening up the ground so that the air may have access to some depth. But all of these processes to- gether are not sufficient to accomplish what is needed. The most effective means for most of the soil in the county is an extension of the system of tile drainage until all clayey soils are traversed by lines of tile not less than four inches in diameter, at an average depth of about thirty inches and not more than three to five rods apart. No other method is known which, for soils of this kind, will result beneficially in so many ways at the same time as in such a system of tile drainage properly put in. For, in addition to supplying the especial lack here referred to, that of giving a sufficient amount of air to the needed depth in the soil, two other desirable results are accomplished, viz : (I) The removal of the excess of moisture if any should occur, and (2) the gradual transformation of the soil and subsoil from a stratum, compact and almost impervious to air, into a layer filled with fine pores which can hold a large amount of moisture ready to be given up to the roots of plants in time of drought.

4. Other difficulties, such as ignorance as to the proper management .of soils under certain special conditions. Some of these will be referred to under the descriptions of different soil types, and others will be mentioned in the suggestions at the close of the report of the work done in the county.

ORIGIN OF THE SOILS.

The soils of this county are chiefly derived from the disintegration of rock materials left by the glacial sheets which came into Indiana from the north and northeast. As shown by the kinds of rock present in the soil in the form of boulders, pebbles, etc., part of this material came from the out- crop of granites, gneisses, diorites, and otlier crystalline rocks beyond the Great Lakes; and part came from the limestones, sandstones and shales out- cropping much nearer, that is, within the state; some, indeed. perhaps from points only a few miles away. In addition to this large amount of weathered glacial debris, there is also included a small amount of fine mineral matter brought by the winds, and another probably larger amount of decaying veg- etable matter which has been mixed with the mineral particles at the surface,

HANCOCK COUNTY. INDIANA.

giving the black color to the soil as found in streaks and patches in all parts of the county.

SOIL TYPES.

The soil types found in the county, with the approximate area covered by each. are given in the following table :

TABLE VI-SOIL TYPES.

Name

Acres

Miami clay loam

182.610

Wabash loam

6.250

Carrington black clay loam

5.400

Sioux loam

1.870

Wabash sandy loam

275

Meadow

Muck

The boundaries between the different types as shown on the map of the state geologist ( Report 1911) are in some places drawn arbitrarily, as. for example, where the Carrington black clay loam joins the Wabash loam. In such cases the Wabash loam, forming the flood plain of a small stream. gives place gradually in the up-stream direction to the Carrington black clay loam as the area is reached which was covered with standing water for a considerable part of the year before the better drainage conditions were es- tablished. So. too, the boundary between other types is not always clearly marked; for instance, the Miami clay loam sometimes continues as the sub- soil for considerable distances beneath the edges of the Carrington black clay loam, forming thus an irregular belt around the latter in which the surface soil is black, butt having a yellowish mottled subsoil with some pebbles. in- stead of the silty, drab-colored subsoil to be found at the center of the area. In certain places, as in sections a few miles west and southwest of Green- field, large areas of land with black surface soil have almost everywhere a subsoil practically the same as that of the Miami clay loam: these areas have. in general, been classed as Miami clay loam, since the time available for de- tailed examination was too limited to make any accurate subdivisions of the type.

MIAMI CLAY LOAM.

This type includes about ninety-three per cent. of the total area of the county and occupies the greater part of the inter-stream areas. Typically, it is a light-colored soil formed from the weathering of unassorted glacial till.

-43

GEOGRAPHIY, SOIL SURVEY, ETC.

When deposited by the ice-sheets it contained a large percentage of finely- ground limestone mingled with much smaller quantities of finely-ground shale. true clay, sand grains, fragments of crystalline rocks, etc. At the sur- face the finely-divided limestone has been leached out to a depth of from two to three feet, the other rock fragments have been much disintegrated, and decaying organic matter has been incorporated to some extent, so that the up- per three feet shows in general the following section :

Light buff to light gray soil with few pebbles, eight to ten inches.

Yellowish to grayish-brown subsoil, sometimes mottled, usually quite compact. containing up to four or five per cent. of pebbles and rock fragments of small size, from eight to ten inches to a depth of three feet.

Below the depth of three feet, the material is in some cases a continuation of the unassorted glacial till practically to bed rock: but more often, where tests have been made by well borings, it gives place to sheets of stratified sand and gravel, which alternate with strata of unassorted material.

In topography this type is nearly level to gently rolling, and can in nearly all cases be thoroughly drained. Since it occupies the higher points and ridges on which the water does not stand, and since the work of draining the marshes and other low-lying areas has been difficult and expensive, the Miami clay loam is as yet but poorly supplied with the necessary lines of underdrain- ing. necessary not so much for the purpose of draining as for the purpose of aerating the somewhat heavy soil.

. The original forest growth on this type of soil included white oak. becch and walnut ; sugar maple where sand is rather more abundant, and elm, hick- ory and ash in less well drained areas. The principal farm crops now raised are corn, wheat, and timothy and clover hay.

As shown by the mechanical analysis given below, this type has a high percentage of silt, making it thus less difficult to work than would be the case if the clay content were higher. The proportion of finer particles is. however, large enough to make care necessary in the preparation of the soil for crops as well as in the cultivation afterward. in order to avoid the forma- tion of clods which. once formed, often cause trouble for an entire season. The plant food content is in general abundant, but only a small amount is available at any one time, so that the practice of using fertilizers is increasing. with results which seem to justify the expenditure of a considerable amount of time and money in this way. It is to be remembered, however, that the chief advantage from the use of a fertilizer is not always, if indeed ever. be- cause of the actual plant food added to the soil: sometimes it is because the fertilizer destroys compounds in the soil which prevent the healthy growth

HANCOCK COUNTY, INDIANA.

of crops ; sometimes, because the elements of the fertilizer help to set free elements already in the soil. A careful study of the analysis of soils and fer- tilizers, with equally careful attention to the results gained under different conditions will eventually lead to safe conclusions in regard to the use of the various commercial fertilizers offered for sale.

In general, the Miami clay loam does not produce as much corn per acre as the Carrington black clay loam or the Wabash loam. There are cases, however, of careful farming in which the yield has been made through a series of years to average higher on the light-colored than on the dark-colored soils; so that it seems probable that the possibilities of improvement and permanent fertility are greater for the Miami clay loam than for any other soil type in the county.

TABLE VII-MECHANICAL ANALYSIS OF MIAMI CLAY LOAM (AVERAGED).

Coarse Medium Fine Sand Sand

Clay Total

per per per

Sand Silt per

per

cent. cent. cent.

cent.

cent. cent.

Soil

8.16

10.15 21.49

46.80

13.20 99.80

Subsoil

5.44

10.83

18.79

40.65

24.25

99.96

WABASH LOAM

This type occupies only a little more than three per cent. of the total area of the county, being found as a narrow strip along the larger streams. It consists of a brown loamy to sandy soil, ten to fifteen inches deep, followed by a sandy subsoil to a depth of three feet or more. In places there is some gravel to be found in the soil, with usually a larger percentage in the subsoil; in small areas the gravel may be abundant. The original forest trees on this type of soil include as principal kinds, beech, sycamore, elm and soft maple. Some parts mapped as Wabash loam by the state geologist are still subject to overflow at times of high water, and are consequently not used for culti- vated crops. Most of the type is, however, adapted especially to corn, of which excellent crops are raised; tomatoes and other vegetables are success- fully grown on limited areas.

The surface of the Wabash loam is nearly level. Occasionally there are slight depressions at the base of the valley slopes, the sites of former bayous now nearly silted up; some such areas are yet undrained and, owing to their small elevation above the stream, cannot now be freed from the excess of water. The total area of such undrained portions is, however, very small,

GEOGRAPHY, SOIL SURVEY, ETC.

and with the deepening of the stream channels which is going on in most places these areas can finally be brought under cultivation.

TABLE VIII-MECHANICAL ANALYSIS OF WABASH LO.AMI

Coarse Medium Fine Sand Sand Sand per per per

Silt

Clay

Total

per

cent.

cent. cent.

Soil

6.51

15.02

30.34

39.17

9.90 100.94

Subsoil

5.47

15.18

29.32

39.55

10.22

99.74

CARRINGTON BLACK CLAY LOAM

The total area occupied by this type is less than three per cent. of the whole area of the county, but is distributed in many small, irregularly shaped patches. chiefly in the western half of the county, as shown on the state geologist's map. Typically, the soil of this type is ten to twelve inches deep, black in color, loose under cultivation, and underlaid by a drab to dark gray silty clay, which is usually very compact and tenacious. In some of the areas mapped as Carrington black clay loam on the map there is a variation in the soil by an increase in organic content approaching the composition of muck. and in the subsoil by the presence of an abundance of sand. In general the areas belonging to this type are the sites of former marshes or ponds which have been filled up in part by silting up, in part by the accumulation of or- ganic matter which has been incorporated with the soil. The original growth in these areas included, elm, ash, some oak and hickory and, characteristically, button bush. When well drained the crop most profitably grown now is corn, the yield being often from eighty to one hundred bushels per acre. It is found, however, that with successive crops of corn without alternation with other crops, the yield diminishes, so that some plan of rotation is necessary to keep the yield up to even a fair average for other types of soil which are naturally less well adapted to corn production.

Before the drainage is complete soils of this type are likely to be sour ; this can be corrected by the addition of mineral fertilizers, but best by an adequate system of ditches and underground drainage.

SIOUX LOAM.

This type occupies less than one per cent. of the total area of the county. and is found chiefly in the southeastern part along Blue river and in the south central part along Brandywine creek. In both localities it consists of

HANCOCK COUNTY, INDIAN.A.

a light brown or yellow brown loam, ten to twelve inches thick, with some pebbles scattered on the surface, underlaid in places at a depth of from two to four feet by stratified sand and gravel sufficiently free from silt and clay to be used as road material. From both the soil and the subsoil above the gravel the calcareous material is practically all removed, the pebbles that remain being, with but few exceptions, fragments of crystalline rocks, chert, quartz, quartzite, and others which are not easily affected by the pro- cesses of weathering. The surface of this type is slightly rolling. lies in gen- eral higher than the Wabash loam, and often between the latter and the Miami clay loam forming the slopes bounding the valleys. It thus constitutes ter- races or second bottoms along streams. The drainage is usually good, both on account of the surface configuration and because of the underlying gravel which permits the water which may accumulate on the surface to settle away rapidly through the soil. Crops of all kinds generally do well on this type. the chief difficulty being that in dry seasons sufficient moisture is lacking. On account of the ease with which water passes through the soil it cannot long hold soluble fertilizers.

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History of Hancock county, Indiana; its people, industries and institutions, Part 3

Author: Richman, George J Publication date: 1916 Publisher: Indianapolis, Federal publishing co., inc. Number of Pages: 1272

Author: Richman, George J
Publication date: 1916
Publisher: Indianapolis, Federal publishing co., inc.
Number of Pages: 1272