History of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Part 9

Author: Bean, Theodore Weber, 1833-1891, [from old catalog] ed; Buck, William J. (William Joseph), 1825-1901
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, Everts & Peck
Number of Pages: 1534

USA > Pennsylvania > Montgomery County > History of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania > Part 9

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The Potsdam sandstone does not much resemble the new red sandstone; it is more slaty, and readily broken up into layers, and contains scales of miea, which sometimes make it flexible. It is generally made up of a fine-grained quartz, and contains fine scales of mica, which give it a slaty structure. It is generally of a white or gray color, although some- times red. Occasional beds of conglomerate are met with. Very often this sandstone contains ripple- marks due to water; from this fact it is supposed that this sandstone was formed at the edge of an ancient sea.

Bryn Mawr Gravel .- Upon the tops of some of the high hills north of Philadelphia, near Chestnut Hill and Bryn Mawr, there are curious patches of an ancient gravel, which has been studied by Professor. H. C. Lewis, who names it the "Bryn Mawr Gravel." It is found at elevations of from three hundred and twenty-five to four hundred and fifty feet above the Schuylkill. It is supposed that these deposits of gravel are the remains of an ancient ocean beach and the remnants of a once continuous formation, and that erosion has swept away everything except these few isolated patches. The gravel consists of rounded or sharp pebbles of quartzite or grains of sand ce- mented by iron. Sometimes the gravel is covered with a brownish-black iron glaze. The pebbles are very hard. At Bryn Mawr the gravel is seen iu the railroad cut below the station. It is about four hun- dred and thirty feet high and nine miles distant from the river. The gravel is ten feet deep, and rests upon the gneiss-rock, which is decomposed. Near Chestnut Hill, on the City Line road, at its highest elevation, four hundred and twenty-five feet above the river, there is another deposit of gravel and conglomerate,

ORES, MINERALS, AND GEOLOGY.

with numerous sharp fragments of quartzite. A sim- ilar gravel is found on some of the high hills of New Jersey and Delaware, and it continues through the Southern States in the same relative position. Pro- fessor Lewis assigns it to the tertiary age. It is the oldest surface formation in Pennsylvania.

South Valley Hill Mica-Schists and Slates .- These rocks form a ridge wbich flanks the Chester Valley limestone on the south, hence the name. In Montgomery County these slates are found in the southern part of Upper Merion township. They cross the Schuylkill at Conshohocken, and extend into White Marsh township. Near the Gulf Mills the hill divides into two spurs. This is the rock of the Conshohocken stone-quarries, which is always in de- maud for bridge-building and heavy masonry. This rock is a quartzose mica-schist, and contains seven per cent. or more of oxide of iron. It is slaty in ap- pearance, and generally of a grayish tint and silky lustre. The deposits of clay in the county are found in the vicinity of the slates, and it is supposed that some of the clay-beds are derived from the decompo- sition of the mica in the slates. This seems prob- able, as beds of fine white sand sometimes accom- pany the clay ; this sand is the quartz of the schists and slates. The deposits of iron ore in the county are found near the mica-slates in the clay. It is thought that some of the brown hematite ores are derived from the slates, as they contain over seven per cent. of oxide of iron, and when they decom- pose and form clay the oxide of iron is deposited. The rocks of this formation rest on the limestone, and are of more recent age, according to Professor Hall, who assigns them to Hudson River age.

Syenite and Granitic Rocks (Laurentian) .- The hard crystalline rocks of this group in Montgomery County extend from Moreland township, at the Bucks County line, westward across the Schuylkill River to the Delaware County line. In Moreland and Upper Dublin townships the new red sandstone forms the northern boundary. Between Chestnut Hill and the Delaware County line the mica-schists form the southern boundary, and from the Schuylkill to the Delaware County line the limestone and mica-schists of the South Valley Hill form the northern bound- ary. East of the Schuylkill the Potsdam forms the northern bonndary to the vicinity of Willow Grove. These syenite rocks are exceedingly tough and hard, and but little acted on by the weather. Hills of softer rock were in the course of time worn down to the surface, but the syenite ridges remain as monu- ments of the past. The hills known as Spring Mill Heights are syenite. The cuts exposed by the Penn- sylvania Railroad in passing through the Schuylkill Valley offer an excellent opportunity for studying the syenite belt from Spring Mill to the serpentine rock. It was the hardest rock along the line to cut through. The Schuylkill River between West Conshohocken and Spring Mill is turned from its course by the re-

sistance offered by the hard syenite rocks. It is the oldest rock in Montgomery County, and contains no fossils.

Syenite is composed of quartz, feldspar, and horn- blende. It is composed of the same minerals as granite, only it contains hornblende instead of mica. It makes an excellent building stone. The quartz in this belt of syenite is characteristic, as it is of bluish tint. It is sometimes difficult to determine whether the other rocks of this belt are granites or granitic gneisses. The feldspar is both pinkish and white, and certain bands of this rock contain so much feldspar as to have a structure like porphyry.

Philadelphia, Manayunk, and Chestnut Hill Mica-Schists and Gneisses. - The rocks exposed along the Schuylkill River from its mouth to a short distance above Lafayette Station on the Norris- town Branch of the Reading Railroad have been divided into three groups hy Professor Hall : First, the Philadelphia group; second, the Manayunk group ; and third, the Chestnut Hill group. The Philadelphia group underlies the other two, and the Chestnut Hill group is the highest. These rocks extend eastward as far as Trenton, and west- ward into Delaware County. These Schuylkill rocks are not visible in New Jersey, as they sink beneath the surface; but they come to the surface again on Staten Island and in New York. Accord- ing to Professor Lesley, these three groups of rock are between ten thousand and twenty thousand feet in thickness. They are known as the azoic rocks, and are the oldest rocks of which we have any knowledge ; most of the other rocks have been formed from them, as they are the foundation rocks of the old continents. They were formed when the lowest forms of animal life were introduced on our globe, and were the beds of the old oceans. Any trace of animal life that may have existed in these rocks has become ob- literated by the heat and pressure to which they were subjected. Many of the minerals of the county are found in these formations. These rocks are mica- schists and gneisses. Gneiss, like granite, is com- posed of quartz, feldspar, and mica; but the gneiss is arranged in parallel layers, while granite is not. Mica-schist is a crystalline assemblage of mica and quartz, and sometimes feldspar, arranged in layers. The Philadelphia group extends from the Delaware River on the south to the vicinity of Falls of Schuylkill. The rocks of this group are different variety of gneisses and mica-schists. The Manayunk group extends from the vicinity of the Falls of Schuyl- kill to a point half-way between Manayunk and La- fayette Station ; it is exposed along the Schuylkill. The rocks of this belt are schists and gneisses, and are very much weathered, the feldspar especially is often white and chalky in appearance from decom- position ; this is noticeable at Wissahickon Station. The Chestnut Hill group extends from the vicinity of Chestnut Hill to the county line at Bryn Mawr.

HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY.

Along the Schuylkill the rocks are exposed from a point between Manayunk and Lafayette to the syen- ite formation. The schists and gneisses of this group contain an abundance of garnets. It is in this group that serpentine and soapstone occur. The division of these Schuylkill rocks into groups is somewhat geographical and is not definite. It is often difficult to determine whether the rock is a gneiss or schist.

Early Accounts of Lime.1-Among the extensive manufactures of Montgomery County can be men- tioned lime, the history of which we are not aware of having been attempted by any other writer. The quantity now used for agricultural, building, and manufacturing purposes has become immense. The annual production here in 1875 was estimated at fully two millions of bushels, and has probably reached now to nearly one-third more. The census of 1840 gave the value of lime manufacture in this county at $236,162, and for Plymouth township, $45,218; White Marsh, $51,458 ; Upper Dublin, $20,275; Upper Mer- ion, $74,772; and in Abington township, $11,800. In 1858 the writer personally visited seventy-five lime- kilns in the township of Plymouth, said to contain the average capacity of fifteen hundred bushels each. This would alone make by one burning considerably over one hundred thousand bushels, and the number of kilns there has since been increased.

The earliest mention we have been enabled to find of limestone, and of lime being made therefrom to be used for building purposes, is in a letter written by Robert Turner, of Philadelphia, dated 3d of 6th month, 1685, addressed to William Penn in England, from which we learn that "Samuel Carpenter is our limeburner on his wharf. Brave limestone found here, as the workmen say, being proved." The next mention found is in another letter to Penn, written by Nicholas More, dated "Green Spring, the 13th of September, 1686," wherein he states that "Madam Farmer has found out as good limestone on the Schuylkill as any in the world, and is building with it; she offers to sell ten thousand bushels at sixpence the bushel upon her plantation, where there are sev- eral considerable hills, and near to your Manor of Springfield." The aforesaid was evidently the wife of Jasper Farmer, who had arrived here in Novem- ber, 1685, and had taken up in the present White Marslı township a tract of five thousand acres of land, but died soon thereafter. His son, Edward Farmer, subsequently became the owner of about three-fourths of this purchase.

For building purposes the Swedes and other early settlers first used lime prepared from oyster shells, of which we find mention made by several writers. Thomas Budd, in his account of Pennsylvania, printed in 1685, says, " We make lime of oyster shells, which by the sea and bay-side are so plentiful that we may load ships with them." He further informs us that there is no limestone " as we yet know of,"

from which we are led to infer that Samuel Carpenter and Madam Farmer, as has been mentioned, must have been among the earliest to convert limestone into lime. Even prior to the summer of 1685 con- siderable building had been done in Philadelphia and its vicinity, which required no small amount of the article as prepared from oyster shells.

William Penn, in a letter to the Marquis of Hali- fax, dated 9th of 12th month, 1683, mentions that "about one hundred and fifty very tolerable houses for wooden ones" had been erected in Philadelphia. In his "Further Account of Pennsylvania," written in December, 1685, he states that the number had been increased to three hundred and fifty-seven houses, " divers of them large, well built, with good cellars, three stories, and some with balconies." He also mentions in the same of " divers brickeries going on, and some brick houses going up." Robert Turner, in a letter from Philadelphia, 3d of 6th month, 1685, states that "we are now laying the foundation of a plain brick meeting-house, sixty by forty feet," and that " Pastorius, the German Friend, with his people, are preparing to make brick next year." These state- ments show the necessity of lime, for which purpose no inconsiderable quantities must have been required, and that the discovery of limestone so near the city created at once a demand from its superior quality, ranking, as has since been proven, among the best found in the country.

John Goodson wrote from Philadelphia, 24th of 6th month, 1690, "that six carters have teams daily employed to carry and fetch timber, bricks, stone, and lime for building, which goeth on to admiration. We have rocks of limestone, where many hundreds, yea thousands of bushels of lime are made in one year for this town." John Holme, one of the judges of the Philadelphia County Court, in his poem on "The Flourishing State of Pennsylvania," written in I696, mentions therein that a few years previously lime had been burned from oyster shells, but since a "great store" of limestone had been discovered in the ground, from which "now is made good stone lime," which was not only superior but cheaper than the former article. He had arrived here from England in 1686, and died in 1701.

At a meeting of the Provincial Council, held May 19, 1698, a road was ordered to be laid out from White Marsh, for the purpose of hauling lime from the kilns there to the city, and to meet the Plymouth road near Cresheim, or the upper part of Germantown. In 1703, Nicholas Saul and others, at "Sandy Run," in the "Manor of Springfield," petition that they had formerly received the grant of a road from the limekilns to Philadelphia on the Germantown road, which the court now ordered should be speedily opened. This is evidently the road proposed by the Council aforesaid, and the present highway leading from the village of White Marsh through Chestnut Hill. In 1713 the road was opened from the afore-

1 By Win. J. Buck.

THE ABORIGINES.

said kilns to Skippack, over which also considerable lime was hauled. The Plymouth highway was laid out as " a cart road" in the spring of 1687. This is the road leading from Plymouth to Philadelphia, and now known as the Germantown and Perkiomen turn- pike, which was laid on its bed and finished in 1804. It is likely that this was the first road opened for the transportation of lime to the city. What is now known as the Limekiln road was laid out from Ger- mantown to Upper Dublin in 1693, and probably also first opened for the purpose of obtaining lime from the vicinity of the present Fitzwatertown. The road from the latter place to Abington meeting-house was confirmed in 1724, and opened the following year. From the petition it is ascertained that Thomas Fitz- water carried on there the business of lime-burning in 1705.

Gabriel Thomas, who arrived here in 1683, in his account of Pennsylvania, published at London in 1698, mentions that here " there is also very good limestone in great abundance plenty and cheap, of great use in buildings, also in manuring lands." The Manor of Mount Joy, containing seven thousand eight hun- dred acres, was granted by Penn to his daughter Letitia the 24th of Sth month, 1701. This tract was partly situated in Upper Merion, and we have the authority of Oldmixon's " British Empire in Amer- ica," published in 1708, that it abounded in lime- stone, which had been made use of for some time. Edward Farmer, whose settlement in White Marsh was known in 1708 as "Farmer's Town," supplied lime at various times from there for the buildings at Springettsbury, erected by Thomas and Richard Penn, between the years 1732 to the time of his death, in 1745. Francis Rawle, who had settled in Plymouth about 1685, in his " Ways and Means," printed by S. Keimer, of Philadelphia, in 1725, and written the previous year, states on page 54 that of " limestone we have great plenty, of which stone lime is made, which gives the opportunity to the in- habitants to build good stone and brick houses in town and country."

The lime used in building the State-House, from 1729 to 1735, was hauled from the kilns of Ryner Tyson, in Abington township, fourteen miles north of the city. Those kilns and quarries have ever since been in the family, and the business of lime- burning is still carried on by the descendants. The county commissioners in March, 1804, invite pro- posals for "hauling by the bushel a quantity of lime from Plymouth to Pottstown sufficient to complete the bridge" over the Manatawny, a distance of about twenty-three miles. In 1810, if not earlier, the lime- burners of the county formed themselves into an as- sociation, of which Alexander Crawford was presi- dent, and John Fitzwater secretary, meeting for several years, in January, at the house of Philip Sellers, White Marsh. In February, 1824, they met at the house of Andrew Hart, Plymouth. The

members at this time were George Tippen, Samuel Davis, John Shepherd, Daniel Fisher, Benjamin Marple, Eleazer Michener, Euoch Marple, John Hellings, George Egbert, George Lare, Henry John- son, Abraham Marple, William Sands, Joseph Har- mer, and Daniel Davis. It appears they soon after dissolved, their proceedings being deemed unlawful, but we presume no more so than any other combina- tion of a similar character. Among their objects was to fix the price of lime and the wood they either purchased or received in exchange.

On so a great a business as the production of lime it is to be regretted that there are so few statistics. It would be interesting to possess a list of the several manufacturers, the number of kilns operated, and the amount respectively made. The quantity sent off by water must be considerable, especially to the States of New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland, as also by railroad to adjoining counties, Philadel- phia, and other places, for building, manufacturing, and agricultural purposes. The townships of Mont- gomery that possess limestone are Abington, Upper Dublin, Springfield, White Marsh, Plymouth, and Upper Merion. The limestone surface here may probably comprise about fifteen square miles. Plym- outh, no doubt, is now the greatest producer; next Upper Merion, followed by White Marsh and Upper Dublin. Norristown, Swedesburg, and Port Ken- nedy are extensive shipping-points of this material. The lime of Montgomery County for all building purposes possesses a high reputation, and is regarded among the very best produced.

CHAPTER 1IL.

THE ABORIGINES.

THREE hundred and ninety-one years have elapsed since the commercial nations of the carth first learned of the existence of the North American Indians. From whence they came remains an archaeological problem. Their numbers1 were the subject of con-

1 Robert Proud, historian, estimated the number of fighting meo of eighteen given tribes at 27,900, and total number, 139,500.

Besides, in on historical account, printed in Philadelphia, of the ex- pedition against the Ohio Indians io 1764, under command of Col. Bouquet, there is a list of the Indian nations of Canada and Louisiana, said to be from good authority. and that the account may be depended on, so far as a matter of this kind can be brought near the truth, in which it is asserted that there aro 56,580 fighting men of such Indians as the French were connected with in Canada and Louisiana. Assuming this number to be one-fifth of the population, they would have had at that date 282,000.

According to the latest data in the possession of the Interior Depart- ment at Washington tho number of Indiaos in the United States is 262,000. It is claimed that with regard to all Indian tribes receiving supplies from the government reasonably accurate statistics have been obtained, as in making issues of goods to the Indians the individual receipt of oach head of a family is required. The accounts division of

HISTORY OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY.

jecture until after the Revolutionary war, when they became objects of governmental solicitude and care. As a race, they have displayed rare physical powers of endurance, they have shown indomitable courage

the Indian Office therefore possesses a register of the names of all heads of families to whom goods, supplies, or annuities are issued by the gov. ernment. In most of the States there are remaining small communities of Indians, like the Six Nations in New York, the Eastern Cherokees in North Carolina, the Miamis in Indiana, etc. Hlaviog tribal property they maintain a tribal organization. The Indian Office exercises & sort of guardianship over them in the protection of their lands, manage- ment of their funds, limiting the contracts they may make and the fees they may pay to attorneys, deciding questions of membership in the tribe, etc. ; but they are self-supporting, and receive no goods or supplies from the government. The same may be said of the " five civilized tribes" of the Indian Territory, and of the Indians of the Pacific coast, although some of the latter receive abont five per cent. of their sub- eisteace from the Department. They are not dependent upon the gov- ernment for the supply of their daily wants, and consequently the In- dian Department is not able to obtain from them such mionte and detailed reports as are required from the semi-savage tribes. In some cases the government is therefore in possession of better statistics from the "wild" tribes than from such as are partially civilized, or at least self-supporting.

Leaving the five civilized tribes of the Indian Territory ont of the question, these statistics show that the Indinos are not now, and for sev- eral years past have not been, decreasing in numbers. The births re- ported in all the tribes last year aggregated 2998; the number of deathis was 2478. An examination of the reports from all the agencies in de- tail shows many instances of decrease, but the general result is as stated. It is not claimed that these figures are either complete or exact, but they are beyond reasonable doubt sufficient to establish the fact that the Indian race, as a whole, in spite of disadvantageous circumstances, is not dying out. The mortuary customs of most of the tribes render it im- probable that many deaths should escape the knowledge of the agent. As regards the death of a relative or friend the Indian is not a stoic; mourning for the deceased, whether slain in battle or dying from nat- ural causes, is usually loud and long continued, and accompanied with ceremonies likely to make every person within the sound of beating tom-toms aod wailing voices aware of the lose the tribe has sustained. Over birthe no such demonstrations are made, so that the error in the figures given ie probably that of reporting too small an increase in the tribal numbers.

It is easy to find reports from particular trihee showing a decided de- crease during the past year., The Six Nations, New York, lost 235 by death, while there were only 187 births. There are 5116 Indians on the several reservations in New York,-the Senecas, Oneidas, Cayugats, Onondagas, Tonawandas, and Tuscaroras. These Indians are second- rate farmers, as are the Pottawatomies, Kickapoos, and Muosees of Kansas, who also lost in numbers last year, the deaths among them ex- ceeding the births by 30 per cent. ; and the same is true of Iodians sin- ilarly situated in Michigan,-the Chippewas, Ottawas, and Pottawato- mies of the Mackinac agency. In each of these remnants of tribes there was about the same per cent. of lass. These Iodiane nearly all wear civilized dress, and they are surrounded by whites.

In the Indian Territory, however, nearly all the tribes are increasing. The agent of the Cheyennes and Arapahoes reports 324 births, 110 deaths among 6769 Indians ; the Kiowa, Comanche, and Wishita agency reports 149 births, 96 deaths. Reports from the twenty-one other tribes in the Indian Territory indicate a small per cent. of increase in all ex- cept two. The ever unfortunate Poncas and the Senecas suffered a fur- ther loss in numbers last year.

Outside of the Territory, without going into detail, it may be said gen- erally that the Indians of the Northern plains, the great Sioux tribes and the Crows, are about stationary. There is perhaps n small increase, but reports are not full enough to show more than that there is no de- cided change. Citizens of the Southwest will particularly regret to know that the Utes and the Mescalero Apaches are anoually increasing in numbers. The fishermen along the borders of Puget Sonod, the Puyallup, Quillehnte, Cœur d'Alene, O'Kanagans, etc., aro slowly in- creasing, while the S'kokomisli and Quinaielt Indiane of the same re- gion report a decided loss last year.

The generalization indicated by these reports is not a pleasant one. It will be noticed that the uucivilized Indiane, or at least those living

and remarkable sagacity. The exceptional among them have been gifted with keen perceptive faculties, creating and preserving tribal relations among them- selves for centuries, recognizing the obligations of truth, virtue, and honor, the omnipotent power of a "Great Spirit," 1 and a great " future hunting-ground."

away from the direct influences of the white race, are increasing, while those living in the midst of prosperous white settlemente are gradually dying out. The five civilized tribes of the Indian Territory, and especially the Cherokees, who are themselves prosperous, hold the theory that Io- diane cannot thrive when immediately surrounded by communities of white men ; that, being unable to compete with their neighhors, the In- dians become hopelessly discouraged. The figures given above appear to confirm this doctrine. Fuller and more accurate statistics may, how- ever, modify or reveree the conclusions based upon the official reports we have quoted, which afford the best data now obtainable.

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History of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, Part 9

Author: Bean, Theodore Weber, 1833-1891, [from old catalog] ed; Buck, William J. (William Joseph), 1825-1901 Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Philadelphia, Everts & Peck Number of Pages: 1534

Author: Bean, Theodore Weber, 1833-1891, [from old catalog] ed; Buck, William J. (William Joseph), 1825-1901
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Philadelphia, Everts & Peck
Number of Pages: 1534