The Project Gutenberg EBook of Old Mackinaw, by W. P. Strickland
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Title: Old Mackinaw
The Fortress of the Lakes and its Surroundings
Author: W. P. Strickland
Release Date: September 9, 2007 [EBook #22550]
Language: English
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[Illustration of an Indian woman near a river.]
OLD MACKINAW;
OR,
THE FORTRESS OF THE LAKES
AND
ITS SURROUNDINGS.
BY
W. P. STRICKLAND.
Philadelphia: James Challen & Son,
New York: CARLTON & PORTER.--Cincinnati: POE & HITCHCOCK. Chicago: W.
H. DOUGHTY.--Detroit: PUTNAM, SMITH & CO. Nashville: J. B. McFERRIN.
1860.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year, 1860, by
JAMES CHALLEN & SON,
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States, in
and for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
PHILADELPHIA: STEREOTYPED BY S. A. GEORGE, 607 SANSOM STREET.
PREFACE.
In the preparation of this volume a large number of works have been
consulted, among which the author desires to acknowledge his
indebtedness to the following: "The Travels of Baron La Hontan,"
published in English and French, 1705; "Relations des Jesuits," in
three vols., octavo; "Marquette's Journal;" Schoolcraft's works, in
three volumes; "Shea's Catholic Missions and Discovery of the
Mississippi" "American Annals;" "Lanman's History of Michigan;"
"Parkman's Siege of Pontiac;" "Annals of the West;" "Foster and
Whitney's Geological Report;" "Ferris' Great West;" "Disturnell's Trip
to the Lakes;" "Lanman's Summer in the Wilderness;" "Pietzell's Lights
and Shades of Missionary Life;" "Life of Rev. John Clark;" "Lectures
before the Historical Society of Michigan;" "Mansfield's Mackinaw
City;" "Andrews' Report of Lake Trade;" "Heriot's Canada;"
"Presbyterian Missions," &c., &c. He desires particularly to mention
the works of Schoolcraft, which have thrown more light on Indian
history than the productions of any other author. He also desires to
acknowledge his indebtedness to Wm. M. Johnson, Esq., of Mackinac
Island, for his valuable contributions to the history of that
interesting locality. The statistics in relation to that portion of
the country embraced in the work are taken from the most recent
sources, and are believed to be perfectly reliable.
We are indebted to J. W. Bradley, of Philadelphia, the publisher of
"The North American Indians," for the beautiful frontispiece in this
work. Mr. Catlin, the author, visited every noted tribe, and, by
residing among them, was initiated into many of their secret and
hidden mysteries. It is a valuable work.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I. Page
Mackinaw and its surroundings -- Indian legends -- Hiawatha
-- Ottawas and Ojibwas -- Pau-pau-ke-wis -- San-ge-man --
Kau-be-man -- An Indian custom -- Dedication to the spirits
-- Au-se-gum-ugs -- Exploits of San-ge-man -- Point St.
Ignatius -- Magic lance -- Council of peace -- Conquests of
San-ge-man. 9
CHAPTER II.
Indian spiritualists -- Medicine men -- Legends -- The
spirit-world -- Difference between Indian and modern
spiritualists -- Chusco the spiritualist -- Schoolcraft's
testimony of -- Mode of communicating with spirits -- Belief
in Satanic agency -- Interesting account of clairvoyance. 19
CHAPTER III.
Marquette's visit to Iroquois Point -- Chapel and Fort -- Old
Mackinaw -- The French settlement in the Northwest --
Erection of chapel and Fort -- The gateway of commerce -- The
rendezvous of traders, trappers, soldiers, missionaries, and
Indians -- Description of fort -- Courriers des Bois --
Expedition of Marquette and Joliet to explore the Mississippi
-- Green Bay -- Fox River -- Wisconsin -- Mississippi --
Peoria Indians -- Return trip -- Kaskaskia Indians -- St.
Xavier Missions -- Mission to "the Illinois" -- Marquette's
health declines -- Starts out on return trip to Mackinaw --
Dies and is buried at mouth of Marquette River -- Indians
remove his remains to Mackinaw -- Funeral cortege --
Ceremonies -- Burial in the chapel -- Changes of time --
Schoolcraft on the place of Marquette's burial --
Missilimackinac -- Name of Jesuit missions. 39
CHAPTER IV.
La Salle's visit to Mackinaw -- English traders -- La
Hontan's visit -- Mackinaw an English fort -- Speech of a
Chippewa chief -- Indian stratagem -- Massacre of the English
at the fort -- Escape of Mr. Alexander Henry -- Early white
settlement of Mackinaw -- Present description -- Relations of
the Jesuits -- Remarkable Phenomena -- Parhelia --
Subterranean river. 61
CHAPTER V.
Island of the giant fairies -- Possession by the English --
Erection of government house -- French remain at Old Mackinaw
-- Finally abandoned -- Extent of the island -- History --
Description -- Natural curiosities -- Arch Rock -- Sugar Loaf
Rock -- Scull Rock -- Dousman's farm -- Davenport's farm --
Robinson's folly -- The Devil's Punch Bowl -- Healthful
atmosphere -- Transparency of the waters -- Compared with
Saratoga, Cape May, and Mt. Washington as a point for health
and recreation -- Description of a traveler in 1854 --
Arrival of steamers and sailing vessels at the port during
the year -- Mr. Johnson's reminiscences -- Indian name of
island -- Mythology -- Three brothers of the great genii --
Visit to the subterranean abode of the genii -- Vision --
Apostrophe of an old Indian chief -- Old buildings -- Door of
Marquette's chapel -- John Jacob Astor and the fur trade --
Present support of the place -- Fort Mackinaw -- Fort Holmes
-- Fine view -- Interesting localities -- War of 1812 --
Death of Major Holmes -- Soil of the island. 83
CHAPTER VI.
Lake Superior -- Scenery -- Transparency of its waters --
Climate -- Isle Royale -- Apostles' Islands -- La Point --
Thunder Cape -- Cariboo Point -- A wonderful lake -- Romantic
scenery -- Pictured rocks -- Rock Castle -- The Grand Portal
-- The chapel -- Fluctuations in the waters of Lake Superior
-- Curious phenomena -- Retrocession of the waters -- Mirage
-- Iron mountains and mines -- Description of -- Products --
Shipments -- Copper -- Immense boulders -- Produce of the
mines for 1857 -- Shipment of copper from the Lake for 1858
-- Centre of the mining country -- Iron mountains -- Copper
mines of Great Britain -- Coal -- Mackinaw a great
manufacturing point -- Key to the Upper Lakes -- Commerce of
lakes -- Growth of cities. 105
CHAPTER VII.
Lake Huron -- Eastern shore of Michigan -- Face of the
country -- Picturesque view -- Rivers -- Grand -- Saginaw --
Cheboy-e-gun -- Natural scenery -- Fort Gratiot -- White Rock
-- Saginaw Bay -- Thunder Bay -- Bois Blanc Island --
Drummond's Island -- British troops -- St. Helena Island --
Iroquois Woman's Point -- Point La Barbe -- Point aux Sable
-- Point St. Vital -- Wreck of the Queen City -- St. Martin's
Island -- Fox Point -- Moneto pa-maw -- Mille au Coquin --
Great fishing places -- Cross village -- Catholic convent. 127
CHAPTER VIII.
Three epochs -- The romantic -- The military -- The
agricultural and commercial -- An inviting region -- Jesuit
and Protestant Missions -- First Protestant mission -- First
missionary -- Islands of Mackinac and Green Bay -- La Pointe
-- Saut St. Mary -- Presbyterians -- Baptists -- Methodists
-- Revival at Fort Brady -- Ke-wee-naw -- Fon du Lac --
Shawnees -- Pottawatimies -- Eagle River -- Ontonagon -- Camp
River -- Iroquois Point -- Saginaw Indians -- Melancholy
reflections -- Number of Indians in the States and
Territories. 143
CHAPTER IX.
Indian name of Michigan -- Islands -- Lanman's Summer in the
Wilderness -- Plains -- Trees -- Rivers -- A traditionary
land -- Beautiful description -- Official report in relation
to the trade of the lakes -- Green Bay -- Grand Traverse Bay
-- Beaver Islands -- L'Arbre Croche -- Boundaries of Lake
Michigan -- Its connections -- Railroad from Fort Wayne to
Mackinaw -- Recent report of -- Amount completed -- Land
grants. 159
CHAPTER X.
Mackinaw, the site for a great central city -- The Venice of
the lakes -- Early importance as a central position --
Nicolet -- Compared geographically with other points --
Immense chain of coast -- Future prospects -- Temperature --
Testimony of the Jesuit fathers -- Healthfulness of the
climate -- Dr. Drake on Mackinaw -- Resort for invalids --
Water currents of commerce -- Surface drained by them -- Soil
of the northern and southern peninsulas of Michigan --
Physical resources -- Present proprietors of Mackinaw -- Plan
of the city -- Streets -- Avenues -- Park -- Lots and blocks
for churches and public purposes -- Institutions of learning
and objects of benevolence -- Fortifications -- Docks and
ferries -- Materials for building -- Harbors -- Natural
beauty of the site for a city -- Mountain ranges -- Interior
lakes -- Fish -- Game. 173
CHAPTER XI.
The entrepot of a vast commerce -- Surface drained --
Superiority of Mackinaw over Chicago as a commercial point --
Exports and imports -- Michigan the greatest lumber-growing
region in the world -- Interminable forests of the choicest
pine -- Facilities for market -- Annual product of the
pineries -- Lumbering, mining, and fishing interests --
Independent of financial crises -- Mackinaw the centre of a
great railroad system -- Lines terminating at this point --
North and South National Line -- Canada grants -- Growth of
Northwestern cities -- Future growth and prosperity of
Mackinaw -- Chicago -- Legislative provision for opening
roads in Michigan -- The Forty Acre Homestead Bill -- Its
provisions. 205
CHAPTER XII.
The Great Western Valley -- Its growth and population --
Comparison of Atlantic with interior cities -- Relative
growth of river and lake cities -- Centre of population --
Lake tonnage -- Progress of the principal centres of
population. 228
CHAPTER XIII.
Michigan Agricultural Reports for 1854 -- Prof. Thomas'
report -- Report of J. S. Dixon -- Products of States --
Climate -- Army Meteorological Reports. 255
CHAPTER XIV.
Agricultural interest -- Means of transportation -- Railways
and vessels -- Lumber -- Vessels cleared -- Lake cities and
Atlantic ports -- Home-market -- Breadstuffs -- Michigan
flour -- Monetary panics -- Wheat -- Importations --
Provisions -- Fruit -- Live stock -- Wool -- Shipping
business -- Railroads -- Lake Superior trade -- Pine lumber
trade -- Copper interest -- Iron interest -- Fisheries --
Coal mines -- Salt -- Plaster beds. 272
CHAPTER XV.
Desirableness of a trip to the Lakes -- Routes of travel --
Interesting localities -- Scenery -- Southern coast --
Portage Lake -- Dr. Houghton -- Ontonagon -- Apostles'
Islands -- Return trip -- Points of interest -- St. Mary's
River -- Lake St. George -- Point de Tour -- Lake Michigan --
Points of interest -- Chicago. 395
CHAPTER I.
Mackinaw and its surroundings -- Indian legends -- Hiawatha
-- Ottawas and Ojibwas -- Paw-pau-ke-wis -- San-ge-man --
Kau-be-man -- An Indian custom -- Dedication to the spirits
-- Au-se-gum-ugs -- Exploits of San-ge-man -- Point St.
Ignatius -- Magic lance -- Council of Peace -- Conquests of
San-ge-man.
Mackinaw, with its surroundings, has an interesting and romantic
history, going back to the earliest times. The whole region of the
Northwest, with its vast wildernesses and mighty lakes, has been
traditionally invested with a mystery. The very name of Mackinaw, in
the Indian tongue, signifies the dwelling-place of the Great Genii,
and many are the legends written and unwritten connected with its
history. If the testimony of an old Indian chief at Thunder Bay can be
credited, it was at old Mackinaw that Mud-je-ke-wis, the father of
Hiawatha, lived and died.
Traditional history informs us that away back in a remote period of
time, the Ottawas and the Ojibwas took up their journey from the Great
Salt Lake towards the setting sun. These tribes were never stationary,
but were constantly roving about. They were compared by the
neighboring tribes to Paw-pau-ke-wis, a name given by the Indians to
the light-drifting snow, which blows over the frozen ground in the
month of March, now whirling and eddying into gigantic and anon into
diminutive drifts. Paw-pau-ke-wis signifies running away. The name was
given to a noted Indian chief, fully equal in bravery and daring to
Hiawatha, Plu-re-busta, or Man-a-bosho.
The Ottawas and Ojibwas dwelt for a time on the Manitoulin Island in
Lake Huron. While the tribes dwelt here, two distinguished Indian
youths, by the name of San-ge-man and Kau-be-man, remarkable for their
sprightliness, attracted the attention of their particular tribes.
Both were the youngest children of their respective families. It was
the custom of the Indians to send their boys, when young, to some
retired place a short distance from their village, where they were to
fast until the manitoes or spirits of the invisible world should
appear to them. Temporary lodges were constructed for their
accommodation. Those who could not endure the fast enjoined upon them
by the Metais or Medicine-men, never rose to any eminence, but were to
remain in obscurity. Comparatively few were able to bear the ordeal;
but to all who waited the appointed time, and endured the fast, the
spiritual guardian appeared and took the direction and control of
their subsequent lives. San-ge-man in his first trial fasted seven
days, and on the next he tasted food, having been reduced to extreme
debility by his long abstinence, during which his mind became
exceedingly elevated. In this exaltation his spiritual guide appeared
to him. He was the spirit of the serpent who rules in the centre of
the earth, and under the dark and mighty waters. This spirit revealed
to him his future destiny, and promised him his guardianship through
life. San-ge-man grew up and became remarkably strong and powerful.
From his brave and reckless daring he was both an object of love and
fear to the Ottawas.
About this time, as the legend runs, the former inhabitants of the
Manitoulin Island and the adjoining country, who have the name of the
Au-se-gum-a-ugs, commenced making inroads upon the settlements of the
combined bands, and killed several of their number. Upon this the
Ojibwas and Ottawas mustered a war party. San-ge-man, though young,
offered himself as a warrior; and, full of heroic daring, went out
with the expedition which left the Island in great numbers in their
canoes, and crossed over to the main land on the northeast. After
traveling a few days they fell upon the war path of their enemies, and
soon surprised them. Terrified, they fled before the combined forces;
and in the chase, the brave and daring youth outstripped all the rest
and succeeded in taking a prisoner in sight of the enemies' village.
On their return the Ojibwas and Ottawas were pursued, and being
apprised of it by San-ge-man, they made good their escape, while the
young brave, being instructed by his guardian spirit, allowed himself
to be taken prisoner. His hands were tied, and he was made to walk in
the midst of the warriors. At night they encamped, and after partaking
of their evening meal, commenced their Indian ceremonies of drumming
and shaking the rattle, accompanied with war songs. San-ge-man was
asked by the chief of the party, if he could che-qwon-dum, at the same
time giving him the rattle. He took it and commenced singing in a low,
plaintive tone, which made the warriors exclaim, "He is weak-hearted,
a coward, an old woman". Feigning great weakness and cowardice, he
stepped up to the Indian to whom he had surrendered his war club; and
taking it, he commenced shaking the rattle, and as he danced round the
watch-fire, increasing his speed, and, gradually raising the tone of
his voice, he ended the dance by felling a warrior with his club,
exclaiming, "a coward, ugh!" Then with terrific yells and the power of
a giant, he continued his work of death at every blow. Affrighted, the
whole party fled from the watch-fire and left him alone with the
slain, all of which he scalped, and returned laden with these terrible
trophies of victory to join his companions who returned to the Island.
San-ge-man having by his valor obtained a chieftainship over the
Ottawas, started out on the war path and conquered all the country
east and north of Lake Huron. The drum and rattle were now heard
resounding through all the villages of the combined forces, and they
extended their conquests to Saut St. Mary. For the purpose of
bettering their condition they removed from the Island to the Detour,
or the mouth of the St. Mary's river, where they occupied a deserted
village, and there separated, part going up to the Saut, which had
also been deserted, and the other portion tarrying in the above
village for a year.
At the expiration of this time San-ge-man led a war party towards the
west, and reached the present point St. Ignatius, on the north side of
the straits where he found a large village. There was also another
village a little east of Point St. Ignatius, at a place now called
Moran's Bay, and still another at Point Au Chenes on the north shore
of Lake Michigan, northeast of the Island of Mackinaw. At these
places, old mounds, ditches, and gardens were found, which had existed
from an unknown period. From this point a trail led to the Saut
through an open country, and these ancient works can be distinctly
traced to this day though covered with a heavy growth of timber.
After a hard fight with the inhabitants of these villages, San-ge-man
at length succeeded in conquering them, and after expelling them
burned all their lodges with the exception of a few at Point St.
Ignatius. The inhabitants of this village fled across the straits
southward from Point St. Ignatius and located at the point now known
as Old Mackinaw, or Mackinaw City.
In the mean time, San-ge-man had returned to the Detour and removed
his entire band to Point St. Ignatius. In the following spring while
the Ottawas were out in their fields planting corn, a party of
Au-se-gum-ugs crossed over from Old Mackinaw, on the south side of
the straits, and killed two of the Ottawa women. San-ge-man at once
selected a party of tried warriors, and going down the straits pursued
the Au-se-gum-ugs to the River Cheboy-e-gun, whither they had gone on
a war expedition against the Mush-co-dan-she-ugs. On a sandy bay a
little west of the mouth of the river, they found their enemies'
canoes drawn up, they having gone into the interior. Believing that
they would soon return, San-ge-man ordered his party to lie in ambush
until their return. They were not long in waiting, for on the
following day they made their appearance, being heated and weary with
their marches, they all stripped and went into the Lake to bathe
previous to embarking for Mackinaw. Unsuspicious of danger they played
with the sportive waves as they dashed upon the shore, and were
swimming and diving in all directions, when the terrific yell of armed
warriors broke upon their ears. It was but the work of a moment and
one hundred defenseless Indians perished in the waters. When the sad
intelligence came to the remainder of the tribe at Mackinaw, they fled
towards the Grand River country.
The village now deserted possessing superior attractions to San-ge-man
and his warriors, the Ottawas crossed the straits and took
possession, and here he remained until after he unfairly succeeded in
obtaining the magic lance.
It was while here that a large delegation of Indians of the
Mush-co-dan-she-ugs from the Middle village, Bear River, and Grand
Traverse came to shake hands and smoke the pipe of peace with him.
They had heard of his fame as a mighty warrior. The occasion was one
of great rejoicing to the inhabitants of Mackinaw, and all turned out
to witness the gathering. San-ge-man and his warriors appeared in
council, dressed in richest furs, their heads decorated with eagle
feathers, and tufts of hair of many colors. Among all the chiefs there
assembled, for proud and noble bearing none excelled the Ottawa. A fur
robe covered with scalp-locks hung carelessly over his left shoulder
leaving his right arm free while speaking. As the result of these
deliberations the bands became united and thus the territory of the
Ottawa chief was enlarged.
It was from this point that he sallied forth every summer in war
excursions toward the south, conquering the country along the eastern
shore of Lake Michigan, extending his conquests to Grand River, and
overrunning the country about the present site of Chicago. It was here
that he received reinforcements from his old allies the Ojibwas, and
extended his conquests down the Illinois River until he reached the
"father of waters."
From this place he went forth to the slaughter of the Iroquois at the
Detour, and expelled them from the Island of Mackinaw and Point St.
Ignatius. From hence he went armed to wage an unnatural war against
his relatives the Ojibwas, and was slain by the noble chief
Kau-be-man, and it was to this place that the sad news came back of
his fate. Thus much for the Indian history of Old Mackinaw.
Equally romantic is the history of the early missionaries and voyagers
to this great centre of the Indian tribes. On the far-off shores of
the northwestern lakes the Jesuit Missionaries planted the cross,
erected their chapels, repeated their _pater nosters_ and _ave
marias_, and sung their _Te Deums_, before the cavaliers landed at
Jamestown or the Puritans at Plymouth. Among the Ottawas of Saut St.
Marie and the Ojibwas and Hurons of Old Mackinaw, these devoted
self-sacrificing followers of Ignatius Loyola commenced their
ministrations upwards of two hundred years ago. They were not only the
first missionaries among the savages of this northwestern wilderness,
but they were the first discoverers and explorers of the mighty lakes
and rivers of that region. In advance of civilization they penetrated
the dense unbroken wilderness, and launched their canoes upon unknown
rivers, breaking the silence of their shores with their vesper hymns
and matin prayers. The first to visit the ancient seats of heathenism
in the old world, they were the first to preach the Gospel among the
heathen of the new.
CHAPTER II.
Indian Spiritualists -- Medicine men -- Legends -- The
Spirit-world -- Difference between Indian and Modern
Spiritualists -- Chusco the Spiritualist -- Schoolcraft's
testimony of -- Mode of communicating with spirits -- Belief
in Satanic agency -- Interesting account of Clairvoyance.
The earliest traditions of the various Indian tribes inhabiting this
country prove that they have practiced jugglery and all other things
pertaining to the secret arts of the old uncivilized nations of the
world. Among all the tribes have been found the priests of the occult
sciences, and to this day we find Metais, Waubonos, Chees-a-kees and
others bearing the common designation of Medicine men. In modern
parlance we would call them Professors of Natural Magic, or of
Magnetism, or Spiritualism. The difference however between these
Indian professors of magic and those of modern date is, that while the
latter travel round the country exhibiting their wonderful
performances to gaping crowds, at a shilling a head, the former
generally shrink from notoriety, and, instead of being anxious to
display their marvelous feats, have only been constrained, after
urgent entreaty and in particular cases, to exhibit their powers. The
Indian magicians have shown more conclusively their power as
clairvoyants and spiritualists, than all the rapping, table-tipping
mediums of the present day.
Numerous interesting and beautiful Indian legends show their belief in
a spiritual world--of a shadowy land beyond the great river. Whether
this was obtained by revelations from their spiritual mediums, or
derived from a higher source of inspiration, we know not; but most
certain it is, that in no belief is the Indian more firmly grounded
than that of a spirit-world.
The Indian Chees-a-kees or spiritualists had a different and far more
satisfactory mode of communicating with departed spirits than ever
modern spiritualists have attained to, or perhaps ever will. Forming,
as they did, a connecting link or channel of communication between
this world and the world of spirits, they did not affect to speak what
the spirit had communicated; or, perhaps, to state it more fully,
their organs of speech were not employed by the spirits to communicate
revelations from the spirit world; but the spirits themselves spoke,
and the responses to inquiries were perfectly audible to them and to
all present. In this case all possibility of collusion was out of the
question, and the inquirer could tell by the tones of the voice as as
well as the manner of the communication, whether the response was
genuine or not.
Chusco, a noted old Indian who died on Bound Island several years ago,
was a spiritualist. He was converted through the labors of Protestant
Missionaries, led for many years an exemplary Christian life, and was
a communicant in the Presbyterian Church on the Island up to the time
of his death. Mr. Schoolcraft in his "Personal Memoirs," in which he
gives most interesting reminiscences, running through a period of
thirty years among numerous Indian tribes of the northwest, and who
has kindly consented to allow us to make what extracts we may desire
from his many interesting works, says that "Chusco was the Ottawa
spiritualist, and up to his death he believed that he had, while in
his heathen state, communication with spirits". Whenever it was deemed
proper to obtain this communication, a pyramidal lodge was constructed
of poles, eight in number, four inches in diameter, and from twelve to
sixteen feet in height. These poles were set firmly in the ground to
the depth of two feet, the earth being beaten around them. The poles
being securely imbedded, were then wound tightly with three rows of
withes. The lodge was then covered with ap-puck-wois, securely lashed
on. The structure was so stoutly and compactly built, that four strong
Indians could scarcely move it by their mightiest efforts. The lodge
being ready, the spiritualist was taken and covered all over, with the
exception of his head, with a canoe sail which was lashed with
bois-blanc cords and knotted. This being done, his feet and hands were
secured in a like firm manner, causing him to resemble a bundle more
than anything else. He would then request the bystanders to place him
in the lodge. In a few minutes after entering, the lodge would
commence swaying to and fro, with a tremulous motion, accompanied with
the sound of a drum and rattle. The spiritualist then commenced
chanting in a low, melancholy tone, gradually raising his voice, while
the lodge, as if keeping time with his chant, vibrated to and fro with
greater violence, and seemed at times as if the force would tear it to
pieces.
In the midst of this shaking and singing, the sail and the cords, with
which the spiritualist was bound, would be seen to fly out of the top
of the lodge with great violence. A silence would then ensue for a
short time, the lodge still continuing its tremulous vibrations. Soon
a rustling sound would be heard at the top of the lodge indicating the
presence of the spirit. The person or persons at whose instance the
medium of the spiritualist was invoked, would then propose the
question or questions they had to ask of the departed.
An Indian spiritualist, residing at Little Traverse Bay, was once
requested to enter a lodge for the purpose of affording a neighboring
Indian an opportunity to converse with a departed spirit about his
child who was then very sick. The sound of a voice, unfamiliar to the
persons assembled, was heard at the top of the lodge, accompanied by
singing. The Indian, who recognized the voice, asked if his child
would die. The reply was, "It will die the day after to-morrow. You
are treated just as you treated a person a few years ago. Do you wish
the matter revealed." The inquirer immediately dropped his head and
asked no further questions. His child died at the time the spirit
stated, and reports, years after, hinted that it had been poisoned, as
the father of the deceased child had poisoned a young squaw, and that
it was this same person who made the responses.
Old Chusco, after he became a Christian, could not, according to the
testimony of Schoolcraft, be made to waver in his belief, that he was
visited by spirits in the exhibitions connected with the tight-wound
pyramidal, oracular lodge; but he believed they were evil spirits. No
cross-questioning could bring out any other testimony. He avowed that,
aside from his incantations, he had no part in the shaking of the
lodge, never touching the poles at any time, and that the drumming,
rattling, singing, and responses were all produced by these spirits.
The following account of Chusco, or Wau-chus-co, from the pen of
William M. Johnson, Esq., of Mackinaw Island, will be found to be
deeply interesting:
* * * * *
"Wau-chus-co was a noted Indian spiritualist and Clairvoyant, and was
born near the head of Lake Michigan--the year not known. He was eight
or ten years old, he informed me, when the English garrison was
massacred at Old Fort Missilimackinac. He died on Round Island,
opposite the village and island of Mackinaw, at an advanced age.
"As he grew up from childhood, he found that he was an orphan, and
lived with his uncle, but under the care of his grandmother. Upon
attaining the age of fifteen his grandmother and uncle urged him to
comply with the ancient custom of their people, which was to fast, and
wait for the manifestations of the Gitchey-monedo,--whether he would
grant him a guardian spirit or not, to guide and direct him through
life. He was told that many young men of his tribe tried to fast, but
that hunger overpowered their wishes to obtain a spiritual guardian;
he was urged to do his best, and not to yield as others had done.
"Wau-chus-co died in 1839 or '40. He had, for more than ten years
previous to his death, led an exemplary Christian life, and was a
communicant of the Presbyterian Church on this Island, up to the time
of his death. A few days previous to his death, I paid him a visit.
'Come in, come in, nosis!' (grandson) said he. After being seated, and
we had lit our pipes; I said to him, 'Ne-me-sho-miss, (my
grandfather,) you are now very old and feeble; you cannot expect to
live many days; now, tell me the truth, who was it that moved your
chees-a-kee lodge when you practiced your spiritual art?' A pause
ensued before he answered:--'Nosis, as you are in part of my nation, I
will tell you the truth: I know that I will die soon. I fasted ten
days when I was a young man, in compliance with the custom of my
tribe. While my body was feeble from long fasting, my soul increased
in its powers; it appeared to embrace a vast extent of space, and the
country within this space, was brought plainly before my vision, with
its misty forms and beings--I speak of my spiritual vision. It was,
while I was thus lying in a trance, my soul wandering in space, that
animals, some of frightful size and form, serpents of monstrous size,
and birds of different varieties and plumage, appeared to me and
addressed me in human language, proposing to act as my guardian
spirits. While my mind embraced these various moving forms, a superior
intelligence in the form of man, surrounded by a wild, brilliant
light, influenced my soul to select one of the bird-spirits,
resembling the kite in look and form, to be the emblem of my guardian
spirit, upon whose aid I was to call in time of need, and that he
would be always prepared to render me assistance whenever my body and
soul should be prepared to receive manifestations. My grandmother
roused me to earth again, by inquiring if I needed food: I ate, and
with feeble steps, soon returned to our lodge.
"'The first time that I ever chees-a-keed, was on a war expedition
toward Chicago, or where it is now located--upon an urgent occasion.
We were afraid that our foes would attack us unawares, and as we were
also short of provisions, our chief urged me incessantly, until I
consented. After preparing my soul and body, by fasting on bitter
herbs, &c., I entered the Chees-a-kee lodge, which had been prepared
for me:--the presence of my guardian spirit was soon indicated by a
violent swaying of the lodge to and fro. "Tell us! tell us! where our
enemies are?" cried out the chief and warriors. Soon, the vision of my
soul embraced a large extent of country, which I had never before
seen--every object was plainly before me--our enemies were in their
villages, unsuspicious of danger; their movements and acts I could
plainly see; and mentally or spiritually, I could hear their
conversation. Game abounded in another direction. Next day we procured
provisions, and a few days afterward a dozen scalps graced our
triumphant return to the village of the Cross. I exerted my powers
again frequently among my tribe, and, to satisfy them, I permitted
them to tie my feet and hands, and lash me round with ropes, as they
thought proper. They would then place me in the Chees-a-kee lodge,
which would immediately commence shaking and swaying to and fro,
indicating the presence of my guardian spirit: frequently I saw a
bright, luminous light at the top of the lodge, and the words of the
spirit would be audible to the spectators outside, who could not
understand what was said; while mentally, I understood the words and
language spoken.
"'In the year 1815, the American garrison at this post expected a
vessel from Detroit, with supplies for the winter--a month had elapsed
beyond the time for her arrival, and apprehensions of starvation were
entertained; finally, a call was made to me by the commanding officer,
through the traders. After due preparation I consented; the
Chees-a-kee lodge was surrounded by Indians and whites; I had no
sooner commenced shaking my rattle and chanting, than the spirits
arrived; the rustling noise they made through the air, was heard, and
the sound of their voices was audible to all.
"'The spirits directed my mind toward the southern end of Lake
Huron--it lay before me with its bays and islands; the atmosphere
looked hazy, resembling our Indian Summer; my vision terminated a
little below the mouth of the St. Clair River--there lay the vessel,
disabled! the sailors were busy in repairing spars and sails. My soul
knew that they would be ready in two days, and that in seven days she
would reach this Island, (Mackinaw,) by the south channel, [at that
time an unusual route,] and I so revealed it to the inquirers. On the
day I mentioned the schooner hove in sight, by the south channel. The
captain of the vessel corroborated all I had stated.
"'I am now a praying Indian (Christian). I expect soon to die, Nosis.
This is the truth: I possessed a power, or a power possessed me, which
I cannot explain or fully describe to you. I never attempted to move
the lodge by my own physical powers--I held communion with
supernatural beings or souls, who acted upon my soul or mind,
revealing to me the knowledge which I have related to you.'
"The foregoing merely gives a few acts of the power exhibited by this
remarkable, half-civilized Indian. I could enumerate many instances in
which this power has been exhibited among our Indians. These
Chees-a-kees had the power of influencing the mind of an Indian at a
distance for good or evil, even to the deprivation of life among them:
so also in cases of rivalship, as hunters or warriors. This influence
has even extended to things material, while in the hands of those
influenced. The soul or mind--perhaps nervous system of the
individual, being powerfully acted upon by a spiritual battery,
greater than the one possessed more or less by all human beings."
* * * * *
In Schoolcraft's "American Indians" an interesting account is given of
a woman-spiritualist, who bore the name of the "Prophetess of
Che-moi-che-goi-me-gou." Among the Indians she was called "The woman
of the blue-robed cloud." The account was given by herself after she
had become a member of the Methodist Church and renounced all
connection with spirits. The following is her narrative:--
* * * * *
"When I was a girl of about twelve or thirteen years of age, my mother
told me to look out for something that would happen to me.
Accordingly, one morning early, in the middle of winter, I found an
unusual sign, and ran off, as far from the lodge as I could, and
remained there until my mother came and found me out. She knew what
was the matter, and brought me nearer to the family lodge, and bade me
help her in making a small lodge of branches of the spruce tree. She
told me to remain there, and keep away from every one, and as a
diversion, to keep myself employed in chopping wood, and that she
would bring me plenty of prepared bass-wood bark to twist into twine.
She told me she would come to see me, in two days, and that in the
mean time I must not even taste snow.
"I did as directed; at the end of two days she came to see me. I
thought she would surely bring me something to eat, but to my
disappointment she brought nothing. I suffered more from _thirst_ than
hunger, though I felt my stomach gnawing. My mother sat quietly down
and said (after ascertaining that I had not tasted anything), 'My
child, you are the youngest of your sisters, and none are now left me
of all my sons and children, but you _four_' (alluding to her two elder
sisters, herself and a little son, still a mere lad). 'Who,' she
continued, 'will take care of us poor women? Now, my daughter, listen
to me, and try to obey. Blacken your face and fast _really_, that the
Master of Life may have pity on you and me, and on us all. Do not, in
the least, deviate from my counsels, and in two days more, I will come
to you. He will help you, if you are determined to do what is right,
and tell me, whether you are favored or not, by the _true_ Great
Spirit; and if your visions are not good, reject them.' So saying, she
departed.
"I took my little hatchet and cut plenty of wood, and twisted the cord
that was to be used in sewing _ap-puk-way-oon-un_, or mats for the use
of the family. Gradually I began to feel less appetite, but my thirst
continued; still I was fearful of touching the snow to allay it, by
sucking it, as my mother had told me that if I did so, though
secretly, the Great Spirit would see me, and the lesser spirits also,
and that my fasting would be of no use. So I continued to fast till
the fourth day, when my mother came with a little tin dish, and
filling it with snow, she came to my lodge, and was well pleased to
find that I had followed her injunctions. She melted the snow, and
told me to drink it. I did so, and felt refreshed, but had a desire
for more, which she told me would not do, and I contented myself with
what she had given me. She again told me to get and follow a good
vision--a vision that might not only do us good, but also benefit
mankind, if I could. She then left me, and for two days she did not
come near me, nor any human being, and I was left to my own
reflections. The night of the sixth day, I fancied a voice called to
me, and said: 'Poor child! I pity your condition; come, you are
invited this way;' and I thought the voice proceeded from a certain
distance from my lodge. I obeyed the summons, and going to the spot
from which the voice came, found a thin, shining path, like a silver
cord, which I followed. It led straight forward, and, it seemed,
upward. After going a short distance I stood still and saw on my right
hand the new moon, with a flame rising from the top like a candle,
which threw around a broad light. On the left appeared the sun, near
the point of its setting. I went on, and I beheld on my right the face
of Kau-ge-gag-be-qua, or the everlasting woman, who told me her name,
and said to me, 'I give you my name, and you may give it to another. I
also give you that which I have, life everlasting. I give you long
life on the earth, and skill in saving life in others. Go, you are
called on high.'
"I went on, and saw a man standing with a large, circular body, and
rays from his head, like horns. He said, 'Fear not, my name is Monedo
Wininees, or the Little man Spirit. I give this name to your first
son. It is my life. Go to the place you are called to visit.' I
followed the path till I could see that it led up to an opening in the
sky, when I heard a voice, and standing still, saw the figure of a man
standing near the path, whose head was surrounded with a brilliant
halo, and his breast was covered with squares. He said to me: 'Look at
me, my name is O-shau-wau-e-geeghick, or the Bright Blue Sky. I am the
veil that covers the opening into the sky. Stand and listen to me. Do
not be afraid. I am going to endow you with gifts of life, and put you
in array that you may withstand and endure.' Immediately I saw myself
encircled with bright points which rested against me like needles, but
gave me no pain, and they fell at my feet. This was repeated several
times, and at each time they fell to the ground. He said, 'wait and do
not fear, till I have said and done all I am about to do.' I then felt
different instruments, first like awls, and then like nails stuck into
my flesh, but neither did they give me pain, but, like the needles,
fell at my feet as often as they appeared. He then said, 'that is
good,' meaning my trial by these points. 'You will see length of days.
Advance a little further,' said he. I did so, and stood at the
commencement of the opening. 'You have arrived,' said he, 'at the
limit you cannot pass. I give you my name, you can give it to another.
Now, return! Look around you. There is a conveyance for you. Do not be
afraid to get on its back, and when you get to your lodge, you must
take that which sustains the human body.' I turned, and saw a kind of
fish swimming in the air, and getting upon it as directed, was carried
back with celerity, my hair floating behind me in the air. And as soon
as I got back, my vision ceased.
"In the morning, being the sixth day of my fast, my mother came with a
little bit of dried trout. But such was my sensitiveness to all
sounds, and my increased power of scent, produced by fasting, that
before she came in sight I heard her, while a great way off, and when
she came in, I could not bear the smell of the fish or herself either.
She said, 'I have brought something for you to eat, only a mouthful,
to prevent your dying.' She prepared to cook it, but I said, 'Mother,
forbear, I do not wish to eat it--the smell is offensive to me.' She
accordingly left off preparing to cook the fish, and again encouraged
me to persevere, and try to become a comfort to her in her old age,
and bereaved state, and left me.
"I attempted to cut wood, as usual, but in the effort I fell back on
the snow, from weariness, and lay some time; at last I made an effort
and rose, and went to my lodge and lay down. I again saw the vision,
and each person who had before spoken to me, and heard the promises of
different kinds made to me, and the songs. I went the same path which
I had pursued before, and met with the same reception. I also had
another vision, or celestial visit, which I shall presently relate. My
mother came again on the seventh day, and brought me some pounded corn
boiled in _snow-water_, for she said I must not drink water from lake
or river. After taking it, I related my vision to her. She said it
was good, and spoke to me to continue my fast three days longer. I
did so; at the end of which she took me home, and made a feast in
honor of my success, and invited a great many guests. I was told to
eat sparingly, and to take nothing too hearty or substantial; but this
was unnecessary, for my abstinence had made my senses so acute, that
all animal food had a gross and disagreeable odor.
"After the seventh day of my fast (she continued), while I was lying
in my lodge, I saw a dark, round object descending from the sky like a
round stone, and enter my lodge. As it came near, I saw that it had
small feet and hands like a human body. It spoke to me and said, 'I
give you the gift of seeing into futurity, that you may use it for the
benefit of yourself and the Indians--your relations and
tribes-people.' It then departed, but as it went away, it assumed
wings, and looked to me like the red-headed woodpecker.
"In consequence of being thus favored, I assumed the arts of a
medicine-woman and a prophetess: but never those of a Wabeno. The
first time I exercised the prophetical art, was at the strong and
repeated solicitations of my friends. It was in the winter season, and
they were then encamped west of the Wisacoda, or Brule River, of Lake
Superior, and between it and the plains west. There were, beside my
mother's family and relatives, a considerable number of families. They
had been some time at the place, and were near starving, as they could
find no game. One evening the chief of the party came into my mother's
lodge. I had lain down, and was supposed to be asleep, and he
requested of my mother that she would allow me to try my skill to
relieve them. My mother spoke to me, and after some conversation, she
gave her consent. I told them to build the _Jee-suk-aun_, or prophet's
lodge _strong_, and gave particular directions for it. I directed that
it should consist of ten posts or saplings, each of a different kind
of wood, which I named. When it was finished, and tightly wound with
skins, the entire population of the encampment assembled around it,
and I went in, taking only a small drum. I immediately knelt down, and
holding my head near the ground, in a position as near as may be
prostrate, began beating my drum, and reciting my songs or
incantations. The lodge commenced shaking violently, by supernatural
means. I knew this by the compressed current of air above, and the
noise of motion. This being regarded by me, and by all without, as a
proof of the presence of the spirits I consulted, I ceased beating
and singing, and lay still, waiting for questions in the position I
at first assumed.
"The first question put to me was in relation to the game, and _where_
it was to be found. The response was given by the orbicular spirit,
who had appeared to me. He said, 'How short-sighted you are! If you
will go in a _west_ direction, you will find game in abundance.' Next
day the camp was broken up, and they all moved westward, the hunters,
as usual, going far ahead. They had not proceeded far beyond the
bounds of their former hunting circle, when they came upon tracks of
moose, and that day they killed a female and two young moose, nearly
full-grown. They pitched their encampment anew, and had abundance of
animal food in this new position.
"My reputation was established by this success, and I was afterward
noted in the tribe, in the art of a medicine-woman, and sung the songs
which I have given to you."
CHAPTER III.
Marquette's visit to Iroquois Point -- Chapel and Fort -- Old
Mackinaw -- The French Settlement in the Northwest --
Erection of Chapel and Fort -- The Gateway of Commerce -- The
Rendezvous of Traders, Trappers, Soldiers, Missionaries, and
Indians -- Description of Fort -- Courriers des Bois --
Expedition of Marquette and Joliet to Explore the Mississippi
-- Green Bay -- Fox River -- Wisconsin -- Mississippi --
Peoria Indians -- Return Trip -- Kaskaskia Indians -- St.
Xavier Missions -- Mission to "the Illinois" -- Marquette's
Health declines -- Starts out on Return trip to Mackinaw --
Dies and is Buried at mouth of Marquette River -- Indians
remove his Remains to Mackinaw -- Funeral Cortege --
Ceremonies -- Burial in the Chapel -- Changes of time --
Schoolcraft on the Place of Marquette's Burial --
Missilimackinac -- Name of Jesuit Missions.
In the year 1670, the devoted and self-sacrificing missionary, Jean
Marquette, with a company of Indians of the Huron tribe, subsequently
known as the Wyandots from the Georgian Bay, on the northeastern
extremity of Lake Huron, entered for the first time the old Indian
town on the northern side of the Mackinaw Straits. During the time he
was planting his colony, and erecting his chapel at Iroquois Point,
which he afterward designated St. Ignace, he resided on the Mackinaw
Island. In 1671, he furnished an account of the island and its
surroundings, which was published in "The Relations Des Jesuits". He
says:
"Missilimackinac is an island famous in these regions, of more than a
league in diameter, and elevated in some places by such high cliffs as
to be seen more than twelve leagues off. It is situated just in the
strait forming the communication between Lakes Huron and Illinois
(Michigan). It is the key, and, and as it were, the gate for all the
tribes from the south, as the Saut, (St. Marie) is for those of the
north, there being in this section of country only those two passages
by water, for a great number of nations have to go by one or other of
these channels, in order to reach the French settlements.
"This presents a peculiarly favorable opportunity, both for
instructing those who pass here, and also for obtaining easy access
and conveyance to their places of abode.
"This place is the most noted in these regions for the abundance of
its fisheries; for, according to the Indian saying, 'this is the home
of the fishes.' Elsewhere, although they exist in large numbers, it is
not properly their 'home,' which is in the neighborhood of
Missilimackinac.
"In fact, beside the fish common to all the other tribes, as the
herring, carp, pike, gold-fish, white-fish and sturgeon, there are
found three varieties of the trout--one common; the second of a larger
size, three feet long and one foot thick; the third monstrous, for we
cannot otherwise describe it--it being so fat that the Indians, who
have a peculiar relish for fats, can scarcely eat it. Besides, the
supply is such that a single Indian will take forty or fifty of them
through the ice, with a single spear, in three hours.
"It is this attraction which has heretofore drawn to a point so
advantageous, the greater part of the savages, in this country driven
away by fear of the Iroquois. The three tribes at present living on
the _Baye des Puans_ (Green Bay) as strangers, formerly dwelt on the
main land near the middle of this island--some on the borders of Lake
Illinois, others on the borders of Lake Huron. A part of them, called
_Sauteurs_, had their abode on the main land at the West, and the
others look upon this place as their country for passing the winter,
when there are no fish at the _Saut_. The Hurons, called
_Etonontathronnons_, have lived for some years in the same island, to
escape the Iroquois. Four villages of Ottawas had also their abode in
this quarter.
"It is worthy of notice that those who bore the name of the island,
and called themselves Missilimackinac, were so numerous, that some of
the survivors yet living here assure us that they once had thirty
villages, all inclosed in a fortification of a league and a half in
circuit, when the Iroquois came and defeated them, inflated by a
victory they had gained over three thousand men of that nation, who
had carried their hostilities as far as the country of the
_Agnichronnons_.
"In one word, the quantity of fish, united with the excellence of the
soil for Indian corn, has always been a powerful attraction to the
tribes in these regions, of which the greater part subsist only on
fish, but some on Indian corn. On this account many of these same
tribes, perceiving that the peace is likely to be established with the
Iroquois, have turned their attention to this point so convenient for
a return to their own country, and will follow the examples of those
who have made a beginning on the islands of Lake Huron, which by this
means will soon be peopled from one end to the other, an event highly
desirable to facilitate the instruction of the Indian race, whom it
would not be necessary to seek by journeys of two or three hundred
leagues on these great lakes, with inconceivable danger and hardships.
"In order to aid the execution of the design, signified to us by many
of the savages, of taking up their abode at this point, where some
have already passed the winter, hunting in the neighborhood, we
ourselves have also wintered here, in order to make arrangements for
establishing the mission of _St. Ignace_, from whence it will be easy
to have access to all the Indians of Lake Huron, when the several
tribes shall have settled each on its own lands.
"With these advantages, the place has also its inconveniences,
particularly for the French, who are not yet familiar, as are the
savages, with the different kinds of fishery, in which the latter are
trained from their birth; the winds and the tides occasion no small
embarrassment to the fishermen.
"The winds: For this is the central point between the three great
lakes which surround it, and which seem incessantly tossing ball at
each other. For no sooner has the wind ceased blowing from Lake
Michigan than Lake Huron hurls back the gale it has received, and
Lake Superior in its turn, sends forth its blasts from another
quarter, and thus the game is played from one to the other--and as
these lakes are of vast extent, the winds cannot be otherwise than
boisterous, especially during the autumn."
"Old Mackinaw," the Indian name of which is Pe-quod-e-non-ge, an
Indian town on the south side of the Straits, became the place of the
first French settlement northwest of Fort Frontenac, or Cadaraeque on
Lake Ontario. The settlement was made by father Marquette, in 1671.
Pe-quod-e-non-ge, as we have seen in a previous Chapter, with its
coasts and islands before it, has been the theatre of some of the most
exciting and interesting events in Indian history, previous to the
arrival of the "white man." It was the Metropolis of a portion of the
Ojibwa, and Ottawa nations. It was there that their Congresses met, to
adopt a policy which terminated in the conquest of the country south
of it--it was there that the tramping feet of thousands of plumed and
painted warriors shook Pe-quod-e-non-ge, while dancing their war
dances--it was from there that the startling sound of the war yell of
these thousands was wafted to the adjacent coast and islands, making
the peaceful welkin ring with their unearthly shouts of victory or
death. In process of time a Chapel and Fort were erected, and it
became a strong-hold and trading post of the greatest importance to
the entire region of the northwest, being the gateway of commerce
between the St. Lawrence and the Mississippi, and also the grand
avenue to the Upper Lakes of the north, and the rendezvous of the
traders, merchants, trappers, soldiers, missionaries and Indians of
the whole northwest. Villages of Hurons and Ottawas were located in
the vicinity of the Fort and Chapel. The Fort inclosed an area of
about several acres, and was surrounded with cedar pickets. The
remains of the fort and buildings can still be seen. On an eminence
not far from the fort, the Ottawas erected a fortification. Within the
inclosure of the Fort and adjoining the Chapel, the Jesuits erected a
College, the first institution of the kind in the Western country. It
was also the great depot for the _Courriers des Bois_, or rangers of
the woods, who, from their distant excursions, would congregate here.
The goods which they had brought from Canada, for the purpose of
exchanging for furs with the Indians of Green Bay and Illinois, and
along the shores of Lake Superior, and the region lying between that
and the banks of the Mississippi, had to be deposited here, and they
were usually on hand a long time before they could be disposed of and
transferred to the distant marts of trade.
In the year 1672, while Marquette was engaged in his duties as priest
at the Chapel, the site of which now bears the name of St. Ignatius,
and also employed in instructing the Indian youth of the villages, he
was visited by Joliet, a member of the same order who bore a
commission from Frontenac, then Governor of Canada, empowering him to
select Marquette as a companion and enter upon a voyage of discovery.
The winter was spent by these men in making preparations to carry out
the commands of their superiors. The specific object of their mission
was to explore the Mississippi, which was supposed to empty into the
Gulf of California. That all possible information might be gained in
regard to this unknown river, Marquette held conversations with all
the noted Indian explorers and trappers, as well as the rangers of the
woods within his reach. From the information thus gained he made out a
map of the river, including its source and direction, and all the
streams known to empty into it.
Spring at length came, and on a bright, beautiful morning in the month
of May, having bid adieu to his charge at his mission, and commended
his flock to God, Marquette and his companion, with five others
selected for the purpose, entered their bark canoes with paddles in
hand, and St. Ignatius was soon lost to the sight of the devoted
missionary forever. After sailing along the Straits they entered Lake
Michigan, and continued their voyage until they arrived at Green Bay,
passed the mouth of the Menominee River, finally reaching that of the
Fox River. On the 7th of June, having sailed upwards of two hundred
miles, the voyagers reached the mission of St. Francis Xavier. They
had now reached the limit of all former French or English discoveries.
The new and unknown West spread out before them, and the thousand
dangers and hardships by river and land, heightened by tales of horror
related to them by the Indians, were presented to their imagination.
Resolutely determined to prosecute the enterprise committed to their
charge, they knelt upon the shore of Fox River to renew their
devotions and obtain the divine guidance and protection. Encouraged by
past success, and urged on by a strong faith, they launched their
canoes upon the bosom of the Fox River, and breaking the silence of
its shores by the dip of their paddles, they sailed up its current.
When they reached the rapids of that river, it was with difficulty
they were enabled to proceed. There was not power enough in the
paddles of the two canoes to stem the current, and they were obliged
to wade up the rapids on the jagged rocks, and thus tow them along.
Having made the voyage of the Fox they arrived at the portage, and
taking their canoes containing their provision and clothes upon their
shoulders, they reached the Wisconsin and launched them upon that
stream. They had no longer to breast a rapid current, as the waters of
the Wisconsin flowed west. With renewed courage they prosecuted their
voyage, and after ten days their hearts were made glad at the sight of
the broad and beautiful river which they were entering, and which they
supposed would bear them to the far-off western sea. They had reached
the "father of waters." No sight could be more charming than that
which presented itself to their vision as they beheld on either side,
alternately stretching away to a vast distance, immense forests of
mountain and plain.
At length, on the 25th of June, as they were sailing along near the
eastern shore, they discovered foot-prints in the sand. At sight of
these they landed and fastening their canoes, that they might again
look upon the face of human beings, they followed an Indian path which
led up the bank. They were not long in finding two Indian villages,
which proved to be those of the "Pewa-rias" and "Moing-wenas." In
answer to a question proposed by Marquette, who addressed them in
Indian, and inquired who they were; they answered, "We are Illinois."
After an exchange of friendly greetings with these peaceable Indians,
the voyagers re-embarked and passed on down the river. They continued
on their downward passage until they reached the mouth of the
Missouri, which poured its turbid flood into the Mississippi; and
still further until they passed the mouth of the Ohio, and then on
down until they passed the Arkansas, and arrived within thirty miles
of the mouth of the Mississippi. It was not necessary to proceed any
further to satisfy the explorers that the river entered into the Gulf
of Mexico, instead of that of California.
Having accomplished the end of the expedition, the company started out
upon their return trip on the 17th of July. When they reached the
mouth of the Illinois river, they determined on returning by that
route to Mackinaw. Arriving at the portage of that river they fell in
with a tribe of Indians who called themselves the Kaskaskias, who
kindly volunteered to conduct them to Lake Michigan, where in due
time they arrived. After sailing along the western shore of the lake
they again found themselves at Green Bay, and were heartily welcomed
by the brethren at the mission of St. Francis Xavier. Worn down with
fatigue, Marquette determined to remain here to recruit his health
before returning to his missionary labors. He spent his time at this
mission post in copying his journal of the voyage down the Mississippi
and back, which he accompanied by a map of the river and country, and
sent by the Ottawa flotilla to his superiors at Montreal. The return
of this flotilla brought him orders for the establishment of a mission
among the Illinois, with whom he had so friendly an interview on his
exploring voyage. Having passed the winter and succeeding summer at
the St. Xavier mission, he started out in the fall for Kaskaskia. The
difficulties of the journey were such, it having to be accomplished by
land and water, that his health, which had been greatly enfeebled by
his former voyage, was not sufficient to enable him to endure the cold
winds of winter which had set in before the completion of the journey.
On reaching the Chicago River it was found closed, and he did not
consider it prudent to undertake an over-land journey. He therefore
resolved to winter at that point, and giving his Indian companions
who accompanied him the proper instructions and pious counsel, he sent
them back to Green Bay. Two Frenchmen made an arrangement to remain
with him during the winter. The nearest persons to their lodge were
fifty miles distant. They were French trappers and traders, one of
whom bore the title of a doctor. This latter person being informed of
Marquette's ill-health paid him a visit, and did what he could for his
relief. He also received friendly offices from the Indians in the
neighborhood, a party of whom proposed to carry him and all his
baggage to the contemplated mission at Kaskaskia. His health, however,
was such that it did not allow him to accept their kind offer, and he
was obliged to remain in his camp during the winter.
Spring at length returned after a long and dreary winter, and
Marquette, with some Indian companions, started out for the upper
waters of the Illinois River. In about two weeks he reached Kaskaskia,
and at once entered upon the duties of his mission. After having
instructed the Indians, so as to enable them to understand the objects
of his mission to them, he called them all together in the open
prairie, where he had erected a rude altar surmounted by the cross,
and adorned with pictures of the Virgin Mary. The chiefs and warriors,
and the whole tribe, were addressed by him in their native tongue. He
made a number of presents to them, the more effectually to gain their
affections and confidence, and then related to them the simple story
of the cross, after which he celebrated mass. The scene was truly
impressive, and the effect upon the sons of the forest was all that
the missionary could desire. Bright and cheering were the prospects of
converting the Kaskaskias to Christianity, but the devoted missionary
was doomed to disappointment. His former malady returned, and assumed
a type of so alarming a nature, that he was satisfied his labors on
earth would soon come to an end.
Thoughts of his beloved mission at Mackinaw, where he had spent so
many days in preaching to Ottawas and Hurons, and in teaching their
youth Christian science, filled his mind; and the Christian, not to
say natural, desire of his heart, was again to bow in the Chapel of
St. Ignatius, and again behold the parents and children of his former
charge. Having received the last rites of the church he set out to the
lake, accompanied by the Kaskaskias who sorrowed much at his
departure, but who were comforted by the dying missionary, who
assured them that another would soon be sent to take his place. When
they reached the shore of Lake Michigan the Indians returned, and with
his two French companions Marquette embarked in a canoe upon its
waters. As they coasted along the eastern shore of the lake the health
of Marquette continued to fail, and he at last became so weak that
when they landed to encamp for the night they had to lift him out of
the canoe. Much further they could not proceed, as the journey of life
with the missionary was rapidly drawing to a close.
Conscious of his approaching dissolution, as they were gently gliding
along the shore, he directed his companions to paddle into the mouth
of a small river which they were nearing, and pointing to an eminence
not far from the bank, he languidly said, "Bury me there." That river,
to this day, bears the name of the lamented Marquette. On landing they
erected a bark cabin, and stretched the dying missionary as
comfortably as they could beneath its humble roof. Having blessed some
water with the usual ceremonies of the Catholic Church, he gave his
companions directions how to proceed in his last moments. He
instructed them also in regard to the manner in which they were to
arrange his body when dead, and the ceremonies to be performed when
it was committed to the earth. He then, for the last time, heard the
confessions of his companions, encouraging them to rely on the mercy
and protection of God, and then sent them away to take the repose they
so much needed. After a few hours he felt that he was about taking his
last sleep, and calling them, he took his crucifix and placing it in
their hands, pronounced in a clear voice his profession of faith,
thanking the Almighty for the favor of permitting him to die a Jesuit
Missionary. Then calmly folding his arms upon his breast with the name
of Jesus on his lips, and his eyes raised to heaven, while over his
face beamed the radiance of immortality, he passed away to the land of
the blest.
In conformity with the directions of the deceased, in due time his
companions prepared the body for burial, and to the sound of his
Chapel bell bore it slowly and solemnly to the place designated, where
they committed it to the dust, and erected a rude cross to point out
to the passing traveler the place of his grave.
James Marquette was of a most ancient and honorable family of the city
of Laon, France. Born at the ancient seat of his family, in the year
1637, he was, through his pious mother, Rose de la Salle, allied to
the venerable John Baptist de la Salle, the founder of the institute
known as the Brothers of the Christian Schools. At the age of
seventeen he entered the Society of Jesus, and after two years of
study and self-examination had passed away, he was, as is usual with
the young Jesuits, employed in teaching, which position he held for
twelve years. No sooner had he been invested with the priesthood, than
his desire to become in all things an imitator of his chosen patron,
St. Francis Xavier, induced him to seek a mission in some land that
knew not God, that he might labor there to his latest breath, and die
unaided and alone. His desire was gratified. For nine years he labored
among the Indians, and was able to preach to them in ten different
languages; but he rests from his labors, and his works follow him. He
died, May 18, 1675.
The Indians of Mackinaw and vicinity, and also those of Kaskaskia,
were in great sorrow when the tidings of Marquette's death reached
them. Not long after this melancholy event, a large company of
Ojibwas, Ottawas, and Hurons, who had been out on a hunting
expedition, landed their canoes at the mouth of the Marquette river,
with the intention of removing his remains to Mackinaw. They had heard
of his desire to have his body interred in the consecrated ground of
St. Ignatius, and they had resolved that the dying wish of the
missionary should be fulfilled. As they stood around in silence and
gazed upon the cross that marked the place of his burial, the hearts
of the stern warriors were moved. The bones of the missionary were dug
up and placed in a neat box of bark made for the occasion, and the
numerous canoes which formed a large fleet started from the mouth of
the river with nothing but the sighs of the Indians, and the dip of
the paddles to break the silence of the scene. As they advanced
towards Mackinaw, the funeral cortege was met by a large number of
canoes bearing Ottawas, Hurons, and Iroquois, and still others shot
out ever and anon to join the fleet.
When they arrived in sight of the Point, and beheld the cross of St.
Ignatius as if painted against the northern sky, the missionaries in
charge came out to the beach clad in vestments adapted to the
occasion. How was the scene heightened when the priests commenced, as
the canoe bearing the remains of Marquette neared the shore, to chant
the requiem for the dead. The whole population was out, entirely
covering the beach, and as the procession marched up to the Chapel
with cross and prayer, and tapers burning, and laid the bark box
beneath a pall made in the form of a coffin, the sons and daughters
of the forest wept. After the funeral service was ended, the coffin
was placed in a vault in the middle of the church, where the Catholic
historian says, "Marquette reposes as the guardian angel of the Ottawa
missions."
"He was the first and last white man who ever had such an assembly of
the wild sons of the forest to attend him to his grave.
"So many stirring events succeeded each other after this
period--first, the war between the English Colonists, and the French;
then the Colonists with the Indians, the Revolutionary War, the Indian
Wars, and finally the War of 1812, with the death of all those who
witnessed his burial, including the Fathers who officiated at the
time, whose papers were lost, together with the total destruction and
evacuation of this mission station for many years, naturally
obliterated all recollections of the transaction, which accounts for
the total ignorance of the present inhabitants of Point St. Ignatius
respecting it. The locality of his grave is lost; but only until the
Archangel's trump, at the last, shall summon him from his narrow
grave, with those plumed and painted warriors who now lie around him."
The Missionaries who succeeded Marquette, at Mackinaw, continued
their labors until 1706, when, finding it useless to continue the
mission, or struggle any longer with superstition and vice, they
burned down their College and Chapel, and returned to Quebec. The
governor, alarmed at this step, at last promised to enforce the laws
against the dissolute French, and prevailed on Father Marest to
return. Soon after the Ottawas, discontented at Detroit, a French
post, which was served by the Recollects, and where the blood of a
Recollect had been shed in a riot, began to move back to Mackinaw, and
the mission was renewed. In 1721, Charlevoix visited this mission, and
this is the last we hear of it.
Nearly two hundred years have passed away since that event. The Chapel
of St. Ignatius has passed away, and with it the Chapel, and Fort, and
College at Old Mackinaw. Nothing is left but the stone walls and
stumps of the pickets which surrounded them, and which may be seen to
this day. To the Catholic, this consecrated spot, the site of one of
their first Chapels, and their first College in the great northwest,
must possess unusual interest. As there is a difference of opinion in
relation to the burial place of Marquette, whether it was on the north
or south side of the Straits, we give the following from
"Schoolcraft's Discovery of the Sources of the Mississippi." He says:
"They carried his body to the Mission of Old Mackinaw, of which he was
the founder, where it was interred. It is known that the Mission of
Mackinaw fell on the downfall of the Jesuits. When the post of
Mackinaw was removed from the peninsula to the island, which was about
1780, the bones of the Missionary were transferred to the old Catholic
burial ground, in the village on the island. There they remained till
a land or property question arose to agitate the Church, and when the
crisis happened the whole grave-yard was disturbed, and his bones,
with others, were transferred to the Indian village of La Crosse,
which is in the vicinity of L'Arbre Croche, Michigan."
There is a difference of opinion also as to the point from whence
Marquette and his companions started for the discovery of the
Mississippi. Schoolcraft says: "Wherever Missilimackinac is mentioned
in the Missionary letters, or in the history of this period, it is the
ancient Fort on the apex of the Michigan peninsula that is alluded
to." In his Introduction to the above work, he says, that "Father
Marquette, after laying the foundation of Missilimackinac, proceeded
in company with Sieur Joliet, up the Fox River of Green Bay, and
crossing the portage into the Wisconsin, entered the Mississippi in
1673."
It is an established fact, that Marquette organized the Mission at Old
Mackinaw, in the year 1671, subsequently to that at the opposite
point, and that he remained there until the year 1673, when he
embarked with Joliet on his exploring tour of the Mississippi.
Charlevoix places the Mission of St. Ignace, on the south side of the
Straits, adjoining the Fort, and has made no such designation on the
north side, showing at least that this mission was more modern than
the other. Nearly all the Jesuit Missions bore the name of St.
Ignatius, in honor of their founder, as those of the Franciscans bore
the name of St. Francis. Ignatius Loyola and Francis Xavier were the
founders of these sects.
CHAPTER IV.
La Salle's visit to Mackinaw -- English traders -- La
Hontan's visit -- Mackinaw an English fort -- Speech of a
Chippewa Chief -- Indian stratagem -- Massacre of the English
at the fort -- Escape of Mr. Alexander Henry -- Early white
settlement of Mackinaw -- Present description -- Relations of
the Jesuits -- Remarkable phenomena -- Parhelia --
Subterranean river.
In the summer of 1679 the Griffin, built by La Salle and his company
on the shore of Lake Erie, at the present site of the town of Erie,
passed up the St. Clair, sailed over the Huron, and entering the
Straits, found a safe harbor at Old Mackinaw. La Salle's expedition
passed eight or nine years at this place, and from hence they
penetrated the country in all directions. At the same time it
continued to be the summer resort of numerous Indian tribes who came
here to trade and engage in the wild sports and recreations peculiar
to the savage race. As a city of peace, it was regarded in the same
light that the ancient Hebrews regarded their cities of Refuge, and
among those who congregated here all animosities were forgotten. The
smoke of the calumet of peace always ascended, and the war cry never
as yet has been heard in its streets.
In Heriot's Travels, published in 1807, we find the following
interesting item:
'In 1671 Father Marquette came hither with a party of Hurons, whom he
prevailed on to form a settlement. A fort was constructed, and it
afterward became an important spot. It was the place of general
assemblage for all the French who went to traffic with the distant
nations. It was the asylum of all savages who came to exchange their
furs for merchandise. When individuals belonging to tribes at war with
each other came thither, and met on commercial adventure, their
animosities were suspended.'
Notwithstanding San-ge-man and his warriors had braved the dangers of
the Straits and had slain a hundred of their enemies whose residence
was here, yet it was not in the town that they were slain. No blood
was ever shed by Indian hands within its precincts up to this period,
and had it remained in possession of the French the terrible scenes
subsequently enacted within its streets would in all probability
never have occurred, and Old Mackinaw would have been a city of
Refuge to this day.
The English, excited by the emoluments derived from the fur trade,
desired to secure a share in this lucrative traffic of the
northwestern Lakes. They, accordingly, in the year 1686, fitted out an
expedition, and through the interposition of the Fox Indians, whose
friendship they secured by valuable presents; the expedition reached
Old Mackinaw, the "Queen of the Lakes," and found the El Dorado they
had so long desired.
The following interesting description, from Parkman's "History of the
Conspiracy of Pontiac," of a voyage by an English merchant to Old
Mackinaw about this time, will be in place here: "Passing the fort and
settlement of Detroit, he soon enters Lake St. Clair, which seems like
a broad basin filled to overflowing, while along its far distant verge
a faint line of forests separates the water from the sky. He crosses
the lake, and his voyagers next urge his canoe against the current of
the great river above. At length Lake Huron opens before him,
stretching its liquid expanse like an ocean to the furthest horizon.
His canoe skirts the eastern shore of Michigan, where the forest rises
like a wall from the water's edge, and as he advances onward, an
endless line of stiff and shaggy fir trees hung with long mosses,
fringe the shore with an aspect of desolation. Passing on his right
the extensive Island of Bois Blanc, he sees nearly in front the
beautiful Island of Mackinaw rising with its white cliffs and green
foliage from the broad breast of waters. He does not steer toward it,
for at that day the Indians were its only tenants, but keeps along the
main shore to the left, while his voyagers raise their song and
chorus. Doubling a point he sees before him the red flag of England
swelling lazily in the wind, and the palisades and wooden bastions of
Fort Mackinaw standing close upon the margin of the lake. On the beach
canoes are drawn up, and Canadians and Indians are idly lounging. A
little beyond the fort is a cluster of white Canadian houses roofed
with bark and protected by fences of strong round pickets. The trader
enters the gate and sees before him an extensive square area,
surrounded by high palisades. Numerous houses, barracks, and other
buildings form a smaller square within, and in the vacant place which
they enclose appear the red uniforms of British soldiers, the grey
coats of the Canadians, and the gaudy Indian blankets mingled in
picturesque confusion, while a multitude of squaws with children of
every hue stroll restlessly about the place. Such was old fort
Mackinaw in 1763."
La Hontan, who visited Mackinaw in 1688, says: "It is a place of great
importance. It is not above half a league distant from the Illinese
(Michigan) Lake. Here the Hurons and Ottawas have each of them a
village, the one being severed from the other by a single palisade,
but the Ottawas are beginning to build a fort upon a hill that stands
but one thousand or twelve hundred paces off. In this place the
Jesuits have a little house or college adjoining to a church, and
inclosed with pales that separate it from the village of the Hurons.
The Courriers de Bois have but a very small settlement here, at the
same time it is not inconsiderable, as being the staple of all the
goods that they truck with the south and west savages; for they cannot
avoid passing this way when they go to the seats of the Illinese and
the Oumamis on to the Bay des Puanto, and to the River Mississippi.
Missilimackinac is situated very advantageously, for the Iroquese dare
not venture with their sorry canoes to cross the stright of the
Illinese Lake, which is two leagues over; besides that the Lake of the
Hurons is too rough for such slender boats, and as they cannot come to
it by water, so they cannot approach it by land by reason of the
marshes, fens, and little rivers which it would be very difficult to
cross, not to mention that the stright of the Illinese Lake lies still
in their way."
As rivals of the French, the English were never regarded with favor by
the various Indian tribes. Constant encroachments by the English from
year to year, though they were lavish of their gifts did not tend to
soften the hostility of the tribes. Thus matters continued until
Mackinaw passed into the hands of the English, which event took place
after the fall of Quebec in the year 1759. This transfer of
jurisdiction from a people that the Indians loved to one that they
experienced a growing hate for during three-quarters of a century,
filled them with a spirit of revenge. Such was the dislike of the
Indians of Mackinaw to the English, that when Alexander Henry visited
that place in 1761, he was obliged to conceal the fact that he was an
Englishman and disguise himself as a Canadian voyager. On the way he
was frequently warned by the Indians to turn back, as he would not be
received at Mackinaw, and as there were no British soldiers there as
yet, he was assured that his visit would be attend with great hazard.
He still persisted, however, and finally, with his canoes laden with
goods he reached the fort, which, we have before remarked, was
surrounded with palisades, and occupied the high ground immediately
back from the beach. When he entered the village he met with a cold
reception, and the inhabitants did all in their power to alarm and
discourage him.
Soon after his arrival he received the very unpleasant intelligence,
that a large number of Chippewas were coming from the neighboring
villages in their canoes to call upon him. Under ordinary
circumstances this information would not have excited any alarm, but
as the French of Mackinaw as well as the Indians were alike hostile to
the English trader, it was no difficult matter to apprehend danger. At
length the Indians, about sixty in number, arrived, each with a
tomahawk in one hand and a scalping knife in the other. The garrison
at this time contained about ninety soldiers, a commander and two
officers. Beside the small arms, on the bastions were mounted two
small pieces of brass cannon. Beside Henry, there were four English
merchants at the fort. After the Indians were introduced to Henry and
his English brethren, their chief presented him with a few strings of
wampum and addressed them as follows:
"Englishmen, it is to you that I speak, and I demand your attention.
You know that the French King is our father. He promised to be such,
and we in turn promised to be his children. This promise we have kept.
It is you that have made war with this our father. You are his enemy,
and how then could you have the boldness to venture among us, his
children. You know that his enemies are ours. We are informed that our
father, the King of France, is old and infirm, and that being fatigued
with making war upon your nation, he has fallen asleep. During this
sleep you have taken advantage of him and possessed yourselves of
Canada. But his nap is almost at an end. I think I hear him already
stirring and inquiring for his children, and when he does awake what
must become of you? He will utterly destroy you. Although you have
conquered the French you have not conquered us. We are not your
slaves. These lakes, these woods and mountains are left to us by our
ancestors, they are our inheritance and we will part with them to
none. Your nation supposes that we, like the white people, cannot live
without bread, and pork, and beef, but you ought to know that He, the
Great Spirit and Master of Life, has provided food for us in these
spacious lakes and on these woody mountains.
"Our father, the King of France, employed our young men to make war
upon your nation. In this warfare many of them have been killed, and
it is our custom to retaliate until such time as the spirits of the
slain are satisfied. But the spirits of the slain are to be satisfied
in one of two ways; the first is by the spilling the blood of the
nation by which they fell, the other by covering the bodies of the
dead, and thus allaying the resentment of their relations. This is
done by making presents. Your king has never sent us any presents, nor
entered into any treaty with us, wherefore he and we are still at war,
and until he does these things we must consider that we have no other
father or friend among the white men than the King of France. But for
you, we have taken into consideration that you have ventured among us
in the expectation that we would not molest you. You do not come
around with the intention to make war. You come in peace to trade with
us, and supply us with necessaries, of which we are in much need. We
shall regard you, therefore, as a brother, and you may sleep
tranquilly without fear of the Chippewas. As a token of friendship we
present you with this pipe to smoke."
Henry was afterwards visited by a party of two hundred Ottawa warriors
from _L'Arbre Croche_, about seventy miles southwest of Mackinaw. One
of the Chiefs addressed him thus:--
"Englishmen: We, the Ottawas, were some time since informed of your
arrival in this country, and of your having brought with you the goods
we so much need. At this news we were greatly pleased, believing that,
through your assistance, our wives and children would be able to pass
another winter; but, what was our surprise, when a few days ago we
were informed the goods which we had expected were intended for us
were on the eve of departure for distant countries, some of which are
inhabited by our enemies. These accounts being spread, our wives and
children came to us crying, and desiring that we should go to the Fort
to learn with our ears the truth or falsehood. We accordingly
embarked, almost naked as you see, and on our arrival here we have
inquired into the accounts, and found them true. We see your canoes
ready to depart, and find your men engaged for the Mississippi and
other distant regions. Under these circumstances we have considered
the affair, and you are now sent for that you may hear our
determination, which is, that you shall give each of our men, young
and old, merchandise and ammunition to the amount of fifty beaver
skins on credit, and for which I have no doubt of their paying you in
the summer, on their return from their wintering."
The demands of the Indians upon the English, and their dissatisfaction
arising therefrom, had the effect to rouse the different tribes, and
they were noticed assembling from the surrounding country in great
numbers, and gathering in the vicinity of Mackinaw. One night four
hundred Indians lay around the Fort, evidently plotting mischief. A
Chippewa chief apprised Henry of the impending danger; but when the
suspicions were communicated to the Commandant of the Fort, Major
Etherington, he took no notice of it, supposing that the Indians only
resorted to this for the purpose of intimidation. The next day being
the King's birthday, the Indians proposed to celebrate it by a game of
_baggatiway_. It was played with bat and ball, and the contestants
were the Chippewas and Sacs. Major Etherington was present at the
game, and bet largely on the side of the Chippewas. In the midst of
the game, when all were in a high state of excitement, a warrior
struck the ball and sent it whizzing over the palisade into the Fort.
Instantly the Indian war yell was heard, and the savages rushed within
the gate, not however for the ball, but to tomahawk and scalp every
Englishman within the Fort. The French stood by as silent spectators
of the bloody scene, and were not attacked.
Henry witnessed the dreadful slaughter from his window, and being
unarmed he hastened out, and springing over a low fence which divided
his house from that of M. Langlade, the French Interpreter, entered
the latter, and requested some one to direct him to a place of safety.
Langlade hearing the request, replied that he could do nothing for
him. At that moment a slave belonging to Langlade, of the Pawnee tribe
of Indians, took him to a door which she opened, and informed him that
it led to the garret where he might conceal himself. She then locked
the door and took away the key. Through a hole in the wall Henry could
have a complete view of the Fort. He beheld the heaps of the slain,
and heard the savage yells, until the last victim was dispatched.
Having finished the work of death in the Fort, the Indians went out to
search the houses. Some Indians entered Langlade's house and asked if
there were any Englishmen concealed in it. He replied that he did not
know, they might search for themselves. At length they opened the
garret door and ascended the stairs, but Henry had concealed himself
among a heap of birch-bark vessels, which had been used in making
maple sugar, and thus escaped. Fatigued and exhausted, he lay down on
a mat and went to sleep, and while in this condition he was surprised
by the wife of Langlade, who remarked that the Indians had killed all
the English, but she hoped he might escape. Fearing, however, that she
would fall a prey to their vengeance if it was found that an
Englishman was concealed in her house, she at length revealed the
place of Henry's concealment, giving as a reason therefor, that if he
should be found her children would be destroyed. Unlocking the door,
she was followed by several Indians, who were led by Wenniway, a noted
chief. At sight of him the chief seized him with one hand, and
brandishing a large carving knife, was about to plunge it into his
heart, when he dropped his arm, saying, "I won't kill you. My brother,
Musinigon, was slain by the English, and you shall take his place and
be called after him." He was carried to L'Arbre Croche as a prisoner,
where he was rescued by a band of three hundred Ottawas, by whom he
was returned to Mackinaw, and finally ransomed by his Indian friend
Wawatam. At the capture of the place only one trader, M. Tracy, lost
his life. Captain Etherington was carried away by some Indians from
the scene of slaughter. Seventy of the English troops were slain. An
Englishman, by the name of Solomon, saved himself by hiding under a
heap of corn, and his boy was saved by creeping up a chimney, where he
remained two days. A number of canoes, filled with English traders,
arriving soon after the massacre, they were seized, and the traders,
dragged through the water, were beaten and marched by the Indians to
the prison lodge. After they had completed the work of destruction,
the Indians, about four hundred in number, entertaining apprehensions
that they would be attacked by the English, and the Indians who had
joined them, took refuge on the Island of Mackinac, Wawatam fearing
that Henry would be butchered by the savages in their drunken revels,
took him out to a cave, where he lay concealed for one night on a heap
of human bones. As the Fort was not destroyed, it was subsequently
reoccupied by British soldiers, and the removal to the Island did not
take place until about the year 1780.
Old Mackinaw, the theatre of so many thrilling scenes and tragic
incidents, has a history as a white settlement, reaching back to 1620,
the year of the landing of the Pilgrims at Plymouth. W. M. Johnson,
Esq., of Mackinac Island, in describing its history, says: "Mackinaw
City," for such has become the name of this wonderful point, "with
its coasts and the islands before it, has been the theatre of some of
the most exciting and interesting events in Indian history, previous
to the arrival of the 'white man.' It was the metropolis of a portion
of the Ojibwa and Ottawa nations. It was there that their Congresses
met, to adopt a policy which terminated in the conquest of the country
south of it; it was there that the tramping feet of thousands of
plumed and painted warriors shook Pe-quod-e-nonge--the Indian
name--while dancing their war dances, it was from thence that the
startling sound of the war yell of these thousands was wafted to the
adjacent coast and islands, making the peaceful welkin ring with their
unearthly shouts of victory or death.
"How remarkable, in reflecting upon the early and sound judgment of
the Indians in seizing upon the points commanding all the natural
avenues and passes of the Lakes, when it is considered that there
selections must necessarily have been the result of an intimate
knowledge with the geographical features of the country! This has been
yearly proved by the re-occupation of posts and places long neglected,
but the importance of which has become evident in proportion as we
have set a just value upon the Indian's judgment, with the natural
advantages of the country. Perhaps in no instance, is this more
strikingly exemplified than in Mackinaw City, the commanding position
of which, although always known to the Indians, Traders, and
Missionaries, and lately confirmed by Military Scientific Europeans;
_but as yet not perceived by our Government_. It is the only point
which can control the passage of the Straits of Mackinaw, and also the
Indians living in numerous villages south of the Straits. The Island
of Mackinac was merely occupied by the English to escape a second
massacre as in 1763; and which occupancy our Government has blindly
followed, believing it, as an evidence of English military skill and
judgment in the selection of commanding posts, while they at that
period did not make this selection with any reference to a future
hostile maritime power who might wish to pass, or force a passage
through the Straits.
[Illustration: Sugar Loaf--Mackinac.]
[Illustration: Mackinac Island. 1. Lover's Leap. 2. Harbor. 3.
Village. 4. Fort. 5. Signal. 6. Sugar Loaf. 7. Mission. 8. Robinson's
Folly.]
"The land rises gradually from the water at Mackinaw City, until it
reaches an elevation of seventy-five feet, from which beautiful and
picturesque views are obtained of the waters of the Straits, with the
numerous Islands sleeping on its bosom. The prospect from the City is
beautiful, beyond description--the Battery at New York can only be
compared to it, which is like it in its location. The visitor will
enjoy the view presented of the Islands, Points, and adjacent shores;
especially on a calm day, for the lake, and the green woods upon isle
and promontory, lie with a sleepy stillness before him, enhancing the
beauty of the prospect; and when the mind contemplates the events of
two hundred and fifty years ago, when thousands of the red sons of the
forest passed and repassed the site upon which he now stands, he will
appreciate more fully the rapid strides of civilization.
"Two hundred and fifty years ago, bark canoes only dotted the surface
of the Lake; this spell of quiet was then broken a few years afterward
by the boisterous Canadian _Voyageur_ with his songs, as he rowed or
paddled his _bateaux_ and large northwest canoe. Now, the roaring
noise of the wheels of steamers, the shrill whistle of the propeller,
and the whitening sails of hundreds of vessels have succeeded to the
past age of darkness and quiet. Civilization and commerce have broken
the charm which beautified Indian scenery in years forever gone by."
A work, published under the auspices of the Canadian Government, in
three large octavo volumes, French, entitled "Relations of the
Jesuits," containing the most remarkable events that transpired in
the missions of the Jesuits in New France, furnishes valuable
information of the missions in the Mackinaw region. Among the
remarkable phenomena which came under the observation of the Jesuit
Fathers in Mackinaw, was the appearance of a parhelion on the 21st of
January, 1671. This remarkable phenomenon occurred about two hours
before sunset. It presented the form of a great crescent with its
points turned toward the sun. At the same time two other suns
appeared, equidistant from it, partly covered by a cloud having all
the colors of the rainbow, very luminous and dazzling to the eye. The
Indians said it was a premonition of great cold, which followed soon
after. On the 16th March the same parhelion appeared, and was seen
from three different places more than fifty leagues apart. The
observer at the Mackinaw mission saw three suns distant some half
league from each other. They were seen twice the same day, one hour
before sunrise and one hour before sunset. In the morning they were on
the south side of the true sun, and in the evening on the west side.
That on the south side was so accurate that it was difficult to
distinguish it from the true sun, excepting that it was partly
surrounded by a scarlet band on the side toward the sun. That on the
other side had more the appearance of an oval iris than a sun,
nevertheless it was an image like those which painters adorn with
golden rays, giving it a very magnificent appearance.
The same parhelion was seen on the island of Manitou in Lake Huron,
and accompanied by a very remarkable appearance. Three suns appeared
in the west, parallel with the earth. They were equal in size, but not
in beauty. The true sun was west-by-southwest, and the false sun on
each side. At the same time were seen parts of two circles parallel to
the horizon, having the colors of the rainbow, beside a fourth part of
the circle perpendicular to the horizon, having nearly the same color,
touched the false sun, which was in the southwest, and cutting the
half circle parallel to the horizon, was mingled and lost in its rays.
The false suns disappeared from time to time, and even the true sun.
Finally, a fourth sun was seen placed in a right line. When the false
suns disappeared they left after them two rainbows, as beautiful as
their own light. The Indians, who attributed all these signs to the
Genii, and who believe that they are married, wanted to know of the
missionary if these were not the wives of the sun. At this question it
occurred to him that a favorable opportunity was presented for
explaining to them the mysteries of the Trinity. On the next day the
Indian women, who before would not come to hear prayers, came and
presented their children to be baptized.
At the Saut St. Mary, seven false suns appeared around the true sun.
The true sun was in the centre of a circle formed by the colors of the
rainbow. On either side were two false suns, and also one above and
one below. These four were placed on the circumference of the circle,
and at equal distances directly opposite from each other. Beside this,
another circle of the same color as the first, but much larger, rested
the upper part of its circumference in the centre of the true sun,
while below and on either side were the false suns. All these eight
luminaries made a grand spectacle.
Auroras, even in midsummer, are of frequent occurrence, and exhibit a
brilliancy and extent rarely observed in lower latitudes. The
phenomena which most frequently occur are the following: A dark cloud
tinged on the upper edge with a pale luminous haze, skirts the
northern horizon. From this streaks of orange and blue colored light
flash up, and often reach a point south of the zenith. They rapidly
increase and decrease, giving to the whole hemisphere the appearance
of luminous waves and occasionally forming perfect corona. They
commence shortly after sunset and continue during the night. The
voyagers regard them as the precursors of storms and gales, and our
own observations have confirmed the result. Occasionally broad belts
of light are seen spanning the whole arc of the heavens, of sufficient
brilliancy to enable one to read. In the winter these phenomena are
much more frequent, and the ground appears tinged with a crimson hue.
We find in these relations of the Jesuits other matters of equal
interest. The fathers of the missions in and around the Straits of
Mackinaw gave it as their opinion, that the waters of Lake Superior
entered into the Straits by a subterranean passage, and in support of
it, mention the wonderful fact that the current floats against the
wind, and notwithstanding it drives furiously in one direction,
vessels are enabled to sail in a contrary direction as rapidly as
though the wind were not blowing. In addition to this, they refer to
the constant boiling up of the waters. Without admitting this theory,
they affirmed that it was impossible to explain two things. The first
is, that without such subterranean passage it is impossible to tell
what becomes of the waters of Lake Superior. This vast lake has but
one visible outlet, namely, the river of the Saut, while it receives
into its bosom the waters of a large number of rivers, some twelve of
which are of greater dimensions than the Saut. What then, they ask,
becomes of all these waters if they do not find an issue through a
subterranean river. The second reason for their belief in this theory
is the impossibility to explain from whence come the waters of Lake
Huron and Lake Michigan? But very few rivers flow into these lakes,
and their size is such as to justify the belief that they must be
supplied through the subterranean river entering into the Straits.
CHAPTER V.
Island of the Giant Fairies -- Possession by the English --
Erection of Government house -- French remain at Old Mackinaw
-- Finally abandoned -- Extent of the Island -- History --
Description -- Natural curiosities -- Arch Rock -- Sugar Loaf
Rock -- Scull Rock -- Dousman's Farm -- Davenport's Farm --
Robinson's Folly -- The Devil's Punch Bowl -- Healthful
atmosphere -- Transparency of the waters -- Compared with
Saratoga, Cape May, and Mt. Washington as a point for health
and recreation -- Description of a traveler in 1854 --
Arrival of steamers and sailing vessels at the port during
the year -- Mr. Johnson's reminiscences -- Indian name of Island
-- Mythology -- Three brothers of the great Genii -- Visit to
the subterranean abode of the Genii -- Vision -- Apostrophe
of an old Indian Chief -- Old buildings -- Door of
Marquette's Chapel -- John Jacob Astor and the fur trade --
Present support of the place -- Fort Mackinaw -- Fort Holmes
-- Fine view -- Interesting localities -- War of 1812 --
Death of Major Holmes -- Soil of the Island.
The old fort having been deserted by the English, as we have noticed
in a previous chapter, and they having fled to the Island of Mackinaw,
which, in the Indian name, signifies Island of the giant fairies,
preparations were made for a settlement. Sir Wm. Johnston called a
grand council with those Indians who had been engaged in the massacre
at Old Mackinaw. By this council, which was held in 1764, the spring
following the siege, a way was opened for St. Clair to negotiate for
the island, and also for the grants previously made by the Indians to
the French for military purposes. The first thing done after the
island had been obtained was the erection of a government house. The
French and others who still remained at Old Mackinaw, amounting only
to about three hundred, continued a few years, when they finally left,
and everything was suffered to go into decay. A desolation reigned
over it for many years, and, on account of the bloody siege, that
point, which was the most attractive as well as the most important to
Indians, French, and English in all the Lake region was, as if by
common consent, abandoned.
[Illustration: Arch Rock.]
[Illustration: Rock Castle--Pictured Rocks.]
The "New Mackinaw," as it is called, distant seven miles from the Old,
is on an island about nine miles in circumference, and covers an area
of six thousand acres. Its extreme elevation above the lake is about
three hundred and twelve feet. The village and fortress are situated
on the southeastern extremity of the island, where there is a good
harbor protected by a water battery. The island remained in possession
of the British until 1793, when it was surrendered to the United
States. It was retaken in 1812, but restored again by the treaty of
Ghent, in 1814. It is situated in North lat. 45° 54', West lon. 84°
30' from Greenwich, being 7° 30' west from Washington. It is three
hundred and fifty miles north of Chicago and about three hundred miles
north from Detroit, and about two hundred and fifty miles west of
Collingswood, Canada. The fort stands on an elevated ground about two
hundred feet above the water. The town contains at present three
hotels, six boarding houses, eight dry-goods stores, and seven
groceries. Its public buildings are a Court House, Jail, Custom House,
Post Office, and Express Office. There are two Churches, the Roman
Catholic and Presbyterian.
The first thing we shall notice as a natural attraction on the island,
is what is called "The Arch Rock." This is a natural arch projecting
from the precipice on the northeastern side of the island, about a
mile from the fort, and elevated about one hundred and forty feet
above the level of the water. Its abutments are formed of calcareous
rock, and have been produced by the falling down of great masses of
rock, leaving a chasm of eighty or ninety feet in height, and covered
by the arch which spans it of fifty or sixty feet sweep. The scene
presented by cliff and chasm is one of wild grandeur. Like the Natural
Bridge of Virginia, it possesses an attraction to all fond of natural
curiosities, sufficient of itself to justify a visit to the northern
lakes. The view from the beach is particularly grand. Before you is a
magnificent arch suspended in mid air. Indian tradition says that this
wonderful arch was formed by the giant spirits who inhabited this
island. Geological tradition, however, indicates that it was formed by
the action of the waters, which were at a remote period much higher
than at the present time.
The next object which strikes the attention of the visitors is the
"Sugar Loaf Rock," a high, isolated, conical rock which, resting upon
the elevated plateau that forms the next highest point of the island
from that of Fort Holmes, exhibits a rise of some sixty to eighty
feet. This is but little less than the elevation of the ridge which
forms the crowning plan of the island, and upon which the dismantled
post of Fort Holmes is seen, being separated therefrom by a distance
not exceeding one hundred and fifty yards. By what violent throe of
nature it has become severed from the adjacent ridge, of which it no
doubt, formed a part, is matter of curious inquiry. Has nature done
this by gradual recession, or by the slow upheaval of the land? On
inspection, this rock is found cavernous, slightly crystalline, with
its strata distorted in every conceivable direction. In its crevices
grow a few cedars and vines. As the visitor approaches it by the road
side its effect is grand and imposing; still more so, perhaps, when
beheld from the top of the ridge, where its isolated position with its
bold form, breaking the outline of the island, strikes the beholder
with wonder and admiration.
Robinson's Folly is a high bluff, northeast from the village of
Mackinaw, half a mile from the mission house. Soon after the
settlement of the modern Mackinaw, Capt. Robinson, of the English
army, then commanding this port, had a summer house built on the brow
of this bluff, now called Robinson's Folly, for the purpose of
enjoying the prospect from that cool and elevated spot. Often he and
his brother officers resorted there during the summer days, to while
away lonely and tedious hours. Pipes, cigars, and wine, were brought
into requisition. No Englishman at that period was without them; in
fact, no hospitality or entertainment was complete without them. They
were indeed isolated; the nearest white settlements being then
Detroit, Green Bay, Saut St. Mary, and Chicago. Communications with
these places were not frequent.
A few years after, from the action of the elements, the brow of the
bluff, where Robinson's Folly stood, was precipitated to the base of
the rock, where the fragments can now be seen, which disastrous event
gave rise to its name.
The "Scull Rock," half a mile or three quarters northwest from the
rear of Fort Mackinaw, is chiefly noted for a cavern, which appears to
have been a receptacle for human bones, many of which were still to be
observed about its mouth a few years ago. The entrance is low and
narrow, and seems to promise little to reward the labors of
exploration. It is here probably that Alexander Henry was secreted by
the chief Wawatam after the horrid massacre of the British garrison at
Old Mackinaw.
Chimney Rock well repays the trouble of a visit, with the other points
of interest on the island.
Dousman's Farm, two miles west from the Village of Mackinaw, consists
of a section of land; the road to the English or British landing
passes through it, also to Scott's or Flinn's Cave, which is on the
northwestern portion of the farm. There are three springs of cold
delicious water on this farm, two of them are shaded by beech and
maple trees. This farm yields yearly from eighty to one hundred tons
of hay, besides a large quantity of potatoes and other farm produce.
Davenport's Farm, about one and a half miles from the village, is
situated on the southwestern portion of the Island. At the base of the
bluff, on the south part of this farm, is the Devil's Caves, and near
them is a beautiful spring of clear cold water, shaded by evergreens
and other trees. Half way up the bluff, which is nearly, if not fully,
three hundred feet high at this point; stands out, detached from the
limestone, an isolated rock, in appearance similar to the Sugar Loaf
Rock, which some persons have called the Lover's Leap; it is worth the
trouble of a visit, which a few minutes walk from the village
accomplishes. There are several points called Lover's Leap, so called
by romantic visitors, within the last few years. A gentleman from
Chicago, has purchased this farm, and report says that several
summer-houses are to be built upon it, which will enhance the beauty
of this locality.
Wm. M. Johnston Esq., furnishes the following tradition of Lover's
Leap:
"The huge rock called the 'Lover's Leap' is situated about one mile
west of the village of Mackinaw. It is a high perpendicular bluff, one
hundred and fifty to two hundred feet in height, rising boldly from
the shore of the lake. A solitary pine tree formerly stood upon its
brow, which some Vandal has cut down.
"Long before the pale faces profaned this island home of the Genii, a
young Ojibwa girl, just maturing into womanhood, often wandered there,
and gazed from its dizzy heights and witnessed the receding canoes of
the large war parties of the combined bands of the Ojibwas and Ottawas
speeding south, seeking for fame and scalps.
"It was there she often sat, mused and hummed the songs Ge-niw-e-gwon
loved; this spot was endeared to her, for it was there that she and
Ge-niw-e-gwon first met and exchanged words of love, and found an
affinity of souls existing between them. It was there she often sat
and sang the Ojibwa love song--
'Mong-e-do-gwain, in-de-nain-dum,
Mong-e-do-gwain, in-de-nain-dum,
Wain-shung-ish-ween, neen-e-mo-shane,
Wain-shung-ish-ween, neen-e-mo-shane,
A-nee-wau-wau-sau-bo-a-zode,
A-nee-wau-wau-sau-bo-a-zode.'
I give but one verse, which may be translated as follows:
A loon, I thought was looming,
A loon, I thought was looming:
Why! it is he, my lover,
Why! it is he, my lover;
His paddle, in the waters gleaming,
His paddle in the waters gleaming.
"From this bluff she often watched and listened for the return of the
war parties, for amongst them she knew was Ge-niw-e-gwon; his head
decorated with war-eagle plumes, which none but a brave could sport.
The west wind often wafted far in advance the shouts of victory and
death, as they shouted and sang upon leaving Pe-quod-e-nong (Old
Mackinaw), to make the traverse to the Spirit, or Fairiy Island.
"One season, when the war party returned, she could not distinguish
his familiar and loving war shout. Her spirit, told her that he had
gone to the Spirit-Land of the west. It was so: an enemy's arrow had
pierced his breast, and after his body was placed leaning against a
tree, his face fronting his enemies, he died; but ere he died he
wished the mourning warriors to remember him to the sweet maid of his
heart. Thus he died far away from home and the friends he loved.
"Me-she-ne-mock-e-nung-o-qua's heart hushed its beatings, and all the
warm emotions of that heart, were chilled and dead. The moving, living
spirit of her beloved Ge-niw-e-gwon, she witnessed continually
beckoning her to follow him to the happy hunting grounds of spirits in
the west--he appeared to her in human shape, but was invisible to
others of his tribe.
"One morning her body was found mangled at the foot of the bluff. The
soul had thrown aside its covering of earth, and had gone to join the
spirit of her beloved Ge-niw-e-gwon, to travel together to the land of
spirits."
Another point of interest and curiosity is the Devil's Punch Bowl,
situated south from the gateway, as you enter the farm of the late J.
Dousman, Esq.
This Island which rises like a gem on the brow of the lakes, is
favored by the clearest and most healthful atmosphere, and washed by
the purest and most transparent water in the world, imparting the most
pleasurable sensations imaginable. When this enchanting region shall
become fully known, Saratoga, Cape May, and Mount Washington will be
forgotten by those who fly from the heat and dust of our inland
cities, to breathe a pure air and drink health-giving waters.
A traveler in 1854, thus describes this interesting locality,
"Everything on the island is a curiosity, the roads or streets that
wind around the harbor or among the grove-like forests of the island,
are naturally pebbled and macadamized, the buildings are of every
style, from an Indian lodge to an English house, the island is covered
with charming natural scenery, from the beautiful to the grand, and
one may spend weeks constantly finding new objects of interest, and
new scenes of beauty. The steamers all call here on their way to and
from Chicago, and hundreds of small sail vessels in the fishing trade
have here their head quarters. Drawn upon the pebbled beach, or
gliding about the bay, are bark canoes, and the far-famed Mackinaw
boats, without number. These last are the perfection of light sail
boats, and I have often been astonished at seeing them far out in the
lake, beating up against winds that were next to gales."
We are indebted to Mr. Johnston for the following official list,
giving the number of sail vessels and steamers that have passed
through the Straits of Mackinaw during the _day time_, as reported to
the Revenue department, for six months, ending September 30th, 1859.
Barques. Brigs. Schr's. Steamers.
April, 14 9 101 47
May, 9 11 177 82
June, 15 13 221 194
Next 3 mon's 98 61 764 353
--- --- --- ---
136 94 1263 586
Total, 2079.
It would be a pretty correct estimate to add at least one-third more
of the total number for those that passed during the night,--which
would be a very low estimate of the shipping passing through our
straits.
But few of the vessels passing through the straits leave the main
channel, and go to the island some miles out of the way.
The lake traffic has of late years become perfectly enormous, the
increase of the western navigation being unprecedented. For example,
three thousand and sixty-five steamers passed up from Lake Erie to
Lakes Huron and Superior, by Detroit, in 1859, and three thousand one
hundred and twenty-one passed down. The greatest number up in a single
day was eighty-five--down seventy-three. Detroit statistics show that
five steamers, five propellers, four barques, seven brigs, and
eighty-five schooners have been more or less engaged in the Lake
Superior trade during the past season. Forty vessels left during the
season for European and seaboard ports, some of which have returned,
and one has taken her second departure. Navigation at Detroit opened
March 14th, and closed December 15th.
William Johnston, Esq., who has long resided on the island, says: 'The
Indians, from the earliest times, have always regarded the Island of
Mackinaw with veneration. The Indian name is 'Moc-che-ne-mock-e-nug-gonge,'
which, as before stated, signifies Island of Great or Giant Fairies.
"Indian mythology relates that three brothers of great or giant
Fairies, occupied different Islands in this section of the country.
The eldest occupied the Island Missilimackinac, the second lived on
the Island Tim-au Rin-ange-onge, in Lake Michigan, now called
Pottawattime Island, the youngest inhabited an Island called
Pe-quoge-me-nis, in Lake Huron. The heathen Indians, to this day, look
upon them with awe and veneration, and in passing to and fro, by their
shores, still offer to the Great Spirits tobacco and other offerings,
to propitiate their goodwill. The stories they relate of these Great
Fairies, are very interesting and worthy of record.
"The present southern gate of Fort Mackinac overlooks the spot, where
in olden times a door existed, to the entrance of the subterraneous
abode of these Giant Fairies. An Indian Chees-a-kee, or spiritualist,
who once encamped within the limits of the present garrison, related,
that some time during the night, after he had fallen asleep, a fairy
touched him and beckoned him to follow. He obeyed and his spirit went
with the fairy; they entered the subterraneous abode, through an
opening beneath the present gate near the base of the hill. He there
witnessed the giant spirits in solemn conclave in what appeared to be
a large beautiful wigwam. After being there some time, lost in wonder
and admiration, the chief spirit directed one of the lesser ones, to
show the Indian spirit out and conduct him back to his body. This
Indian could never be induced to divulge the particulars of what he
witnessed in his mysterious visit.
"An old Indian chief upon leaving this island, to visit his friends in
Lake Superior, thus soliloquized, as he sat on the deck of McKnight's
splendid steamer, the Illinois, while the darkness began dimly to
shadow forth the deep blue outlines of the island:
"'Moc-che-ne-mock-e-nug-gonge, thou Isle of the clear, deep-water
Lake, how, soothing it is from amidst the curling smoke of my opawgun
(pipe), to trace thy deep blue outlines in the distance; to call from
memory's tablets the traditions and stories connected with thy sacred
and mystic character, how sacred the regard, with which thou hast been
once clothed by our Indian seers of gone-by days; how pleasant in
imagination for the mind to picture and view, as if now present, the
time when the Great Spirit allowed a peaceful stillness to dwell
around thee, when only light and balmy winds were permitted to pass
over thee, hardly ruffling the mirror surface of the waters that
surrounded thee. Nothing then disturbed thy quiet and deep solitude,
but the chippering of birds, and the rustling of the leaves of the
silver-barked birch; or to hear, by evening twilight the sound of the
giant Fairies as they with rapid step, and giddy whirl, dance their
mystic dance on thy lime-stone battlements.'
"Several old buildings are now standing, the frames of which were
brought from old Mackinaw in the year 1764, which gives an odd and
venerable appearance to the village. Mr. Schoolcraft had the door of
Marquette's Chapel pointed out to him, which had been brought over
from Mackinaw, and hung to one of the edifices of the town.
"The village formerly received its greatest support from the fur
trade, when in the hands of the late John Jacob Astor, Esq., being, at
that time, the outfitting and furnishing place for the Indian trade.
His outfits extended then to the head waters of the Mississippi, on
the northwest, south to Chicago, southwest by the way of Green Bay, to
the Mississippi, and Missouri Rivers, in fact his business was carried
on throughout all the then northwest Indian country. This trade became
extinct in 1834, when Mr. Astor sold out to Ramsey Crooks, Esq., of
New York, and others, but it lacked the energy and controlling
influence which had been characteristic of Mr. Astor's business, and
after languishing a few years, the new company became involved and
their outposts were discontinued.
"The place since then has been mostly supported from the fisheries,
which are excellent and extensive. It is estimated that twenty
thousand barrels of white fish and trout are exported from this
country alone annually, estimated worth, at this point, about one
hundred and fifty thousand dollars. A material support is also derived
from the immense amount of trade.
"The population is fluctuating, owing to the influx of strangers
seeking health, traders, and Indians; but the permanent inhabitants of
the village are about one thousand and fourteen, as per census of
1854.
"Fort Mackinac stands on a rocky eminence immediately above the town,
and is at present garrisoned by a company of United States troops: a
chaplain (Episcopalian) is attached to the garrison, and services are
held there every Sabbath. Fort Holmes occupies the highest bluff of
the island, and is not at present occupied: this fortress was erected
by the English, while they held possession of the island, during the
last war, and by them named Fort George. But after the surrender of
the island in 1814, the name was altered in compliment to the memory
of Major Holmes of the United States Army, who fell in the unfortunate
attack upon the island by Col. Croghan. The gallant Holmes was killed
a little below the rise of ground, as you descend toward the Dousman
farm-house, on your way to the British landing. On Fort Holmes is a
triangular station for the government engineers, who have been at work
some years in the straits.
"Visitors mounting the station on a still clear day, have a view of
this island, the straits with its curves, islands and points, and the
adjacent shores, which well repays them, especially on a calm day, for
the lake and green woods lie in stillness before them, taking the mind
for hundreds of years back, to the time when thousands of warriors
occupied the prominent points brought within view.
"Off to the northwest, some four or five miles, lies the mixed
Canadian and Indian settlement of Point St. Ignace and Moran Bay, with
a few farms, which give a more agreeable view to the otherwise
sameness of wood and water. There the Indians, called the
Au-se-gum-ugs, lived until driven away by the Ojibwas and Ottawas, as
they extended their conquests south and west. There also the Iroquois
were permitted to locate and live before the French reached and
settled on the St. Lawrence, there some of the Iroquois were massacred
and driven off by the Ojibwas and Ottawas. North of this can be seen
the outlines of the bluff called "Rabbit Sitting," northeasterly the
St. Martin Islands, the entrance of the Chenoux, and the dividing
ridge between this and the Saut St. Mary. On the northeast can be seen
the Detour, and to the south, Bois Blanc Light-House, and the
Cheboy-e-gun; and on the west the Straits of Lake Michigan, with
Waugoohance Point and Light-House.
"To the northwest of the ridge, where the woods slope by a gradual
descent to the shores of the Island, is the place at which the English
in the last war (1812), from six to eight hundred strong, composed of
a few English, Canadians, the majority being Indians, landed at night,
and having secured Michael Dousman's cattle, at his farm adjoining the
landing, and succeeded during the night in reaching the hollow, which
may be seen on the way from Fort Mackinac to Fort Holmes, a little
northwest of the present parade-ground, or nearly opposite the
northwest rear gate of the present fort, with their cannon, which by
daylight, was placed in battery on the knoll south of the hollow
before alluded to, which by its position completely commanded the
western gate and the garrison itself, took their station.
"At dawn the citizens of the village were roused, and told to flee to
a place called the Distillery, west of the present village, as the
English troops were about to attack the American fort, and that the
English commanding officer had pledged his word for the safety of the
lives of those citizens who would flee to the place designated. This
was the first intimation the citizens had of war being declared
between the United States and Great Britain. Soon a cannon shot was
fired over the fort, its booming being also the first intimation the
American garrison had of the country being in a state of war. An
English officer appeared with a flag to summon the garrison to
surrender, stating the overwhelming force they had in command. The
American garrison, being short of one full company of men, was
surrendered, and the few troops taken and sent to Detroit on parole.
After this the English built and occupied Fort George, (now called
Fort Holmes) between the years 1812 and 1814. The English government
paid ten thousand pounds as prize-money to the volunteers and
soldiers, and merchandise and arms to the Indians. In the year 1836 I
examined the list or pay-roll for this prize-money; the names of all
those who participated in the taking of Fort Mackinac were there
enrolled, the money was divided according to rank, and each person
receipted for his individual share.
"It is worth knowing, that by the treaty of Paris, of 1783,
acknowledging the independence of the United States, and fixing its
boundaries, Fort Mackinac fell under the jurisdiction of the United
States, and was surrendered, according to McKenzie, in 1794. In 1812
it was taken, as before stated, by the English and their Indian
allies. It resisted an attack from a strong detachment of the American
army and navy in 1814, under Col. Croghan, and was finally restored to
the United States by the treaty of Ghent.
"In 1814 Col. Croghan landed at the English Landing, under cover of
the guns of the American vessels. The troops moved from the landing,
and had reached Mr. M. Dousman's farm-house. The skirmishing with
the English and Indians had already commenced. East from the house is
a ridge over which the road lay. On this ridge and back of it, also on
each side of the road, the English were posted in force. The gallant
Major Holmes, on reaching the clearing near the house, formed his men
for a charge upon the enemy posted on the ridge. To encourage his
troops he led the charge. The English and Indians, seeing the strong
force, had commenced retreating, when an English sergeant thought he
might as well discharge the cannon before retreating with his
comrades, so accordingly applied the match. At this instant, Major
Holmes was either killed by a grape shot, or by an accidental musket
ball. His death threw the Americans into a panic, and they immediately
commenced a retreat, which ended in confusion.
"When the fleet first appeared before the island, there was only one
company of troops in the fort--had Col. Croghan then summoned it to
surrender, it would have been given up; but he sailed away, went and
burnt the trading-houses at Old St. Joseph's Island, and from thence
sent an expedition to the Saut St. Mary, under Major Holmes, who
burned the North West Fur Company Houses on the Canada side, and
carried away all the personal property of individuals on the American
side. Thus ten or twenty days were lost. In the mean time, the Indians
had come to the defense of Fort Mackinac, and, on the second
appearance of Col. Croghan, they were prepared, and our troops
shamefully defeated.
"This island, although the bluffs present the appearance of sterility,
is covered with a strong soil, which is continually renovated by the
spontaneous decomposition of calcareous rock. The common growth of
trees on the island are the sugar-maple, beech, birch, white and
yellow pine, white and red spruce, balsam fir, white cedar, iron wood,
and the poplar; the trees now seen are the second and third growth. On
the northwestern part of Mr. Dousman's farm, a few of the old
patriarchs of the forest are still standing."
CHAPTER VI.
Lake Superior -- Scenery -- Transparency of its waters --
Climate -- Isle Royale -- Apostles' Islands -- La Point --
Thunder Cape -- Cariboo Point -- A wonderful lake -- Romantic
scenery -- Pictured Rocks -- Rock Castle -- The Grand Portal
-- The Chapel -- Fluctuations in the waters of Lake Superior
-- Curious phenomena -- Retrocession of the waters -- Mirage
-- Iron mountains and mines -- Description of -- Products --
Shipments -- Copper -- Immense boulders -- Produce of the
mines for 1857 -- Shipment of copper from the Lake for 1858
-- Centre of the mining country -- Iron Mountains -- Copper
mines of Great Britain -- Coal -- Mackinaw, a great
manufacturing point -- Key to the Upper Lakes -- Commerce of
Lakes -- Growth of cities.
Lake Superior, though it possesses not all the vastness of the ocean,
is yet equal in sublimity. In gazing upon its surface, whether spread
out like a vast mirror reflecting the varying tints of the sky, or
ruffled by gently curling waves, or lashed into fury by the tempest,
one is impressed with the idea of the Infinite. It is known to be the
largest body of fresh water on the globe, being nearly four hundred
miles long from east to west, and one hundred and thirty wide. It is
the grand reservoir from whence proceed the waters of Michigan, Huron,
and Erie. It gives birth to Niagara, the wonder of the world, fills
the basin of Ontario, and rolls a mighty flood down the St. Lawrence
to the Atlantic.
This lake lies in the bosom of a mountainous region, where the Indian
yet reigns and roams in his wonted freedom. Except an occasional
picketed fort or trading house, it is yet a perfect wilderness. The
entire country is rocky and covered with a stunted growth of
vegetation such as is usual in high latitudes. The waters of this lake
are marvelously clear, and, even at midsummer, are exceedingly cold.
Mr. Charles Lanman, who has written a most admirable book, entitled
"Summer in the Wilderness," says, "In passing along its rocky shores,
in my frail canoe, I have often been alarmed at the sight of a sunken
boulder, which I fancied must be near the top, and on further
investigation have found myself to be upward of twenty feet from the
danger of a concussion. I have frequently lowered a white rag to the
depth of one hundred feet and been able to discern its every fold or
stain. The color of the water near the shore is a deep green; but off
soundings it has all the dark blue of the ocean."
Speaking of the climate, he says: "In midsummer it is beyond compare,
the air is soft and bracing at the same time. A healthier region does
not exist on the earth, an assertion corroborated by the fact, that
the inhabitants usually live to an advanced age, notwithstanding the
many hardships. The common diseases of mankind are here comparatively
unknown, and I have never seen an individual whose breast did not
swell with a new emotion of delight as he inhaled the air of this
northern wilderness."
The largest island in Lake Superior is Isle Royale. It is forty miles
in length and from six to ten miles in width. Its hills reach an
altitude of four hundred feet. During the winter season it is entirely
uninhabited, but in the summer it is frequently visited, particularly
by copper speculators. Near the western extremity of the lake are the
Apostles' Islands, which are detachments of a peninsula running out in
the same direction with Keweenaw, which is known as La Point. The
group consist of three islands, which rise like gems from the water.
There is a dreamy summer about them which make them enticing as the
Hesperides of the ancients.
The two most prominent peninsulas are Thunder Cape and Cariboo Point.
Thunder Cape is about fourteen hundred feet high. It looms up against
the sky in grandeur, and is a most romantic spot. Cariboo Point is
less lofty and grand in its appearance, but is celebrated for its
unknown hieroglyphics painted upon its summits by a race which has
long since passed away. In the vicinity of the bluff are found the
most beautiful agates in the world.
In the northeastern part of the lake is an island situated about
twenty miles from the Canadian shore, which has a wonderful lake in
its centre, about one mile in length. It is as beautiful as it is
wonderful. It is imbosomed in the fastnesses of perpendicular cliffs,
which rise to a height of seven hundred feet. It has but one outlet
and is impassable even to a canoe. At the opening of this narrow chasm
stands a column of solid rock which has a base of about one hundred
feet in diameter. The column rises, gradually tapering until it
reaches a height of eight hundred feet. A solitary pine surmounts the
summit of this wonderful column. There it stands like the sentinel of
this calm, deep lake, whose silence and solitude are rarely ever
broken, and whose tranquil bosom has never been ruffled by the
slightest breeze.
[Illustration: Rock Chapel.]
[Illustration: The Castles.]
The scenery on the shores of Lake Superior is in some places of the
most romantic character. About one hundred miles west of Saut St.
Mary, a range of cliffs are to be seen, what has been called the
"Pictured Rocks." They are a series of sandstone bluffs extending
along the shore of the lake for about five miles, and rising, in most
places vertically from the water, from fifty to two hundred feet in
height. These towering cliffs have been worn away by the action of the
lake, which for centuries has dashed an ocean-like surf against their
base. The surface of these rocks has been, in large portions,
strangely colored by bands of brilliant hues, which present to the eye
of the voyager a singularly pleasing appearance. One of these cliffs
resembles so much the turreted entrance and arched portal of some old
feudal castle that it has been called "Rock Castle." Beyond this is
another architectural curiosity, denominated "The Grand Portal," which
consists of an arched opening in the rocks. The cliff is composed of a
vast mass, of a rectilinear shape, projecting out into the lake six
hundred feet, and presenting a front of three hundred feet, and rising
to a height of two hundred feet. An entrance has been excavated from
one side to the other, opening out into large vaulted passages which
communicate with the great dome, some three hundred feet from the
front of the cliff. The Grand Portal, which opens out on the lake, is
of magnificent dimensions, being one hundred feet high, and one
hundred and sixty-eight feet wide at the water level. The distance
from the verge of the cliff, over the arch to the water, is one
hundred and thirty-three feet, leaving three feet for the thickness of
the rock above the arch itself. The extreme height of the cliff is
about fifty feet more, making in all one hundred and eighty-three
feet. It is impossible, adequately, to describe this wonderful scene.
The vast dimensions of the cavern, the vaulted passages, the rare
combination of colors, the varied effects of the light as it streams
through the great arch and falls on the different objects; the deep,
emerald green of the water, the unvarying swell of the lake, keeping
up a succession of musical echoes; the reverberation of one's voice
coming back with startling effect, must all be seen and heard to be
fully appreciated.
Not far from this point is "The chapel" of the voyagers which nature
has cut out of the cliff thirty or forty feet above the lake. The
interior consists of a spacious vaulted apartment. An arched roof from
ten to twenty feet in thickness rests on four gigantic columns of
rock. These columns consist of finely stratified rock, and have been
worn into curious shapes. At the base of one of these pillars an
arched cavity or niche has been cut, access to which is had by a
flight of steps formed by the projecting strata. The arrangement of
the whole resembles very much the pulpit of a church, while the arched
canopy in front, opening out to the voluted interior, with a flat
tabular mass rising to a convenient height for a desk, and an isolated
block resembling an altar, all fashioned as appropriately as if formed
by the hand of man, constantly impresses one that he is within the
walls of a church.
In the Geological Report, made by Foster and Whitney, to Congress, we
find the following remark: "It is a matter of surprise, that so far as
we know, none of our artists, have visited this region, and given to
the world representations of scenery, so striking and so different
from any which can be found elsewhere. We can hardly conceive of any
thing more worthy of the artist's pencil, and if the tide of
pleasure-travel should once be turned in this direction, it seems not
unreasonable to suppose, that a fashionable hotel may yet be built
under the shade of the pine groves near the chapel, and a trip thither
become as common as one to Niagara now is."
Beyond the grand portal, the rock, being less exposed to the force of
the waves, bears fewer marks of their destructive action. The entrance
to Chapel river is at the most easterly extremity of a sandy beach,
which extends for a quarter of a mile, and affords a convenient
landing place, while the drift terrace elevated about thirty feet
above the level of the lake, being an open pine plain, affords
excellent camping ground, and is the most central and convenient spot
for the traveler to pitch his tent, while he examines the most
interesting localities in the series which occur in the vicinity,
particularly the Castle and the Chapel.
One who had resided upon the shores of Lake Superior for several
summers says, "Our attention has been directed to the fluctuations in
the level of its waters, and while we have failed to detect any ebb
and flow corresponding with the tidal action, we have on the other
hand noticed certain extraordinary swells, which appear to be
independent of the action of the sun and moon." The Jesuit Fathers in
1670-1, had their attention called to these extraordinary swells. In
their "Relations," they say, "We found at one time the motion of the
waters to be regular and at others extremely fluctuating. We have
noticed however, that at full moon and new moon, the tides change once
a day for eight or ten days, while during the remainder of the time
there is hardly any change perceptible. The currents set almost
invariably in one direction, namely toward Lake Michigan, and they
almost invariably set against the wind, sometimes with great force."
Mackenzie who wrote in 1789, relates a very curious phenomenon, which
occurred at Grand Portage, on Lake Superior, and for which no obvious
cause could be assigned. He says, "the water withdrew, leaving the
ground dry, which had never before been visible, the fall being equal
to four perpendicular feet, and rushing back with great velocity above
the common mark. It continued thus rising and falling for several
hours, gradually increasing until it stopped at its usual height."
Professor Mather, who observed the barometer at Copper Harbor during
the prevalence of one of these fluctuations, remarks, "As a general
thing, fluctuations in the barometer accompanied the fluctuations in
the level of the water, but sometimes the water level varied rapidly
in the harbor, while no such variations occurred in the barometer at
the place of observation. The variations in the level of the water may
be caused by varied barometric pressure of the air on the water,
either at the place of observation or at some distant points. A local
increased pressure of the atmosphere at the place of observation would
lower the water level, where there is a wide expanse of water; or a
diminished pressure, under the same circumstances, would cause the
water to rise above its usual level."
In the summer of 1834, according to the report of Foster and Whitney,
made to Congress, in 1850, an extraordinary retrocession of the waters
took place at Saut St. Mary. The river here is nearly a mile in width,
and the depth of the water over the sandstone rapids is about two and
a half feet. The phenomenon occurred at noon. The day was calm but
cloudy; the water retired suddenly, leaving the bed of the river bare,
except for the distance of about twenty rods where the channel is
deepest, and remained so for the space of an hour. Persons went out
and caught fish in the pools formed in the rocky cavities. The return
of the waters was sudden and presented a sublime spectacle. They came
down like an immense surge, roaring and foaming, and those who had
incautiously wandered into the river bed, had barely time to escape
being overwhelmed. A similar event occurred in 1842, when the current
set back from the rapids, and the water rose upward of two feet above
the usual mark.
In 1845, Foster and Whitney, while coasting in an open boat between
Copper Harbor and Eagle River, observed the water rise up, at a
distance of a fourth of a mile to the northwest, to the height of
twenty feet. It curled over like an immense surge, crested with foam
and swept toward the shore. It was succeeded by two or three swells of
less magnitude, when the lake resumed its former tranquillity. At the
same time the mirage was beautifully displayed, and imaginary islands
were seen along the horizon. In 1849, they witnessed at Rock Harbor,
Isle Royale, the ebbing and flowing of the water, recurring at
intervals of fifteen or twenty minutes, during the entire afternoon.
The difference between the temperature of the air and the lake, gives
rise to a variety of optical illusions known as _mirage_. Mountains
are seen with inverted cones, headlands project from the shore where
none exist. Islands clothed with verdure or girt with cliffs rise up
from the bosom of the lake. On approaching Keweenaw Point, Mount
Houghton is the first object to greet the eye of the mariner. In
peculiar stages of the atmosphere, its summit is seen inverted in the
sky long before the mountain itself is visible. On the north shore the
Paps, two elevated mountains near the entrance of Neepigon Bay, at one
time appear like hour glasses, and at another like craters, emitting
long columns of smoke, which gradually settles around their cones.
The mines and minerals of the northwest constitute the most striking
feature of the country, and at the present time one of the great
sources of its wealth.
The centre of the mining country is called the Superior country, or
the northern peninsula of Michigan, but there is no reason to believe
it is confined to this region. Coal and iron, the most valuable of all
minerals are found in various places in the northwest. The principal
and most valuable minerals found west of Mackinaw, are iron, copper,
and lead. A general view of the mineral region may be found in Owen's
Geological Survey of Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Superior. Great
beds of iron are found in ridges or cliffs, some of which rise up to
an immense height. Some of these ore-beds of Lake Superior are fifteen
feet in thickness, and one of them contains iron enough to supply the
world for ages. Above them are immense forests, suitable for charcoal.
The discovery of the iron mountains and mines of Lake Superior was
made in 1846, but they were not fully developed until the year 1855,
when the ship canal at Saut St. Mary was completed. The mines are from
three to sixteen miles from Marquette, a thriving village of upward of
one thousand inhabitants, overlooking the lake, about one hundred and
forty miles above the Saut. The mine nearest the lake is about two and
a half miles distant from Marquette, and bears the name of Eureka. The
ore is said to be of surpassing richness, and yields an iron of the
best quality, adapted to cutlery. The Jackson iron mountain, and the
Cleveland iron mountain, are fourteen and sixteen miles distant. They
send to Marquette an aggregate of one thousand tons per week. These
mountains rise gradually to the height of six or seven hundred feet,
and are a solid mass of iron ore, yielding from 50 to 60 per cent. of
the best iron. The New England iron mountain is two and a half miles
beyond the Cleveland mountain, and abounds with ore of equal richness.
A mile or two further is the Burt mountain, and the same may be said
of this, both as it regards quantity and quality, as of the others. A
railroad has been constructed from Marquette to the iron regions, and
immense quantities of ore and iron are transported over it daily.
All the hills and mountains surrounding Lake Superior, abound in
valuable minerals of which copper is the most abundant. It exists in
every variety of form. According to the opinion of the lamented
Houghton, this region contains the most extensive copper mines in the
known world. The native copper boulder discovered by the traveler
Henry in the bed of the Ontonagon river, and now in Washington,
originally weighed thirty-eight hundred pounds. A copper mass of the
same material, found near Copper Harbor, weighed twelve hundred
pounds. At Copper Falls, there is a vein of solid ore which measures
nine feet in depth, and seven and a half inches in thickness. At Eagle
river a boulder was found weighing seventeen hundred pounds. The
number of mining companies in operation on the American shore is
upward of a hundred.
The Minnesota mine, fifteen miles from Ontonagon, during the year
ending January 1, 1857, produced 3,718,403 pounds of copper. The Cliff
mine during the year, produced 3,291,229 pounds of copper. The Portage
Lake District, including Isle Royale, Portage, Huron, Quincy and
Pewabic shipped 539 tons of copper in 1857.
The Lake Superior miners estimate the total shipment of copper mineral
from the lake during the year 1858, at 6,008 tons, of an average
purity of 67 per cent--making the product of ingot copper about 4,000
tons, worth in the market at present $1,840,000. Estimating the
population of the copper region at 6,500 persons, this gives an annual
product of about $280 for each man, woman and child. The shipments
were as follows: From Keweenaw Point 2,180 tons; from Portage Lake
1,152 tons; from Ontonagon District 2,676 tons; total 6,008 tons.
The extent and importance of the copper mines of Superior, in relation
to the general trade in that metal, may be estimated by the following
account of the amount of pure copper produced in other parts of the
world. The United Kingdom of Great Britain 14,465 tons, Norway 7,200
tons, Russia 4,000, Mexico 500, Hesse Cassel 500, Hartz Mountains 212;
Sweden 2,000, Hungary 2,000, East Germany 443; making a total, out of
America, of 30,820 tons. The single District of Ontonagon can produce
as much copper as the entire Kingdom of Great Britain. The copper
mines of the United States, are doing their part as effectually in
adding to the solid wealth of the country, as the gold mines of
California, or the silver mines of the Arizonia. The copper mining
countries are another illustration of the principle upon which success
is based, namely, that concentrated talent, effort and capital are
necessary to a development of the resources of a country.
When we look into the manufacture of this article, we shall find a new
element in the future growth of towns to arise in this region. At
present, a large portion of this copper is shipped abroad to be
smelted. But is there not every reason, as well of economy as of
material, for carrying on smelting, and all other manufacturing
processes, at the point of production? The cost of transporting the
raw material is greater than that of carrying the manufactured
product. But when all the elements of successful manufacturing exist
where the raw material is found, then the economy of the process is
doubled. Of metals, of navigation, of food, we have shown there is an
inexhaustible supply. But there is also coal near enough to supply the
last and only material which might be supposed wanting. Coal is found
in the Southern Peninsula of Michigan, in abundance and of good
quality. This coal is found at Jackson and at Lansing. This was a
matter of so much importance that Prof. Douglas, of the State
University, proceeded immediately to analyze it.
The following are the principal results of his analysis. It was made
chiefly in reference to the manufacture of gas:--
"The coal was of the bituminous variety, having a jet black color and
slaty structure. It was readily ignited, burning with a dull flame and
smoke, the fragments comminuting more or less by the heat. It had a
specific gravity of about 1.25.
"100 parts gave volatile matter 50.780, sulphur 4.028, iron 4.400,
ash 8.400, carbon (not volatilized) 41.600.
"The value of coal for the manufacture of gas is usually estimated by
the amount of volatile matter it yields at a full red-heat."
Of ten samples of English coal, this had more volatile matter than
six. Of American coals, it had more of the burning principle than any,
except one. The quality of this coal is unquestionably good, and its
distance from Mackinaw is no objection, since access can be obtained
both by water and railroad. Both the coal and iron used in the
manufactures of Cincinnati are brought from places distant from one
hundred to five hundred miles; and yet scarcely any place in America
has prospered more by manufactures than the Queen of the West.
Mackinaw has more than the advantages of Cincinnati for manufactures.
It not only has iron and coal, but copper and lead, near enough for
all the purposes of successful manufacture. Favorable indications of
coal exist within fifty miles south of the Straits, and indications
also exist of lead. When we consider these facts, and the vast extent
of country, of inland oceans, and of streams around it, why should not
Mackinaw be a point of concentration for manufactures, as well as of
distribution for commerce?
Mackinaw is centrally situated in the mineral region, and with coal
and hard wood for charcoal in perpetual abundance, and the cheapest
possible mode of transportation, will become a great manufacturing
point, and be able to manufacture innumerable articles, which are now
made in Europe, and which our people have been compelled to import for
use, simply because the material hitherto employed has been of a
quality unsuitable for such purposes. Besides the healthful and
bracing temperature of this locality, when compared with Ohio and
Pennsylvania, whose summers are found to be exceedingly enervating,
especially to those employed in the manufacture of iron, affords
advantages, and offers inducements which cannot be overlooked, since
in the physical strength and comfort of the workmen, is involved the
all-important question of economy. If it should be asked, is the site
such that a great city can be built upon it, without imperial wealth,
like to that of St. Petersburg, or with the artificial foundations
like to those of Chicago, or bankrupting successive companies like
Cairo on the Ohio,--the answer is at hand and decisive. At Mackinaw
there are no marshes to fill up or drain, no tide sands, no
flood-washed banks, no narrow and isolated rocks or ridges, to
intercept the progress of commercial growth and activity. On the
contrary, the lake rises under the heaviest rains but little, and
breaks its waves on a dry shore rising gradually far above its level.
There is no better natural site for the foundation of a city in the
world, nor one possessing more inviting or beautiful surroundings, and
when we consider its available resources, it is evident that nothing
can prevent its rise and progress. The straits are so completely the
key of the Upper Lakes, Mackinaw must, as in the days of the fur
trade, unlock the vast treasures of the entire northwest. The shore of
Lake Superior, being but about fifty miles north of Mackinaw and
dependent on a canal navigation, annually navigable sixty days less
than the straits, on account of ice, to say nothing of breakage, it is
perfectly obvious that there can be no competing city further north.
The following from the Toledo Blade shows the immense importance of
this point as a key position:
"The immense commerce of the lakes, the growth of which has been
unparalleled by anything in the history of the world, and the vast
mineral, timber and agricultural resources of their shores, which are
even now, only beginning to attract attention, may well awaken a
desire on the part of enterprise to get possession of the key position
which is to command and unlock the future treasures of this vast
empire. Already, six important commercial cities, with an aggregate
population of about 350,000 inhabitants, have sprung up on these
island waters, and are the most flourishing of any away from the
Atlantic coast. Others are struggling into notoriety on the borders of
Lake Superior, and must, at no very distant time, become important and
active places of business. But the place of all others, where we would
expect a city to spring up and grow rapidly into importance, is still
undeveloped.
"The Straits of Mackinaw, four and a half miles wide, make the only
natural ferry communication between the great peninsula, enclosed by
the lakes and the rich mineral region lying on the southern border of
Lake Superior; and must, hence, be the terminus of all the great
railroad lines that traverse Michigan longitudinally and compete for
the trade north of the straits, now rapidly growing up into
importance. It must therefore be the point of radiation, eastward,
through Canada; westward through the mineral region; and southward,
through Michigan. Canada has already made grants of land for several
important roads which must ultimately reach the straits; and lines are
also provided for by government grants, from the straits through the
Northern Peninsula, and from the straits southward to Fort Wayne by
the way of Grand Rapids, and to Toledo, through Lansing. The
culminating point being thus settled for several roads, all others
will naturally centre at the same crossing, even if the coast line had
not made such a thing inevitable.
"The point which projects northward into the lake, from the Michigan
Peninsula, to form this strait, is admirably located for a great city.
It is the site of old Fort Mackinaw, and in health and commercial
position, can have no rival in those southern waters. This point has
been selected by a company of capitalists, on which to plant the
commercial city of the north; the Venice of the Lakes, foreshadowed in
the extract which we have placed at the head of the article. This new
city is to bear the name of the ancient fort and strait, and to be
called Mackinaw. It will hold the key of all the northern lakes; and
should its growth be marked by energy and enterprise, will command the
trade of the greatest mining region in the world; be the chief depot
of the northern fisheries; the outlet of an immense lumber trade; and
the focus of a great network of railways, communicating with tropics
on the south, and stretching out its iron arms, at no distant day, to
the Atlantic on the east, and Pacific on the west.
"The proposed city will have the advantage of the most salubrious
climate to be found in the temperate zone, and will be the resort of
those seeking health, as well as those seeking wealth. It has a
northern position, being on the same parallel as Montreal; but the
winters are equable, and the summers though short, are mild and
pleasant, being modified by the great body of water which stretches
out on every side, except at the south. As a manufacturing point it
may well command universal attention. The Lake Superior iron is known
to be the best in the world, and coal and wood are at hand in the
greatest abundance; while communication by water is so wide as to
leave nothing to desire on that head. It should be as famous for
smelting as Swansea, in England, for it must have unbounded supplies
of iron and copper ore.
"But we have no space to speak of its commercial position. It must be
seen at a glance that, as all the produce which flows through Chicago,
Milwaukee, and the great West must sweep by on its way to the East,
and all the goods and merchandise of the East, must be borne by its
wharves on their way to the West, that it cannot fail to be a point
which must spring at once into importance. The government, too, must
have a fort, a light-house, and customhouse there, which with the
fisheries, must supply a large profitable business to its earlier
population."
CHAPTER VII.
Lake Huron -- Eastern shore of Michigan -- Face of the
country -- Picturesque view -- Rivers -- Grand -- Saginaw --
Cheboy-e-gun -- Natural scenery -- Fort Gratiot -- White Rock
-- Saginaw Bay -- Thunder Bay -- Bois Blanc Island --
Drummond's Island -- British Troops -- St. Helena Island --
Iroquois Woman's Point -- Point La Barbe -- Point aux Sable
-- Point St. Vital -- Wreck of the Queen City -- St. Martin's
Island -- Fox Point -- Moneto pa-maw -- Mille au Coquin --
Great fishing places -- Cross Village -- Catholic Convent.
Lake Huron, which, with Lake Erie and St. Clair, washes the eastern
boundary of the southern peninsula of Michigan, is two hundred and
fifty miles long and its average width is about one hundred miles. Its
depth is about eight hundred feet. The southeastern shore of Michigan
presents a level surface covered with a dense forest, at points
meeting the edge of the bank. The trees of this heavily-timbered land,
with their massive shafts standing close together, "cast a gloomy
grandeur over the scene, and when stripped of their foliage appear
like the black colonnade of a sylvan temple." In advancing into the
interior, a picturesque and rolling country opens to view, covered
with oak-openings or groves of white oak thinly scattered over the
ground, having the appearance of stately parks. The appearance of the
surface of the country is as if it was covered with mounds, arranged
without order, sometimes rising from thirty to two hundred feet in
height, producing a delightful alternation of hill and dale, which is
sometimes varied by a rich prairie or burr-oak grove.
The principal rivers of the State are the Grand, St. Joseph's,
Kalamazoo, the Raisin, the Clinton, the Huron, and the Rouge. The
Grand is two hundred and seventy miles in length, and has a free
navigation for steamboats which ply regularly between Lake Michigan
and Grand Rapids, a distance of forty miles. The Saginaw empties into
Lake Huron and is navigable for sixty miles. These, with the others we
have named, interlock their branches running through different parts
of southern Michigan, and while they beautify the landscape they
afford water-power and fertilize the soil.
The river Cheboy-e-gun is the largest stream in the northern portion
of the lower peninsula and empties into the Straits of Mackinaw
opposite Bois Blanc Island. At its mouth is a village containing two
steam saw mills and one water saw mill. A light-house stands a mile or
two east from this point. Brook-trout, bass, pike, pickerel, and
perch, are caught at the entrance of the river. In the fall and spring
numerous water-fowl resort to the upper forks of the river and to the
small lakes forming its sources. These lakes also abound with a great
variety of fish, which can be taken by spearing.
The natural scenery of Michigan is imposing. The extensive tracts of
dense forests, clothed with the richest verdure, fresh as when it
first came from the hands of the Creator; the prairies and lakes which
abound, the wide parks, whose soil is entirely covered for miles with
large and rich flowers, present a striking and agreeable contrast. The
beech and black walnut, the elm, the maple, the hickory, and the oaks
of different species and large size, the lind and the bass-wood, and
various other kinds of forest trees, plainly indicate the fertility of
the soil from whence they spring. Grape vines often hang from the
branches a foot in circumference, clustering around their trunks, or
thickening the undergrowth along the banks of rivers; and, while the
glades open to the sun like cultivated grounds, the more
thickly-timbered forests, shut out from the sky by the mass of
vegetation, present in summer a gloomy twilight.
In traveling along the main roads of Michigan, splendid tracts of
park-like lawns sweep along the path for miles covered with flowers,
broken by prairies, thick forests, and lakes.
Fort Gratiot stands at the foot of Lake Huron and commands the
entrance to the upper lakes. Advancing along the western shore of this
lake the voyager sees a long, alluvial bank covered with a forest of
pine, poplar, beech, and hemlock.
On advancing further the banks become more elevated until they rise to
forty feet in height. About fifty miles from Fort Gratiot, a large
rock rises to the surface of the lake, a mile or so from the shore,
which is called the "White Rock." From the earliest period this rock
has been regarded as an altar or a landmark. It was to the early
voyagers a beacon to guide them in their course; but to the Indians it
was a place of oblation, where they offered sacrifices to the spirits
of the lakes.
Saginaw Bay is a large indentation of the shoreline like to that of
Green Bay in Lake Michigan, but not so large. Near its centre are a
number of small islands. Twenty miles from its mouth stands the
thriving town of Saginaw. From the northwesterly cape of Saginaw Bay
to Flat Rock Point, the shore of Lake Huron presents a bank of
alluvial soil, with a margin of sand along its border intersected with
frequent masses of limestone rock, in some places ground to fragments
by the surging of the waves.
Thunder Bay is also another indentation made by the Lake. It was thus
called from the impression that at this point the air was more than
ordinarily charged with electricity.
Bois Blanc Island, at the head of Lake Huron, stretches in the form of
a crescent between the Island of Mackinac and the lower peninsula of
Michigan. It is from ten to twelve miles in length by three or four in
breadth. The lower part of this island is sandy, but the larger
portion of it is covered with a fertile soil bearing a forest of elm,
maple, oak, ash, whitewood and beech. It has been surveyed and a
government light-house stands on its eastern point.
In the northern part of Lake Michigan are located Beaver Islands.
There are five or six of this group bearing different names. Big
Beaver is the most considerable, and contains perhaps forty square
miles. These islands all lie in the vicinity of each other, and within
a few miles northwest of Grand and Little Traverse Bays in Lake
Michigan. The Big Beaver was, up to July, 1856, in possession of the
Mormons, who claimed it as a gift from the Lord.
Another interesting locality is Drummond's Island, between the Detour
and the False Detour. It was taken possession of by the British troops
when they surrendered Fort Mackinaw in 1814. On this island they built
a fort and formed quite a settlement. Upon an examination of the
boundary line between the United States and Great Britain, it was
ascertained that this island was within the jurisdiction of the
former, and it was accordingly evacuated by the British in 1828. The
British subjects living on the island followed the troops, and the
place was soon deserted and became a desolation.
St. Helena Island is a small island near the Straits of Mackinaw, not
far from the shore of the northern peninsula, containing a few acres
over a section of land. It is a great fishing station, and enjoys a
good harbor protected from westerly winds. Its owner, who has exiled
himself _a la Napoleon_, spends his time in fishing, and other
pursuits adapted to his mind.
In addition to the numerous islands constituting the surroundings of
Mackinaw there are a number of interesting localities denominated
"Points", that we must not omit to mention. The first, because the
most important, and one which is connected with many historic
associations which we shall direct attention to, is the "Iroquois
Woman's Point," the Indian name for Point St. Ignatius on the opposite
side of the straits from Mackinaw, distant between three and four
miles, about the same as from the Battery at New York to Staten
Island. The original inhabitants with their descendants have long
since passed away. Its present occupants are principally Canadians. It
has a Catholic chapel.
Point La Barbe, opposite to Green Island Shoals and Mackinaw, is a
projection of the upper peninsula into the straits. It is four miles
distant from Gross Cape, and derives its name from a custom which
prevailed among the Indian traders in olden time on their annual
return to Mackinaw of stopping here and putting on their best apparel
before making their appearance among the people of that place.
About half way between Mackinaw and Cheboy-e-gun, a projection from
the lower peninsula into the straits, is Point aux Sable. Point St.
Vital is a cape projecting into Lake Huron from the southeastern
extremity of the upper peninsula. There is a reef of rocks off this
point where the steamer Queen City was wrecked. On a clear day this
point may be seen from Fort Holmes, and it presents an enchanting
view. The St. Martin's Islands are also in full view from this point.
In the southwestern part of the straits, about twenty miles distant
from Mackinaw, is Fox Point. A light-house has been erected on a shoal
extending out two miles into the lake. Moneto-pa-maw is a high bluff
still further west, on the shore of Michigan, where there are fine
fisheries, and is a place of considerable resort. Further west, near
the mouth of the Mille au Coquin river which empties into Michigan,
there are also excellent fisheries, and to those who are fond of this
kind of sport apart from the profit connected with it, there is no
place in the world possessing half the attractions as Mackinaw and its
surroundings, while the "Mackinaw trout," with the "Mackinaw boat" and
the "Mackinaw blanket," are famous over the world.
Between Little Traverse and Mackinaw is the village of Cross, or La
Crosse. The following interesting account of a visit to that place is
taken from the Mackinaw Herald in 1859:
"The name of this village--'Cross,' recalls to one's mind, some
reminiscences connected with the early history of the Indian
Missions. Suffice it to observe, that it derives its name from the
circumstance of a large cross having stood for many years on the brow
of the hill, on which the present Indian village stands, planted there
by some of the followers of James Marquette, during their explorations
and missions in this part of the country. The old cross was of oak,
and was still standing about forty-five years ago. Recently it has
been replaced by another. An old Indian, called _The Short-Arm_, over
whose head some eighty winters had passed, was still living in 1836,
and who, when a little boy, recollected to have seen the last
Missionary of this place. 'I am old, my children,' said the aged
Missionary, 'and I wish to die among my own people--I must leave you.'
He left; and in the course of time the Arbre-Croche Indians relapsed
into Paganism. They continued in this state until a young Christian
Ottawa, named _Aw-taw-weesh_, who had just returned from among the
Catholic Algonquins in Canada, appeared among them and taught
religion. He became also, in some respects, what Cadmus was of old, or
Guess among the Cherokees--the first teacher of letters, among his
people. As writing paper was then scarce, at least among the Indians,
he taught them to write on birch bark, with sharpened sticks, instead
of pens. This man is still living. He is now old, poor, almost
entirely blind; and although having been a real benefactor to his
people, he may go down to his grave, unpitied, and unknown.
"But awakened by his teachings, the Indians afterward called loudly on
Missionaries to come among them, and they have had them during the
past thirty or forty years.
"At this day two Catholic Clergymen and a Convent of four Brothers and
twelve Sisters--being a religious community, of the Third Order of St.
Francis--are stationed at this place. But, to return: As rough
voyaging generally gives keen appetite, so the party did ample justice
to the eatables, which had been prepared by the Indians. Perhaps some
reader at a distance might suppose this supper to have been taken in a
_wigwam_; with the fire-place in the centre, a hole above for the
escape of smoke; and the party squatting down upon the ground, with
legs crossed in tailor fashion, around a single dish: no, no; but it
was prepared in a good, substantial house; on a table with a
table-cloth, with crockery, dishes, tea-cups and saucers, and knives
and forks, such as are used by common white folks. Then there stood
the waiters, ready to assist the double-handed manipulations going on
at the table. At a convenient hour, the party separated for the night;
the agent was put in possession of the clergyman's house, then
temporarily absent on a mission, by the Rev. Mr. Weikamp, the Superior
of the Convent.
"The next day, after the forenoon services of the church at the
village, the agent and party, according to previous invitation, went
to the Convent for dinner. Arrived there, they were introduced first
into a log cabin, situated at some distance in the rear of the
convent, occupied by the four Brothers, belonging to the order, and
the Rev. Superior. He occupies a single room, in real new-settler
style. This is his sitting-room, library, study and bed-room. He has
traveled in Europe, and some parts of Asia; he has various objects of
curiosity; and among these is a silver coin of about the size and
value of a Mexican quarter of a dollar, which he brought with him from
Jerusalem. This piece of money is said to be one of the kind of which
Judas received thirty pieces, from the chief priests and magistrates,
the price for which he sold his Divine Master. Another thing, is a
Turkish pipe, with its long, pliable stem, with which the lover of the
'weed' could regale himself without being annoyed by the smoke, as
usual; for the pipe, which is made somewhat in the shape and of the
size of a small decanter and half filled with water is so arranged
that while the wet tobacco is burning in the cup on the top, the
smoke, during suction at the stem, descends through a tube into the
water, and none of it escapes visibly, into the open air. The Rev. Mr.
Weikamp, the Superior, is a German, and speaks English fluently. He is
in the prime of life, and is full of energy and perseverance. He is
not one of those who, from the fact of belonging to a religious order,
may be supposed to be gloomy, with head bowed down, not hardly daring
to cast his eyes up into the beautiful light of the heavens; but he
converses with freedom, ease and assurance; and he relishes a joke as
well as any man, when it comes _a propos_. A fanciful peculiarity,
though nothing strange in it, attends his steps wherever he goes, in
the shape of a small black dog called "Finnie," with a string of small
horse-bells round his neck. "Finnie" has two black, watery and
glistening spots in his head for eyes, which seem ready to shoot out
from their sockets, especially when spoken to. When told in German, to
speak, 'Finnie' begins to tremble--he shakes his head--jingles his
bells; and utters a kind of guttural snuffling, and half-suppressed
growl or bark. But, as we are not acquainted with the German language,
we cannot say, that "Finnie" pronounces it well!
"Dinner being announced at the convent, the party went over with the
Superior to partake of it. Everything about the table was scrupulously
neat--an abundance of the substantial of good living had been prepared
by the Sisters. Some time after dinner the vesper bell rang at the
convent; and by special permission, the party were shown into the
choir usually occupied by the Brothers alone during the services of
the church. This was on one side of the altar; and on the other, was a
similar choir for the sisters. In the body of the church, the Indians
or others are admitted. For a few moments after entering, all was
silence;--but the priest having intoned the vespers, the sweet tones
of a large melodeon suddenly swelled through the sanctuary, mingling
with the voices of the sisters. This for a time had a singular effect.
To hear music in these wild woods, far away from civilized society
where instrumental music forms part of the ordinary pleasures and
amenities of life, served to recall to one's memory other days and
other climes. After vespers, the Superior of the convent conducted the
party through the building to view it. The dimensions are: 160 feet
long, 80 wide, and 28 feet high. There are two court yards, each 40 by
40 feet, and the church also 40 by 40, placed between them. When
finished, this building will contain 108 bedrooms, a large schoolroom,
carpenter and blacksmith shops, dining-rooms, kitchen, store-rooms,
halls, corridors, &c. It will be separated into two parts; one to be
occupied exclusively by the Sisters, and the other by the Brothers. At
the time of this visit, there were some cultivated flowers yet in
bloom in the court-yard. So much for the material building: and now a
hasty sketch of this religious order may not be unacceptable to some
of our readers.
"This religious community, is the Third Order of St. Francis, of
Assisi, instituted in Europe by this saint in 1221. It was established
for persons married or single living in the world, united by certain
pious exercises, compatible with a secular state. It soon spread over
all Europe, and even kings and queens on their thrones vied with the
poorest peasants in eagerly entering this order, to share the labors
of the mission within its sphere, and to participate in its spiritual
benefits. Among the persons of this order, who were expelled from
their cloister homes during the revolution which agitated Europe in
1848, was Sister Teresa Hackelmayer. This nun, at the proposal of a
missionary father in America, and by permission of her Superior, came
to New York in the winter of 1851, to establish a community of her
order in that State. But meeting with disappointment there, she
finally established a convent at Oldenburg, in the State of Indiana.
In 1851, a second convent of this order was founded at Nojoshing, four
miles from Milwaukee, on Lake Michigan. In 1853, the Rev. J. B.
Weikamp founded, in West Chicago, the third convent of this order, and
also formed a community of Brothers;--and in October 1855, with the
understanding of Bishop Baraga, then Vicar Apostolic of Upper
Michigan, he transferred those two communities to 'Cross Village'--his
present location.
"The company having ranged through the building, as observed, took a
walk outside. From the south side of the convent, a broad walk is laid
out reaching to an inclosure of some forty feet square, at the
distance of about fifteen rods. Another and narrower walk through the
centre of this inclosure leads to a small square building, on the
opposite side, having a four-sided roof meeting in a point, and
surmounted by a cross. On entering this building, a lounge or settee,
stands in front, and on the wall above it, hangs a piece of board or
canvass, painted black, on which are human skulls of different sizes,
each with two cross bones painted in white. A trap-door is raised from
the floor, and a deep, spacious vault is opened to view: this is the
place of burial for the Superior of the convent. On the outside, the
spaces on either side of the little walk are intended to be the last
resting-places of the brothers and sisters. It is a solemn thought to
see men thus prepare deliberately for _Death!_ But as the party
retraced their steps in such cheerful, good humor, loitering toward
the convent, one might have supposed that the beautiful weather, the
bright sunshine, and the bracing air had, for the time, scattered away
all thoughts of death. Among the questions proposed to the Superior
was, 'Whether at any time the brothers and sisters were allowed to
have social, familiar intercourse with each other?' The Superior
answered, in substance, that they were not; nor even allowed to speak
to each other, without permission of the Superior. 'Then according to
your principle,' some one rejoined, 'the world would soon come to an
end!' The remark raised a general laugh, in which the Superior himself
joined heartily."
CHAPTER VIII.
Three epochs -- The romantic -- The military -- The
agricultural and commercial -- An inviting region -- Jesuit
and Protestant missions -- First Protestant mission -- First
missionary -- Islands of Mackinac and Green Bay -- La Pointe
-- Saut St. Mary -- Presbyterians -- Baptists -- Methodists
-- Revival at Fort Brady -- Ke-wee-naw -- Fon du Lac --
Shawnees -- Pottawatimies -- Eagle River -- Ontonagon -- Camp
River -- Iroquois Point -- Saginaw Indians -- Melancholy
reflections -- Number of Indians in the States and
Territories.
The history of this region, in the language of one, exhibits three
distinct and strongly marked epochs. The first may be properly
denominated the romantic, which extends to the year 1760, when its
dominion passed from the hands of the French to the English. This was
the period when the first beams of civilization had scarcely
penetrated its forests, and the paddles of the French fur trader swept
the lakes, and the boat songs of the _voyageurs_ awakened the tribes
on their wild and romantic shores.
The second epoch is the military, which commenced with the Pontiac
war, running down through the successive struggles of the British, the
Indians, and the Americans, to obtain dominion of the country, and
ending with the victory of Commodore Perry, the defeat of Proctor, the
victory of General Harrison and the death of Tecumseh, the leader of
the Anglo-savage conspiracy on the banks of the Thames.
The third may be denominated the enterprising, the hardy, the
mechanical, and working period, commencing with the opening of the
country to emigrant settlers, the age of agriculture, commerce, and
manufactures, of harbors, cities, canals, and railroads, when the
landscapes of the forest were meted out by the compass and chain of
the surveyor, when its lakes and rivers were sounded, and their
capacity, to turn the wheel of a mill or to float a ship, were
demonstrated, thus opening up avenues of commerce and industry. Its
wild and savage character has passed away, and given place to
civilization, religion, and commerce, inviting the denizens of
over-crowded cities to its broad lakes and beautiful rivers, its rich
mines and fertile prairies, and promising a rapid and abundant
remuneration for toil.
We have alluded to the labors and sacrifices of the Jesuit
missionaries in the early period of the history of the northwest, and
it is right and proper that the labors of the Protestant missionaries,
though of a much later period, should not be forgotten. The Jesuit
fathers were not alone in sacrifice and toil in introducing the Gospel
among the tribes of the northwest. The first Protestant missions
established in this region, as far as we have been able to learn, were
those of the Presbyterian Church on the Island of Mackinac and at
Green Bay.
The first missionary who visited Mackinaw was the Rev. David Bacon,
father of the Rev. Leonard Bacon, D. D., of New Haven. He was sent out
by the Connecticut Missionary Society in 1800, and commenced his
mission in Detroit, where, after remaining a year or two, he
relinquished his field to a Moravian missionary, Rev. Mr. Denky, and
visited the Indians on the Maumee. From this he returned to Detroit,
and from thence went to Mackinac, where he remained until the
missionary society was compelled, from want of funds, to recall their
missionary.
The following interesting account was given by C. J. Walker, Esq.,
before the Historical Society of Detroit:
"The Connecticut Missionary Society is, I believe, the oldest
Missionary Association in America. It was organized in June, 1795,
the General Association of Connecticut, at its annual meeting that
year, having organized itself into a society of that name. Its object
was 'to Christianize the heathen in North America, and to support and
promote Christian knowledge in the new settlements within the United
States.' For some years its efforts were principally directed to
sending missionaries 'to the new settlements in Vermont, New York, and
Pennsylvania,' and subsequently 'New Connecticut,' or the Western
Reserve of Ohio, became an important field of its operations. The
trustees, in June, 1800, determined 'that a discreet man, animated by
the love of God and souls, of a good common education, be sought for,
to travel among the Indian tribes south and west of Lake Erie, to
explore their situation and learn their feelings with respect to
Christianity, and so far as he has opportunity to teach them its
doctrines and duties.' A very sensible letter of 'Instructions' was
adopted and a long message 'to the Indian tribes bordering on Lake
Erie' prepared, showing very little knowledge of Indian mind and
character. Mr. David Bacon presented himself as a candidate for this
somewhat unpromising field of labor. His son says he was one of those
men who are called visionary and enthusiasts by men of more prosaic
and plodding temperament. He had not a liberal education, but was a
man of eminent intellectual powers and of intensely thoughtful habits,
and beside a deep religious experience, he had endeavored diligently
to fit himself for a missionary life, the self-denying labors of which
he ardently coveted. On examination Mr. Bacon was accepted.
"On the 8th of August, 1800, Mr. Bacon left Hartford on foot with his
pack upon his back, and on the 4th of September he was at Buffalo,
having walked most of the distance. On the 8th, he left on a vessel
for this city, which he reached after a quick and pleasant voyage on
the 11th. He was made welcome at the house of the commandant, Major
Hunt, where, I believe, his first religious services were held. Gen.
Uriah Tracy, of Litchfield, Conn., General Agent of the United States
for the Western Indians, was then here, and, together with the local
Indian agent, Jonathan Schieffelin, took an active interest in the
mission of Mr. Bacon. John Askin, Esq., the same liberal-minded
merchant, who so essentially befriended the Moravians twenty years
before, and Benjamin Huntington, a merchant here, formerly of Norwich,
Conn., rendered him valuable information and assistance. Learning from
these sources that the Delawares at Sandusky, were about to remove,
that the Wyandottes were mostly Catholics, and that there were no
other Indians 'south and west of Lake Erie,' among whom there was an
inviting field of labor, his attention was turned to the north, and,
with the advice of these judicious friends, on the 13th of September,
he took passage with General Tracy in a government vessel bound for
Mackinac, and went to Harson's Island, at the head of Lake St. Clair,
near which there was quite an Indian settlement. Although only forty
miles distant, he did not reach there until the 17th, being four days
upon the voyage. Jacob Harson or Harsing, as it was originally
spelled, the proprietor of this island, was an Albany Dutchman, who,
in 1766, on appointment of Sir Wm. Johnson, came to Niagara as Indian
blacksmith and gunsmith, and his original commission or letter of
appointment, written by Sir William, is now before me. On the breaking
out of the Revolution, finding Mr. Harson friendly to the Americans,
the British stripped him of his property and sent him, sorely against
his will, to this frontier. He established himself upon the island as
early as 1786, where his descendants now reside, acquired great
influence with the Indians, and lived in a very comfortable manner. He
received Mr. Bacon in this beautiful retreat, with great kindness and
hospitality, and he thanks the Lord that he is provided a comfortable
house, a convenient study, and as good a bed and as good board as I
should have had if I had remained in Connecticut. I know of no place
in the State of New York so healthy as this, I believe the water and
the air as pure here as in any part of New England, and I have never
been before where venison and wild geese and ducks were so plenty, or
where there was such a rich variety of fresh-water fish. There were
many Indians in the vicinity. Mr. Harson encouraged the establishment
of a mission, and Mr. Bacon deemed it a most favorable opening.
Bernardus Harson, a son of Jacob, was engaged as interpreter. He
returned to Detroit on the same vessel with General Tracy, Sept. 30th,
to attend an Indian Council which was held here on the 7th of October,
when he was formally introduced to the Indians by General Tracy, and
was most favorably received. He returned to the island and remained
until the Indians departed for their winter hunting grounds, when he
left for Connecticut, where he arrived about the middle of December.
He was soon ordained to the ministry, and I believe married, for he
returned with a young wife of whom nothing is heard previously.
"Late in January 1801, Mr. Bacon commenced his return journey with
his wife and her brother, Beaumont Parks, Esq., now of Springfield,
Illinois, a young man who came with him to learn the Chippewa language
and to become a teacher. The sleighing leaving them they remained at
Bloomfield, Ontario county, New York, until spring, and did not reach
here until May 9th. Mr. Bacon's plan was to remain at Detroit, until
he became so familiar with the Indian language that he could
successfully prosecute his mission. He remained here until the spring
of 1802, holding regular religious services in the Council House. For
a time he preached twice upon the Sabbath, but the afternoon
attendance being thin, he accepted a call from the settlement on the
river Rouge to preach to them half a day. To aid in defraying expenses
he commenced keeping a school in the house where he lived on St. James
street, just in the rear of the Masonic Hall, and in this he was
assisted by his wife. One at least of our present fellow citizens was
a pupil of Mr. Bacon, and has pleasant memories of that little school.
Amid many discouragements the study of the Chippewa was pursued by
this missionary family, and although they made 'but slow progress' and
it was 'hard work to commit their words to memory' and 'extremely
difficult to construct a sentence according to the idioms of their
language,' they 'hope and expect we shall be able to surmount every
difficulty.'
"While thus toilfully but hopefully preparing for his anticipated
work, getting acquainted with Indians, their life and character, and
as yet uncertain at what precise point to commence his mission, Mr.
Denhey, a Moravian missionary, desired to occupy the field upon the
St. Clair River, which Mr. Bacon in some measure occupied the year
before, and to this Mr. Bacon assented. His attention had been called
to Mackinac and L'Arbre Croche, but he resolved to visit the Indians
upon the Maumee, and ascertain by personal interviews and examination
what encouragement there was for a mission in that vicinity. For this
purpose, with his brother-in-law and a hired man, on 29th of April,
1802, he left in a canoe for the 'Miami,'as the Maumee was then
called. He found most of the Indian chiefs engaged in a drunken
debauch, and it was not until the 14th of May, and after repeated
efforts, that he succeeded in gathering a full council, and addressing
them upon the subject of establishing a mission among them. He felt it
his duty to have translated the message sent to the Indians by the
Missionary Society. The poor savages listened courteously to this long
piece of abstruse theological narrative and argument, but they must
have been terribly bored, notwithstanding Mr. Bacon's efforts to
'express the ideas in language better adapted to the capacity and more
agreeable to their ways of speaking.' No wonder that Little Otter was
'too unwell to attend in the afternoon.' After this translation, Mr.
Bacon made a well conceived speech of considerable length, setting
forth the advantages which the Indians would derive from a mission.
There was no little point in the polished reproof of Little Otter, in
the commencement of his speech, who said: 'Now brother, if you will
listen to us we will give you an answer. But it is our way to be very
short. Our white brothers, when they make speeches, are very lengthy.
They read and write so much that they get in a great many little
things. But it is not so with your red brothers. When we go on any
great business and have any great things to say, we say them in a few
words.' With no little ingenuity, but with apparent courtesy, these
sons of the forest declined a mission in their midst. The gist of the
reply is contained in the following sentence: 'Brother, your religion
is very good; but it is only good for white people. It will not do for
Indians, they are quite a different sort of people.'
"On the following day Mr. Bacon started for Detroit, and remained
here until June 2d, when, with his family, he removed to
Missilimackinac, then the great centre of Indian population in our
Territory. Here he remained until August 1804, perfecting himself in
the language, teaching, preaching and pursuing the other labors
incident to his mission. He very clearly saw that a successful Indian
mission involved no inconsiderable expenditure in establishing schools
and in educating the Indians in agriculture and the ruder arts of
civilization. These expenditures were too large for the means of the
Missionary Society, and in January, 1804, they directed the mission to
abandoned, and that Mr. Bacon should remove to the Western Reserve.
The intelligence of this reached Mr. Bacon in July, and in August he
removed and became the first founder of the town of Tallmadge, Ohio.
Thus ended this first Protestant effort to convert the Indians of
Michigan to the faith of the cross. It was while Mr. Bacon was
residing here that Rev. Dr. Bacon was born. We may therefore, with
pride, claim him as a native of our beautiful city."
Sometime after a mission was established at La Pointe near the
southern extremity of Lake Superior. The Mission at Mackinac was
subsequently revived and continued until 1837, when the population
had so entirely changed, and the Indians had discontinued their
visits for purposes of trade, that it was deemed best to abandon it,
which was done, and the property sold. The Rev. Mr. Pitezel, in his
"Lights and Shade of Missionary Life," who visited the island in 1843,
thus speaks of this mission: "We visited the mission establishment
once under the care of the Presbyterian Church, but now abandoned. It
is a spacious building, and was once thronged with native and
half-bred children and youth, there educated at vast expense. Little
of the fruit of this self-sacrificing labor is thought now to be
apparent, but the revelations of eternity may show that here was a
necessary and a very important link in the chain of events, connected
with the Christianization of benighted pagans." During the time of Mr.
Pitezel's visit, a large number of Indians of different tribes had
assembled at the island, for the purpose of receiving their annuity,
among which were several Christian Indians, from Saut St. Mary, Grand
Traverse, and elsewhere. The Rev. Mr. Daugherty, a Presbyterian
minister, from the latter place, accompanied his Indians, and had his
tent among them for the purpose of keeping his sheep from the hands of
the wolfish white man, who would first rob him of his religion, and
then of his money.
In 1828, the Baptists established a mission at Saut St. Mary. This
mission was opened under the most favorable auspices by the Rev. A.
Bingham, and continued in a state of prosperity for many years. In
1843 it was still under the superintendence of the Rev. Mr. Bingham,
who for twenty years had been laboring to bring the Indians under
Christian influence. Indian children were boarded in the mission
establishment, and a school was kept up, which, in the language of
one, would have been a credit to any land. The Rev. Mr. Porter, a
Congregationalist missionary, also labored here. The labors of these
missionaries were greatly blessed, and numbers of officers and
soldiers at the fort and garrison, as well as Indians, were converted.
The Baptist missionaries extended their labors to various points on
the northern peninsula and on the shores of Lake Superior.
The Methodists commenced a mission at Saut St. Mary, under the labors
of "John Sunday," a converted Indian, soon after that established by
the Baptists. In 1831 a portion of the Oneida Indians removed to Green
Bay, and the Rev. John Clark was sent out as a missionary among them
the following year. In a report made by the missionary to the Board,
he thus describes his field of labor: "The white settlement is located
on the left bank of the Fox River, extending up the river about five
miles from the head of the bay. The population is about one thousand,
but greatly amalgamated with the Menominee Indians, over whom it is
said they have great influence. The Indian settlement is about
twenty-five miles from this place, on the left bank of the Fox river."
Mr. Clark preached at this settlement and at Green Bay on alternate
Sabbaths. Messrs. Marsh and Stevens, of the Presbyterian church, were
located here, laboring among the Stockbridge Indians and kindly
welcomed Mr. Clark among them. These Indians emigrated from
Stockbridge, Mass., and were at one time under the pastoral care of
Jonathan Edwards. While this distinguished divine was missionary among
these Indians, at Stockbridge, he wrote his famous "Treatise on the
Will." Mr. Clark was cordially received by the Indian agent, Mr.
Schoolcraft.
In 1833, he visited Saut St. Mary, and found a revival in progress.
Nearly all the officers, and thirty or forty soldiers, in Fort Brady
had been converted. The command was soon after removed to Chicago, and
was succeeded by another. A gracious revival followed his labors at
the fort, and officers and soldiers were seen bowing at the same
altar, happy in the enjoyment of a common salvation. Still holding his
connection with Green Bay, he visited that place and preached in Fort
Howard and also among his Indians who had removed to Duck Creek.
At Ke-wee-naw, John Sunday commenced a mission among the Chippewas,
and in 1834 Mr. Clark visited that interesting field. He continued to
superintend the missions in this region, until he volunteered as a
missionary for Texas, and the superintendence of the Indian mission
was given to the Rev. W. H. Brockway. The Rev. Mr. Pitezel labored at
Ke-wee-naw with great success for several years, preaching at the
different mines on the shores of Lake Superior. The Methodists also
established a mission at Fon du Lac near the east shore of the
Winnebago Lake. In the year 1830, a branch mission was organized among
the Wyandottes and Shawnees on the Huron river, and also one among the
Pottawatimees at Fort Clark on the Fox river, at which place, in 1837,
upward of one hundred were converted.
In 1847 a mission was established at the Cliff Mine, on Eagle River, a
stream which empties into Lake Superior, about twenty miles west of
Copper Harbor. The Methodists have missions also at Ontonagon and
Carp River, all of which are more or less prosperous.
At present this church has maintained missions and schools among small
bands of Indians collected on reserves in Isabella and Oceana counties
in the lower peninsula of Michigan. The Indians at the old mission in
the vicinity of Saut St. Mary, are assembling at Iroquois Point at the
lower end of Lake Superior, and are supplied with a missionary. A
mission was also established in the Bay Shore Reservation, among the
Saginaw Indians, which still exists.
It is a matter of melancholy reflection, that the immense tribes, each
of which could muster thousands of warriors in this vast region, have
dwindled down to small and feeble bands. The same remark will apply to
all the tribes in North America. The race is rapidly passing away, and
the nation, like that of Edom, will at no distant day become entirely
extinct. The last report of the Secretary of the Interior, states,
that the whole number of Indians within the limits of the States and
Territories of the Union, does not now exceed three hundred and
twenty-five thousand.
CHAPTER IX.
Indian name of Michigan -- Islands -- Lanman's Summer in the
wilderness -- Plains -- Trees -- Rivers -- A traditionary
land -- Beautiful description -- Official report in relation
to the trade of the lakes -- Green Bay -- Grand Traverse Bay
-- Beaver Islands -- L'Arbre Croche -- Boundaries of Lake
Michigan -- Its connections -- Railroad from Fort Wayne to
Mackinaw -- Recent report of -- Amount completed -- Land
grants.
The Indian name of the State of Michigan, is Michi-sawg-ye-gan, the
meaning of which in the Algonquin tongue is the Lake country.
Surrounded as it is almost entirely by water, it possesses all the
advantages of an island. It has numerous streams which are clear and
beautiful, abounding in fish. The surface of the western half (we
allude now to the lower or southern peninsula) is destitute of rocks,
and undulating. In the language of Lanman in his "Summer in the
Wilderness," "It is here that the loveliest of lakes and streams and
prairies are to be found. No one who has never witnessed them can
form any idea of the exquisite beauty of the thousand lakes which gem
the western part of Michigan. They are the brightest and purest
mirrors the virgin sky has ever used to adorn herself. On the banks of
these lakes, grow in rich profusion, the rose, the violet, the lily
and the sweet brier.
"A great proportion of Michigan is covered with white-oak openings.
Standing on a gentle hill, the eye wanders away for miles over an
undulating surface, obstructed only by the trunks of lofty
trees,--above you a green canopy, and beneath, a carpet of velvet
grass, sprinkled with flowers of every hue and form.
"The prairies are another interesting feature of Michigan scenery.
They meet the traveler at every point, and of many sizes, seeming
often like so many lakes, being often studded with wooded islands, and
surrounded by shores of forests. This soil is a deep black sand. Grass
is their natural production, although corn, oats and potatoes flourish
upon them. Never can I forget the first time I entered White Pigeon
Prairie. Sleeping beneath the shadows of sunset, as it was, the effect
upon me was like that which is felt on first beholding the
ocean,--overpowering awe. All that the poet has said about these
gardens of the desert is true.
"Burr Oak Plains. The only difference between these and the oak
openings, is the character of the trees and the evenness of their
surface. The soil is a mixture of sand and black loam. They have the
appearance of cultivated orchards, or English parks; and on places
where the foot of the white man has never trod, a carriage and four
could easily pass through. They produce both wheat and corn.
"The wet prairies have the appearance of submerged land. In them the
grass is often six or seven feet high. They are the resort of
water-fowl, muskrats, and otters.
"But the best and most fertile soil in Michigan is that designated by
the title of timbered land. It costs more to prepare it for the
plough, but when once the soil is sown it yields a thousand-fold. And
with regard to their beauty and magnificence, the innumerable forests
of this State are not surpassed by any in the world, whether we
consider the variety or grandeur of their production. This timber is
needed for prairie States, Lake cities, and exports.
"A friend of mine, now residing in western Michigan, and who once
spent several years in Europe, thus writes respecting this region:
"'Oh, such trees as we have here! Magnificent, tall, large-leafed,
umbrageous. Vallombrosa, the far-famed Vallombrosa of Tuscany, is
nothing to the thousand Vallombrosas here! A fig for your Italian
scenery! This is the country where nature reigns in her virgin beauty;
where trees grow, where corn grows; where men grow better than they do
anywhere else in the world. This is the land to study nature in all
her luxuriant charms, under glorious green branches, among singing
birds and laughing streams; this is the land to hear the cooing of the
turtle-dove, in far, deep, cool, sylvan bowers; to feel your soul
expand under the mighty influences of nature in her primitive beauty
and strength.'
"The principal inland rivers of Michigan, are the Grand River, the
Kalamazoo, the St. Joseph, the Saginaw, and the Raisin. The first
three empty into Lake Michigan, and are about seventy miles apart.
Their average length is about two hundred and fifty miles, and they
are about thirty or forty rods in width. At present, they are
navigable about half their length for small steamboats and bateaux.
Their bed is of limestone, covered with pebbles. I was a passenger on
board the Matilda Barney, on her first trip,--the first steamer that
ever ascended the St. Joseph, which I consider the most perfectly
beautiful stream that I ever have seen. I remember well the many
flocks of wild turkeys and herds of deer that the 'iron horse'
frightened in his winding career. The Indian canoe is now giving way
to the more costly but less beautiful row-boat, and those rivers are
becoming deeper and deeper every day. Instead of the howl of the wolf,
the songs of husbandmen now echo through their vales, where may be
found many comfortable dwellings.
"The Saginaw runs toward the north and empties into Lake Huron,--that
same Huron which has been celebrated in song by the young poet, Louis
L. Noble. This river is navigable for sixty miles. The river Raisin is
a winding stream, emptying into Lake Erie, called so from the quantity
of grapes that cluster on its banks. Its Indian name is Nummasepee,
signifying River of Sturgeons. Sweet river! whose murmurs have so
often been my lullaby, mayst thou continue in thy beauty forever. Are
there not streams like thee flowing through the paradise of God?
"Notwithstanding the comparative newness of Michigan, its general
aspect is ancient. The ruin of many an old fort may be discovered on
its borders, reminding the beholder of wrong and outrage, blood and
strife. This was once the home of noble but oppressed nations. Here
lived and loved the Algonquin and Shawnese Indians; the names of
whose warrior chiefs--Pontiac the proud, and Tecumseh the brave--will
long be treasured in history. I have stood upon their graves, which
are marked only by a blighted tree and an unhewn stone, and have
sighed deeply as I remembered their deeds. But they have gone--gone
like the lightning of a summer day!
"It is traditionary land. For we are told that the Indian hunters of
old saw fairies and genii floating over its lakes and streams, and
dancing through its lonely forests. In these did they believe, and to
please them was their religion.
"The historian, James H. Lanning, Esq., of this State, thus writes, in
alluding to the olden times: 'The streams rolled their liquid silver
to the lake, broken only by the fish that flashed in their current, or
the swan that floated upon their surface. Vegetation flourished alone.
Roses bloomed and died, only to be trampled by the deer or savage; and
strawberries studded the ground like rubies, where the green and sunny
hillsides reposed amid the silence, like sleeping infants in the lap
of the forest. The rattlesnake glided undisturbed through its
prairies; and the fog which hung in clouds over its stagnant marshes
spread no pestilence. The panther, the fox, the deer, the wolf, and
bear, roamed fearless through the more remote parts of the domain, for
there were none to dispute with them their inheritance. But clouds
thickened. In the darkness of midnight, and silence of the wilderness,
the tomahawk and scalping knife were forged for their work of death.
Speeches were made by the savages under the voice-less stars, which
were heard by none save God and their allies; and the war-song echoed
from the banks of lakes where had never been heard the footsteps of
civilized man.'
"Then followed the horrors of war; then and there were enacted the
triumphs of revenge. But those sounds have died away; traced only on
the page of history, those deeds. The voice of rural labor, the clink
of the hammer, and the sound of Sabbath-bells now echo in those
forests and vales. The plough is making deep furrows in its soil, and
the sound of the anvil is in every part. A well-endowed University,
and seminaries of learning are there. Railroads and canals, like veins
of health, are gliding to its noble heart. The red man, in his
original grandeur and state of nature, has passed away from its more
fertile borders; and his bitterest enemy, the pale face is master of
his possessions."
From a report made, by order of Congress, by Israel D. Andrews, in
1853, in relation to the trade of the great lakes and rivers, we
extract the following "Michigan is the second of the great lakes in
size, being inferior only to Lake Superior, and in regard to situation
and the quality of the surrounding soil and the climate is, in many
respects, preferable to them all. Its southern extremity, rising south
in fertile regions, nearly two degrees to the south of Albany, and the
whole of its great southern peninsula being imbosomed in fresh waters,
its climate is mild and equable, as its soil is rich and productive.
The lake is three hundred miles long by sixty in breadth, and contains
sixteen thousand nine hundred and eighty-one square miles, having a
mean depth of nine hundred feet. On the western shore it has the great
indentation of Green Bay; itself equal to the largest lakes in
England, being one hundred miles long and thirty broad. It is well
sheltered at its mouth by the Traverse Islands, and has for its
affluent the outlet of Winnebago and the Fox River.
"Grand Traverse Bay is a considerable inlet of Lake Michigan, which
sets up into the lower peninsula, one hundred miles south from the
Island of Mackinac. It is a good farming and lumbering country. There
are two mission stations and six or seven steam and water mills
located at this point. It is now an organized county called Grand
Traverse. The county seat is at Grand Traverse City, West Bay, where
they have a court-house and jail.
"L'Arbre Croche Village is an old Indian town, situated about
twenty-five miles southwest from Mackinaw, on the lower peninsula. It
is composed mostly of Indians. It has a Catholic Church and a Home
Mission Station, with a teacher and other assistants to instruct the
Indians in the English language. It has extensive clearings for miles,
along the banks of the lake shore, and extending from one to six miles
back into the interior, indicating that once a large population must
have inhabited this section of the country.
"The principal tributaries of Lake Michigan are the Manistee, Great
Kalamazoo, and St. Joseph's rivers, from the southern peninsula of
Michigan, the Des-Plaines, the O Plaines and Chee rivers, from
Indiana, Illinois, and from the northern peninsula, the Menominee,
Escambia, Noquet, White Fish and Manistee rivers. The lake is bounded
to the eastward by the rich and fertile land of the southern
peninsula, sending out vast quantities of all the cereal grains, equal
if not superior in quality to any raised in the United States. It is
bounded on the south and southwest by Indiana and Illinois, which
supply corn and beef of the finest quality, in superabundance, for
exportation. On the west it is bounded by the productive grain and
grazing lands and lumber district of Wisconsin, and on the northwest
and north by the invaluable and not yet half-explored mineral district
of northern Michigan.
"The natural outlet of its commerce, as of its waters, is by the
Straits of Mackinaw into Lake Huron, thence by the St. Clair River
down to the lower marts. Of internal communications it already
possesses many, both by canal and railroad, equal to those almost of
any of the older States, in length and availability, and inferior to
none in importance. First, it has the Green Bay, Lake Winnebago, and
Fox River improvement connecting it with the Wisconsin River, by which
it has access to the Mississippi River, and thereby enjoys the
commerce of its upper valleys, and its rich lower lands and prosperous
States;--and second, the Illinois and Michigan canal, rendering the
great commercial valley of the Illinois tributary to its commerce. By
railways, perfected and projected, it has, or will soon have,
connection with the Mississippi in its upper tributaries and lead
regions by way of the Milwaukee and Mississippi, and Chicago and
Galena lines. To the eastward, by the Michigan Central and Southern
Railroad, it communicates with the lake shore road, and thence with
all the eastern lines from Buffalo to Boston. To the southward it will
speedily be united by the great system of projected railroads.
"A road is now in progress extending from Fort Wayne, Indiana, to
Mackinaw. From a recent report made of this road, which will prove of
vast importance in developing the immense resources of Michigan, we
extract the following:--
"The distance from point to point, as measured by the engineers, are
as follow:
"From Fort Wayne to the 'Air-line Railroad, Indiana, 28 miles; the
Air-line railroad, to Wolcottville, 6; Wolcottville to Lagrange, 10;
Lagrange to Lima, 5; Lima to Sturgis, Mich., 5-1/2; Sturgis to Mendon,
14; Mendon to Brady, 8; Brady to Kalamazoo, 12; Kalamazoo to Grand
Rapids, 47; Grand Rapids to Laphamville, 13; Laphamville to Little
Traverse Bay, 169; Little Traverse to the Straits of Mackinaw, 27.
Total; 344.
"The work of construction now performed, is mostly between
Wolcottville and Kalamazoo. Between Lagrange and Sturgis the
earth-work and bridges are nearly done--$1,500 will complete it for
the ties. About one-fourth of the earth-work, bridges and ties, of the
remainder of the line from Wolcottville to Kalamazoo, is done.
Between Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids, work to the amount of $8,000 has
been done.
"The construction of the road bed, bridging, ties, ballasting, &c.,
from Kalamazoo to the north bank of the Muskegon River, one hundred
and three miles, is let to Daniel Beckel, Esq., of Dayton, Ohio. Near
two hundred hands are engaged on the work--on the twenty miles north
of Grand Rapids. It is the intention of the company, as we are
informed, to complete this twenty miles early the coming summer.
"We are informed by the annual report, that on July 21st, $216,316 18
had been collected and expended.
"The land grant made by Congress is of great value. The portion of the
road to which it attaches, extends from Grand Rapids to Little
Traverse Bay; the precise length of which is, as adopted by the proper
departments at Washington, one hundred and eighty-two miles and three
thousand and sixty-seven feet. Under the rules of adjustment adopted
by the department, the quantity of lands granted will be somewhere
from 600,000 to 674,161 acres.
"These lands are generally timbered farm lands--of the best quality,
in timber, soil and water. Some are pine lands, some pine and hard
wood mixed; and a small portion are cedar swamp lands. But there is
none too much of either description for the value of the lands and the
prosperity of the country. Nature has distributed and interspersed
them in such proportions as will best contribute to the support of a
populous and well improved agricultural country. The great bulk of
these lands are what are generally denominated 'beech and sugar-tree
lands.' The soil is generally rich sandy loam. The estimated value of
the lands, when the road is completed, has been put, by different
parties, from $4 to $10 per acre.
"The lands granted are the odd numbered sections within six miles of
the line; and if any such sections are sold or pre-empted, then the
company has the right to select other sections outside of the six
miles and within fifteen miles of the road, to make up such deficit.
"The odd numbered sections, outside of the six-mile limits, and within
the fifteen-mile limits, are set apart to this company, out of which
to select lands to make up any deficit that may occur in the six
miles.
"By those best acquainted with the value of these lands--and who are
familiar with that portion of the State--they are estimated at $10
per acre, on the completion of the road. This will give the company
the sum of $6,600,000. And if the road when fully equipped costs
$30,000 per mile, then the gross cost will be $10,500,000; which by
the proceeds of the land grant will be reduced to the sum of
$3,900,000, and will reduce the actual cost of the road to $11,142,85
per mile. Anything like fair success in the construction of the road
will enable the company to do it, after applying the proceeds of the
land grant, for about _eleven thousand dollars per mile_. Such a
result will not only give to the country all the advantages of this
much-needed work; but when done the capital stock must prove to be a
good paying investment."
CHAPTER X.
Mackinaw, the site for a great central city -- The Venice of
the lakes -- Early importance as a central position --
Nicolet -- Compared geographically with other points --
Immense chain of coast -- Future prospects -- Temperature --
Testimony of the Jesuit fathers -- Healthfulness of the
climate -- Dr. Drake on Mackinaw -- Resort for invalids --
Water currents of commerce -- Surface drained by them -- Soil
of the northern and southern peninsulas of Michigan --
Physical resources -- Present proprietors of Mackinaw -- Plan
of the city -- Streets -- Avenues -- Park -- Lots and blocks
for churches and public purposes -- Institutions of learning
and objects of benevolence -- Fortifications -- Docks and
ferries -- Materials for building -- Harbors -- Natural
beauty of the site for a city -- Mountain ranges -- Interior
lakes -- Fish -- Game.
Ferris, in his "States and Territories of the Great West," says: "If
one were to point out, on the map of North America, a site for a great
central city in the lake region, it would be in the immediate vicinity
of the Straits of Mackinaw. A city so located would have the command
of the mineral trade, the fisheries, the furs, and the lumber, of the
entire North. It might become the metropolis of a great commercial
empire. It would be the Venice of the Lakes." Mackinaw, both straits
and peninsula, was so naturally the key point of the great system of
northern lakes and their connection with the Mississippi, that while
the New England colonies were yet but infant and feeble settlements,
the Indians of the northwest, the Jesuit missionaries, the French
voyagers, all made Mackinaw the point from whence they diverged--in
all directions. When Philadelphia and Baltimore had not begun, and
when the sites of Pittsburg, Cincinnati, and St. Louis were unknown
places in the wilderness, Nicolet took his departure from Quebec in
search of the mysterious river of the west. In passing to meet the
Indians at Green Bay, he was the first to notice the Straits of
Mackinaw. About thirty years after, James Marquette established, on
the northern shore of the straits, the Mission of St. Ignace. Here,
amidst the wilds and solitudes of the North American forests, and on
the shores of its great inland seas, Marquette and Joliet planned
their expedition as we have already described, and it was Mackinaw and
not New Orleans or New York that the lines radiated from to the
earliest settlements of the west.
Mackinaw presents one of the most remarkable geographical positions
on the earth. Constantinople on the Bosphorus, the Straits of
Gibraltar, Singapore on the Strait of Malacca, and the Isthmus of
Panama, are the only ones which seem to present a parallel. The two
former have been for ages renowned as the most important in the
commercial world. Singapore has rapidly become the key and centre of
Asiatic navigation, at which may be found the shipping and people of
all commercial nations, and Panama is now the subject of negotiation
among the most powerful nations with a view to the exceeding
importance of its commercial position. Geographically, Mackinaw is not
inferior to either. From the northwest to the southeast, midland of
the North American continent, there stretches a vast chain of lakes
and rivers dividing the continent nearly midway. This chain of Lakes
and rivers is in the whole nearly three thousand miles long. At the
Straits of Mackinaw the whole system of land and water centres. The
three greatest lakes of this system, Superior, Huron, and Michigan,
are spread around, pointing to the straits, while between them three
vast peninsulas of land press down upon the waters until they are
compressed into a river of four miles in width. On the north is the
peninsula of Canada, on the south that of Michigan, and on the west
that of the copper region, all of which are divided only by the narrow
Straits of Mackinaw. Here are three inland seas of near eighty
thousand square miles and about five thousand miles of coast. From
coast to coast and isle to isle of this immense expanse of waters,
navigation must be kept up, increasing with the ever-increasing
population on their shores till tens of millions are congregated
around. Of all this vast navigation and increasing commerce, Mackinaw
is the natural centre around which it exists, and toward which it must
tend by an inevitable law of necessity. Superior, Huron, and Michigan
have no water outlet to each other but that which flows through the
Straits of Mackinaw, and its geographical position is unrivaled in
America. Whoever lives twenty years from this time will find Mackinaw
a populous and wealthy city, the Queen of the Lakes.
If any serious objection be made to the site of a city at this place,
it can only be that the climate is _supposed_ to be cold. But, what is
climate? Climate is relative and composed of many elements. The first
is temperature, as determined by latitude. The Straits of Mackinaw are
in the _latitude_ of 45° 46'. North of this lies a part of Canada,
containing at least a million of inhabitants. North of this latitude
lies the city of Quebec in America; London, Paris, Amsterdam, Berlin,
Vienna, Warsaw, Copenhagen, Moscow, and St. Petersburg, in Europe;
Odessa and Astracan, in Asia. North of it, are in Prussia, Poland, and
Russia, dense populations, and a great agricultural production. The
latitude of Mackinaw, therefore, is in the midst of that temperate
zone, where commerce, population, cities, and the arts have most
flourished. The climate, however, is actually milder than the latitude
represents. The isothermal line, which passes through Mackinaw, also
passes in Wisconsin, nearly as low as 43°, and in the east also
deflects south. This is the true line of vegetation; and thus it
appears that the actual climate of Mackinaw is about that of 43° 30'.
The same isothermal line, passes through Prussia and Poland, the
finest grain countries of Europe. The climate of the straits is,
therefore, as favorable as that of most civilized States, either for
the production of food or the pursuits of commerce.
The Marquette Journal gives some items relative to the winter of that
locality. The mercury was not below zero until the evening of January
8th, and then only 2° below. The highest point reached in January, was
20° above, and lowest 16° below zero. In February, the highest point
was 55° above, the lowest 20° below zero. The average temperature for
the three winter months had been about 15° above zero. In the
"Relations of the Jesuits," 3d. volume, 1671, it is stated that the
"winter in Mackinaw is short, not commencing until after Christmas and
closing the middle of March, at which time spring begins."
The Lake Superior Journal for February 23, 1859, says:--
"We are now within five days of the first spring month, and have
scarcely had a brush of winter yet. But very few days has the
thermometer been below zero, and but a single day as low as ten
degrees below. Most of the time it has been mild. For two weeks past,
there has been a blandness and mellowness in the atmosphere, which was
enough to cause the moodiest heart to sing for joy. There was a
flare-up, however, for a single day (the 20th), when the storm
descended, the wind blew, and there was great commotion in the
elements, but the next day all was calm and delightful as before. We
have quite a depth of snow on the ground, have had fine sleighing
since the 10th of November. But our bay has not been closed more than
a week at a time this winter, and but a few days in all. It is open
now, and 'the stern monarch of the year,' seems to be melting away
into spring.
"In regard to the healthfulness of Mackinaw, it may be remarked that
the northern regions of the earth are everywhere the most healthy. Yet
there are differences in situation and exposure which make differences
in health. Mackinaw has now been known and settled for two hundred
years, a period long enough to have both tested its healthiness, and
created a permanent reputation. The Jesuit Missionaries, the frontier
traders, and the French voyageurs, have lived and died there; yet we
have never heard of any prevalent disease, or local miasm. It seems to
have been the favorite resort of all the frontiers men, who inhabited
or hunted in the region of the Northern Lakes. In recent years, it has
been visited by men of science, and accomplished physicians, and their
report has been uniformly in favor of its superior healthiness. Dr.
Drake, who visited Mackinaw in 1842, for the express purpose of
examining the climate and topography, says, 'From this description, it
appears, that the conditions which are held to be necessary to the
generation of autumnal fever, are at their _minimum_ in this place;
and when we consider this fact, with its latitude nearly 46°, and its
altitude above the sea, from six to eight hundred feet, we are
prepared to find it almost exempt from that disease; and such from
the testimony of its inhabitants is the fact, especially in reference
to the intermittent fevers, which, I was assured by many respectable
persons, never originated among the people, and would cease
spontaneously in those who returned, or came with it from other
places.'
"Speaking of this region as a place of resort for invalids, the same
writer says:
"'The three great reservoirs of clear and cold water, Lakes Huron,
Michigan, and Superior, with the Island of Mackinac in their
hydrographical centre, offer a delightful hot-weather asylum to all
invalids who need an escape from the crowded cities, paludal
exhalations, sultry climates and officious medication. Lake Erie lies
too far south, and is bordered by too many swamps to be included in
the salutiferous group.'
"'On reaching Mackinaw, an agreeable change of climate is at once
experienced.' 'To his jaded sensibilities all around him is fresh and
invigorating.'" Dr. Drake looked upon Mackinaw as one of the
healthiest portions of the whole Northwest, and to which, in time,
tens of thousands of persons, even from the furthest south, would
resort to be reinvigorated in body, refreshed in mind, and delighted
with the contemplation of the sublime and beautiful scenery in that
region of expansive waters, of rocky coasts, of forest-bearing lands,
and distant islands.
"Here the great currents, which are the natural lines of _movement_
for the people, commerce, and productions of half North America,
concentrate around a single point. No other place has the same
advantage of _radial lines_. Quebec is relatively on the Atlantic. The
upper end of Lake Superior is comparatively on an inhospitable land.
Chicago is at a lateral point on the south end of Lake Michigan,--three
hundred miles from the main channel of commerce. At Mackinaw
concentrate all the radial lines of water navigation in the upper
lakes. Which will be seen, if we take the following distances of
direct navigation from this point to the principal points on the upper
lakes:
"From Mackinaw to Fon du Lac (west end of Lake Superior), 550 miles;
to Chicago, 350; to east end of Georgian Bay, 300; to Detroit, 300; to
Buffalo, 700; to Gulf of St. Lawrence, 1,600.
"Here are two important points to be observed. Any city which, by
competition, or the rivalry of production, or the power of wealth, can
be supposed to interfere with the growth of Mackinaw, must arise on
Lakes Michigan or Superior; for _there_ only can be any commercial
mart to receive and distribute the products around those immense
bodies of water. But in consequence of the form and surface of those
lakes, no lines of transit to the waters of the St. Lawrence can be
made so short or cheap as the water transit through the Straits of
Mackinaw. The concentration of products will, therefore, be ultimately
made at Mackinaw, for all that immense district of country which lies
around the upper lakes. Again, it will be seen that as the water
transportation to that point is the best, so the radial line from that
point to the Atlantic by water, is much the shortest. A steam
propeller, leaving any one of the principal points on the upper lakes
for either Buffalo or the Gulf of St. Lawrence, must, as compared with
Mackinaw, pass over the following lines of transit, viz., From Fon du
Lac (west end of Lake Superior) to Buffalo, 1,250 miles; Chicago,
Ill., 1,000; Mackinaw, Michigan, 700; Fon du Lac to the Gulf of St.
Lawrence, 2,150; Chicago to the Gulf of St. Lawrence, 1,900; Mackinaw
to the Gulf of St. Lawrence, 1,600.
"It must be granted, at once, that for any water communication with
the ports of the Atlantic, Mackinaw has greatly the advantage over any
commercial point in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Northern Illinois, Northern
Michigan, or Northwest Canada. How great this advantage is, we shall
see from the consideration of the surface drained by the water
current of Mackinaw. An inspection of the map will show that from Long
Lake, above latitude 50°, to the south end of Lake Michigan, below
latitude, 40°, and from the Lake of the Woods, longitude 95°, to
Saginaw Bay, longitude 83°, the country is entirely within the
drainage of lakes and river whose currents concentrate at the Straits
of Mackinaw. This surface comprehends a square of over six hundred
miles on the side, or nearly four hundred thousand square miles.
Deducting the surface of the lakes, it is enough to make eight States
as large as Ohio. In that whole surface, there is not a single point
which can rival Mackinaw as a point of _distribution for the products
of that country_. That the advantage by water lines is in favor of
Mackinaw, we have shown. That it will be equally so by railroad, is
evident, from the fact that Mackinaw city to Port Huron, and thence to
Buffalo, need not exceed four hundred miles, while that from Chicago
to Buffalo, in a direct line is five hundred and fifteen miles.
"From any other point of Lakes Michigan or Superior, where a city can
be built, it is further. Mackinaw is, therefore, the natural centre of
drainage and distribution for a surface equal to that of eight large
States, and whose products, whether of field, fruit, or mines, are
superabundant in whatever creates commerce, sustains population, or
affords the materials of industry.
"We are now considering Mackinaw in a state of nature, and must look
to its natural products as the first and greatest elements of success.
We have considered its climate, its water currents, its lines of
navigation, and the surface drainage for its support. The latter
within a space where there can be no competition, we have found to be
but little less than 400,000 square miles. Vast as this is, it could
not support a great commercial city, if that were a barren plain.
"Hence, we must now consider how far the products of the earth will
sustain the city, which such lines of navigation, such means of
commerce, and such an extensive, surface leads us to anticipate.
"The soil is the first thing to be examined. The peninsula of
Michigan--that of Wisconsin and the Copper region--of Minnesota and
Canada, which make up the larger portion of surface drained by the
currents of Mackinaw, has been supposed to be cold and wet. But is it
more so than northwestern Ohio or northern Illinois, which, but twenty
years since, were scarcely inhabited, but now are found to afford some
of the richest lands in the country? On this point, we have numerous
and competent witnesses, and whatever character they give to the
country, we shall adopt as the true criterion of its producing
resources.
"First of the Superior Country, the least agricultural portion of this
district, we have the concurrent testimony of geologists, miners,
settlers, and travelers, that it is one of the richest mining
districts in the world. But in the midst of it are found some fertile
sections. Of these, Mr. Ferris, in his account of the Great West,
says: 'The surveyors report some good agricultural lands (of which
many townships are specially enumerated), and these tracts of fertile
land will become of great value, when the rivers shall have been
opened and a mining population introduced, creating a sure and
convenient home market for the productions of the farm.'
"_Disturnell_, an accurate authority, speaking of the Superior region,
says: 'The traveler finds the whole district to within a few miles of
Lake Superior, abounding in every resource which will make a country
wealthy and prosperous. Clear, beautiful lakes are interspersed, and
these have plenty of large trout and other fish. Water and water
powers are everywhere to be found, and the timber is of the best
kind--maple groves, beech, oak, pine, etc. No thing is now wanted but
a few roads to open this rich country to the settler, and it will
soon teem with villages, schools, mills, farming operations, and every
industrial pursuit, which the more southern portion of our State now
exhibits.'
"Turning to the immense territory north and northwest of Superior and
the Straits, now constituting a portion of the British Dominions, and
every part of which must be tributary to Mackinaw, we find that it
affords, like Prussia and Poland, a fine agricultural region for all
the breadstuffs and vegetables which are raised in the northern part
of Europe. A writer in the _Toronto Globe_, exhibiting the value of a
canal from Georgian Bay to Toronto--(a canal, the whole commerce of
which coming from the northwest, must first have passed the Straits of
Mackinaw) says: 'Westward we possess vast and fertile countries
adapted to all the pursuits of agriculture life, countries susceptible
to the highest cultivation and improvement. Between Lake Superior and
the Lake of the Woods (above 49° of latitude), we possess a country of
this description, in soil and character inferior to no part of
Minnesota, and bordering upon this territory lies the valley of the
Assinibone, or the Red River, as it is sometimes called. As a wheat
growing country, it will rival Canada. It does so now in soil and
climate.' The writer is here speaking of British possessions north of
Lake Superior, and several degrees north of Mackinaw. He says they
are as fertile and grain-growing as Canada, and Canada we know already
produces not only its own breadstuffs, but large quantities for
exportation. The valley of the Assinibone, referred to, and the whole
region west of Superior to the Lake of the Woods and the Red River,
can have no market outlet except through Lake Superior, and thence
near the Straits of Mackinaw. The writer sees this, and says: 'The
future products of these immense countries must seek the seaboard, and
all the canals and railroads which can be constructed will scarce
suffice to afford facilities for the products of the West.'
"Let us next examine the Southern Peninsula of Michigan. If the
country far north of it is so productive, it can scarcely happen that
this can be very deficient, although not ranked among the most fertile
districts. On this point, we need only cite the same accurate
authority to which we have referred. He says: 'The numerous streams
which penetrate every portion of the peninsula, some of which are
navigable for steamboats a considerable distance from the lake, being
natural outlets for the products of the interior, render this whole
region desirable for purposes of settlement and cultivation.' Even as
far north as the Straits of Mackinaw, the soil and climate, together
with the valuable timber, offer great inducements to settlers; and if
the proposed railroads under the recent grant of large portion of
these lands by Congress, are constructed from and to the different
points indicated, this extensive and heavily timbered region will
speedily be reclaimed, and become one of the most substantial and
prosperous agricultural portions of the West.' After speaking of the
timber in that country, the same writer adds: 'But as the timber is
exhausted, the soil is prepared for cultivation, and a large portion
of the _northern part_ of the southern peninsula of Michigan will be
settled and cultivated, as it is _the most reliable wheat-growing
portion of the Union_.'
"The Detroit Daily Tribune of 1857, says: "Michigan is greatly
undervalued because greatly unknown. The tide of emigration sweeps
past us to Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota, because the public
do not know--what is but the sober truth--that Michigan possesses
advantages unrivaled by any sister State in the Northwest, and an
undeveloped wealth that will far exceed any one of those named. This
is not a random statement, originating in State pride or
self-interest, but the simple truth which is slowly being found out by
the shrewd among men. We propose to speak of some of the advantages
which we possess in the northern half of our lower peninsula, as yet
almost uninhabited and unknown.
"'No other State can boast of such valuable forests of such perfect
timber. Already our lumber trade exceeds in value and importance that
in any other staple products, not excepting wheat, while if it were to
increase in the ratio of the past five years, in five years more it
would exceed all the other staples united, excepting only copper. But
such a rate of increase would exhaust the pine timber to a great
extent within ten years' time. Yet the demand for pine lumber is
absolutely unlimited, and cannot be met.
"Look for a moment at the vast region depending upon the pineries of
Michigan for its supply of lumber for building purposes of every
kind--houses, fence and shelter of every description. The great States
of Illinois, Iowa, and Missouri, and the Territory of Minnesota,
depend almost solely upon Michigan, and must do so. The present
season, lumber has been taken from the forest of southwestern New York
and northern Pennsylvania, and sold in the market of St. Louis, so
urgent is the demand and so entirely inadequate are the present or
prospective rates of supply for that demand. We have before us the
statistics of the lumber trade of the different States and the
principal markets in the country, but of what use is a parade of
figures when a simple fact will show that the value of the pine forest
of Michigan _must_ be? Take the State Iowa alone. If every quarter
section were to be enclosed with a common post and board fence, it
would take every foot of pine on the soil of Michigan! Leave out of
sight the great Territory of Minnesota, which can find but a mere drop
of supply from the pineries of the Upper Mississippi. Leave out of
sight the great State of Illinois, which depends upon us wholly.
Forget entirely that villages are springing up like magic all along
the lines of a dozen railroads running from Lake Michigan to the
Mississippi; that cities are growing and spreading with unprecedented
rapidity--and that every town and village, and city, and farm, must
have its dwellings, and that the cheapest and best material for
construction is pine. Leave all these out of the calculation, and
remember only that one of these States would consume all our vast
forests of pine in _fence boards alone_, and the dullest comprehension
can perceive, with all these other demands of which we have spoken, in
all those other regions, the value of the pine region is as certain as
though it were a gold mine. And when we consider the pressing need for
material whereof to build over all the western prairies, the wealth
of northern Michigan cannot be put at any low amount. It must be
immense--untold.
"After the timber shall have been removed in obedience to the pressing
demands of a cash market and high prices, the value of northern
Michigan will just begin to be developed. The soil possesses riches of
which the heavy growth of timber is the outcropping. Rich as any
prairie land, even more substantial in the elements of fertility, with
a genial climate, southern Michigan, itself a garden, we predict will
have to yield the palm of productive wealth to this portion of the
State. Any one who will take the trouble to examine a map of this half
of the State, projected on an extended scale, cannot fail to be struck
with the superabundant water privileges that exist. It is literally
covered with navigable rivers, and their tributaries, large streams,
like the veins in the human system. These waters reach the remotest
part and thread every portion, affording unfailing supplies and
thousands of valuable sites for mills of every description and of all
magnitudes. The State is divided near its geographical centre by a
slight ridge, sufficient to divide the course of its streams. Two of
the largest rivers of the State, the Manistee and the Eastern Au
Sauble, rise within about three miles of each other, run parallel,
southward, for twenty miles or more, approaching then within half a
mile of each other, then turning abruptly almost due east and west,
emptying into Lakes Michigan and Huron respectively on almost the same
parallel of latitude.
"The Grand Traverse region, embracing the valley of the Manistee, is
also one of the finest agricultural regions of the State; lying in the
northerly portion, this region still has a mild climate, and the
finest grains and fruits are raised at the settlements, as far north
as the bay.
"Much might be said of other counties throughout this region. The
whole slope of the peninsula embracing the courses of the Muskegon and
Manistee Rivers, and from Grand River to Mackinaw, is a region of rich
soil, excellent timber of all kinds, good climate, and of easy access.
"The counties in the eastern part of the State, Alpena, Alcona, Iosco,
Arrenac, and others north of Saginaw Bay, well situated, having a
large extent of coast on Lake Huron, are not so well adapted for
agricultural purposes, there is much good farming land in them all;
but the forests of pine extending to within a few miles of the coast,
render them very desirable. Alcona county, watered by Thunder Bay
River, with some smaller streams emptying into Lake Huron, is almost
wholly a pine region. Some of the finest specimens of yellow, or
Norway pine, in the whole State are found in this country. The white
and yellow pine is nearly equally distributed in this region,
extending also into the counties south, and reaching Rifle River in
Saginaw and Arrenac counties, having an outlet on Saginaw Bay.
"This part of the State, upon whose advantages we have not space to
particularize as we would like, will be very soon penetrated by
railroads.
"There are _three_ roads contemplated by the Act of Congress granting
lands to this State at its last session. These, if built, will add
more to the development of the natural wealth of Michigan than
anything heretofore proposed in the way of public improvement.
"The different routes pass through some of the best counties in the
State, and the opening of such thoroughfares will induce a tide of
emigration, such as will soon render northern Michigan what it ought
to be, one of the most important points in the West.
"The State of Michigan is in all respects more favorably situated than
any of the Western States, being surrounded by the lakes and with
railroads extending in every direction, affording the most
extraordinary opportunities to reach markets of every class, great or
small.
"With these natural advantages of transportation considered with the
immense natural resources of this region (soil and timber) no one will
doubt the very great value of Michigan lands.
"Fruit of all kinds is abundant in every part of this State. All our
exchanges from the interior are acknowledging presents of luscious
peaches, plums, pears, apples, etc., etc. This is as it should be. May
they all, each succeeding year, be remembered in like manner.
"What is here said of the northern part of Michigan, is directly
applicable to Wisconsin, the northern half of which must contribute
directly to Mackinaw. Of the agricultural capacity of this new State,
we need say no more, than that it has already attained half a million
of inhabitants, and pours forth its surplus products though the ports
of Lake Michigan.
"Of Minnesota, and its productiveness, less is known. As three-fourths
of that rich and beautiful country, and the regions around the heads
of the Mississippi, must contribute to the commercial importance of
Mackinaw, let us glance at its agricultural capacity and prospects.
Minnesota, of which we heard but yesterday, has now two hundred
thousand inhabitants, produces this year two millions of bushels of
wheat. St. Paul, its principal town has fourteen thousand inhabitants,
and far to the northwest from St. Peters to the Red River, and
Assinibone, the settlers are crowding in to till farms and create
towns, where but recently the wild wolf and the wilder savage, alone
possessed the face of the earth. In latitudes higher than that of
Mackinaw, Michigan or Canada West, settlements are forming, and it
requires no flight of imagination to see that beautiful land of lakes,
rivers, forests, and prairies,--cold as it may be in winter--settled,
tilled, and civilized. The fact of its rapid progress in population,
is sufficient proof of its agricultural capacity; but we shall again
refer to the testimony of actual observers. Turning to Mr. Ferris's
first description of the Northwest, we find his summing of the
climate, and agricultural advantages of Upper Minnesota. 'Minnesota is
destined to become a great agricultural, and grazing region. Its
upland and lowland plains would support a dairy that would enrich an
empire. All the principal grains, and roots thrive there in great
vigor, as high toward the north as Pembina, below the dividing line
between the United States and British America. Latitude does not
always indicate the climate as has already been shown. The character
of the soil has great influence upon the temperature of the air. A
quick warm soil makes a warm atmosphere. The autumns of Minnesota are
greatly lengthened out by the Indian summer, that smoky, dreary, balmy
season, which protects the surface from frost, like a mantle flung
upon the earth. The cold nips the vegetation, about as early along the
Ohio, as along the St. Peters. The winters of Minnesota are cold; but
then they are still and calm, and the icy air does not penetrate, as
it does in a windy climate.'
"In the brief review of the agricultural advantages of that great
northwestern region, whose centre of commerce must ever be at
Mackinaw; we have arrived at the certain fact, that except small
portions of the Superior country, where mining and mines absorb all
other interests, no country in the northern part of America or Europe,
has greater advantages. It is filled with inexhaustible springs, and
streams; fertile in soil, rich in production, and only needs the
cultivating hand of man, to render it capable of sustaining such dense
populations as now inhabit the same isothermal parallel in Prussia and
Poland.
"Let us now turn to its forests, mines, fisheries and resources, which
though not bread, are those from which the implements, conveniences,
and much of the wealth of civilization is derived. Of forests,
furnishing almost illimitable quantities of timber and lumber--this is
the very centre. Of this, we have evidence in the wharves of Chicago,
Milwaukee, Detroit, and far down the lakes. The testimony of actual
observers on this point, is so strong as to seem almost incredible. We
shall cite but two or three unquestionable authorities. The peninsula,
of Michigan is at the present moment, one of the greatest depositories
of lumber in the world. Mr. Ferris says: 'On going toward the north,
the lumber becomes more and more plentiful. Beeches begin to mingle
with the oaks, and in a day or two beeches and maples will predominate
over other varieties of timbers; large white-woods and bass-woods will
be seen towering above the forest. The white ash, the shag bark, the
black cherry, will have become abundant. The woods will seem to have
been growing deeper and denser every mile of the way. Soon the
traveler will doubt, whether Omnipotence himself could have planted
the trees larger, taller, and thicker together, than they are.'
"Pressing still forward, the emigrant will enter the great pine woods
of the north. For a while, however, before reaching them, he will have
been wandering through groves of oak, and along the borders of
natural meadows, and through clumps of beech and maple. But soon, as
with a single step, the timber has become all pine--yellow pine,
moaning overhead, darkening all the ground, shutting out the sun,
shutting out the wind." The tall trunks support the dark green canopy
full fifty feet above the earth. This belt of pine woods, stretches
across the peninsula of Michigan from Saginaw Bay. After a while as
you proceed further to the north, the pine grows thinner, and is
succeeded by other timber. "The level lands again become covered with
beech and maple, of a full and convenient growth, with here and there
a gigantic Norway pine, six feet through without limb, till it begins
to stretch up half its length above the surrounding trees.
"In northern Wisconsin, we find another great pinery, in which, in one
year, was sawed not less than two hundred millions of feet of pine
timber. The same authority to which we have frequently referred, says:
"Still further north and northwest, is one of the finest tracts of
pine land in America, through which the streams tumbling down frequent
falls, afford an incalculable amount of water-power, just where it is
most needed for the manufacture of lumber. The Wisconsin forest of
evergreens is perfectly immense, covering one-third the State. The
prairies of the Upper Wisconsin and its tributaries, are at the
present most extensive, and those are distinguished still more for the
fine quality, than for the inexhaustible quantities of the timber."
In the same manner, an immense forest extends over the upper part of
Minnesota, while far to the northwest in the British possessions,
extend deep forests of pine, spruce, and hemlock. It is evident,
therefore, that on the great current of the Straits of Mackinaw, there
will float for generations to come, all the timber and lumber, which
are necessary for the markets of commerce, or the uses of a growing
population.
Nor are the fisheries to be neglected, in any right estimate of the
natural resources of that region. Not only do the one hundred thousand
square miles of lakes and streams, furnish illimitable quantities of
fish; but they furnish varieties, which are nowhere else to be found,
and which an epicurean taste has long since pronounced among the
richest luxuries of the palate. The lake trout, the Mackinaw trout,
the Muskelunge, and the white fish, are celebrated throughout America.
Good fishing grounds occur all along the north shore of Lake Superior,
affording a bountiful supply. On the south shore, there are fisheries
at White Fish Point, Grand Island near the Pitcairn's Rodes, Keweenaw
Point, La Point, and Apostles' Islands, and at different stations on
Isle Royal, where large quantities are taken and exported. Mackinac
Island alone exports yearly a quarter million of dollars' worth.
The site of Old Mackinaw, now the county seat of Emmet county, and its
surroundings, belonged to the Government of the United States until
the year 1853, when Edgar Conkling, Esq., of Cincinnati, realizing its
importance as a vast commercial centre, and one of the finest
positions for a great city, formed a company consisting of seven
persons, and entered at the Land Office in Ionia, Michigan, near one
thousand eight hundred acres. In 1857 that portion embracing the
ancient site of Old Mackinaw was surveyed and divided into lots. Mr.
Conkling has, recently, become the sole proprietor of the city, and
intends devoting his energies to its development. A pamphlet,
published some time since, describes it as follows:
"The streets of the city are laid out eighty feet in width, and the
avenues from a hundred to a hundred and fifty feet respectively. In
the deed of dedication to the public, of these streets and avenues,
provision is made for side-walks fifteen feet in width on each side,
to be forever unobstructed by improvements of any kind, shade trees
excepted, thus securing a spacious promenade worthy of a place
destined to become a principal resort for health and pleasure.
Provision is also made for the proper use of the streets and avenues
by railroad companies adequate to the demands of the business of a
city. The lots, with the exception of those in fractional blocks, are
fifty by one hundred and fifty feet, thus affording ample room for
permanent, convenient, and ornamental improvement."
The park, now laid off and dedicated to the city, embraces the grounds
of Old Fort Mackinaw, sacred in the history of the country. These
grounds, now in their natural condition, are unequaled for beauty of
surface, location, soil, trees, etc., by any park in any city in the
country, and when the skillful hand of the horticulturist has marked
its outline and threaded it with avenues and paths, pruned its trees,
and carpeted its surface with green, it will present the very
perfection of all that makes a park delightful. The character of the
soil, being a sandy loam, with sand and gravel underlying it, renders
it capable of the easiest and most economical improvement, securing
walks always dry, hard, and smooth. The park, with suitable blocks and
lots for county and city purposes, such as public buildings,
schoolhouses, etc., will be duly appropriated to those uses, whenever
the proper authorities are prepared to select suitable sites; and lots
for churches, institutions of learning, and charity, will be fully
donated to parties contemplating early improvements. Thus the
proprietor proposes to anticipate, by avoiding the errors of older
cities, the wants of Mackinaw city in perpetuity, and free forever its
citizens from taxation for any grounds required for the public good.
He also designs to place it in the power of the General Government, to
secure, by like donation at an early day, the grounds necessary for
such fortifications as the wants of the country and commerce may
require, on the simple condition of speedy improvement. This liberal
policy will best promote the true interests of the city and country,
and at the same time be productive of pecuniary profit to the
proprietors and all who may make investments at that point.
The proprietor intends also to expend a large portion of the income
from sales in providing for the public wants by the construction of
docks at the most important points, and the establishment of ferries,
for which he has purchased the land on the opposite side of the
straits. He intends to make loans also, as his means will justify, to
aid parties in the establishment of manufactories.
Building materials of great variety and in abundance are at hand.
Lumber can be had for the mere cost of preparation, and the soil, at
no distant point, is suitable for making bricks; while for immediate
use, Milwaukee can furnish the articles of the best kind in any
quantities. The shores of Lake Superior abound with exhaustless
quantities of granite, sandstone and marble; the limestone and sand
are on the spot.
Three fine harbors adjoin Mackinaw; the one on the east being the most
spacious, and the best protected. The new United States charts show
the depth of water sufficient for vessels of the largest size
navigating the lakes. As many as thirty vessels have been at anchor in
this harbor. The country in the rear of Mackinaw rises gradually
until, at the distance of a mile or two, it rises into an elevation of
high table land, from points of which there is a fine view of the
straits and surrounding islands. A mountainous ridge extends up to
within two miles of Mackinaw, covered with a dense forest of hard
wood. The southern extremity of this range reaches to the head waters
of the Grand and Saginaw rivers. From two to ten miles south of
Mackinaw are several beautiful lakes, surrounded by a rich, warm soil
of great fertility and covered with a heavy forest of hard wood, some
of which has attained a gigantic growth. These lakes abound with fish
of different varieties. Turtles have been taken from them, measuring
from one and a half to two feet in diameter. Almost every kind of game
can be found in the woods bordering upon these lakes, such as the
black bear, raccoon, martin, fox, lynx, rabbit, ducks, partridges and
pigeons.
CHAPTER XI.
The entrepot of a vast commerce -- Surface drained --
Superiority of Mackinaw over Chicago as a commercial point --
Exports and imports -- Michigan the greatest lumber-growing
region in the world -- Interminable forests of the choicest
pine -- Facilities for market -- Annual product of the
pineries -- Lumbering, mining and fishing interests --
Independent of financial crises -- Mackinaw, the centre of a
great railroad system -- Lines terminating at this point --
North and South National Line -- Canada grants -- Growth of
northwestern cities -- Future growth and prosperity of
Mackinaw -- Chicago -- Legislative provisions for opening
roads in Michigan -- The Forty Acre Homestead Bill -- Its
provisions.
The physical resources of this region are of such a nature and variety
as to make Mackinaw city the entrepot of a vast commerce. This will
appear, if we consider that it is the nearest point of that extensive
district, including the entire north of the lakes inaccessible to
Chicago. When all the lines of internal communication are completed,
and the different points on the lakes settled down upon, then the
real limits of Mackinaw will drain a geographical surface of three
hundred thousand square miles; deducting the surface of the lakes from
which, there will remain two hundred and eighty thousand square miles
of country, with all the resources of agriculture and mining in the
most extraordinary degree. It will be nearly three-fold that which can
be drained by Chicago, and in point of territory, whether of quantity
or quality, Mackinaw is vastly superior, as a commercial point. With
the exception of a small portion of the mineral region, the
agricultural advantages of Michigan, Upper Wisconsin, Minnesota,
Canada West, and the Superior country, are at least equal, at the
present time, to the district shipping at Chicago, while it is more
extensive, and will have a large home market in a country affording
diversity of employment. Nothing can be more obvious, than the
superior advantages of Mackinaw, as a manufacturing point, over any
other on the lake coast.
The value of exports and imports which flow through the Straits of
Mackinaw and the Saut St. Mary was estimated a year or two since at
over _one hundred millions of dollars_. But, who can estimate a
commerce which every year increases in many fold? In 1856, there were
sent through the St. Mary Canal 11,000 tons of raw iron, 1,040 tons
of blooms, and 10,452,000 lbs. of copper; and the commercial value of
what passed through the canal amounted to upward $5,000,000. But
perhaps the most correct idea of the rapid increase of commerce in
Lake Superior may be taken from the arrivals at Superior City for the
last three years, taken from the Superior Chronicle of January, 1857.
In 1854 there were two steamboats and five sail vessels. In 1855 there
were twenty-three steamers, and ten sail vessels; and in 1856 forty
steamers and sixteen sail vessels.
We thus see that in three years the increase was seven-fold. It is
scarcely possible to imagine the limits of northwestern commerce on
the lake, when a few years shall have filled up with inhabitants the
surrounding territories.
According to the testimony of Senator Hatch, made on the floor of
Congress on the 25th of February, 1859, there were over one thousand
six hundred vessels navigating the northwestern lakes, of which the
aggregate burden was over four hundred thousand tons. They were manned
by over thirteen thousand seamen, navigating over five thousand miles
of lake and river coast, and transporting over six hundred millions of
exports and imports, being greater than the exports and imports of
the United States.
The State of Michigan is the greatest lumber-growing region in the
world, not only on account of its interminable forests of the choicest
pine, but in the remarkable facilities for getting it to market. With
a lake coast, on the lower peninsula alone, of over one thousand
miles--with numberless watercourses debouching at convenient distances
into her vast inland seas--she enjoys advantages which mighty empires
might envy. Her white-winged carriers are sent to almost every point
of the compass with the product of her forests, which, wherever it may
go, is the sign of improvement and progress, while by the large
expenditures involved in the manufacture, and the employment of
thousands of hardy laborers, the general prosperity is materially
enhanced, and a market opened within her own borders for a
considerable share of the surplus production of her own soil.
The annual product of the pineries alone amount to the sum of _ten and
a half millions of dollars_. The lumbering, mining, and fishing
interest combine to furnish by far the best home market in the Union,
and one which in seasons when a large surplus is not compelled to seek
a market, can boast its independence of the "bulls" and "bears" of
the great commercial metropolis. The dense forests in the interior of
the State have not yet been reached, and when the contemplated roads
are made, a field will be presented for the investment of capital of a
most remunerative character.
The government has already taken such steps as will soon make Mackinaw
the centre of a great railroad system. We need only refer to the
actual facts in order to make this clear. Congress, by an act passed
in 1855-6, granted to the State of Michigan a large body of land for
railroad purposes, designating four routes. 1. From Little Noquet Bay
to Marquette, in the Superior country. 2. From Amboy, on the
State-line of Ohio, through Lansing to or near Mackinaw. 3. From Grand
Rapids to Mackinaw. 4. From Grand Haven to Port Huron. It will be seen
that this plan is formed on the basis of a direct line from Lake
Superior through the mineral regions to Lake Michigan. The law
fortunately permitted the last two companies to make their lines at or
_near_ Traverse Bay, and as Mackinaw is but comparatively a short
distance, both companies have wisely concluded to terminate their
lines at Mackinaw. It is at once evident that the Michigan line,
centering at Mackinaw, must be met _there_, by railroads penetrating
various sections of the northern peninsula. This is evident, and we
understand is already foreseen, and measures will be adopted to
accomplish that end. In the mean time, let us examine the prospects
and influence of the two long lines of Michigan railway terminating at
Mackinaw. The whole amount of land granted to the Michigan railways is
estimated to be about 3,880,000 acres. From this, however, there will
be some deduction in consequence of lands already selected, and which
may not be supplied by the quantity within the limited distance. The
deficiency will not be great, and we understand that the amount
estimated for the two Mackinaw roads will scarcely be less than _two
millions of acres_. Of the quantity and value of these lands, we give
the estimate made by these roads, as well as the cost of construction.
The estimate made by the _Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad_ is as
follows:
"The proximity to lake navigation; having several navigable rivers
passing through them, the abundance of hydraulic power, the
healthfulness of the climate, the fertility of the soil; and lying
immediately on the line of this road, are facts which contribute to
enhance the value of these lands.
"The length of this road from the Straits of Mackinaw to Fort Wayne,
will be about three hundred and fifty miles. If the company meet with
as good success as the merits of the enterprise deserve, the entire
cost of the road should not be over $25,000 per mile, which makes an
aggregate sum of $8,759,000."
On the supposition that the minimum amount of land is obtained and
sold, at half the price above stated, there will yet be broad enough
basis to secure the construction of the work.
The Amboy and Lansing Company are equally confident of success. They
have also located a large quantity of land, and expect their value to
be equivalent to the construction of their road. Accordingly, they
have put a portion of their road under contract, and have obtained
large local subscriptions.
Both these lines of railroad will terminate at Mackinaw, on the north,
and Cincinnati on the south; hence they will be carried south till
they terminate at Norfolk, Charleston, Savannah, and Pensacola, thus
forming the grandest and most extensive system of railroads on the
continent. Nothing in America equals it--nothing in Europe can compare
with it! When all the links shall have been completed, it will stand
out the greatest monument to human labor and genius which the world
presents.
The single line from Mackinaw to Pensacola has been looked upon as one
of the most important undertakings of the age. We extract from the
"Exposition of its Plan and Prospects," by E. D. Mansfield, Esq., some
of the facts, which exhibit its importance, and bearing, and influence
on Mackinaw City.
"To illustrate," says the Exposition, "the value of this North and
South National Line, by its power of producing commerce, mark, in a
tabular form, the natural products of each degree of latitude, thus:--
_States._ _Latitude._ _Productions._
Florida, 31 deg. Oranges.
" 31 " Sugar.
" 31 " Cotton.
Alabama, 32 " "
" 33 " "
" 34 " Cotton, Corn.
Tennessee, 35 " " "
" 36 " Cotton, corn, tobac., iron.
Kentucky, 37 " Corn, tobac., coal, iron.
" 38 " Corn, wh't, cat. tob. h'mp.
Ohio, 39 " Corn, wh't, cat. h'gs, wine.
" 40 " Wh't, c'rn, h'gs, cat., flax.
" 41 " Wheat, corn, cattle.
Michigan, 42 " Wheat, cattle, hay, wool.
" 43 " Pine, cedar, coal.
" 44 " Pine, cedar, coal.
" 45 " Pine, hemlock, cedar.
" 46 " Pine, copper, lead, fish.
"This statement is enough to show an extraordinary stimulus to
commerce, on a line of railway. The length of the entire line will be
less than half that which is proposed to be made from Cincinnati and
other cities to San Francisco; yet, will pass through varieties of
production, which that line cannot have. In two days, every inhabitant
on that line may be supplied, from their native source, with sugar,
cotton, corn, wheat, tobacco, iron, coal, lead, copper, pine, cedar,
with wool, flour, hemp, and fruits of every description; with fish of
the sea and fish of the lakes; with bread, and oil, and wine; in fine,
with everything that supports, clothes, or houses man; with everything
that supplies his wants, or contributes to his material happiness."
It is obvious, that such a line of railroad as this--peculiar in its
resources, vast in its comprehensions, and embracing in its grasp all
the products of tropic or of temperate climes--must, of itself, rear,
at its _termini_, commercial towns of great importance. But, this is
not all. The road from Grand Haven to Port Huron will intersect the
Amboy and Lansing line about midway, and then a railroad will at once
be made in the direction of the Canada lines and Buffalo--completing
the _radii_ from the far northwest through Mackinaw, to the eastern
Atlantic. The natural point of termini for the Northern Pacific and
Canada Railroads is also at the Straits of Mackinaw. The one giving
financial strength and business to the other, connecting Portland with
the mouth of Columbia by the nearest possible route.
Canada has already granted four million acres of land to railroads
running to Saut St. Mary. Those having the management of the Northern
Pacific railroad will do well to consider the propriety of
co-operating and uniting with the Canada and Pacific Railroad at the
Straits.
The following from the New York Daily News is valuable in this
connection. It is from the pen of E. Conkling, Esq.:--
"You will please excuse me for calling your attention, not to the
importance of a Pacific railroad, for that is conceded, and our
country is suffering from want of it, but to the mode of getting the
means to construct the Northern Pacific railroad. I don't remember to
have noticed as yet any allusion to this method, or any other
practical one, and I trust you will consider the suggestions, and add
thereto any other methods.
"The railroads now provided for and made to St. Paul, and Crow Wing
from Chicago and Milwaukee will have exhausted local means, State aid
and available land grants. However desirable it may be to sustain
those roads by a business beyond that, and to the country beyond that,
by extending the Northern Pacific Railroad, yet for want of means it
cannot be done, unless foreign capitalists can be induced by land
grants, at least to invest sufficient to make the road finally, and be
made to see that their present large unproductive investments in
Canada railroads can be made productive in the use of more of their
capital.
"Canada railroads lie _too far North_ to receive any benefit in
business from railroads terminating from the northwest as far south as
Chicago, and but little from the railroads terminating at Milwaukee,
as the cost of transhipment and delay to cross by steam ferry eight
months yearly at Milwaukee with eighty-five miles ferriage, must
divert the trade and travel either to the north or south end of Lake
Michigan, and every year will render that delay and cost more
unpopular. And yet to get that trade the Great Western Railroad of
Canada have permanently invested $750,000, in the Detroit and
Milwaukee Railroad, and recently loaned a half a million more,
demonstrating the idea I shall advance, that to make good present
investments more means can be had. The State of Michigan itself will
furnish a good trade to roads through it and to roads east of it.
"The Straits of Mackinaw is the great natural ferry of about four
miles wide for roads of Michigan and Canada to centre, the point
necessarily for the passage of lake commerce, and for a large
population north of it to cross, naturally attracting and combining
elements of great importance to railroads.
"Land grants are now made to the straits from the south. The Grand
Trunk and Great Western Railroads of Canada can go to the Straits of
Mackinaw, aided by those grants. The Ottawa and Huron Railroad to Saut
St. Mary, may also go to the Straits, aided by land grants from Saut
St. Mary. From there the three Canadian railroads, aided by land
grants yet to be made, can go to Crow Wing or near there, and there
form a junction with the Chicago roads--thence to the Pacific, aided
by land grants.
"By affording the Canada interest a chance for a portion of the
Pacific trade, and thus making present Canada investments profitable,
it is made the interest of foreign capitalists to make our Northern
Pacific railroad.
"This protective interest to Canada railroads is the greatest
inducement to be offered them.
"They will not invest in the road beyond Crow Wing, simply for the
sake of grants of lands, made valuable only by the outlay of their
money; even should the lands finally redeem the previous outlay for
the road, that is no object, because the road will not pay more than
cost of running and sustaining it, and if it should some beyond that,
it will be frittered away by bad management and stealing. At least it
is fair to suppose so, and hence they must be assured of enough of
land grants to finally make the road, which of itself will pay
nothing, only in the way of affording the roads east of Crow Wing,
owned by them, fair dividends. This consideration will of itself
induce them to furnish capital to the Pacific, and it is in the power
of the government thus to interest them. No other proposed route can
claim foreign aid because of such good reasons. Our government can aid
only in lands; in valueless lands she is or may be wealthy. No bill
can pass Congress, only by affording equal aid in lands to the
Northern, Central and Southern routes, each standing on their
commercial merits before capitalists.
"The chance for us thus to enlist them, is but for a limited time.
Soon they will become committed to the North Canada Pacific Road,
north of Lake Superior, when they will not help ours, and thus
protract ours for want of means and competing road. At present, two of
the most important Canada roads can be enlisted in the above views,
because if the Canada road north of Lake Superior is made, it will
divert the trade from them, they being too far south to be benefited.
But by going to the Straits of Mackinaw, they secure a division of the
Western trade--among the three roads. The road through the mineral
regions will develop that country and afford a good market for the
produce of the country west of it.
"Chicago is no more on the direct route from the East to Iowa, than is
Mackinaw city on the direct route to the northwest from New York.
"Lake Michigan naturally forces such a division of the Western and
Northwestern trade, and the Strait of Mackinaw is most favorably
situated for crossing. Cars can be transferred by ferry boat from
point to point, without delay or cost of train shipment.
"That country is nearer to market than any other Western State;
cheaper lands and good soil, and healthy climate, and a superior wheat
country, affording employment in lumbering, fishing, mining,
manufacturing, &c., offering great inducements to foreigners, and of
interest to New York, to be settled."
The history of the West has presented some remarkable facts, contrary
to the ordinary experience of human progress. It is assumed, as an
historical fact, in European or Asiatic progress, that the growth of
towns and states must be slow. It requires generations to bring them
to maturity, and even imperial power has failed to create cities,
without the aid of time and gradual increase. But, this has been
reversed in America. We cannot take it for granted that because the
natural site of a town is now clothed with the forest, and remote from
habitations, that it will not become a prosperous city, within a
half-dozen years. For, we know that in the Northwest, cities have
arisen on a substantial basis, to a numerous population, in a space so
brief that history has no record of their existence, and the school
maps no name for the place of their being.
Chicago which commenced its growth in 1834, had a population in 1857,
of 100,000, Milwaukee in twenty-one years rose to 50,000, St. Paul in
fifteen years to 15,000; Keokuk in eighteen years to 15,000, Grand
Rapids in twelve years to 8000; Saginaw city in twenty-two years 4000,
and Superior city in the short space of two years to 4000.
We thus see, that, in the Northwest, cities do grow up, in the midst
of the wilderness, and the wilderness itself soon blooms as the rose.
To say, then, that a point affording every natural and commercial
advantage for the growth of a large city is not _now_ a city, is to
say nothing against its position or prospects. Within the memory of a
generation the five great States, (which have heretofore been termed
the Northwest,) contained less then a half a million of people, and
Cleveland, Toledo, Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul, were not even
dots on the map of States. A mission or a military fort was all they
could boast. These States now contain six millions of inhabitants, and
the towns on the lake shore two hundred and fifty thousand. But to
present the point of growth, in the clearest point of view, let us
consider it dependent wholly on that of the surrounding country. This
we can tell almost precisely. We know the rate of growth in Michigan,
Wisconsin, Minnesota and Canada West.
Canada West in 1840, had a population of 640,000, in 1850, of
982,000, and in 1857, 1,100,000, Michigan in 1840, was 212,000, in
1850, 397,000, and in 1857, 700,000. The population of Wisconsin in
1840, was 30,000, in 1850, it was 305,991, and in 1857, it was
600,000. The increase in Minnesota in seventeen years was 200,000.
The annual _increment_ from 1840 to 1850, was 50,000 per annum, or
about six per cent. The annual increment from 1850 to 1857, was
172,000, or about twelve per cent. The _ratio_ of increase is,
therefore, increasing, and we may assume it will not be less than
_ten_ per cent, per annum till 1860. This will give 3,380,000 for
1860, or _fourfold the population_ of 1840! At a diminishing ratio the
territory round Mackinaw will contain 5,400,000 in 1870, and
(8,000,000) _eight millions_ in 1880. The principal city of the
district (wherever it may be) must then contain about _one hundred
thousand inhabitants_.
Of the cities and towns we have above enumerated, the greatest and
most rapid in its development is Chicago, whose first warehouse lot
was sold in 1834, and which, in 1857, is said to contain near one
hundred thousand inhabitants. Let us, for a moment, compare the
_material advantages and resources_ of that place, with those of
Mackinaw city. Dean Swift said, that a large city must combine the
resources of agriculture, commerce and manufactures. Cities have
risen, however, to large size almost exclusively on commerce. Witness
Tyre and Palmyra. But commerce, we concede, when left to itself, is so
fluctuating, that the cities it builds, like Tyre and Palmyra, may, in
the decay of commerce, be left to ruin and desolation. Cities may,
likewise, be built up almost exclusively on manufactures, such as
Birmingham and Sheffield; and it is quite remarkable that the oldest
and most stable cities have depended largely on manufactures.
Damascus, the oldest historical city--which has resisted all the
destructive influences of time and revolution--has always been a
manufacturing town. Paris, Lyons, Lisle, the great interior towns of
France, depend very largely on the manufacture of fine and fashionable
articles, distributed throughout Europe and America. Of the great
elements of civic success, we consider manufactures the most
important; but, to make a city of the first magnitude, it is obviously
necessary to have all the resources of food, industry and commerce.
Chicago is remarkable chiefly as a grain city--like Odessa, on the
Baltic. But, whence is the grain derived? By the construction of
railroads, at that point, from Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Wisconsin
and Iowa, the whole mass of surplus grain in that region--amounting
to more than twenty millions of bushels per annum--has been exported
from Chicago. But, this is the drainage of three hundred thousand
square miles, two-thirds of which will not export through Chicago when
railroads extend directly east to Milwaukee, Superior and Mackinaw,
from Wisconsin and Iowa, and connect, from the south, at Cairo, with
Missouri and Illinois. Reduced to its own proper limits, the
agricultural resources of Chicago must be confined to half the surface
of Illinois, Missouri and Iowa, or about one hundred thousand square
miles. This is but little over one-third the surface drained of
agricultural products toward the Straits of Mackinaw. Will it be said
that this new region of the Northwest is less productive in
agriculture? The contrary, for the great element of breadstuffs, is
likely to be true. Attentive observers of agricultural production have
remarked, that the different grains _produced most on the northern
edge of the belt_, in which _they will grow at all_. Is it not so in
Europe? The _isothermal line_ of Mackinaw passes in the midst of those
countries which alone produce the surplus grain of Europe, viz.,
Prussia, Pomerania, Poland, Southern Russia. As if to place this
beyond a doubt, the crops of Canada West have, in fact, failed much
less frequently than those of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. In regard
to agricultural production, it will be difficult to show that the
country drained by Chicago, has any advantage over that which will be
drained by the Straits of Mackinaw.
In regard to commerce--the natural position of Mackinaw is far superior
to Chicago. Mackinaw is at the _head_ of Lake Michigan--Chicago, at
the _foot_. Mackinaw is at the junction of _three_ great lakes;
Chicago at the foot of one. Mackinaw will concentrate the navigation
of _eighty thousand_ square miles of water _surface_; Chicago of
_twenty-four thousand_. Mackinaw is three hundred and fifty miles
nearer the Atlantic by water; three hundred miles nearer the upper
extremity of the lakes, and as much nearer any of the Eastern Lake
ports which are points of distribution. The comparison need be made no
further, for whoever looks upon the map will see, that, while Chicago
touches one end of a single lake, a world of waters gather round
Mackinaw. For an internal water commerce, it has no equal.
It will be said, that railroads now carry commerce. This is true, but,
railroads do not carry commerce over the surface of lakes, and the
multiplication of vessels on the lakes proves that _that_ commerce
will ever be great and increasing. But what railroad commerce can be
greater than that which will concentrate at Mackinaw, when it
connects, in a direct line, not only with the cities of the Ohio
Valley, but with those of the far South. To Cincinnati, to Louisville,
to Charleston, Savannah, and Pensacola, will the cars move, laden with
the people and products of the North. Lastly, neither Chicago nor any
other point can be superior to Mackinaw in the elements necessary to
support manufactures, the great support of cities, these elements we
have already exhibited in detail. Copper, iron, lead, coal, wood,
timber, bread, in fine, everything which can feed machinery, give
material for its work, or feed the people who gather in the great
workshops of industry, and distribute the products of labor. Here
materials all lie near enough for the purposes of either work or
distribution. Birmingham, Manchester, Lyons, and Cincinnati, have
their materials no nearer. There, if anywhere, is a site peculiarly
proper for a manufacturing town.
But, neither agriculture, commerce, nor manufactures are the only
things necessary to build up a large city. Healthiness is more
important than either. Here again, Mackinaw has more advantage over
Chicago. Mackinaw has been proved by two hundred years experience to
be one of the healthiest points in America. Chicago is generally
healthy, but is subject to more severe epidemics. The cholera visited
it in 1832 and in 1849, with fearful force; while its very low
position and muddy streets expose its inhabitants to those diseases
which arise from damps.
The Legislature of Michigan, recently passed a bill to provide for the
drainage and reclamation of the swamp lands of the State by a system
of State roads, accompanied by a lengthy and able report. The bill
provides among others, a road from Ionia north to the straits, and
thence to Saut St. Mary.
They also passed a bill entitled the "Forty Acre Homestead Act." This
act requires the commissioners of the State Land office to issue a
certificate of purchase to every settler on the swamp lands belonging
to the State, for forty acres of said lands, whenever such settler
shall have resided upon it for five continuous years, and when he has
drained the same so as to comply with the provisions of the Act of
Congress making this grant to the State. Before the settler can
acquire the right thus to occupy and drain any of the swamp lands, he
is required to file with the commissioner his application, accompanied
by an oath of his intention to settle upon and drain it for the
purpose of obtaining a title thereto. And he must also make oath that
he is not already the owner of forty acres of land in any State of the
United States. It is also expressly provided that he shall not cut or
carry away any timber from said land, unless it be to clear it for
cultivation, under such penalties as are now prescribed for
trespassing upon State lands. It will be seen, therefore, that the
object of the law is to provide homes for the homeless, and at the
same time promote the actual, _permanent_ settlement of the northern
portion of the State. No man who possesses forty acres of land either
in Michigan or anywhere else, is entitled to the benefits of the act.
It is emphatically a law for the poor man. To all such it secures a
_home_, without money and without price. All it requires of him is to
settle upon and cultivate it. How many are there in Detroit and other
portions of the State, who will avail themselves of this beneficent
republican measure?
CHAPTER XII.
The Great Western Valley -- Its growth and population --
Comparison of Atlantic with interior cities -- Relative
growth of river and lake cities -- Centre of population --
Lake tonnage -- Progress of the principal centres of
population.
The following chapter on the population and growth of the Great
Western Valley is taken from De Bow's Review:--
The westward movement of the Caucasian branch of the human family from
the high plains of Asia, first over Europe, and thence, with swelling
tide, pouring its multitudes into the New World, is the grandest
phenomenon in history. What American can contemplate its results, as
displayed before him, and as promised in the proximate future, without
an emotion of pride and exultation?
Our nation has the great middle region of the best continent of the
world, and our people are descendants from the most vigorous races.
Western Europe, over-peopled, sends us her most energetic sons and
daughters, in numbers augmenting with each succeeding decade. Asia is
beginning to send forth a portion of her surplus population to our
shores. Though of inferior race, the Eastern Asiatics are industrious
and ingenious cultivators and artisans. A large influx of these
laborers, though it may lower the average character of our people,
will, it is hoped, in a greater degree elevate theirs; and thus, while
adding to the wealth and power of a nation, do something toward the
general amelioration of the race. While, then, we contemplate with
patriotic pride the position which, as a nation, we hold in the
world's affairs, may we not indulge in pleasant anticipations of the
near approach of the time, when the commercial and social heart of our
empire will occupy its natural place as the heart of the continent,
near the centre of its natural capabilities?
New York has long been, and for some decades of years it will continue
to be, the necessary chief focal point of our nation. But, in all
respects, it is not the true heart. In its composition and dealings,
it is almost as much foreign as American. Located on our eastern
border, fronting the most commercial and the richest transatlantic
nations, and of easy access to extensive portions of our Atlantic
coast, it is the best point of exchange between foreign lands and our
own, and for the cities of the sea border of our Republic. As Tyre,
Alexandria, Genoa, Venice, Lisbon, and Amsterdam, in their best days,
flourished as factors between foreigners and the people of the
interior regions, whose industries were represented in their markets,
so New York grows rich as the chief agent in the exchange-commerce
between the ocean shores and the interior regions of our continent. As
our numbers have swelled, since we became a nation, from three and a
half millions to thirty millions, so New York, including Brooklyn and
other suburbs, has increased in population and wealth still more
rapidly, to wit, from twenty-five thousand to more than one million.
While the nation has increased less than tenfold, New York has grown
more than four times tenfold. In 1790 the city of New York contained
thirty-three thousand, and the State of New York three hundred and
forty thousand--the city having less than one-tenth of the people of
the State.
Believing that this most prosperous of the Atlantic cities will be
eclipsed in its greatness and glory by one or more of the interior
cities of the great plain, we have selected it as the champion of the
Atlantic border, to hold up its progress during the thirty years from
1830 to 1860, the most prosperous years of its existence, in
comparison with the progress, during the same period, of the aggregate
cities and towns of the plain. The result of our investigation, the
summing up, will be found in the following table. It will be seen that
many of the items are put down in round numbers--no document being
accessible or in existence to furnish the exact number of many of the
new towns, in 1830. The estimate for 1860 may, in some instances, be
above the figures which the census will furnish, but the over-estimate
for 1830 is believed to be in a larger proportion to actual numbers at
that time. Making a liberal allowance for errors, the result of the
aggregate cannot be materially varied from that at which our figures
bring us:
1830. 1860 Est. Increase.
New York, including Brooklyn
and other suburbs 234,438 1,170,000 5 times.
Cities and chief towns of
the great plain 270,094 2,706,300 10 " nearly
Leaving out the exterior cities of the plain, to wit, New Orleans,
Mobile, Galveston, Quebec and Montreal, the comparison between New
York and suburbs, and the interior cities of the plain will be shown
by the following figures:
1830. 1860 Est. Increase.
New York and accessories 234,448 1,170,000 5 fold
Interior cities and town of
the plain 172,000 2,346,000 13 "
The five largest cities of the Atlantic border exhibit a growth, as
compared with the five largest cities of the plain, as follows:
1830. 1860 Est.
New York and dependencies 235,000 1,170,000
Philadelphia " 170,000 700,000
Baltimore " 83,000 250,000
Boston " 80,000 200,000
Charleston " 31,000 60,000
599,000 2,380,000
Cincinnati and suburbs 28,000 250,000
New Orleans " 47,000 170,000
St. Louis " 6,000 170,000
Chicago " 100 150,000
Pittsburg " 17,000 145,000
98,000 885,000
This table shows the five Atlantic cities to have quadrupled, and the
five cities of the interior plain have increased nine times. Is this
relative rate of increase of the exterior and interior cities to be
changed, and, if it is to be changed, when is the change to commence?
We can foresee no cause adequate to that effect, or tending toward it.
On the contrary, it seems to us certain as any future event, that the
rate of growth of the interior cities, compared with those on the
Atlantic border, will be increased.
The proportion which their present numbers bear to the numbers of the
rural population does not exceed one to six, whereas the urban
population of the Atlantic border is not less than one to three of the
rural. This disproportion of city and rural population will hereafter
change more rapidly in favor of the interior than the Atlantic cities,
because of the greater fertility of soil producing more food from an
equal amount of labor; and also, by reason of the more rapid growth of
the general population, of which an increasing proportion will prefer
city to country life. Will it not be so? Will not the general increase
of population be greater in the interior States? Will not the
productions of the soil increase faster? And can there be a doubt that
the large disproportion in the distribution of the population between
city and country, in the interior, will be lessened, so that, instead
of being, as now, only one to five or six, they will rapidly approach
the proportion of one to two or three? Here, then, are the sources of
superior increase so obviously true, as to need only to be stated to
insure conviction.
Let us now compare the growth, for the thirty years since 1830, of the
five largest Atlantic cities, with the five largest cities of the
plain, and, by its side, extend the comparison to 10, 15, and 20 of
the largest city of each section:
1830. 1860 Est.
New York and accessories 235,000 1,170,000
Philadelphia " 170,000 700,000
Baltimore " 83,000 250,000
Charleston " 31,000 60,000
599,000 2,380,000
Increase 4 times.
1830. 1860 Est.
Cincinnati and suburbs 28,000 250,000
New Orleans " 47,000 270,000
St. Louis " 6,000 170,000
Chicago " 100 150,000
Pittsburg " 17,000 145,000
98,000 2,885,000
Increase 9 times.
Let us now compare the _ten_ largest of each section.
_Atlantic._
1830. 1860 Est.
The aggregate of the five
largest as above 579,000 2,370,000
Providence 17,000 55,000
Lowell 6,500 40,000
Washington 19,000 60,000
Albany 24,000 65,000
Richmond 16,000 35,000
------- ---------
661,000 2,625,000
Increase 4 times.
_Interior._
1839. 1860 Est.
Aggregate as above 98,000 885,000
Buffalo 9,000 100,000
Louisville 10,500 80,000
Milwaukee 50 75,000
Detroit 2,000 80,000
Cleveland 1,000 70,000
------- ---------
120,550 1,290,000
Increase 10 7-10.
Aggregate of the ten, with five more of each section added, added, to
wit:
1830. 1860 Est.
Aggregate as above 661,000 2,625,000
Troy 11,500 35,000
Portland 12,500 30,000
Salem 14,000 25,000
New Haven 10,000 30,000
Savannah 7,500 15,500
------- ---------
716,500 2,760,500
Increase 3 8-10 times.
1830. 1860 Est.
Aggregate as above 120,550 1,290,000
Toronto 1,700 65,000
Rochester 9,000 50,000
Mobile 3,000 30,000
Memphis 1,500 25,000
Hamilton 1,500 25,000
-------- --------
137,000 1,485,000
Increase 16 7-10 times.
Aggregate of the fifteen, with five more added in each section:
1830. 1860 Est.
Aggregate as above 716,500 2,760,500
Springfield, Mass 7,000 24,000
Worcester, " 4,500 24,000
Bangor, Me. 3,000 23,000
Patterson, N. J. 5,000 22,000
Manchester, N. H. 50 22,000
------- ---------
736,500 2,875,500
Increase 3 8-10 times.
1830. 1860 Est.
Aggregate as above 137,250 1,485,000
Dayton 3,000 24,000
Indianapolis 1,500 22,000
Toledo 30 20,000
Oswego 3,200 20,000
Quincy 1,500 20,000
------- ---------
149,700 1,591,000
Increase 10 6-10 times.
From the above tables, we see that the city of New York, with its
neighboring dependencies, will have made in growth in thirty years,
between 1830 and 1860, increasing its population 5 times. During the
same period,
The 5 largest Atlantic cities and suburbs,
including New York, increased 4 1-10 times.
The 10 largest Atlantic cities and suburbs,
including New York, increased 4 "
The 15 largest Atlantic cities and suburbs,
including New York, increased 3 8-10 "
The 20 largest Atlantic cities and suburbs,
including New York, increased 3 8-10 "
And that the 5 largest cities of the great plain,
during the same period, increased 9 "
And the 10 largest cities of the great plain,
during the same period, increased 10 7-10 "
And the 15 largest cities of the great plain,
during the same period, increased 10 7-10 "
And the 20 largest cities of the great plain,
during the same period, increased 10 6-10 "
If the number of cities and towns of each section were increased to
twenty-five, thirty, and thirty-five of each section, the disparity
would increase in favor of the interior cities, most of these to be
brought into comparison, having come into existence since 1830.
We commend the comparison between the old and the new cities so far
back as 1830, to give the former a better chance for a fair showing.
If a later census should be chosen for a starting point, the
advantages would be more decidedly with the interior cities.
In the article on the great plain, in the May number of this Review,
we gave prominence to the two great external gateways of commerce
offered to its people in their intercourse with the rest of the world:
that is to say, the Mississippi river entrance into the Gulf of
Mexico, and the outlet of the lakes through St. Lawrence and Hudson
rivers. These constitute the present great routes of commerce of the
people of the plain, and draw to the cities on the borders of the
great lakes and rivers the trade of the surrounding country. Between
the cities of the great rivers and lakes there has of late sprung up a
friendly rivalry, each having some peculiar advantages, and all, in
some degree, drawing business into their laps for the benefit of their
rivals. That is to say: river cities gather in productions from the
surrounding districts which seek an eastern market through lake
harbors; and lake cities perform the same office for the chief river
cities. Each year increases, to a marked extent, the intercourse which
these two classes of cities hold with each other; and it may be safely
anticipated that no long period will elapse before this intercourse
will become more important to them than all their commerce with the
world beside.
In comparing the interior cities of the great plain, situated on the
navigable rivers, with those located on the borders of the lakes, two
considerations bearing on their relative growth should be kept in
view. The river cities were of earlier growth, the settlement from the
Atlantic States having taken the Ohio river as the high-road to their
new homes, many years before the upper lakes were resorted to as a
channel of active emigration.
This gave an earlier development to country bordering the central
rivers, the Ohio, Wabash, Illinois, and Lower Missouri. The States of
Kentucky and Tennessee, also, had been pretty well settled, in their
more inviting portions, before any considerable inroad had been made
on the wilderness bordering on the upper lakes. Owing to these and
other circumstances, the river cities, Pittsburg, Cincinnati,
Louisville, and others of less note, were well advanced in growth,
before the towns on the lakes had begun, in any considerable degree,
to be developed. Another advantage the river cities possessed in their
early stage, and which they still hold; that of manufacturing for the
planting States bordering the great rivers. For many years, in a
great variety of articles of necessity, they possessed almost a
monopoly of this business. Of late, transportation has become so
cheap, that the planters avail themselves of a greater range of choice
for the purchase of manufactured articles, and the lake cities have
commenced a direct trade with the plantation States, which will
doubtless increase with the usual rapidity of industrial development
in the fertile West.
If we claim for the upper lake country some superiority of climate for
city growth over the great river region, we do not doubt that the
future will justify the claim. More labor will be performed for the
same compensation, in a cool, bracing atmosphere, such as
distinguishes the upper lake region, than on the more sultry banks of
the central affluents of the Mississippi, where are the best positions
for the chief river cities.
Refraining from further comment, let us bring the actual development
of the interior cities--on the navigable rivers and on the lakes--into
juxtaposition for easy comparison. As our comparison of Atlantic
cities with the cities of the plain has been made for thirty years,
from 1830 to 1860, we continue it here for the same period, between
the river cities and lake cities. We select twenty cities, now the
largest of each region, and put down the population in round numbers
as nearly accurate as practicable. That for 1860, is of course, an
estimate only, but it is certainly near enough to the truth to
illustrate the growth, positive and comparative, of our interior
cities.
This table exhibits a growth of the interior cities on the navigable
waters of the Mississippi and its affluents, which brings their
population, in 1870, up to 11-1-10 that of 1830. This is,
unquestionably, much beyond the expectation of their most sanguine
inhabitants, at the commencement of that period, being three times
that of the chief cities of the Atlantic border. Yet even this rapid
development is seen, by our figures, to fall far behind that which has
characterized the cities created by lake commerce during the same
period.
Interior River Cities 1830. 1860.
Cincinnati and dependencies, 25,500 250,000
Pittsburg, " 15,500 155,000
St. Louis, " 6,000 180,000
Louisville, " 11,000 80,000
Memphis, " 2,500 25,000
Wheeling, " 6,000 20,000
New Albany, " 1,500 20,000
Quincy, " 1,000 19,000
Peoria, " 800 18,000
Galena, " 2,000 18,500
Keokuk, " 50 16,000
Dubuque, " 100 16,000
Nashville, " 6,000 15,000
St. Paul, " 15,000
Madison, Ind., " 2,500 13,000
Burlington, Ind., " 12,000
La Fayette, Ind., " 300 13,000
Rock Island, " 8,000
Jeffersonville, " 800 8,000
81,550 914,000
Lake Cities. 1830. 1860.
Chicago and dependencies 100 150,000
Buffalo, " 8,663 100,000
Detroit, " 2,222 80,000
Milwaukee, " 50 75,000
Cleveland, " 1,047 70,000
Toronto, C. W., 1,667 65,000
Rochester, " 9,269 50,000
Hamilton, C. W., " 5,500 25,000
Kingston, C. W., " 2,500 20,500
Oswego, " 3,200 20,500
Toledo, " 30 20,000
Sandusky City, " 350 14,000
Erie, " 1,000 10,000
G. Rapids, Mich., " 300 10,000
Kenosha, " 10,000
Racine, " 10,000
St. Catharine's, C. W., " 400 10,000
Waukegan, " 8,000
Port Huron, " 100 8,000
Fon du Lac, " 20 8,000
32,408 764,000
These, according to the table, exhibit a growth which makes them, in
1860, more than _twenty-three_ times as populous as they were in 1830.
This is double the progress of the river cities, and more than five
times that of the cities of the Atlantic coast. In the face of these
facts, how can intelligent men continue to hold the opinion that New
York is to continue long to be, as now, the focal point of North
American commerce and influence? Yet well informed men _do_ continue
to express the opinion that New York will _ever_ hold the position of
the chief city of the continent. Every one at all familiar with the
location and movement of our population, knows that the central point
of its numbers is moving in a constant and almost unvarying direction
west by north. An able investigator, now Professor of Law in the
University of Michigan, Thomas M. Cooley, five years ago, entered into
an elaborate calculation to ascertain where the centre of population
of the United States and Canadas was, at that time. The result showed
it to be very near Pittsburg. It is generally conceded that it travels
in a direction about west by north, at a rate averaging not less than
seven miles a year. In 1860, it will have crossed the Ohio River, and
commenced its march through the State of Ohio. As our internal
commerce is more than ten times as great as our foreign commerce, and
is increasing more rapidly, it is plain that it will have the chief
agency in building the future and permanent capital city of the
continent. If the centre of population were, likewise the centre of
wealth and industrial power, other things being equal, it would be the
position of the chief city, as it would be the most convenient place
of exchange for dealers from all quarters of the country. But this
centre of wealth and industrial power does not keep up, in its western
movement, with the centre of population! nor, if its movement were
coincident, would it be at or near the right point for the
concentration of our domestic and foreign trade, while traversing the
interior of Ohio. If we suppose our foreign commerce equal to one
fifteenth of the domestic, we should add to the thirty-three millions
of the States and Canadas, upward of two millions of foreigners, to
represent our foreign commerce. These should be thrown into the scale
represented by New York. This, with the larger proportion to
population of industrial power remaining in the old States, would
render it certain that the centre of industrial power of our nation
has not traveled westward so far as to endanger, for the present, the
supremacy of the cities central to the commerce of our Atlantic coast.
Until the centre of industrial power approaches a good harbor on the
lakes, New York will continue the best located city of the continent
for the great operations of its commerce. That the centre of wealth
and consequent industrial power is moving westward at a rate not
materially slower than the centre of population, might be easily
proved; but, as those who read this article with interest must be
cognizant of the great flow of capital from the old world and the old
States to the New States, and the rapid increase of capital on the
fertile soil of the new States, no special proof seems to us to be
called for. The centre of power, numerical, political, economical, and
social, is then, indubitably, on its steady march from the Atlantic
border toward the interior of the continent. That it will find a
resting place somewhere, in its broad interior plain, seems as
inevitable as the continued movement of the earth on its axis. The
figures we have submitted of the growth of the principal lake cities
plainly show great power in lake commerce, so great as to carry
conviction to our mind that the _principal city of the continent will
find its proper home and resting-place on the lake border, and become
the most populous capital of the earth_. A full knowledge of the
geography of North America will tend to confirm this conviction in the
mind of the fair inquirer. The lakes penetrate the continent to its
productive centre. They afford, during eight or nine months of the
year, pleasant and safe navigation for steam-propelled vessels. Their
waters are pure and beautifully transparent, and the air which passes
over them exceedingly invigorating to the human system. Their borders
are replete with materials for the exercise of human industry and
skill. The soil is fertile and very productive in grains and grasses.
Coal in exhaustless abundance crops out on or near their waters, to
the extent of nearly one thousand miles of coast. The richest mines of
iron and copper, convenient to water transport, exist, in aggregate
amount, beyond the power of calculation. Stone of lime, granite, sand,
and various other kinds suitable for the architect and the artist, are
found almost everywhere convenient to navigation. Gypsum of the best
quality crops out on the shores of three of the great lakes, and salt
springs of great strength are worked to advantage, near lakes Ontario
and Michigan. Timber trees in great variety and of valuable sorts,
give a rich border to the shores for thousands of miles. Of these, the
white oak, burr oak, white pine, whitewood or tulip tree, white ash,
hickory and black walnut, are the most valuable. They are of noble
dimensions, and clothe millions of acres with their rich foliage.
Nowhere else on the continent are to be seen such abundance of
magnificent oak, and the immense groves of white pine are not
excelled. Heretofore little esteemed, the great tracts of timber
convenient to lake navigation and to the wide treeless prairies of the
plain, are destined soon to take an important place in the commercial
operations of the interior. Already, oak timber, for ship-building and
other purposes, finds a profitable market in New York and Boston. The
great Russian steamship "General Admiral," was built in part from the
timber of the lake border. A great trade is growing up, based on the
products of the forest. Whitewood (Diriodendron tulipifera), oak
staves, black and white walnut plank, and other indigenous timber, are
shipped, not only to the Atlantic cities, but to foreign ports. The
lumber yards of Albany, New York, Philadelphia, as well as those of
Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, Toledo, Cleveland and Buffalo, receive
large supplies from the pineries bordering the great lakes. Cincinnati
and other Ohio river cities, receive an increasing proportion of pine
lumber from the same source. These great waters are also, as is well
known, stocked with fish in great variety, whose fine gastronomic
qualities have a world-wide reputation.
As before stated, these lakes penetrate the continent toward the
northwest as far as its productive centre. They now have unobstructed
connection with the Atlantic vessels of nine feet draft and three
hundred tons burden, by the aid of sixty-three miles of canals
overcoming the falls of the St. Mary, Niagara and St. Lawrence Rivers,
with a lockage of less than six hundred feet. By enlarging some of the
locks and deepening the canals, at a cost of a very few millions,
navigation for propellers of from one thousand to two thousand tons
may be secured with the whole world of waters. The cost is much within
the power of the Canadas and the States bordering the lakes, and will
be but a light matter to these communities when, within the next
fifteen years, they shall have doubled their population and trebled
their wealth. The increase of the commerce of the lakes, during the
last fifteen years, is believed to be beyond any example furnished by
the history of navigation. A proportionate increase the next fifteen
years, would give for the yearly value of its transported articles,
thousands of millions. According to the best authorities it is now
over four hundred millions. In 1855, that portion of the tonnage
belonging to the United States was one fifteenth of the entire tonnage
of the Union. During the same year the clearances of vessels from
ports of the United States to the Canadas, and the entrance of
vessels from the Canadas to ports of the United States, as exhibited
in the following table, show a greater amount of tonnage entered and
cleared than between the United States and any other foreign country:
Clearances from ports in the United States to ports in Canada in 1855:
Number of American vessels 2,369
" Canadian " 6,638
Whole number 9,067
Tonnage American 890,017
" Canadian 903,502
Total cleared from the States, 1,793,519
The registered tonnage of all the States, the same year, was
2,676,864; and the registered and enrolled together, 5,212,000.
The value of lake tonnage was, in 1855, $14,835,000. The total value
of the commerce of the lakes, the same year, was estimated, by high
authority, (including exports and imports) at twelve hundred and
sixteen millions ($1,216,000,000.) This seems to us an exaggerated
estimate, though based principally on official reports of collectors
of customs. Eight hundred millions would, probably, be near to the
true amount. It will surprise many persons to learn that the trade
between the United States and Canadas, carried on chiefly by the lakes
and their connecting waters, ranks third in value and first in
tonnage, in the table of our foreign commerce; being, in value, only
below that of England and the French Empire, and in tonnage above the
British Empire.
American goods to Canada $9,950,764
Foreign goods 8,769,580
$18,720,344
Canadian goods to the States, 12,182,314
$30,902,658
We here append a table showing the progress, from decade to decade, of
the principal centres of population of the plain since 1820. It has
been made with all the accuracy which our sources of information
enable us to attain. There are in it, no doubt, many errors, but it
will be found, in the main, and for general argument, substantially
correct. For future reference, it will be valuable to persons who take
an interest in the development of our new urban communities. Included
in each city are its outlying dependencies--such as Newport and
Covington with Cincinnati, and Lafayette with New Orleans.
1830. 1840. 1850. 1860.
New Orleans 46,310 90,000 130,565 180,000
Cincinnati 21,831 47,000 130,739 250,000
St. Louis 5,852 16,469 82,000 180,000
Chicago 100 4,650 29,963 150,000
Pittsburg 12,568 25,000 71,595 125,000
Buffalo 8,653 18,213 42,265 100,000
Montreal 30,000 40,000 55,000 90,000
Louisville 10,341 21,210 43,194 89,000
Detroit 2,222 9,162 21,019 80,000
Milwaukee 50 1,730 20,061 75,000
Cleveland 1,047 6,071 19,377 70,000
Toronto 1,677 13,500 27,500 70,000
Rochester 9,269 20,191 36,409 50,000
Quebec 26,250 32,500 41,200 55,000
Columbus, O. 2,450 6,671 17,882 40,000
Mobile 3,194 12,672 20,515 35,000
Hamilton, C. W. 1,500 4,200 13,000 25,000
Memphis 1,500 3,500 8,839 25,000
Nashville 5,566 6,929 10,478 25,000
Dayton 2,954 6,067 10,977 25,000
Indianapolis 1,000 2,692 8,034 22,000
Wheeling, Va. 5,221 7,885 11,435 20,000
Kingston, C. W. 2,500 5,500 10,000 20,000
Lockport, N. Y. 3,800 6,500 12,323 20,000
Oswego 3,200 4,665 12,205 20,000
Toledo 30 1,229 3,829 20,000
Zanesville 3,000 6,000 12,355 20,000
est. est.
New Albany 1,500 4,000 9,895 20,000
est. est.
Peoria 800 2,000 5,095 20,000
est. est.
Quincy, Ill. 1,000 3,000 6,902 20,000
Galena 2,000 4,000 6,004 20,000
Dubuque 200 1,500 3,108 16,000
Keokuk ... 1,000 2,478 16,000
Davenport ... 500 2,478 12,000
Burlington, Ia. ... 1,000 1,848 12,000
Columbus, Ga. 1,000 4,000 5,052 10,000
Alton, Ill. 250 2,500 3,585 10,000
Steubenville 2,964 5,203 6,140 9,000
Chillicothe 2,840 3,977 7,100 9,000
Grand Rapids, Mich. 300 1,500 3,148 9,000
Huntsville, Ala. 1,200 1,500 2,863 6,000
Adrian, Mich. 200 1,800 3,006 9,000
Ann Arbor 200 2,000 4,868 9,000
Sandusky City 350 2,000 8,500 13,000
Fort Wayne, Ia. 100 1,600 4,282 13,000
Madison, Ia. 2,500 4,500 8,508 13,000
St. Paul ... ... 1,012 15,000
Lafayette, Ia. 200 2,000 6,129 13,000
Maysville, Ky. 1,800 2,741 4,256 9,000
Terre Haute, Ia. 600 2,000 4,900 9,000
Evansville, Ia. 300 1,500 3,235 9,000
Jeffersonville, Ia. 500 2,000 3,487 9,000
Portsmouth, Ohio 1,000 2,000 4,011 9,000
Marietta, O. 1,200 1,815 5,254 9,000
Springfield, Ill. 800 2,579 4,553 9,000
Rock Island City ... 400 1,711 8,000
Chattanooga, Ten. 500 1,000 3,500 8,000
Bytown, or }
Ottawa, C. W. } 500 2,000 5,000 10,000
London, C. W. 500 2,000 5,000 10,000
St. Catharines, do. 200 800 4,000 10,000
Galveston, Texas 1,200 2,000 4,177 10,000
Houston, " ... 500 3,000 10,000
Erie, Pa. 1,260 3,500 5,858 10,000
Lexington, Ky. 4,500 6,997 9,180 10,000
Ogdensburg 1,500 3,000 6,500 10,000
Natchez, Miss. 2,000 3,000 4,434 9,000
Three Rivers, C. E. 800 2,000 4,000 8,000
Racine, Wis. ... 1,000 5,111 9,000
Waukesha ... 200 2,313 8,000
Marshall, Mich. 200 1,200 2,822 8,000
Pontiac, " 150 1,300 2,820 8,000
P't Huron " 100 400 2,313 8,000
Jackson " 150 1,000 3,051 6,000
Kalamazoo " 150 900 2,363 6,000
Mineral Pt., Wis. 500 800 2,584 6,000
Kenosha " ... 500 3,055 8,000
Fon du Lac, " ... 1,000 3,451 6,000
Janesville " ... 1,200 2,782 7,000
Beloit " ... 500 2,732 6,000
Madison " ... 100 1,500 7,000
Elgin " ... 100 2,359 5,000
Oshkosh, " ... ... 2,500 6,000
Monroe, Mich. 400 2,000 2,813 5,000
Lansing " ... 100 1,229 5,000
Columbus, Miss. 800 1,500 2,611 5,000
Jacksonville, Ill. 800 1,500 2,745 5,000
Waukegan " ... 800 2,949 6,000
Lasalle " 50 1,000 3,201 6,000
Joliet " ... 1,000 2,659 6,000
Jefferson City, Mo. 1,000 2,000 3,000 5,000
St. Joseph " ... 1,000 2,557 5,000
Independence " ... 500 3,500 6,000
Iowa City, Iowa ... ... 1,582 5,000
Muscatine " ... 400 2,540 6,000
Springfield, Ohio 1,080 2,094 5,108 8,000
Newark " 1,000 2,705 3,654 7,000
Hamilton " 800 1,409 3,210 7,000
Lancaster " 1,000 2,120 3,483 5,000
Akron " 800 1,664 3,266 6,000
Mt, Vernon " 800 2,363 3,711 7,000
Tiffin " ... 728 2,718 7,000
Urbana " 400 1,070 3,414 6,000
Massillon " 600 1,300 2,697 5,000
Lawrenceburg, Ia. 600 2,000 3,487 6,000
Richmond, Ia. 500 1,000 1,443 5,000
Knoxville, Tenn. 1,800 ... 2,076 6,000
The preceding table is instructive, showing, as it does, the steady
and rapidly increasing tendency of the people of the plain to seek a
home in cities and villages, notwithstanding the great temptation
which fertile, cheap, and easily-improved lands hold out to become
tillers of the soil and growers of cattle. Stock farming is largely
remunerative, but our western people--wild and uncultivated as they
are supposed to be by those unacquainted with their true
character--prefer homes where the advantages of education and social
intercourse is a constant enjoyment. Nowhere in the world are
educational establishments on a better footing or more universally
accessible than in some of the new States of the centre, as in Ohio,
Michigan, Wisconsin and other States.
CHAPTER XII.
Michigan Agricultural Reports for 1854 -- Professor Thomas's
Report -- Report of J. S. Dixon -- Products of States --
Climate -- Army Meteorological Reports.
From the Agricultural Reports of the State of Michigan we take the
following:--
"From old Fort Mackinaw to the Manistee River, the land immediately
upon the lake shore, and not unfrequently extending back for many
miles, is considerably elevated, and occasionally rises very abruptly
to the height of from one hundred to three or four hundred feet. The
country (more particularly the northern portion) continues to rise as
we proceed into the interior, until it attains an elevation equal to
any other portion of the peninsula.
"This is more particularly the case in the rear of Traverse Bay, where
this elevation continues for many miles into the interior, giving to
the landscape a very picturesque appearance when viewed from some of
the small lakes, which abound in this as well as in the more southern
portion of the State.
"The tract of country under consideration is based on limestone,
sandstone, and shales, which are covered, excepting at a few points,
with a deposit of red clay and sand, varying in thickness from a few
inches to more than four hundred feet. The interior of the northern
portion of the peninsula, west of the meridian, is generally more
rolling than that on the east. It is interspersed with some extensive
cedar swamps and marshes, on the _alluvial_ lands, and in the vicinity
of heads of streams and some of the lakes. The upland is generally
rolling, has a soil of clay, loam and sand, and is clad with evergreen
timber, intermixed with tracts of beech and maple, varying in extent
from a few acres to several townships. Several of the most extensive
of these tracts are in the vicinity of the Cheboygan and Tahweegon
rivers, their lakes and tributary streams. There are also large tracts
of beech and maple timber lying between the head of Grand Traverse
Bay, and the Manistee and Muskeegon rivers.
"The elevated portion of land on the shore of Lake Michigan, known as
the 'Sleeping Bear' as well as Manitou Island, (see latitude 45)
which, when viewed from a distance, has the appearance of sand, is
found to be composed of alternate layers of highly marly clay and
sand. The clay is of a deep red color, and in many places its strata
are much contorted.
"The hilly region, to which allusions have been made, is mostly
heavily timbered with beech, maple, bass, oak, ash, elm, birch, etc.,
interspersed with an occasional cedar swamp. In the vicinity of Grand
Traverse Bay, this character of country extends into the interior for
many miles, bordering on a series of small and beautiful lakes, which
vary in length from two to eighteen miles, and are generally free from
marsh and swamp. This country, as also that in the interior from
Little Traverse Bay, is well adapted to the purposes of agriculture.
"Passing south of this rolling district, the country becomes less
elevated and more variable, the soil assuming a more sandy character,
and being generally clad with evergreen timber. There are, however,
exceptions to this in some fine tracts of beech and maple near the
lake coast, also, in the vicinity of some of the streams in the
interior.
"It is nevertheless true, that there are many extensive swamps and
marshes in this part of the peninsula, but it is doubted whether, upon
the whole, they exceed the quantity or extent of those of the more
southern part of the State.
"In point of soil and timber, this portion of the State is not
inferior to the more southern--and such are the advantages it offers
to the settler, that the day is not distant when it will be sought as
a place of residence by the agriculturist.
"The beauty of its lakes and streams is not anywhere surpassed. Such
is the transparency of their waters as to permit objects to be
distinctly seen at the depth of more that thirty feet.
"That part of the peninsula situate north of Grand River is usually
regarded by many of the inhabitants of the more southern part of the
State, as being either an impenetrable swamp, or a sandy barren waste,
and as possessing too rigorous a climate to admit of its successful
application to purposes of agriculture.
"This is an erroneous opinion, and one which will most certainly be
corrected, as the facts with regard to this part of our State come
more fully to be known. The inhabitants of Flat, Royale, Muskegon and
White Rivers, and the Ottawa Indians, living on the Grand and Little
Traverse Bays, and on the Manistee River, have extensive cultivated
fields, which uniformly produce abundant crops.
"The country on Flat and Royale Rivers is generally rolling,
interspersed with level and knobby tracts; but none is so rough as to
prevent it from being successfully cultivated. The timber in the
vicinity of the streams consists of black, white, and burr oak, which
is scattering, and forms what is denominated openings and plains;
small tracts of pine barrens, beech, maple and oak lands, interspersed
with tracts of white pine.
"Settlements are rapidly advancing in this part of our State, and much
of the land under cultivation produces excellent crops of wheat, oats,
corn, potatoes, etc., and so far as experience has been brought to the
test, is not inferior to, or more subject to early frosts in the fall,
than more southern counties of the State.
"The soil varies from a light sand to a stiff clay loam.
"The country on the Muskegon is rolling, and may be considered as
divided into beech and maple land, pine lands, pine barrens, oak
openings, plains and prairies. Small tracts of the latter are situated
near the forks of the river, about forty-five miles from its mouth,
and between thirty and forty-five miles north of the Grand River.
"Crops of corn, oats, wheat, etc., were here as flourishing as those
of the more southern part of State. The soil of the prairies and
openings is sandy, while that of the beech and maple lands is a sand
and clay loam.
"The Indians on Grand and Little Traverse Bays and vicinity, also
obtain good crops of corn, potatoes, squashes, etc. Some of the most
intelligent Indians informed me that they were seldom injured by
frosts in the fall or spring. They also have many apple trees which
produce fruit in considerable quantities.
"The soil is strictly a warm one, and, exposed as the whole country,
bordering on Lake Michigan, is to the influence of the southern winds
during summer and parts of spring and fall, it seldom fails to be
productive."
Professor Thomas, Geologist, has placed in our hands the following
report of the Geology of Mackinaw, Michigan:
"From the site of old Fort Mackinaw, at the very extremity of the
peninsula, south to the Manistee River, a direct distance of about one
hundred and forty miles, the immediate shores of the lake are almost
invariably considerably elevated, sometimes rising abruptly to a
height of from three to four hundred feet.
"The soil of the vicinity, in consequence of the large amount of
calcareous matter which enters into its composition, possesses a
fertility that a superficial observer would scarcely ascribe to it.
"The limestone chiefly consists of an irregular assemblage of angular
fragments united by a tufaceous cement. These fragments usually appear
at first sight to have a compact structure, but a more minute
examination shows them to contain _minute_ cells, sufficiently large
to admit water, which, by the action of frost, subjects the rock to
rapid disintegration. Portions of the rock may, nevertheless, be
selected partially free from this difficulty, and which are possessed
of sufficient compactness to render them of value as a coarse building
stone; horn-stone, striped jasper (imperfect); hog-toothed spar,
calcareous spar, and fluor spar, are imbedded in the rock, although
the latter is of rare occurrence.
"Lime rock again occurs at the Straits of Mackinaw, and in the
vicinity, it appears upon the Island of Mackinac, together with the
Bois Blanc, Round, and St. Martin's Islands, as also upon the northern
peninsula north from Mackinaw.
"Gypsum occurs on the St. Martin's group of islands, and also upon the
northern peninsula between Green Bay and Mackinac.
"MACKINAW LIMESTONE.--The rock is of a light color, and the fragments
of which it is composed frequently contain numberless minute cells.
These were undoubtedly once filled with spar, which has been washed
out of the exposed part of the rock by the action of water. The upper
part is unfit for building purposes, but the lower is more compact,
and has marks of regular stratification.
"COAL.--The coal is highly bituminous, a character in common with all
that has been seen in the State, and it may safely be said, that none
other may be looked for in the peninsula.
"From the facts now before me, I am led to hope that coal will be
found in the elevated hills of the northern part of the peninsula,
easterly from Little Traverse Bay, a circumstance which, should it
prove to be the case, will add much to the value of that portion of
the State."--_Houghton Geological Reports of Michigan._
"Foster and Whitney, United States Geologists, in their Reports to the
Government, laid down the Onondago Salt Group of rocks as extending
over a portion of the southern part of the northern peninsula of
Michigan, not a great distance from Mackinaw, and also as existing on
the St. Martin's and Mackinaw Islands.
"ONONDAGA SALT GROUP.--As a whole, it is an immense mass of
argillo-calcareous shaly rocks, inclosing veins and beds of gypsum;
hence this has been designated by some as the 'gypseous shales.'
"Four divisions have been distinguished in the description of the
Onondaga Salt Group, though the lines of separation are by no means
well defined.
"1. Red and greenish shales below.
"2. Green and red marl, shale, and shaly limestone with some veins of
gypsum.
"3. Shaly, compact, impure limestone, with shale and marl, embracing two
ranges of plaster beds with hopper-shaped cavities between.
"4. Drab-colored, impure limestone with fibrous cavities; the
'magnesian deposit of Vanuxem.' Of these, the third is the only one
that has yielded gypsum in profitable quantities. The included masses
of gypsum, though, for the most part, even-bedded at their base, are
usually very irregular at their upper surface, often conical. The
plaster beds are supposed to be separations by molecular attraction
from the marl.
"This third division contains not only the gypseous beds, but is most
probably the source of all the salt so extensively manufactured at
Onondaga, Cayuga, and Madison; at least Vanuxem informs us that,
except in these gypseous beds, there is no evidence of salt existing
in the solid state in any of the other divisions of the Onondaga Salt
Group.
"The fourth division is remarkable for a fine columnar structure, or
needle-formed cavities, dispersed through the mass.
"In the middle counties of New York, the entire thickness of the
Onondaga Salt Group must be from six hundred to a thousand feet.
Notwithstanding its great thickness, this formation is very barren in
fossils. The corals and shells of the Niagara group suddenly ceased to
exist, perhaps, as Hall suggests, being overwhelmed by a sudden
outbreak of a buried vulcano at the bottom of the ocean, by which the
waters became surcharged not only with argillaceous sediment, but
became contaminated, either with free sulphuric acid, or sulphate of
magnesia and soda.
"The country through which the Onondaga Salt Group extends, is usually
marked by a series of low, gravelly hills, and clayey valleys, on
which a stunted growth of timber prevails, known by the name of 'Oak
Openings.' Small portions of sulphate of strontia, galena, and blende,
with rhomb spar, occur in the upper portion of the group. Gypsum and
salt are, however, the only minerals of economical value: of the
former many thousand tons are excavated. Several acidulous springs
issuing from these deposits, have been found to contain free
sulphuric acid."--_D. D. Owen's Review of the N. Y. Geological
Reports._
Jules Marcou, in his Geology of the United States, places the northern
portion of the southern peninsula of Michigan in the Terrain Devonian.
Report of J. S. Dixon and others, on Grand Traverse Bay, p. 523, in
Michigan Agricultural Reports for 1834, says:
"The atmosphere is moist and wholesome--no disease, and healthy as any
portion of country. It is a well established fact, that water cools
first on the surface, then sinks while the warm water rises, and
consequently ice never forms till the whole body of water has been
cooled to thirty degrees. Now, from this fact, the philosopher will at
once deduce the climate of this region. Traverse Bay is from one
hundred to nine hundred feet deep and the water never cools to
thirty-two degrees till the middle of February, and in Lake Michigan
in the middle never, and so long as the water in these continuous
reservoirs is warmer than the air, the former must obviously warm the
latter.
"It is accordingly well known that in England, on the east side of the
Atlantic 7° or 8° farther north than Traverse Bay, the climate, as it
regards cold in winter, is about equal to that of Washington City,
and so it is on the east side of the Pacific ocean, in Oregon. Hence
it is evident that the seasons on the east side of Lake Michigan must
be uniform.
"Around Traverse Bay the frost seldom kills vegetables till in
November, and seldom occurs in spring later than the 1st of May. In
November it gets cold enough to freeze. The vapors arising from the
lake and bay fall in snow and cover the ground before the frost has
penetrated it at all; it accumulates several months till it is two
feet deep, sometimes deeper, and remains till April; and when it goes
off; cattle find enough to eat in the woods. This region is much more
sunny between the middle of March and December than southern Michigan,
and every vegetable physiologist will at once state that the influence
of this on vegetation must be very great, and accordingly spring crops
grow with such rapidity that corn is fit to be cut by the 1st of
September. From December to March, as above, the atmosphere is hazy,
cloudy, and frosty, though the thermometer never sinks so low as in
the south of Michigan by ten or twelve degrees (8 or 10 degrees below
zero, being the lowest yet known), and a winter thaw is unknown here.
Hence we never have mud in winter, and but little at any season.
"With the very defective cultivation hitherto used here, yield of
crops are as follows:--Potatoes, free of rot, 150 to 300 bushels to
the acre; oats 25 to 60; corn 25 to 50; wheat (spring) the largest yet
raised 27 bushels. Wheat raised here is much more plump than in
southern Michigan, and there is no instance of its being smothered or
injured by snow, because the snow never thaws and alternately freezes
into a hard crust, or ice, so as to exclude the air from the wheat, as
in other places.
"We confidently predict that this will become the most prolific wheat
region in the west; rust and insects are unknown. All experience goes
to prove that this will be a great fruit country. The Indian apple and
peach trees, although few in number bear well every year; and as to
wild blackberries and raspberries, both as to size and flavor, there
is absolutely no end. They serve all the inhabitants and millions of
pigeons for several months."
United States census, 1850, shows products of States.
Average per acre of
Wheat. Oats Corn. Potatoes.
Michigan 10 Bushels 26 32 140
Illinois 11 " 29 33 105
Indiana 12 " 20 33 100
Iowa 14 " 36 32 100
Average per acre of
Wheat. Oats Corn. Potatoes.
Ohio 12 " 21 36
Wisconsin 14 " 35 30
Pennsylvania 15 " 20
New York 12 " 25 27
CLIMATE.--Council Bluffs is in latitude 41-1/2°, Dubuque 42-3/4°,
Green Bay 43-1/2°, and Mackinaw City about 46°. By reference to the
following tables of temperature, it will be seen that these points are
about on the same isothermal line, practically removing, by these
tables, the prejudices generally existing against the climate of
northern Michigan--see Blodgett's Climatology and Army Meteorological
Reports of United States.
Quebec, Canada. average in January above zero, 13°
Montreal, " " " " 16
Hampden, Maine " " " 17
Portland, " " " " 21
Cannel, " " " " 15
Burlington, Vt. " " " 19
Deerfield, Mass. " " " 21
Granville, N. Y. " " " 22
Potsdam, " " " " 18
Plattsburgh, " " " " 20
Gouverneur, " " " " 20
Lowville, " " " " 22
Oneida, " " " " 22
Buffalo, " " " " 23
Silver Lake, Pa. " " " 22
Concord, N. H. " " " 22
Boston, Mass. " " " 28
Albany, N. Y. " " " 24
Chicago, Illinois " " " 24
Ottawa, " " " " 23
Muscatine, Iowa " " " 20
Detroit, Michigan " " " 27
Pittsburgh, Pa. " " " 29
Philadelphia, " " " " 32
Cincinnati, Ohio " " " 30
Green Bay, Wis. " " " 19
Dubuque, Iowa " " " 20
Council Bluffs " " " 19
Mackinaw City " " " 19
These extremes of latitude of Philadelphia and Mackinaw include the
principal agricultural, mining, manufacturing, and commercial
interests of America, elements naturally pertaining to Michigan, and
second in their variety and extent to no State of the Union.
Archangel, Russia, in January, averages above zero 6.60°
St. Petersburg, " " " " 15.70
Christiana, Norway, " " " " 21.30
St. Bernard, Switzerland, " " " " 14.40
Moscow, Russia, " " " " 13.60
Erzeroum, Turkey, " " " " 18.
Taganwa, Sea of Azof, " " " " 20.70
Astracan, Caspian Sea, " " " " 21.30
Kasow (Volga) Russia, " " " " 3.50
Stockholm, Sweden, " " " " 24.30
Cracow, Poland, " " " " 23.40
Pekin, China, " " " " 26.00
Odessa, S. Russia, " " " " 25.20
Berlin, Prussia, " " " " 27.70
Extremes below zero, 1835.
Bangor, Maine January 4, below 40°
Bath " " " 40
Portland, " " " 21
Boston, Mass. " " 15
Salem, " " " 17
Chicago, Ill. February 8, " 22
St. Louis, Mo. " " 22
Cincinnati, O. " " 18
Lexington, Ky. " " 20
Nashville, Tenn. " " 10
Huntsville, Ala. " " 9
Philadelphia, Pa. " " 6
Lancaster, Pa. " " 22
Washington City " " 16
Clarksville, Geo. " " 15
Army Meteorological Reports for 1854.
January. Range. above below
Mean. Max'm. min'm. mean. mean.
Fort Hamilton, N. Y. 31.49° 50. 12. 18.5 19.5
Fort Niagara, " 25.04 48. 6. 23. 19.
Alleghany, Pa. 29.08 64. 5. 34.9 24.1
Fort Delaware, Md. 32.38 54. 10. 21.6 17.4
Cincinnati, Ohio 31.78 54. 1. 22.2 32.8
Fort Snelling, Min. 1.30 45. 36. 43.7 37.3
" Leavenworth, Kan. 24.68 67. 8. 32.3 32.7
" Mackinaw, Mich. 13.09 34. 15. 10.9 28.1
Blodgett's and Army Rain Charts, showing rain and snow in inches for a
series of years.
Jan. Feb. M'ch. Dec. Total in year.
Mack'w Island, Mich. 1.25 .82 1.14 1.24 23.87
Fort Kent, Maine. 3.73 2.60 1.77 3.36 36.46
Portland, " 3.37 3.39 2.92 4.17 45.25
Jan. Feb. M'ch. Dec. Total in year.
Charleston, Mass. 2.66 2.22 4.08 2.27 35.83
Montreal, Canada 2.84 1.84 2.69 2.58 47.28
Fayetteville, Vt. 3.93 3.91 4.07 3.55 53.99
Cincinnati, Ohio. 3.35 3.51 3.93 4.29 46.89
Green Bay, Wis. 1.19 0.87 1.70 1.30 34.65
Detroit, Mich. 2.18 1.38 2.86 1.30 30.07
St. Louis, Mo. 1.93 3.37 3.82 1.99 41.95
Fort Hamilton, N. Y. 2.98 3.67 3.65 3.84 43.65
Pittsburgh, Pa. 2.18 2.17 2.70 3.13 34.96
Philadelphia, Pa. 3.09 2.94 3.43 4.03 43.56
CHAPTER XIII.
Agricultural interest -- Means of transportation -- Railways
and vessels -- Lumber -- Vessels cleared -- Lake cities and
Atlantic ports -- Home-market -- Breadstuffs -- Michigan
flour -- Monetary panics -- Wheat -- Importations --
Provisions -- Fruit -- Live stock -- Wool -- Shipping
business -- Railroads -- Lake Superior trade -- Pine lumber
trade -- Copper interest -- Iron interest -- Fisheries --
Coal mines -- Salt -- Plaster beds.
We copy from the Detroit Tribune of 1860, a somewhat elaborate and
lengthy article containing recent and highly important information in
regard to the industrial interests of Michigan. Though there are
portions of this article which we have to some extent anticipated in
some of our previous chapters, we consider it highly important to
extract largely from it, because of its more recent date. To all
interested in the development and future growth of the Northwest, it
will prove most valuable. The writer, Mr. Kay Haddock, commercial
editor of the Tribune, says:--
"We know of no similar extent of country on the globe so highly
favored by nature as our own State, which but twenty-three years since
emerged from the chrysalis condition of a territory, but which to day,
by the quickening influence brought to bear upon her natural
advantages by an enterprising and enlightened people, possesses
elements of wealth and greatness that might well be coveted by
empires. The characteristics for which she is pre-eminent are neither
few in number nor ordinary in character. She occupies the very front
rank in respect to important minerals, as well as in the extent and
quality of her forest products, while her fisheries are altogether
unrivaled, and, like her mines and forests, are the source of
exhaustless wealth. With regard to the extent and diversity of her
natural resources, it would indeed seem difficult to over-estimate
them. Predictions that seem visionary to-day, are to-morrow exceeded
by the reality, as some new treasure is revealed. A glance at the map
is of itself the most eloquent commentary that could be presented with
reference to her geographical position. As nature does nothing in
vain, the shipping facilities afforded by the noble inland seas that
clasp our shores, are a sign and promise of the commercial greatness
that awaits us in the future. We may well be proud of the condition
of our agricultural interest--that great interest which underlies
every other; which alike gives to the wealthy his opulence and the
beggar his crust. Our farmers have unmistakably indicated their
determination to accept of no secondary position in the quality of
their wheat, and their wool is not only rapidly gaining the first rank
as respect the amount produced, but is sought for with avidity for its
superior quality by all the principal manufacturers of the country.
Pomona, too, has thrown her influence in the scale. The region that
has thus far been devoted to the culture of fruit, in proportion to
its extent, cannot be surpassed in the Union, if indeed it can be
equaled. Such is a faint picture of the 'Peninsular State.'
"The snail-like progress hitherto made in the settlement of a large
share of the State, is an enigma to those not versed in our early
history. While occupying the position of a dependent of the central
power at Washington, we were so unfortunate in some instances as to
have men placed over us with whom personal interests were paramount to
the great interests of the territory, which, at the critical period
when the seeds of prosperity should have been planted, was fatal to
our advancement. Next came the era of Utopian projects of internal
improvement, by which our people were saddled with an onerous load of
debt. In the mean time immigrants were misled by false reports
concerning the character of the soil in the interior of the State, and
there were no roads by means of which they could satisfy themselves of
the true character of the country. They therefore passed on to find
homes upon what then seemed the most attractive prairies of the far
West. But there is at last a great change in the tide of affairs. The
value of our timber is justly regarded as greatly overbalancing the
doubtful advantage of settling upon prairie land, and the active
demand that has recently sprung up for it must constantly make a still
greater difference in our favor. Lands long held in the iron grasp of
speculators are rapidly coming into the possession of actual settlers.
Our State is being intersected by a system of roads, which will ere
long demonstrate the necessity of an extension of the system. Our
course is indeed onward and upward.
"Having seen a statement, given upon the authority of some gazeteer,
to the effect that about six million dollars were invested in this
State in manufacturing, which we felt assured was a libel upon the
State, we have taken steps to procure statistics of the more important
industrial establishments throughout the entire State. We find that in
the manufacture of pine lumber alone, there are about seven million
dollars invested, exclusive of the standing timber of proprietors,
which perhaps might properly be included as part of the capital."
Such indications of thrift, enterprise, and prosperity in a region
that twenty-four years ago was a howling wilderness, it may be safely
said, is without a parallel. The other counties, we are tolerably safe
in estimating, will swell the amount to $10,000,000, making, with the
lumber manufactories, and the $2,148,500, invested in the iron
manufacture, more than twenty million dollars!
The apathy of the citizens of Detroit in availing themselves of the
magnificent advantages possessed by the city for prosecuting
manufacturing upon an extensive scale, is wholly inexplicable. There
is a mine of unproductive wealth in our midst that might at once be
placed at compound interest. It now lies dormant in the sinewy arms of
men and the nimble fingers of women and children. There is thus a
moral aspect in this question that addresses itself with peculiar
earnestness to the philanthropic. But it were a philanthropy that
would lay up treasures on earth. Daily, almost hourly, raw material
takes its departure from our city destined to be received at eastern
manufactories, there to be worked up and returned to us for our
consumption, by which we are taxed with the freight both ways, in
addition to losing the profit of the manufacture. Every property
holder has a direct interest at stake. If a liberal sum were to be
subscribed to-morrow for investment in this important branch of
enterprise, the direct benefit that would accrue to the real estate of
the city would be at least double the amount invested.
The Western States look with deep interest to the Grand Trunk Railway,
and are hopeful that it may prove a great benefit to them in enabling
producers to reach the markets of European consumers at a cheap rate
for carriage. Unquestionably great benefits will grow out of the
opening up of the great thoroughfare. At the same time there are
questions of grave importance to shippers which will soon have to be
met, and nothing can be lost, while something may be gained, by
meeting them at the outset.
We set out, then, with the proposition that the bulky products of the
West must be carried by water and not by rail, and will state a few
facts that in our humble opinion will place this proposition beyond
all cavil. So for as figures can be obtained, and correct calculations
made, it has been demonstrated that freight cannot be moved on
American railroads for less than one cent per ton per mile. This is
actually the _first cost_, even in the coal regions of Pennsylvania.
It is therefore fair to presume that the Grand Trunk, with conceded
advantages of superior and economical management, cannot move freight
at a less cost, and that the figure named will yield nothing to the
stockholders in the shape of dividend. It is true that freight has
been carried at an actual loss, and, as we are about to show, the same
thing will to some extent be done again, but if persevered in this can
only result in ruin, and no one will assert that it ought to be taken
as a legitimate basis for future calculations. It follows, then, that
$8,80 is the lowest sum for which a ton can be moved from Detroit to
Portland, the distance between the two cities being eight hundred and
eighty miles. This showing may not be relished by those most
immediately interested in the Grand Trunk Railway, nor may it be
palatable to the producers of the West, who have built high hopes on
this road as an outlet to the Atlantic, but it is useless to attempt
to shut our eyes to obvious facts. The West has for years possessed
shorter and consequently cheaper routes to the seaboard, and in winter
the cost of reaching-the Atlantic cities has always been and now is
from 100 to 200 per cent, greater by rail than during the navigation
season by the cheaper mode. This is easily proved. Let us look at the
distance by the old route by the way of Suspension Bridge:
Detroit to Suspension Bridge, is 232 miles; the Bridge to Albany, 300;
Albany to Boston 200; total 732.
Thus we see that the whole distance from Detroit to Boston is seven
hundred and thirty-two miles, or one hundred and forty-eight _less_
than from Detroit to Portland. As regards shipments from Detroit to
Boston, via the Grand Trunk, the matter is worse, for we have to add
one hundred and three miles from Portland to Boston, making the old
route two hundred and fifty-three miles shorter to that point than by
the newly opened road. It is evident therefore, that the West is not
likely to gain anything permanently by the new route, except in so far
as it may open up some local trade, which, inconsiderable at first,
may eventually assume considerable importance. Of course, what is true
regarding Detroit, is also true with respect to every point west of
us.
Every one conversant with trade must admit that goods can be carried
as cheap from any port in Europe to New York as to Portland. The
distance from New York to Detroit, _via_ Albany and Suspension
Bridge, is six hundred and eighty-two miles, or one hundred and
ninety-eight miles less than from Portland to Detroit. Goods ought
certainly to be carried cheaper from New York to Detroit than by a
route near two hundred miles further.
We learn that the New York Central Railroad Company are now perfecting
a plan for ticketing passengers and goods from any point in the
Western, Southern, and Southwestern States, and _vice versa_. Thus at
least one important advantage to the West is already apparent, growing
out of the comprehensive action of the Grand Trunk managers, while the
action of the New York Central is the sure precursor of a momentous
era in railroad annals. The present year is likely to witness the
first battle in a war for the European and domestic trade of the West,
that may in the end turn the entire current into other channels. It
will be a strife of giants, and the prize the most magnificent ever
battled for, either in the tented field or in the nobler contests of
nations for commercial supremacy. That prize is the carrying trade of
an empire fast rising into manly vigor, and destined to attain to a
point during the present generation that will dazzle the world with
its vastness and grandeur. On one side will be arrayed the Grand Trunk
Railway, with its sixty million dollars of capital, backed by the
government of Canada, and sustained by every merchant of the British
North American colonies, aided by powerful friends in Europe--men of
character, standing and capital, who will strain every nerve to supply
their darling road with business, in which they will have the sympathy
of the whole English people--for in both England and Canada the Grand
Trunk is looked upon as a great triumph of national engineering skill,
while at the same time it gratifies the national pride, as it gives
the world one more convincing proof of that indomitable pluck that is
the chief secret of the great celebrity attained by the merchants of
the "fast anchored isle" for commercial enterprise.
On the other side will be marshaled the forces of the "Grand Trunk"
lines of railroad leading to the Western States from the Atlantic
seaboard. The most prominent on the list is the New York Central
Railroad, with her natural allies, the Great Western of Canada, the
Hudson River Railroad, and the Western Railroad of Massachusetts. Next
in order, as parties in the struggle, are the New York and Erie, the
Pennsylvania Central, and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, not to
speak of the local roads in Ohio, Indiana, and Michigan, that will be
affected more or less in the contest for supremacy.
The Grand Trunk will fight under one banner, and that banner will
carry on its broad folds the commercial prestige of the British
Empire, and will have the sympathy of the British people. This, which
will probably carry with it, as a coincident, plenty of the "sinews of
war," will be decidedly a vantage ground to stand upon.
The American interests will come into the field under different
leaders, having no unity of action, and hating and fearing each other;
who have never had confidence in each others' words or actions; who
have never displayed any generosity toward each other; whose dealings
with each other have been marked by cheating and bad faith, as the
breaking of all convention treaties has proved. Under such a load of
demoralization, all of them combined are perhaps not more than a match
for the Grand Trunk. One of the American roads will have to stand in
the van and sustain the first onset, and the elected one will be the
NEW YORK CENTRAL. In every point of view it is the one best able to do
so. It is managed and controlled by men of large experience and iron
will--men who do not know what defeat is, and who, come what may,
will show that their metal has the true ring.
The result of such a contest none can foresee; albeit after the smoke
of the battle is cleared away, the wreck will only show that it has
been a costly and useless fight for the stockholders, and the
conviction that God's highways are superior to man's will gain
strength, insomuch as to assume far more practical importance than it
has hitherto attained. The only method of carrying on a successful
trade between the Western States and the seaports of Europe, is by
water, and to this conclusion all must come, in the end, on both sides
of the Atlantic.
In order to make the trade productive of substantial benefit to all
interested in it, the West must have free course down the St.
Lawrence, and an enlargement of the Canadian canals, so that vessels
of say eighteen hundred tons can pass down to the ports of Montreal
and Quebec without unloading, and continue on their way to Europe
without breaking bulk. A depth of fourteen feet water, with locks of
corresponding capacity on the canals would accomplish this important
end. The multifarious and rapidly increasing products of the Great
West, her timber, flour, wheat, corn, oats, rye, barley, pork, beef,
butter, lard, cheese, meal, and every description of agricultural
produce could then be laid down in the ports of England so cheaply
that it would greatly reduce the cost of the necessaries of life, and
give a new impetus to the manufacturing interest of Great Britain. At
the same time it would directly tend to cheapen every article that the
West requires to import, thus proving of double advantage to our
producers. In both cases the producer and consumer would be brought
face to face, to the obvious advantage of all concerned. The
manufacturing prosperity of England depends upon an unlimited supply
of cheap labor, and that supply cannot be had unless she can supply
such laborers with an unlimited supply of cheap food. The West has the
capacity not only to furnish an inexhaustible quantity of cheap food,
but it can purchase and consume a larger amount of the productions of
English skill and labor than any other section of the world. Why,
then, cannot both parties hit on some scheme that will bring them more
closely into the fellowship of trade? It can be done, if both will
unite to obtain an unimpeded outlet via the St. Lawrence for vessels
and steamers of heavy burden. So far as Quebec and Montreal are
concerned, it is very difficult to say whether the consummation of the
proposed enlargement would redound most to their benefit, or to that
of our Western lake cities. In both cases the gain would be beyond
computation. The two important Canadian cities named would become at
once important seaports. They would become two of the depots for the
vast commerce of two continents, and would derive great benefits from
the opening up of a local traffic with the West, which at present
amounts to but very little, so far as they are concerned. Our lake
cities would all become large commercial centres, and would supply the
population of the region tributary to them, respectively, with dry
goods, crockery, hardware, paints, oils, and all kinds of imported
merchandise, at a cheaper rate by a considerable per centage, than
they could be purchased at New York, or any city on the Atlantic.
Detroit would be much nearer Liverpool than Buffalo now is by the
usual route, and Chicago and Milwaukee would be almost as near,
practically.
A few figures will show the decided advantage of water over rail as a
medium of transporting the bulky products of the West to market.
It has already been shown that a ton of any kind of freight cannot be
laid down at Portland from Detroit, by rail, under $8.80, without a
loss to the stockholders, nor to Boston under $9.65, except with the
same result; nor at New York _via_ the Great Western, New York
Central, and Hudson River roads under $6.82, without actual loss to
those roads, so that the case would stand thus:--Detroit to Portland,
per ton, _via_ G. T. R., $8.80; Detroit to Boston, do. do., $9.85;
Detroit to New York, $6.82. Add $4.00 per ton for ocean freights, and
we have in each case respectively, $12.80, $13.85, and $10.82 per ton
to Liverpool.
Now we maintain that a screw steamer of 1800 tons burden, costing,
when completed, $150,000, can carry much cheaper than a road like the
Grand Trunk, costing $60,000,000, or the New York Central and its
connections. A steamer of that capacity would carry 1,500 tons of
freight; 600 tons of coal would run her across the Atlantic, and she
could coal from Chicago or Detroit to Newfoundland, and from the
latter point to Liverpool. By doing this, she could carry 300 tons
more freight than if she coaled for the entire voyage from Chicago to
Liverpool. All the principal exports and imports of Michigan, Indiana,
Western Ohio, Kentucky, &c., would find their way to Detroit, and this
point would of necessity become the great centre of the direct trade
between Europe and the States above mentioned.
Two steamers per week could be run with profit on the route during the
season of navigation; each steamer would make two round trips and a
half per season of seven months' navigation, allowing two months for
each round trip. At this rate sixteen ocean steamers would be required
to make up a semi-weekly line, and were the Canadian canals enlarged
and ready for use by the middle of next April, there would be at once
sufficient trade to sustain them, at much cheaper rates for freight
and passage than is now charged by any route or combination of routes
in existence, as the following will show conclusively:
Each round trip would give the following sums for freight and
passage:--1500 tons of freight at $6 per ton, $9,000; 40 cabin
passengers at $50 each, $2,000; 50 steerage do. do. $25 each, $1,250.
Total for the trip out, $12,250. Inward bound:--600 tons freight at
$6, $3,600; 75 cabin passengers at $60, $4,500; 300 steerage do. do.,
$30, $9,000--$17,100. Add outward receipts, $12,250. Total, $29,350.
The total cost of the trip, including insurance, would not exceed
$14,000. Total net profits, $15,250.
It will be seen by the above figures that our staple products can be
carried to England in the right kind of vessels, at one half the cost
that railroads and connecting steamers can perform the same service,
even when the latter carry at a rate that brings no profit to the
shareholders, while the former would pay large dividends. At the rates
named for passage (but little more than one-half the present cost of
going from Detroit to England) crowds of the European settlers in this
country would flock to the mother country to see dear friends and
relatives, and tens of thousands of the American people would embrace
the opportunity to behold the tombs and temples and wonders of the
land from whence their ancestors came. A feeling of friendship of the
true stamp would spring up spontaneously between the Anglo-Saxon races
on each side of the Atlantic that never could be severed, and which
would alternately shed the blessings of Christianity and civilization
to every corner of the world. Such free intercourse would show that to
be appreciated by each other they only need to be better acquainted.
And it is our firm belief, that the day that beholds the commencement
of direct trade between the old world and in the inland seas of the
Great West, by vessels of the class named, will see a day of glory and
promise brighter and greater than has ever yet dawned on any efforts
put forth to subdue the world by human means, to peace and universal
brotherhood.
Our readers are aware that a trade of great importance has sprung up
within two or three years between Detroit and other lake ports, and
the leading seaports of Europe. The particulars of its inauguration
are already familiar to the public. Of the vessels which cleared hence
in this trade in 1858, one was owned and sent out by a merchant of
this city; another was loaded by a Cleveland house; the others were
all owned or chartered by Capt. D. C. Pierce, the enterprising pioneer
of the trade. His first venture on the _Kershaw_, notwithstanding some
few incidental circumstances that worked to his disadvantage, was
productive of some direct profit, but a much greater profit inured to
himself, and those who followed him in this important commerce, by his
becoming well versed in the European trade, insomuch as to be enabled
to avail himself of the peculiar advantages offered by each market, as
well as in determining the character of freight most profitable to
carry. The cheapest, best and safest means of transporting the
diversified products of the West, and particularly the region of which
Detroit is the centre, to the European markets, returning with foreign
fabrics in exchange, had long challenged the attention of capitalists,
who saw in it the germ of a mighty commerce, but seemed to lack the
practical knowledge and tact to put the ball in motion. Last year
twenty-one vessels cleared from the different lake ports, mostly from
Detroit.
Another important point which is now in a fair way to be gained, is
the making of European consumers acquainted with the fact that their
wants can be supplied to any desired extent. When this information
becomes general the consumption must be vastly stimulated, affording
one of the most inviting fields for enterprise known in the commercial
annals of the world. The resources of the State are amply sufficient
to afford employment for half a century to a tenfold larger number of
vessels than have yet engaged in it. By a carefully compiled estimate,
it has been ascertained that in prosperous times the annual product of
our _pineries_ is hard upon TEN MILLION DOLLARS. Large as this sum is,
it is the opinion of those who are well qualified to form an estimate,
that it may easily be surpassed by the product of our hard timber.
Take for example the region around Saginaw Bay, which is perhaps the
most remarkable locality in the world as respects the quality and
variety of hard wood timber. Here, for near a hundred miles in extent,
upon streams debouching into the bay, are dense forests of the
choicest oak, with a profusion of hickory, black walnut, white ash,
whitewood, and other desirable varieties. The manufacture of
agricultural implements, as well as many other articles that afford
employment to the toiling millions of the old world, must receive a
new impetus when it is found that wood admirably adapted to their
construction can be had direct from our forests at the moderate rate
at which it will bear transportation. So of birds-eye maple for
cabinet ware, red elm for carriage hubs, and other varieties
applicable to specific uses. We have designated only such as abound in
great plenty. The profusion of the growth is in fact equaled only by
its accessibility, the whole country being so permeated by streams
that it can be floated off with very little trouble.
The Saginaw District, important and extensive as it is, comprises but
a small portion of our hard-wood lumber region. In addition to
numerous almost interminable forests in the north, equally accessible
and almost equally valuable, there are extensive regions in the
interior where timber abounds of such choice quality as to abundantly
warrant railroad transportation hither. Although some of the shipments
last season were of the far-famed Canada oak, shippers all concur in
assuring us that the Michigan timber was held in as high estimation,
if not higher, than any other offered in the foreign market. A most
significant fact, coming right to the point, came under our
observation a few months since. In the summer of 1858, five passenger
cars for the Michigan Southern Road were built at Adrian, which
unprejudiced judges pronounced the finest ever built in the United
States. Every foot of timber in them--as well as every pound of
iron--was of Michigan production. Last spring, after being in use some
twenty months, these cars were for the first time overhauled for
repairs, along with a number of eastern cars which had been in use for
a like period of time, when it was found that the latter, owing to the
inferior quality of timber, cost for repairs nearly as many dollars as
the Michigan cars did cents! We have the authority of gentlemen of the
highest respectability for stating this as a literal fact.
The following is a complete list of the vessels which cleared for
European ports the past year, together with the character of their
cargoes, respectively, and the port to which they sailed:--
Bark D. C. Pierce, Staves, Liverpool.
" Allies, Lumber and staves, Cork.
" W. S. Pierson, Lumber and staves, Greenock.
" Massillon, Lumber and staves, Liverpool.
Brig J. G. Deshler, Staves, Glasgow.
" Caroline, Lumber and staves, Liverpool.
" Black Hawk, Staves, London.
Schr R. H. Harmon, Staves, Liverpool.
" J. F. Warner, Staves, Liverpool.
" Gold Hunter, Staves, Cork.
" Dousman, Staves, London.
" Valeria, Lumber and staves, Liverpool.
" Vanguard, Staves, Liverpool.
" Grand Turk, Lumber, Hamburg.
" St. Helena, Lumber and staves, Cork.
" Chieftain, Lumber and staves, London.
" C. H. Walker, Lumber and staves, Liverpool.
" M. S. Scott, Lumber, Hamburg.
" E. Bates, Lumber and staves, Liverpool.
" H. Barclay, Staves, London.
" Republican, Lumber and staves, Cadiz.
" Messenger, Staves, &c. Calais.
Of the above, Messenger cleared from Buffalo; the Pierson and
Republican hailed from Milan, Ohio; the Massillon and Valeria from
Cleveland; the Scott loaded at St. Joseph, and was sent out by a
Milwaukee house; all the others either loaded at this port, or were
owned or chartered here. Eight of the number were chartered by Messrs.
Aspinwall & Son, and two of the others were owned here.
The following is the aggregate amount of lumber and staves shipped to
Europe the past year, exclusive of the cargoes from Cleveland, Milan,
and Buffalo:--
West India staves No. 692,057
Standard pipe staves, No. 142,662
Lumber, feet 474,693
[A Quebec standard pipe is equal to four West India staves.]
The Lily of Kingston, was the first vessel that ever passed down from
the lakes to the ocean, bound to an European port. Her destination was
Liverpool. This was about the year 1847. She afterward sailed in the
Quebec and Liverpool trade, but was lost, we believe, on her third
ocean voyage.
As collateral to this trade, an important commerce has sprung up
between the lake cities and the Atlantic ports which promise to
increase rapidly. Prior to 1857, the passage of vessels from the
Welland Canal to the ocean was of very rare occurrence. As a matter of
curiosity, we present a complete statement of the vessels which have
passed through the canal bound for Atlantic or European ports, with
the year of sailing, avoiding a repetition of the list above given.
The Dean Richmond, and those clearing in 1857 and 1858, all sailed for
Europe. Those designated in this list as having sailed in 1859, all
cleared for Atlantic ports:
1847 American steam revenue cutter Dallis.
" Canadian barque Arabia.
1848 American barque Eureka.
1850 Canadian schooner Scotia.
1854 Canadian schooner Cherokee.
1855 Canadian bark Reindeer.
1856 American schooner Dean Richmond.
1857 American bark C. J. Kershaw.
" English schooner Madeira Pet.
1858 American brig Black Hawk.
" American schooner R. H. Harmon.
" American schooner Col. Cook.
" American schooner Correspondent.
" American bark D. C. Pierce.
" American schooner D. B. Sexton.
" American schooner John E. Warner.
" American bark H. E. Warner.
" American bark C. J. Kershaw.
" American schooner C. Reeve.
" American schooner Harvest.
" American bark Parmelia Flood.
1859 American bark Magenta.
" American brig Sultan.
" American brig Indus.
" American brig Kate L. Bruce.
" Canadian schooner Union.
" American schooner Kyle Spangler.
" American schooner Muskingum.
" American schooner Adda.
" American schooner Clifton.
" American schooner Metropolis.
" American schooner Energy.
" American schooner W. B. Castle.
" American schooner Alida.
" American tug Uncle Ben.
" American tug Cushman.
" American schooner Typhoon.
" American schooner Sarah Hibbert.
Presuming that those who may hereafter become interested in this
commerce, would like the benefit of the experience of those who have
already embarked it, we have procured some valuable information for
their benefit. First, as to the kind of timber most profitable to
ship: Although black walnut appears to be growing in favor, and where
once it has been used is again inquired for, yet a decided preference
is given to oak, with the qualities of which all are entirely
familiar. Choice, selected oak commands more money for cabinet
purposes in all the foreign markets than the same quality of black
walnut. Contrary to previous expectation, it is not likely that the
latter can ever be brought into general use in Great Britain. It is
the greatest mahogany market in the world, and that wood is in
universal use, particularly the common or cheap kind. If ever so
common, it is not liable to warp, which cannot be said of black
walnut, although, as we have before intimated, those who have worked
it, praise it very highly. Beech, elm and ash, are used for a great
many purposes, and are in good demand, but oak commands more money
than either of them, and is therefore the most profitable to ship at
present.
The fact is not generally known, but the information has been
purchased at a dear rate, that the purchase of lumber for the foreign
market by board-measure, instead of cubic, involves a heavy loss. In
European markets all lumber is sold by the cubic foot, so that the
cost of sawing is completely thrown away. Black walnut, for example,
cannot be laid down in Detroit, or any lake port, under $18 to $20 per
M., while the lumber can be obtained for $125 to $150 per M. cubic
feet, 1,000 feet cubic measure being equal to 12,000 feet board
measure. Thus in purchasing by cubic measure, the buyer pays only $125
to $150 for an amount that by board measure would cost $216 to $240,
making a clear difference of _ninety dollars_ upon only one thousand
cubic feet, equal to $900 upon a cargo of some of the vessels engaged
in the trade last year. The same rule would apply substantially to
other kinds of lumber. Independent of this, a decided preference is
given to lumber in the log, owing to the good condition in which it
can be delivered. There is one more point which manufacturers as well
as shippers should bear in mind. The value of much of the lumber sent
out was greatly impaired by being attached to the heart, which is the
most porous part of the tree, and therefore most liable to crack. To
obviate this objection the saw should pass upon each side of the
heart, thus leaving the whole of it attached to a single piece of
timber, instead of one or more pieces, and thereby making only one
cull. By observing this rule a difference will be made in the market
of thirty or forty per cent.
Are staves or lumber the more profitable to ship? This depends upon
circumstances. Last year it was very dull for both. For staves
especially the season could not, for various reasons, have been more
unfavorable. In the first place, the grape crop was a very short one,
not only in France, but in all the vine countries, including the
Canaries. This, of course, greatly lessened the demand for staves, and
there were consequently very few taken from England to France,
although French vessels are in the habit of taking them for ballast at
a merely nominal rate, owing to the difficulty they experience in
procuring return freights from England. The short crops in Canada and
the great scarcity of money, forced an unusual number of laborers in
that country into the stave and lumber business. Under advices that
heavy shipments were in prospect, coupled with the general check upon
business on account of the war, prices became depressed.
Notwithstanding all this, the shipments hence, being early in the
market, sold to advantage, and may therefore be considered as a signal
success, under the circumstances. The smallest vessel going out from
here netted a freight of $3,500.
The most striking feature with regard to Detroit, in a commercial
point of view, is her admirable location, which constitutes her the
metropolis of a vast region, than which no city off the seaboard can
boast one equally grand or important. The region embraces a circuit of
some three thousand miles, composed of land and water, which both seem
to vie with each other in contributing to the material prosperity of
our city, while every interest involved is benefited in some degree by
her. In the far north, where the rugged coast of the upper peninsula
is lashed by the waters of the monarch of lakes, Detroit enterprise
assists in redeeming the hidden treasures of the earth from their
state of profitless inertion. There is not a hardy delver in the mines
who is not familiar with the skill of Detroit machinists, nor an echo
in all the majestic wilds skirting that noble expanse of waters, that
has not been awakened by Detroit steamers. Further down upon the
limpid waters of Lake Huron, where the army or rather the navy of
fishermen set their nets for the capture of the finny tribes, here,
too, our city possesses an interest almost as direct as if the canvas
of their tiny crafts were spread within sight of her spires, the
product comprising one of the most important staples in her multiform
commerce. Last, but not least, is the great lumber region with which
the prosperity of Michigan is so largely identified. The population of
this region, as well as of the others we have referred to, raise
almost literally nothing for their own consumption, their respective
pursuits being inconsistent with that of tillers of the soil, so that
in addition to the usual stores required by farmers, they have to
purchase their breadstuffs and similar supplies. The bulk of these are
bought of our dealers, this being not only the most convenient, but
the cheapest and best market, as is amply proven by experience.
Under the appropriate head will be found a complete and authentic
statement of the commerce of the Saut St. Mary Canal, by which it will
be seen that the aggregate value of the upward-bound freight is
estimated at $5,298,640. The up-freight nearly all carried by
steamers, of which the number running the entire season was seven,
three from Detroit, one from Chicago, and three from Cleveland. The
Detroit boats have generally been loaded to their utmost capacity,
while we have the word of the Cleveland captains to the effect that
two-thirds of their cargoes are usually taken on at this port. We
must therefore be clearly within bounds in claiming that
three-fourths of the above amount is part and parcel of the commerce
of our city which would show our Lake Superior exports to be
$3,960,000. In seasons in which the crops of our Canadian neighbors
partially fail--a common occurrence within the past few years, but
which we hope may never occur again--they naturally become our
customers; and since the partial destruction of the wheat crop in Ohio
last summer by frost, there have been considerable shipments of
breadstuffs to Cleveland, Toledo, Sandusky, etc., which may very
properly be included in the home traffic.
The shipments of flour and grain for the supply of our home trade by
lake craft, from the opening of navigation for the year 1859, as
appears by the books of our Custom House, are as follows:
Flour. Wheat. Corn.
Port Huron 10,885 253 6,916
Saginaw 3,790 30
Cleveland 6,155 28,057 1,146
Thunder Bay 106
Green Bay 175
Northport 175
Sandusky 705
Huron, O. 660
Toledo 665 616
Lake Superior 11,321
Other American ports 245
Malden 1,289 160 14,548
Chatham 3,671 1,736
Wallaceburg 705
Goderich 318 1,274
Saugeen 168
Bayfield 200
Other Canadian ports 1,330 95 749
There were also 7,446 bushels oats to Port Huron, and 588 bushels do.
to other ports, beside 3,400 bushels corn, and 11,962 bushels oats
which were included in the heavy shipments to Lake Superior. We give
the places for which vessels cleared; many of the shipments were for
intermediate ports. Besides the flour and grain there were large
shipments of pork, butter, lard, meal, etc., etc.
The above were all by water. There were in addition large local
shipments to various points on the Great Western, the Detroit and
Milwaukee, and other roads, that may with equal propriety be regarded
as pertaining to the home trade.
The article of corn is one to secure customers, for in Canada it is
not essential there should be short crops there. Large amounts are
taken for the supply of the numerous distilleries on that side. A
single house in our city has sold the past year 100,000 bushels for
that purpose.
During the year commodities have been interchanged by lake craft
between Detroit and no fewer than sixty-three lake and river ports, to
say nothing of the hundreds of towns and cities on the various
railroads that are daily trading with us. We have not included those
ports to which the bulk of our surplus produce is forwarded, but only
such as come strictly within the scope of our subject. There are few
places where trade develops statistics of similar character, or
anything approximating thereto, while there are plenty of cities of no
inconsiderable pretensions, and even great advantages, that would
think themselves made if they possessed one-fourth the commercial
facilities we enjoy.
Within the past year, by the opening up of new and most important
channels of railway communication, our position with respect to the
great railway system of the continent, is rendered all that could be
desired. In that regard it is indeed difficult to point out how any
improvement could be made. With respect to our local advantages,
however, admirable as they are, there is yet much in store for us. The
signs are far more favorable than at any former period for the rapid
settlement of the State, as well as for the more adequate development
of her resources. We are constantly receiving intelligence that some
new source of wealth has been revealed within our borders, or that one
previously discovered is likely to surpass the expectations at first
entertained. These events must not only tend directly to hasten the
settlement of the State, but also add in a still greater ratio to her
commercial importance and her wealth.
If we were to fail to refer, in this connection, to the law passed by
our legislature last winter, providing for the reclamation of the
"swamp lands," technically so called, and inaugurating an admirable
system of State roads throughout all the upper portions of the State,
we should be ignoring decidedly the most pregnant of the signs of
promise. In adopting so well-timed and beneficent a measure, our
law-givers have proved themselves worthy guardians of a commonwealth
whose interests so plainly bespeak a much greater degree of wise
legislation than has heretofore been wielded for her benefit. Next in
importance to these wholesome measures, is the law providing for the
appointment of Commissioners of Emigration--one resident here, and the
other stationed in New York. Those seeking homes in the West have only
to be made aware of the unequaled inducements presented by our
State, to secure immense accessions to our population.
Detroit does not alone reap the benefit of her advantageous position.
It is shared by all interests, but perhaps by none others to so great
an extent as the tillers of the soil. It is a most significant fact
that breadstuffs and provisions not unfrequently bring as high prices
here as in New York, giving producers all the advantages at home of a
seaboard market, and virtually putting the cost of shipment into their
pockets. Thus a farmer whose land possesses a nominal value of ten or
twenty dollars per acre, can enjoy all the pecuniary advantages of a
location near one of the largest eastern cities, where farms are
valued at one to two hundred dollars per acre. This fact alone should
go very far toward transforming our northern wilderness into
cultivated fields.
As a matter of interest, and to some extent of curiosity, we present a
comparative statement exhibiting the ruling prices of extra Michigan
flour twice a month throughout the year, in Detroit, New York and
Liverpool, and also the prices in the latter market, for the
corresponding dates in the year 1858:
Liverpool, '58. Liv'L, '59. N. York, '59. Detroit, '59.
Jan. 1st. 5 76a6 74 4 80a5 04 4 95a5 15 5 00a5 12
" 15th. 5 76a6 24 4 80a5 04 5 60a5 85 5 00a5 12
Feb. 1st. 5 76a6 24 4 80a5 04 5 90a6 40 5 75a6 00
" 15th. 5 52a6 00 4 80a5 04 5 90a6 25 6 25a6 50
Mar'h 1st. 5 52a6 24 4 80a5 04 6 30a6 50 6 25a6 50
" 15th. 5 52a6 24 4 80a5 04 6 50a6 75 6 50a6 75
April 1st. 5 28a5 52 4 80a5 04 6 30a6 75 a6 75
" 15th. 5 28a5 76 4 80a5 04 6 00a6 60 a6 50
May 1st. 5 28a5 52 5 04a5 28 6 25a6 75 a6 50
" 15th. 5 28a5 52 6 00a6 24 7 30a7 85 a8 00
June 1st. 5 04a5 28 a5 76 7 00a7 40 a7 50
" 15th. 5 04a5 28 a5 76 6 70a7 05 7 12a7 25
July 1st. 5 04a5 28 a 6 00a6 50 a7 25
" 15th. 5 08a5 40 5 04a5 28 5 45a6 00 7 00a7 12
Aug. 1st. 5 28a5 40 4 80a5 52 4 90a5 50 4 75a4 87
" 15th. 5 04a5 28 5 04a5 52 4 30a4 65 4 50a4 75
Sept. 1st. 5 16a5 40 5 04a5 52 4 40a5 00 4 62a4 75
" 15th. 5 16a5 40 4 80a5 52 4 65a4 85 4 25a4 50
Oct. 1st. 5 04a5 28 5 28a5 76 4 75a5 10 4 62a4 75
" 15th. 5 04a5 28 5 28a5 76 4 80a5 20 a4 75
Nov. 1st. 5 04a5 28 5 52a6 00 5 00a5 30 a5 00
" 15th. 4 80a5 04 5 76a6 24 5 24a5 45 a5 12
Dec. 1st. 4 80a5 04 6 76a7 00 5 45a5 65 a5 12
" 15th. 4 80a5 04 6 76a7 00 5 48a5 65 a5 12
The Detroit mills manufacture excellent flour, and it is to be
regretted that they are not capable of making a much larger quantity
of their well-known brands. There are six flouring mills of different
capacities in the city, and although they are generally at full work
such is the demand for flour they make, that they are very often not
able to supply their customers. These mills ought to be enlarged, or
others built. Detroit, the commercial metropolis of a great
wheat-growing State, should be capable of manufacturing an immense
quantity of flour. The increased expenditure of money, in the purchase
of wheat, would be very beneficial to the trade of the city.
For the last fifteen years, the exports of breadstuffs from the United
States have fluctuated very much. In 1846 they amounted to nearly
twenty-eight millions of dollars, and rose in 1847 to sixty-nine
millions. In 1848 they fell to thirty-seven, and in 1852 to twenty-six
millions. In 1853 they amounted to nearly thirty-three millions, and
in 1854 they rose to about sixty-millions, but fell in 1855 to about
thirty-nine millions, and again rose in 1857 to seventy-seven
millions. In 1858 they again declined to about fifty millions. We
cannot accurately detail the exports of 1859, but they have been very
light on account of fall in the European market, after the termination
of the war in Italy. During these years there were various causes for
the remarkable fluctuations which we have noted; namely, famine in
Ireland, the Crimean war, and the failures of the harvest at home and
abroad, nor have these exportations been regularly divided or spread
over the various months of each year. They have increased or
diminished according to the European demand, governed by the supply at
home and regulated by advices from the other side of the Atlantic. It
is likely that the export of breadstuffs in 1860 will be very
considerable.
Michigan possesses many advantages over her sister States, and these
enable her to bear up against monetary panics better than they. Her
immense length of lake coast is indented with excellent harbors, which
invite commerce from every quarter, and furnish excellent outlets for
her surplus produce or mineral wealth. The great and diversified
resources of the State support her in the evil day, and bring her
through a commercial crisis in safety. From the ushering in of the
year to the close, there is not a day in which the marts of commerce
are not enlivened by the contributions of grain or live stock from our
fields, fish from our lakes, lumber from our forests, or ores of
various kinds from our inexhaustible mines.
According to the census returns of 1840, the State of Michigan
produced 2,157,108 bushels of wheat, there were 190 flouring mills at
work, employing 491 hands, and producing 202,880 barrels of flour
annually. In 1853 this State produced 7,275,032 bushels of wheat,
there were 245 flouring mills at work, employing 604 persons, and
manufacturing 1,000,000 barrels of flour in a year. It will be seen
that the flouring mills have increased greatly both in number and
capacity since 1840, and that very large quantities of flour are now
manufactured in the interior of the State, a circumstance which partly
accounts for the comparatively small quantity of wheat that is now
exported. The number of flouring mills have doubtless increased since
1853, and as steam power has been applied in many instances their
manufacturing capacity must now be very great. Farmers are beginning
to understand the importance of disposing of their produce near home,
and having the surplus exported in a manufactured state, instead of
sending away the raw material; the bran and "shorts" being very
valuable for mixing with the food of horses, cattle, and swine. A
flouring mill is a great benefit in a rural district, it furnishes the
farmer with a home market, and when he receives the price of his
produce, there are many domestic wants which must be supplied, and on
this account we always see stores and mechanics' shops clustering
around a mill, and villages springing up in places where the solitude
of the forest was, until lately, unbroken by a sound. It is evident
that the mill power of Michigan is increasing rapidly, and that in
future the greater part of the surplus grain crop will be exported in
a manufactured state.
In former years the prices of grain in the United States were
controlled by the European markets, and consequently the grain trade
of the Western States was governed by the produce merchants in the
Atlantic ports, but lately the whole order of things seems to have
been reversed, as breadstuffs of every kind were dearer in the Western
than in the Eastern markets. There were several reasons for this
anomaly. On account of the ravages of insects, and other causes which
we have alluded to, farmers were induced to place very little reliance
on the wheat crop, and many were driven into other branches of
husbandry, and in some places wheat became scarce. Add to this the
rapid increase of the population which created a local demand for all
kinds of food, and caused immense quantities of breadstuffs to be
required in places where a few years before there was no market for
anything. The rapid and extraordinary growth of Detroit and all the
Western cities, and the formation of new settlements, created a home
market for Western produce, for the population of cities being
consumers of the fruits of the land, instead of producers, have
always a wonderful effect on the markets of their localities, and the
pioneers in the forest or prairie must for a time depend on the older
settlements for subsistence.
From a defective system of agriculture the soil of the old States has
been deteriorating for several years. In Massachusetts the hay crop
declined twelve per cent. from 1840 to 1850, notwithstanding the
addition of 90,000 acres of mowing lands and the grain crop
depreciated 6000 bushels, although no less than 6000 acres had been
added to the tillage lands of that State.
In 1840 the wheat crop of New York was about twelve and a quarter
millions of bushels, and only nine millions in 1850, a decrease of 25
per cent., while the Indian corn in the same State increased during
the same period from about ten to twenty millions of bushels. The
harvest of 1859, found several parts of the country entirely destitute
of flour, and the farmers with a fixed and firm determination never
again to allow themselves to run out of the staff of life.
The number and capacity of the flouring mills have increased
considerably since 1853, so that it is probable that there are at
present more than three hundred of them at work in the State, and the
number of hands employed by them cannot be much less than twelve
hundred. It is probable that they are now capable of manufacturing
1,25,000 barrels of flour annually, and this quantity would require
5,625,000 bushels of wheat. Add to this the large quantity of seed
required for sowing an increased breadth of land, and the portion of
the crop kept for domestic use, and the result will be sufficient to
explain the reason why so little wheat has been exported from Michigan
this season. There are about 50,000 families in this State who depend
on agriculture for subsistence; all of these had suffered more or less
inconvenience from failure of the wheat crop, and the high price of
flour for the last few years, and it is no wonder that they should
endeavor to secure a full supply of wheat or flour of the produce of
the late harvest, and a very large portion of the crop was disposed of
in this way.
Since the Reciprocity Treaty came into operation, there has been
considerable exportation of flour from Detroit to Canada on account of
the repeated failures of the wheat crop in that country, and thus a
new market for Michigan produce has been opened near home.
Some of these sources of demand are trifling when standing alone, but
the aggregate makes a very large amount. It is considered that about
half the produce of the wheat crop still remains in the hands of the
farmers and may be expected to reach the market gradually.
Michigan wants woolen and cotton, and various other factories to
provide employment for the over-crowded population of her cities and
villages, and to open a market for all her produce. The farmers of
Great Britain and Ireland could not pay the high rents and taxes which
are imposed on them, were it not for their proximity to the great
manufacturing cities of England. The cotton factories of Manchester,
the woolen factories of Leeds and Huddersfield, the hardware works of
Birmingham and Sheffield, and the potteries of Staffordshire, employ
hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children, who consume the
fruits of the soil, and create a steady demand for the farmer's stock
and grain. All these manufactures were fostered by protective laws
until they had attained a magnitude and importance which enabled them
to protect themselves by the wealth of their proprietors and the
excellence of their products. Large cities always afford a market for
farm produce, and on this account exert a very beneficial influence on
agriculture. The population of London is about two and a half
millions, and they are possessed of so much wealth, and are so
fastidious in their requirements, that almost every part of the world
contributes to supply them with the necessaries or luxuries of life.
The rapid growth of the cities of Michigan afford a home market for
the fruits of the soil. A great deal of land in the old
settlements of this State has been exhausted by a too frequent
repetition of the wheat crop, and is now being employed as pasture for
sheep and cattle. After remaining in grass for a few years, this land
will be in excellent condition for producing wheat, especially when
fertilized with that plentiful supply of barn-yard dung which the
raising of stock always produces.
There are some varieties of wheat which are much better suited to the
climate and soil of Michigan than others, as they are in a great
measure able to withstand the combined attacks of wheat insects and
the various diseases to which the plant is liable. These are now fast
supplanting the worn out grain, and as every malady has its cure or
preventive, it is probable that the introduction of the best kind of
seeds, the alternation between grass and tillage, and the supply of
rich manure which the raising of stock creates will have a very great
tendency to improve the wheat crop of this State.
It is remarkable fact although the wheat crop has rather declined in
the majority of States, the corn crop has steadily increased in all of
them. Thus in 1840, the entire corn crop of the United States amounted
to 400,000,000 of bushels; in 1850 it was nearly 600,000,000, of
bushels. The crop of 1855 was between 7 and 800,000,000 and that of
1858 was fully 800,000,000 of bushels. Taking into consideration
the large breath of land planted in 1859 and the damage by frost, we
might with safety set down the crop as amounting to 800,000,000
bushels.
Last year our importations from Indiana were large, but since the new
crop came in, that State has been shipping largely toward the Ohio
river, and we get comparatively little. The immense distilleries of
Cincinnati consume a very large quantity of corn annually, and Indiana
is beginning to find a good market in that quarter. The demand for
Michigan corn is always active on account of its excellent milling
qualities, and on this account it generally sells from wagons as high,
or a shade higher than the outside figure for Western corn from store.
The corn crop of Illinois has been much injured by the frosts of June
and July, and on this account the receipts in Chicago up to this date
have been much lighter than usual. The European potato crop has been
greatly damaged by rot, and it is probable that a large export of corn
will take place from this country in order to supply a deficiency
occasioned by this failure. It is said that several New York
capitalists have gone west and purchased corn and provisions, storing
them up until next spring, anticipating at that time a considerable
advance in price. The generality of farmers have sorted their corn
carefully this year and used up the unripe and inferior part for
feeding hogs and cattle: there is a large quantity of very good corn
in the country, which will no doubt command a good price in the
spring.
Indian corn is one of the staple productions of Michigan, and can be
raised with success in any suitable soil in the lower peninsula.
According to the statistics of 1850 this State produced nearly
6,000,000 of bushels that year. It is probable that the census of the
present year will show a vast increase in the amount. In 1850 the
value of this crop in all the States amounted to nearly $300,000,000,
being about equal to the united values of the wheat, hay, and cotton
crops, and it has perhaps doubled since that date. In fact the value
of the corn crop to Michigan and all the other States can not be
estimated, as it is much used for the food of man and all the domestic
animals, and to it the American farmer is indebted for much of his
prosperity, for without it he would not be able to bring his cattle
and hogs into the market at the right time and in proper condition.
Heretofore the amount of pork packed has always been insufficient to
meet the demand, and the deficiency has been supplied by importations
from other cities, chiefly from Cincinnati. This season not only has
there been a considerable increase in the number packed, but the
market opens a great deal duller than last year, when the Canada trade
and the building of the Detroit and Port Huron link of the Grand Trunk
Railway induced a fair demand.
Cincinnati is the greatest provision market on the continent or in the
world. At that place speculation has been quite rife for the past two
or three years, operators obtaining a controlling interest in the
stock for the purpose of putting up prices. Last year the plan did not
work well, owing to various causes, one of which was the small number
of works in progress, such as railroads, etc., the supply of the
laborers upon such works, being the life of the provision trade.
Heavy losses were sustained, but it is said that the sufferers were a
different class from that regularly engaged in the trade. This season
the speculative fever has again prevailed. The issue has yet to be
revealed.
Last year nearly 1,000 head of cattle were slaughtered here, all of
which were forwarded to Lake Superior as soon as packed. The price of
mess beef has ranged from $8.50 to $12.00. About the first of July
prices reached their highest point. During the fall the range has been
from $8.50 to $10.00.
When the marshy lands, skirting our watercourses in St. Clair, Macomb,
Wayne, and Monroe counties, shall have been drained, (which will, no
doubt, be consummated at no distant day,) a large tract will be
rendered available for grazing, which will prove equal for that
purpose to any in the Union. Butter and cheese will then become a
leading article in our commerce.
Potatoes constitute another of our staple products, and, in seasons of
scarcity elsewhere, large purchases are made for shipment, but being
generally based on present demand, they can hardly be called
speculative. The crop of 1857 was rather meagre, and last spring and
summer prices ruled high, going up to $1.20 for a short time in June.
Last year we had an abundant crop, since which, under a limited
export demand, prices have ruled low. The receipts at this point,
from all sources, did not vary greatly from 175,000 bushels, of which
80,500 bushels were exported, chiefly to Ohio and the upper country.
It is claimed, that southern Michigan produces more fine fruit than
any other locality of the same extent in the United States, if not on
the globe. At the same time almost every quarter of the State is
constantly improving both in quality and quantity. This fact is
creditable to the sagacity of our agriculturists, for probably in
nothing else can an equal amount of profit be realized with the same
outlay.
Our market is not an important one for live stock, much of the greater
share of the receipts by rail being through freight. Our wholesale
market is mainly governed by that at the East, buyers for shipment are
always on the look-out, and whenever anything can be purchased that
affords even a moderate margin, it is promptly taken. Extra cattle are
always sought for by our butchers, and command full rates. A spirit of
emulation on the subject of fine stock is pervading the minds of our
farmers, and, as a consequence, its quality is rapidly improving. At
the last State Fair, the display of cattle was such as to elicit the
admiration of good judges from abroad. There are so many interests
claiming the attention of our agriculturists, that the idea of
becoming famous as to _quantity_, is perhaps precluded; if so, they
may well rest content in the attainment of high rank in point of
_quality_.
The raising of fine sheep is constantly attracting more and more
attention, and from the progress already made by our State, she bids
fair at no distant day to take a position in advance of all her sister
States.
The year 1859 opened with rather flattering prospects for
wool-growers. The last year's stock was nearly exhausted before the
new clip came into the market. Prices of woolen fabrics were
advancing, and bid fair to rule high. On the eve of the wool season
prices declined in the Eastern markets, although there was no
particular reason for this unfavorable turn. It was considered at the
time, that the fall in prices was occasioned by a regular combination
among buyers to break down the market. The news of the passage of the
Ticino by the Austrians, and the actual commencement of hostilities in
Italy, arrived in this country before the wool was brought into the
market, and this circumstance was seized on as a pretext for lowering
the price of the new clip. Buyers were very industrious in circulating
reports that a general European war was commencing, and, as it was
not known how affairs would terminate, it would be unsafe for American
buyers to make investments in the wool trade, except at prices that
would leave a large margin for profit. It was fortunate that farmers
did not take the same view of transatlantic complications, for they
refused to sell except at remunerating prices, a decision which caused
some of the Eastern buyers to retire from the market in disgust.
Almost the entire press of Michigan supported the views of the farmers
on this occasion, and declared that they could see no reason why the
war in Italy should affect the prices of wool in America, especially
as all the domestic clip, and a very large quantity of foreign wool
would be manufactured in this country. Michigan produces excellent
wool. There are numerous flocks of French, Spanish, and Saxon Merinos
in this State, which have been selected or bred with the greatest
care, and the wool produced by them cannot be surpassed in any of the
Western States. There are also flocks of coarse-wooled sheep which
produce heavy fleeces, and when fattened for the butcher make
excellent mutton. In 1840 the wool clip of this State was about
150,000 lbs., in 1850 something over 2,000,000 lbs., and 1859 it
amounted to nearly 4,000,000 lbs. It will be seen by these figures
that it has nearly doubled during the last nine years. There are but
few woolen manufactories in Michigan, and the most of the wool clip of
this State is purchased by Eastern manufacturers. A considerable
portion of it goes to Boston and other parts of Massachusetts. We want
a large woolen factory in Detroit, where everything that is necessary
for its operation can be easily procured. We want more manufactories
of every kind in Michigan.
Our city is largely interested in the shipping business, and its trade
gives employment to a larger number of side-wheel steamboat lines than
any other three cities on the entire chain of lakes. During the last
season, the following regular lines of steamers were in successful
operation:
Detroit and Cleveland.
Detroit and Toledo.
Detroit and Sandusky.
Detroit and Saginaw.
Detroit and New Baltimore.
Detroit and Maiden.
Detroit, G. Bay and Buffalo.
Detroit and Lake Superior.
Detroit and Port Huron.
Detroit and Chatham.
Detroit and Wallaceburg.
Detroit and Gibraltar.
Two of the above routes sustain opposition lines, and to the list
might be added the line of lake steamers to Buffalo, and the line to
Goderich, which though not run last year, will probably be in
successful operation the coming season, making in all sixteen lines.
It is significant that the late financial revulsion, which fell with
such crushing weight upon the shipping interest all over the country
did not occasion the withdrawal of any of our steamboat lines, save
one. As a still more striking fact, we may state that until last
season none of the cities located in the vast region between the foot
of Lake Michigan and the foot of Lake Erie, has for many years past
supported a single line of steamers that did not make Detroit a
terminus. Last year a line was put in successful operation between
Buffalo and Cleveland, and another between the latter place and
Toledo, but it ought to be added that both of these were established
by Detroit enterprise.
In addition to the line above enumerated, we have daily lines of
propellers to Ogdensburg, Buffalo, Dunkirk and to the Upper Lakes,
which do an immense freighting business.
We are indebted to Captain J. H. Hall, the public-spirited proprietor
of the Detroit shipping-office for following statement of the number
of vessels that passed Detroit in 1859:
_Number of Vessels passing Detroit, 1859._
No. Times.
Steamers passed up, 194
Propellers, " 492
Barks, " 273
Brigs, " 295
Schooners, " 1,811
-----
Total number up, 3,065
No. Times.
Steamers passed down, 195
Propellers, " 503
Barks, " 284
Brigs, " 314
Schooners, " 1,825
-----
Total number down, 3,121
Greatest number passed up in one day, eighty-five; greatest number
down, seventy-three.
The number of entries and clearances reported at the Custom House
during the year is as follows:
Arrived. Cl'd.
Jan. 48 70
Feb. 49 71
March 161 288
April 334 375
May 438 586
June 458 568
July 403 597
Aug. 461 519
Sept. 316 481
Oct. 288 319
Nov. 294 316
Dec. 45 71
During the past year the amount of total losses has been light, not
greater, probably, than the number of vessels built, so that although
the classification is slightly changed, there is no material change so
far as concerns the aggregate tonnage. Detroit owns, therefore,
_nearly one-sixth of the entire tonnage of the lakes_.
As a matter of some interest we present a comparative statement
showing the tonnage, steam, and total, of a number of the more
important maritime places in the country, taken from the report of the
Register of the Treasury on Commerce and Navigation:
Steam tonnage. Total tonnage.
New York 118,638 1,432,705
New Orleans 70,072 210,411
Philadelphia 22,892 219,851
Baltimore 18,821 194,488
Pittsburg 42,474 56,824
Cincinnati 23,136 26,541
Chicago 8,151 67,001
St. Louis 55,515 61,266
Boston 9,452 448,896
Buffalo 42,640 73,478
Detroit 35,266 62,485
Charleston, S. C. 8,230 60,196
The following exhibits the number and tonnage of vessels owned in this
district--nearly all of them in this city--on the 31st of December,
1859:
Number Tons. 95ths
Steamers 73 29,175 02
Propellers 32 6,090 81
Barks 4 1,337 08
Brigs 7 1,877 75
Schooners 131 19,671 56
Scows and all others 136 4,322 68
--- ------ --
Total 383 62,485 05
In 1857 301 52,991 50
--- ------ --
Increase in two years 82 9,493 50
The following was the aggregate tonnage of the lakes in December 1858:
AMERICAN.
69 Side-wheel steamers register tons 44,562
110 Propellers do. 45,562
70 Tugs (propellers) do. 6,880
46 Barks do. 18,788
79 Brigs do. 22,558
711 Schooners do. 166,725
109 Scows do. 11,848
---- -------
1194 Total 316,923
CANADIAN.
67 Side-wheel steamers, register tons 25,966
16 Propellers do. 4,631
4 Tugs (propellers) do. 388
19 Barks do. 5,697
16 Brigs do. 2,988
186 Schooners do. 19,311
13 Scows do. 609
---- -------
321 Total 59,580
The Michigan Central was the first railroad built in the State, and
since its completion has been known as one of the best managed in the
West. Its beneficial effects to the region of country through which it
passes, is incalculable. On its line, have sprung up a number of
beautiful towns and villages as if by magic, while many of those that
had an existence prior to its construction have grown into flourishing
cities. Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor, Jackson, Marshall, Battle Creek,
Albion, Kalamazoo, Niles, and others that might properly be included,
all located upon this road, are beautiful places, noted for their
thrift and enterprise as well as for their rapid advances in all that
pertains to well-regulated cities. Their commerce is rapidly
increasing and the country along the entire route will vie with that
traversed by the great thoroughfares of any of the older States along
the seaboard.
The Central was commenced and partially built by the State, but in
1844, passed into the possession of the company now owning it, who
completed it to Chicago. A telegraph line has been in use for some
years past along the entire line of the road, with an office at each
station, by which means the exact position of each train may be at all
times known at each and every point. To this admirable system may be
attributed in a very great degree the extraordinary exemption of the
road from serious accidents, while its advantages are very great in
every point of view respecting the general management. The eastern
terminus of the road being at Detroit, it has the full advantages of
the numerous connections at this point, the Great Western and Grand
Trunk Railways, the important steamboat route from Cleveland, the
lines of Detroit and Buffalo propellers with their immense freight
traffic, as well as the numerous other steamboat routes of which our
city is the nucleus. At Chicago it has the advantages of connection
with all the roads radiating from that flourishing city. Freight is
now taken from Chicago to Portland without breaking bulk but once. An
important "feeder" is the Joliet Cut-off, by means of which it has a
direct connection with St. Louis, via the Chicago, Alton, and St.
Louis Railroad. An important arrangement was consummated last summer
with the latter road, for the direct transmission of freight between
this city and St. Louis. Fifty cars have been diverted to this route,
under the name of the "Detroit and St. Louis Through Freight Line."
The time between the two cities is thirty-eight hours. The advantages
of this line to shippers are very considerable, and the arrangement is
adding, and will continue to add, materially to the commerce of our
city.
A commendable progressive spirit has latterly been evinced by the
managers generally, of our railroads, in the transmission of freight,
especially live stock and grain. The improvement is a most grateful
one to shippers, who have ordinarily quite enough anxiety and vexation
to suffer in the fluctuations of the market and subjection to unlooked
for and onerous charges, without having superadded unreasonable
exposure and deterioration of their property while en route to market.
In this movement the management of the Central has fully sympathized.
Their stock and grain cars have received high commendations from those
for whose benefit they were intended. The entire equipment of the road
is such as to comport with them; the safety, comfort and convenience
of the public, being constantly kept in view, regardless of the cost
incurred.
The three staunch and magnificent steamers belonging to the company,
the Plymouth Rock, Western World and Mississippi, owing to the hard
times have been laid up at their dock since the fall of 1857, to the
great regret of the public generally, as well as to the detriment of
the business interest of our city. With the return of a more
prosperous era they will doubtless be again placed in commission. The
line formed by these boats is the most pleasant and expeditious medium
of communication between the East and the West and Southwest, and
cannot fail to be well patronized, especially now that the Dayton and
Michigan Railroad is completed, which will bring a large amount of
both freight and passenger traffic by way of Detroit that formerly
sought other routes.
The rolling stock now on the road consists of ninety-eight engines,
seventy first class passenger cars, twelve second class cars;
twenty-nine baggage cars, and two thousand seven hundred and
seventy-eight freight cars, making a total of two thousand eight
hundred and eighty-nine cars and all of which were built in the
company's own shops.
This road is one hundred and eighty-eight miles long, and has been in
operation throughout its whole extent since November, 1858. It is
deserving of the distinctive appellation of the _Back Bone Road of
Michigan_, having been of incalculable value in developing the
resources of the region through which it is located, decidedly one of
the richest and most important in the West. The principal towns and
cities upon its line are Pontiac, Fentonville, St. Johns, Ionia, Grand
Rapids and Grand Haven. The growth of these places has received a
great impetus since its completion, while numerous villages have also
sprung into being as if by magic at various points along the line.
These changes are plainly visible in the improved trade of our city,
and the increase from the same cause, must continue to be strongly
marked. Last season over one-fourth of the wheat and wool received
here was by this new route, and a number of vessels loaded at the
company's noble and spacious wharf for European ports direct.
Within the year past, the company have completed one of the finest
railway wharves in the world. It is 1,500 feet long by 90 broad, the
west end of which is occupied by the freight house, the dimensions of
which are 450 by 132 feet.
One of the most important events to Detroit and the entire West, that
has transpired for many years, is the completion of this great
thoroughfare. The link from Port Huron to this city was opened to
traffic on the 21st of November, since which date the businesses
crowding upon it has fully equaled its capacity. It is the Minerva of
railways, having reached at a single bound a condition of prosperity
outrivaling many of the oldest established roads on the continent.
It possesses important advantages over any other road both for freight
and passenger traffic. Being of uniform gauge, no change of cars will
be necessary from Sarnia to Portland; and being also under the
management of one corporation, it affords better facilities for the
protection of passengers and the preservation of their baggage than
where they are required to pass over lines under the control of
different and perhaps conflicting corporations. Having only one set
of officers quartered upon its exchequer, it can afford to do business
at lower proportionate rates, than a number of shorter lines, each
having a different set to salary, while the delay and vexation which
not unfrequently arise from short routes, being compelled to wait upon
each other's movements, will all be avoided, which is certainly no
small consideration both to passengers and shippers.
The harbor of Portland is one of the finest and most eligible in the
world, and our immediate connection with a point of such importance is
of itself a matter deserving particular mention. Portland district, as
appears by the official statement of the tonnage of the United States,
made to June, 1857, then owned 145,242 tons of shipping, being the
ninth port in the Union in point of tonnage; she is very largely
interested in the West India trade, her annual imports of molasses
exceeding those of any port in the United States. She offers,
therefore, to the Western States, peculiar facilities for procuring at
a cheap rate the products of the West Indies. The harbor is without
any bar, and so easy of access that no pilots are required, and
strangers, with the sailing directions given in the American Coast
Pilot, have brought their ships into it with safety. There are no
port charges, harbor dues, or light-house fees, excepting the official
custom house fees.
The Grand Trunk Railway is likely to become the avenue through which
an immense tide of immigration will pour into Michigan. It will be a
favorite route for emigrants, who will thus avoid the rascally
impositions of the swindlers and Peter Funks of New York, who have
given that city an unenviable notoriety throughout the world. It is
predicted that more immigrants will hereafter come by the new route
than by all others put together. There is no valid reason why this
prediction should not prove strictly true. This is therefore a matter
likely to be of vast importance to our State, with a large share of
her territory as yet an unbroken wild, offering tempting inducements
to the hardy settler.
The completion of this stupendous bond of connection between the
Eastern and Western States, Canada and Europe, will render markets
available which were before difficult of access, and enable
far-distant countries to exchange their products at all seasons. The
Grand Trunk may be called the first section of the PACIFIC RAILROAD,
as it already communicates with the Mississippi through Michigan,
Illinois and Wisconsin Railroads, and we expect to see the line
completed from the Mississippi to California. It is not easy to form
an estimate of the amount of traffic and intercourse that the 1,150
miles of Grand Trunk Railway will bring to Michigan and the
neighboring States. A junction has been already formed with that model
of western lines the Michigan Central by which freight and passengers
reach Chicago and the numerous lines which diverge from that great
commercial city. It is probable that another junction will be made
with the Detroit and Milwaukee Railway by means of a branch from Port
Huron to Owasso. In this case there will be a direct line across
Michigan connecting with the Milwaukee railroads by the ferry across
the lake, and penetrating into Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, and Oregon
by lines which have not yet been traced on the railway maps of the
United States.
The ostensible western terminus of this road is at Windsor, opposite
our city, but it is practically as much a Detroit road as any that can
be named. The connections with the other routes centering here is made
by a number of ferry boats of the most staunch and powerful
description. The receipts by this route of general merchandise
consigned to the cities and points westward of us is immense, and it
enjoys a large and growing local traffic.
The main line of the Southern Michigan and Northern Indiana Railroad,
which taps a rich and important portion of Michigan, is 461 miles in
length. The business on this line has recently shown a decided
improvement.
The D. and T. Road, which is 65 miles in length, was opened to traffic
in January 1857. It was built by the "Detroit, Monroe, and Toledo
Railroad Company," who leased it to the Michigan Southern Road. It is
now an important link in the great railway system extending from the
East to the Great Southwest, of which system, Detroit, from its
favorable position, has become the centre and soul. Since the opening
of the Grand Trunk, in November, a large amount of freight has passed
through, billed for Liverpool direct, a species of freight which must
steadily increase.
L. P. Knight is agent at Detroit. The office is in the depot building
of the Detroit and Milwaukee Railway.
The Dayton and Michigan Railroad was completed last fall, placing us
within a few hours' ride of the Queen City of the West. This is justly
regarded as a most important route to our city, and will develop new
features to some of our leading business interests. The consumer of
our State will have the benefit of lower prices for the products of
Kentucky, Tennessee, Louisiana, and the West Indies. The want of
direct communication between Detroit and New Orleans has long been
felt. Sugars and molasses can now be laid down here for fifty cents
per 100 lbs., including all charges from New Orleans, via the
Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, and D. and M. Railway, giving us, in a
word, the benefits of as low freights in winter as in summer. With the
cost of transportation thus reduced to a merely nominal standard,
prices of Southern products will be upon an average no higher here
than in Louisville. It is more than probable, nay, quite certain, that
the advantages which must ultimately accrue to the State from our
connection with Cincinnati _per se_, if not so general, will be even
more marked and important than those to which we have above referred.
The prices of provisions will be equalized, giving our lumbermen and
miners the benefit of reduced rates throughout most of the year, and
when speculation is rampant, and the price of pork, the great staple
of our neighbors, reaches an extreme figure--as has been the case for
two successive seasons, and will be the case again--our farmers will
reap the benefit of the movement. The growth of Cincinnati is
altogether without parallel in the world, taking into account the
character of that growth--its _quality_, so to speak. All its great
interests, particularly its manufactures, have kept pace with its
numerical increase. It is indeed difficult to determine whether
manufactures or commerce is most intimately identified with its
prosperity. The connection with her will give us new and desirable
customers for some of our surplus products, particularly our choice
lumber.
The entire line of the Flint and Pere Marquette Railroad, as located,
is 172-1/2 miles; track laid and completed, 7-3/4 miles; additional
length graded 24-1/2 miles, the ties for which have all been
delivered.
It is thought that hereafter twenty miles per year will be completed
without difficulty until the whole is completed. This road will be
important in developing the resources of a very rich tract of country.
On the line of Amboy, Lansing, and Grand Traverse Railroad, the entire
distance from Owasso to Lansing, twenty-six miles, is ready for the
iron, except three miles. On the division from Lansing to Albion,
thirty-six miles, the work of grading and furnishing ties is
progressing, and some one hundred men at work. Between Owasso and
Saginaw, thirty-three miles, arrangements are nearly completed to
start the work. The work of grading and preparing for the iron is
done by local subscriptions, of which $3,000 per mile has been
subscribed and is being paid.
The existence of copper on the shores of Lake Superior appears to have
been known to the earliest travelers, but it has been only a few years
since it has entered largely into Western commerce. But the country
had long been a favorite resort for fur traders, and as long ago as
1809, and perhaps still further back, the Northwest Company (British)
owned vessels on Lake Superior. This organization was at that period
the great trading company of the region in question, the operations of
the Hudson's Bay Company being confined chiefly to the region further
north. At the period of which we speak, the bulk of the trading was
done by means of birch canoes, some of them large enough to carry two
or three tons. With these, the traders passed up to the Indian
settlements in the fall, with goods, provisions, and trinkets, usually
returning to the trading posts during the month of June with the furs
which they had procured in exchange. Mackinac and the Saut were
trading posts at an early day. At a somewhat later period, the
Northwest Company had an agency on an island in Lake Huron, not far
from the month of Saut river. The formation of the American Fur
Company was of more recent date, that company dating its origin during
the war of 1812, or soon after.
Prior to the building of the canal, a number of steamers had been
taken over the portage to Lake Superior, but so far as our knowledge
extends, only one or two craft larger than a canoe were ever taken
over the rapids, one of which was the schooner Mink. She was built of
red cedar, on Lake Superior, about the year 1816, and was of some
forty tons burden. She became the property of Mack & Conant, who had
her brought down the rapids. In making the descent she suffered some
injury by striking against a rock, but, notwithstanding this mishap,
she lived long enough to ride out many a stormy sea, running for
several years in the trade between Buffalo and the City of the
Straits. Shubael Conant, Esq., at this day an honored citizen of
Detroit, was one of the firm that purchased the Mink.
In the spring of 1845, the fleet on Lake Superior consisted of the
schooner White Fish, belonging to the Hudson's Bay Company, the
Siscowit, belonging to the American Fur Company, and the Algonquin,
owned by a Mr. Mendenhall. The same year the schooners Napoleon,
Swallow, Uncle Tom, Merchant, Chippewa, Ocean, and Fur Trader, were
all added. In 1845, the propeller Independence, the first steamer that
ever floated on Lake Superior, was taken across the portage, and the
next year the Julia Palmer followed her, she being the first
side-wheel steamer. In the winter of 1848-9, the schooner Napoleon was
converted into a propeller. In 1850, the propeller Manhattan was
hauled over by the Messrs. Turner, and the Monticello in 1851, by Col.
McKnight. The latter was lost the same fall, and Col. McK. supplied
her place the next winter with the Baltimore. In 1853 or 1854, E. B.
Ward took over the Sam Ward, and Col. McKnight took the propeller
Peninsula over in the winter of 1852 or 1853.
In the spring of 1855, the Saut Canal was completed, since which date
the trade with that important region has rapidly grown into commanding
importance. It will be seen by the table below that the importations
of machinery, provisions, supplies, and merchandise, for the past year
amounted to $5,298,640, while the exports of copper, iron, fur and
fish amount to $3,071,069.
The following are the names of the steam craft now regularly employed
in this trade:
S. B. Illinois. Prop. Mineral Rock.
S. B. Lady Elgin. Prop. Montgomery.
S. B. North Star. Prop. Northern Light.
Prop. Marquette. Prop. Iron City.
A number of other steam-craft made occasional trips last year, and
next season it is expected that another line will be placed on the
route permanently. The Detroit shipping-office has published the names
of ninety-six sail vessels that have been engaged in the iron trade
the past year.
Rapid as this trade has increased, it is destined, no doubt, to yet
undergo a still greater transformation. The latent resources of the
Upper Peninsula are of a character and magnitude that defy all
estimates of their future greatness. With regard to the importance of
the trade to our city, and the steps to be taken to retain it, ample
comments have already appeared in the _Tribune_, both editorially and
in the form of communications, to which we can add nothing.
The aggregate amount of tolls collected in May, July, August and
September, was $10,374.18, a large increase over the corresponding
months last year. Including the probable amount for the months not
reported, and we have at the lowest not less probably than $16,000, as
the tolls for 1859.
Number of passengers: May, 2,493; June, 1,764; July, 2,116; August,
2,617; September, 1,538; October, 1,015.
It is _now_ almost universally admitted that the State of Michigan
possesses in her soil and timber the material source of immense
wealth. While in years past it has been difficult to obtain
satisfactory information concerning the real condition and natural
resources of a large portion of the surface of the Lower Peninsula,
the re-survey of portions of the government land, the exploration of
the country by parties in search of pine, the developments made by the
exploring and surveying parties along the lines of the Land Grant
Railroads, and the more recent examinations by the different
commissions for laying out the several State roads under the Acts
passed by the last Legislature, have removed every doubt in reference
to the subject. The universal testimony from all the sources above
mentioned, seems to be that in all the natural elements of wealth the
whole of the northern part of the Peninsula abounds.
The pine lands of the State, which are a reliable source of present
and future wealth, are so located and distributed as to bring almost
every portion of the State, sooner or later in connection with the
commerce of the lakes. The pine timber of Michigan is generally
interspersed with other varieties of timber, such as beech, maple,
white-ash, oak, cherry, etc., and in most cases the soil is suited to
agricultural purposes. This is particularly the case on the western
slope of the Peninsula, on the waters of Lake Michigan and along the
central portion of the State. On the east and near Lake Huron, the
pine districts are more extensively covered with pine timber, and
generally not so desirable for farming purposes. There are good
farming lands, however, all along the coast of Lake Huron and
extending back into the interior.
A large proportion of the pine lands of the State are in the hands of
the Canal Company, and individuals who are holding them as an
investment, and it is no detriment to this great interest, that the
whole State has been thus explored and the choicest of the lands
secured. The developments which have thus been made of the quality and
extent of the pine districts, have given stability and confidence to
the lumbering interest. And these lands are not held at exorbitant
prices, but are sold upon fair and reasonable terms, such as practical
business men and lumber men will not usually object to.
It is a remarkable fact that almost every stream of water in the
State, north of Grand River, penetrates a district of pine lands, and
the mouths of nearly all these streams are already occupied with
lumbering establishments of greater or less magnitude. Those lumber
colonies are the pioneers, and generally attract around them others
who engage in agriculture, and thus almost imperceptibly the
agricultural interests of the State are spreading and developing in
every direction. The want of suitable means of access alone prevents
the rapid settlement of large and fertile districts of our State,
which are not unknown to the more enterprising and persevering
pioneers, who have led the way through the wilderness, and are now
engaged almost single-handed in their labors, not shrinking from the
privations and sufferings which are sure to surround these first
settlements in our new districts.
The Grand Traverse region, with its excellent soil, comparatively mild
climate, and abundance of timber of every description, is attracting
much attention, and extensive settlements have already commenced in
many localities in that region. The coast of Lake Michigan, from Grand
River north, for upward of one hundred miles to Manistee River,
presents generally a barren, sandy appearance, the sand hills of that
coast almost invariably shutting out from the view the surrounding
country.
North of the Manistee, however, this characteristic of the coast
changes, and the hard timber comes out to the lake and presents a fine
region of country extending from Lake Michigan to Grand Traverse Bay
and beyond, embracing the head waters of the Manistee River. This
large tract of agricultural land is one of the richest portions of the
State, and having throughout its whole extent extensive groves of
excellent pine timber interspersed, it is one of the most desirable
portions of the Peninsula. Grand Traverse Bay, the Manistee and the
River Aux Becs Scies are the outlets for the pine timber, and afford
ample means of communication between the interior and the lake for
such purposes. The proposed State roads will, if built, do much toward
the settlement of this region.
A natural harbor, which is being improved by private enterprise, is
found at the mouth of the River Aux Becs Scies, and a new settlement
and town has been started at this point. This is a natural outlet for
a consideration portion of the region just described.
The lands here, as in other localities in the new portions of the
State, are such as must induce a rapid settlement whenever the means
of communication shall be opened.
The valley of the Muskegon embraces every variety of soil and timber,
and is one of the most attractive portions of the Peninsula. The pine
lands upon this river are scattered all along the valley in groups or
tracts containing several thousand acres each, interspersed with hard
timber and surrounded by fine agricultural lands.
The Pere Marquette River and White River, large streams emptying into
Lake Michigan, pass through a region possessing much the same
characteristics. This whole region is underlaid with lime rocks, a
rich soil, well watered with living springs, resembling in many
features the Grand River Valley. Beds of gypsum have been discovered
on the head waters of the Pere Marquette.
The unsettled counties in the northern portion of the State, the
northern portion of Montcalm and Gratiot, Isabella, Gladwin, Clare and
a portion of Midland, are not inferior to any other portion. There is
a magnificent body of pine stretching from the head of Flat River in
Montcalm county to the upper waters of the Tettibiwassee, and growing
upon a fine soil well adapted to agriculture.
This embraces a portion of the Saginaw Valley, and covers the high
ground dividing the waters of Lakes Huron and Michigan. The eastern
slope of the Peninsula embraces a variety of soil and timber somewhat
different in its general features from other portions of the State.
The pine lands of this region are near the coast of the lake, and lie
in large tracts but with good agricultural land adjoining. There are
in the Lower Peninsula, in round numbers, about 24,000,000 acres of
land.
Taking Houghton Lake, near the centre of the State, as a point of
view, the general surface may be comprehended as follows: The Muskegon
Valley to the southwest following the Muskegon River in its course to
Lake Michigan. The western slope of the Peninsula directly west,
embracing the pine and agriculture districts along the valleys of
several large streams emptying into Lake Michigan. The large and
beautiful region to the northwest embracing the valley of the Manistee
and the undulating lands around the Grand Traverse Bay. Northward, the
region embraces the head-waters of the Manistee and Au Sauble, with
the large tracts of excellent pine in that locality, and beyond, the
agricultural region extending to Little Traverse Bay and the Straights
of Mackinaw. To the northeast, the valley of the Au Sauble, and the
pine region of Thunder Bay. To the east, the pine and hard timber
extending to Saginaw Bay. To the southeast, the Saginaw Valley; and to
the south, the high lands before described in the central counties.
That portion of the State south of Saginaw and the Grand River Valley
is so well known that a description here would be unnecessary.
Thus we have yet undeveloped over half the surface of this Peninsula,
embracing, certainly, 12,000,000 to 15,000,000 of acres, possessing
stores of wealth in the timber upon its surface, reserving soil for
the benefit of those, who, as the means of communication are opened,
will come in and possess it, and thus introduce industry and
prosperity into our waste places.
We have not the figures at hand, but it is probable that at least
one-tenth of the area north of the Grand River is embraced in the pine
region. The swamp lands granted to the State will probably cover
nearly double the area of the pine lands proper. The remainder for the
most part is covered with a magnificent growth of hard timber suited
to the necessities of our growing population and commerce.
The statistics herein furnished will give some idea of the importance
and value of the lumber traffic in this States. The trade in pine
timber, lumber, shingles and other varieties of lumber, with the
traffic in staves form one of the most important branches of
manufacture and commerce in our own State, and this trade alone is now
accomplishing more for the development and settlement of the country
than all other causes in operation.
The lumber manufactories in Detroit and its suburbs are eleven in
number. The following are the names of the proprietors and the amount
cut last year by each:
FT. LUMBER. PCS. LATH.
H. A. & S. G. Wight 6,500,000 2,220,000
Samuel Pills 3,500,000 482,000
-- Moffat (est) 1,500,000
H. B. Benson 3,254,029
W. Warner & Co. 194,370
Brooks & Adams 3,800,000
Baughman, Hubbard & Co. 3,378,080 1,043,300
Kibbee, Fox & Co. 3,000,000 800,000
N. Reeve 800,000 20,000
Davis & David 2,000,000
Copeland 1,000,000
---------- ---------
Total 29,426,479 4,745,300
The aggregate of capital employed by these mills is $1,440,000. The
above amount is no criterion of their capacity. The same mills cut
46,000,000 feet in 1856, and nearly the same in 1857, and their
probable capacity is 54,000,000. Warner & Co., run their mill only
about five weeks last year, and are now about retiring from business.
One of the others sustained a temporary loss of business by fire. The
product will in the aggregate be doubled next season.
The logs sawed in Detroit are procured from St. Clair River, Black
River, Mill Creek and, Belle River. As a large share of that sold here
has been on contract, there has been no great fluctuation in the
market at this point. On the first of July the rates by the cargo were
$25a$26 for clear and $19a$20 for second clear; on the first of
October, $24 for clear, and $18 for second clear.
Last winter and spring were very unfavorable for lumbering. Owing to
the small quantity of snow, but few logs were got out, and many of
them being on small streams, owing to the failure of the usual spring
freshets, were not sawed, so that upon the whole the mills of the
State turned out only about half the amount of their capacity.
The market opened in the spring with flattering prospects. Buyers from
a number of important points in the Eastern States, previously
deriving their supplies from Maine, visited our State, anxious to
secure contracts for choice lumber, and the opinion prevailed that the
demand would exceed the supply. The prospect encouraged manufacturers
to make unwonted exertions in turning out all the stock that could be
rendered available, which involved increased expense. In some places,
as was the case at Saginaw, a very large amount was got out in the
early part of the summer. About the close of June, the market
experienced a sudden and unlooked-for depression, after which prices
tended speedily downward, falling to such a low point before the close
of the season that manufacturers on the west coast generally suspended
their shipments. Those on the east coast continued to ship, but their
shipments to a very great extent still remain unsold. We are cognizant
of 7,000,000 feet held in that way by only four manufacturers.
The accounts this winter are very favorable, but the idea that
obtains, fixing the amount at a very high figure, is vague and
erroneous. The true state of the case is, that manufactures, as a
general thing, in view of the depressed condition of the trade, have
been making calculations to do a light business, and got out their
logs sooner than they expected, and will on the whole do rather more
than they had anticipated, having gone into the woods lighthanded. The
most experienced judges concur in fixing the amount of logs got out
this winter on River St. Clair, at Port Huron and Saginaw Bay, but not
including the rivers above, at 175,000,000 feet. In the Saginaws, it
is ascertained that about 100,000,000 will be got out. Taking the
entire east coast, it is thought the logs this winter would exceed
those of last by fifteen to twenty per cent.
By Custom House statements of shipments, added to actual receipts at
one of the receiving points--Chicago--it will be seen below that for
1859 a little over 269,000,000 feet is the amount of shipments arrived
at. These figures, taken in connection with the estimates of those
competent to judge, render it certain that the actual amount shipped
out of the State did not vary materially from 400,000,000 feet. There
being no penalty involved in the failure of masters of vessels to
report, there is great carelessness in the matter. The Cleveland,
Toledo and Sandusky shipments, are at the outside, not more than half
reported. Those reported to Buffalo, Oswego, etc., are a little nearer
the truth, but they fall considerably below the mark.
The amount made in 1859, did not vary materially from that shipped. In
the district embracing the River St. Clair, Port Huron and the Lake
Shore, 6,000,000 feet more were wintered over last year than this. On
the west coast it was different generally, so that the variation in
the aggregate cannot be much either way. The capacity of the mills in
the pine lumber region is 900,000,000 feet, or possibly a little more.
As regards the amount of shingles made, even dealers are much in the
dark. To add 50 per cent. to the Custom House returns would certainly
be within bounds for the eastern coast. This would give 120,000,000
as the amount. For the west coast, if we take the amount received at
Chicago, say 165,000,000, with an additional twenty-five per cent. for
that received at Milwaukee, and then estimate that two-thirds of the
whole amount were from the west coast of Michigan, which is doubtless
true, we have 137,500,000 as the amount shipped by the coast, making
267,500,000 for the whole State.
The improved demand for staves has greatly stimulated the production,
and in localities where the production of pine lumber is decreasing,
that of staves is taking its place. At Saginaw 2,500,000 were got out
last year, and this year there will be full as much, or more. The
greatest activity prevails, and dressing by machinery has been
started. At Lakeport, Burchville, Lexington, Port Sanilac, Forester,
Point aux Barque, and Foresterville, 850,000 were got out last year;
from Port Huron and St. Clair 750,000. The amount turned out in the
whole State could not have been short of 20,000,000.
An immense amount of lath were turned out. A mill that can turn out
three millions of lumber, generally makes one million of lath. On this
basis about 133,000,000 must have been turned out. The supply
generally exceeds the demand.
The lumber on the east coast is worth at the mills $9 per M.; that on
the west coast $7. At the average of $8, the amount made last year
would be worth $3,200,000. The value of shingles at $2 per M., was
$515,000, and the lath at $1 per M., are worth $133,000.
We are enabled to present a nearly complete list of names of owners,
with the amount of capital respectively, which will be of some
interest, both at home and abroad. So far as the east coast is
concerned, the figures are in the main entirely reliable, being upon
the authority of one of the best men in the State who knows whereof he
advises. Those for the west coast, thought not perhaps so strictly
correct as the others, will as a general thing be found within bounds.
We hope the statistics will prove an incentive to lumbermen to be more
particular hereafter in furnishing information:
BLACK RIVER.
Name. Capital.
J. & J. Bayard $15,000
Sweetser & Bayard 7,000
Comstock mill 7,000
Davis' mill 8,000
R. Wadham's mills 10,000
MILL CREEK.
Bunce's mill 4,000
L. Brockway 2 mills 5,000
John H. Westbrook 4,000
PORT HURON.
G. S. Lester 24,000
Haynes & Baird 24,000
Howard & Bachelor 15,000
Fish, two mills 35,000
Welles 24,000
Avery 75,000
Bunce 24,000
Hibbard 40,000
Black River mill 35,000
LOCKPORT.
Farrand 10,000
BURCHVILLE.
Woods, two mills 30,000
John S. Minor 7,000
LEXINGTON.
Hubbard 8,000
Jenks & Co. 20,000
Stevens & Davis 10,000
Hitchcock & Co. 30,000
BARK SHANTY.
Oldfield 10,000
FORESTER.
Emely 50,000
GIBRALTAR.
Colin Campbell 10,000
ALGONAC.
Daniels & Ripley 15,000
Smith 24,000
NEWPORT.
E. B. Ward 20,000
Rust 10,000
B. S. Horton 10,000
ST. CLAIR.
Moore & Scott 20,000
W. Truesdale 2 mills 60,000
E. Smith 15,000
Smith & Chamberlin 5,000
Oaks & Holland, two
mills 40,000
St. Clair 30,000
FORESTVILLE
E. B. Ward 50,000
Breckinridge 2,000
VICKSBURG.
Williams & Mills,
three mills 55,000
CHEBOYGAN.
Three mills 100,000
CHERRY CREEK.
Peninsular Bank 15,000
HURON COUNTY.
Luddington 12,000
Hubbard & Co. 50,000
Donahue 30,000
Armstrong & Co. 10,000
Smith & Co. 50,000
W. R. Stafford 15,000
Pt Austin Company 100,000
Crawford & Co. 10,000
BAY CITY.
Clark, Ballou & Co. 35,000
Moore & Smith 30,000
Geo. Lord & Co. 24,000
Saml. Pitts 30,000
Beeson & Wheeler 24,000
Beebe & Atwood 10,000
Henry Doty 35,000
McEwing & Brother 30,000
Bangor mills 35,000
Drake mills 24,000
Henry Raymond 30,000
Catlin & Jennison 10,000
Miller & Butterfield 14,000
Frost & Bradley 35,000
PORTSMOUTH.
J. J. McCormick 10,000
Portsmouth mill 15,000
Budd's mill 14,000
Partridge mill 24,000
H D Braddack & Co. 14,000
Watson & Southard 14,000
ZILWAUKEE.
J. J. Westervelt 35,000
CARROLLTON.
Name Unknown 35,000
EAST SAGINAW.
Garrison & Co. 24,000
I. Hill 20,000
Holland 10,000
Copeland & Co. 10,000
Cushing & Co. 36,000
L. B. Curtis 24,000
Wm. Gallagher 14,000
Atwater mill 30,000
SAGINAW CITY.
V. A. Payne 30,000
Curtis & King 30,000
New mill 20,000
G D Williams & Son 20,000
D. Rust & Brother 50,000
TITTIBIWASSEE, PINE RIVER AND SWAN CREEK.
Eight mills 65,000
CASS, BAD, AND SHIAWASSEE RIVERS.
Seven mills 50,000
LAPEER.
D. Farrer 8,000
W. Williams 15,000
Crofoot & Baldwin 15,000
Manwaring & Co. 21,000
Wm. Peters 14,000
Thorp's mill 14,000
H. D. Torner 8,000
Lawrence & M'Arthur 7,000
Wm. Peter 30,000
Sixteen small mills 85,000
N. H. Hart 21,000
Rogers & Jenness 24,000
Smith & Jenness 15,000
Smith 14,000
J. B. Wilson 14,000
James Farrell 10,000
White & Peter 10,000
W. H. Crapo 60,000
H. L. Hemingway 6,000
PINE RUN.
McFarren 20,000
MONTROSE.
Name unknown 30,000
ALPENA AND VICINITY.
G. N. Fletcher & Co. 35,000
Lockwood & Miner 25,000
Harris & Co. 35,000
Smith & Chamberlain 15,000
D. D. Oliver 5,000
Whitmore & Co. 25,000
SANILAC COUNTY.
J. L. Woods & Co. 5,000
Mason & Luce 17,500
Stevenson & Davis 20,000
AU SAUBLE HIGHLANDS.
Harris's mill 24,000
RIFLE RIVER, SAGANIN, COQUALIN, AND SAND BEACH.
Six mills 85,000
TUSCOLA COUNTY.
A. Watson 10,000
W. A. Hart 10,000
Perry 5,000
Others 30,000
Edmunds & North 14,000
Richardson & Bro. 14,000
Holmes 5,000
FLINT AND VICINITY.
Eleven mills 715,000
There are also others on the east slope of the lower peninsula,
representing a capital of say--$120,000.
Beyond the lower peninsula, there are some very heavy manufactories,
particularly around Green Bay, (Michigan) generally estimated at
$1,000,000, but which it would be safe to put at--$750,000.
Total capital, including Detroit,-- $5,360,000
WESTERN SLOPE--OTTAWA COUNTY.
Name. Capital.
Ferry & Co. 50,000
W. M. Ferry, Jr. 50,000
Joseph Weld & Co. 30,000
T. W. White & Co. 50,000
Becker & Spoons 40,000
Richard Roberts 24,000
Jno. Haire 24,000
E. Jewitt 15,000
Plugger & Nyn 24,000
Howard & Co. 14,000
Ryerson & Morris, 2
mills 65,000
Chapin, Marsh & Foss 50,000
Smith, Forbes & Co. 35,000
Trowbridge, Way &
Son 65,000
J. B. Bailey 14,000
Porter & Slyfield 14,000
C. Davies & Co. 50,000
Durkee, Truesdell &
Co. 40,000
George Ruddmain 40,000
Lewis & Davis 24,000
Eldridge & Co. 24,000
Carleton & Co. 24,000
Ferry & Son 40,000
Lind & Slater 50,000
Young, Savedge & Co. 30,000
Amos Norton 40,000
Benj. Smith 30,000
Rhodes, Cloyn & Co. 24,000
Hatch & Merritt 15,000
C. Hart 10,000
L. G. Mason & Co. 35,000
Beidler & Co. 40,000
Mears & Co. 24,000
Hill & Co. 24,000
Colgrove & Co. 18,000
Wm. Thompson 14,000
Harris & Co. 8,000
Jno. Ford 8,000
Denton & Co. 14,000
Carleton & Co. 10,000
Jos. Dalton & Bro. 10,000
S. Lawrence 12,000
Edward Dalton 8,000
E. W. Merrill & Co. 14,000
Reed & Co. 10,000
Brown & Grist 8,000
KENT COUNTY.
Jennison & Bro. 14,000
W. T. Powers 2,000
Seymour 24,000
Gooch & Webber 5,000
A. McFarland 4,000
Thos. Myers 21,000
George Funck 8,000
S. Lapham 5,000
A. House 5,000
Farrell & Sons 10,000
J. C. Clements 15,000
T. Spencer 8,000
Dewey & Co. 14,000
Reed & Plum 5,000
N. H. Withey 5,000
Knickerbuck 4,000
Robert Konkle 10,000
A. Roberts & Son 25,000
White, Worden & Co. 25,000
C. C. Comstock 9,500
D. Porter 5,000
Chase, Harris & Co. 8,000
C. W. Taylor 6,000
D. Caswell 12,000
Hubbard, Hitchcock
& Co. 16,000
NEWAYGO COUNTY.
Newaygo Company 80,000
Name unknown 24,000
J. M. Wood, 2 mills 25,000
James Botchford 10,000
R. P. Mitchell 5,000
Weaver 3,000
Amos Bigelow, 4,000
STONY CREEK, OCEANA COUNTY.
Campbell, Wheeler
& Co. 25,000
PERE MARQUETTE, BLACK CREEK AND BIG SAUBLE.
C. Mears & Co.,
3 mills 95,000
SPRING CREEK.
Hopkins & Co. 24,000
MANISTEE.
Coles 80,000
McVicker &Ingleman 24,000
One near Manistee 24,000
John C. Haines 55,000
John Stranch 40,000
GRAND TRAVERSE.
Hanna, Lay & Co. 32,000
A. S. Wadsworth 15,000
WHITE RIVER.
Amos Rathbone 24,000
MECOSTA.
Leonard, Ives, & Co. 20,000
MONTCALM COUNTY.
Bruce 10,000
Slaght 14,000
E. Gregory & Co. 20,000
LELANAW COUNTY.
Averill & Son 2,000
BEC SCIE'S RIVER.
R. Gardner 15,000
Chamberlin & Co. 20,000
Name unknown 2,000
Harris & Co. 10,000
IONIA COUNTY.
Estimated Aggregate 100,000
All others, on West Slope, estimated 350,000
Capital Western Slope 2,669,500
Total Capital of State $8,029,500
An intelligent gentleman who, at our instance, visited all the
establishments around Saginaw, and procured statistics, reports the
amount of lumber manufactured as follows:
Place. No. of Mills. Feet.
Bay City 11 20,000,000
Portsmouth 4 5,000,000
Zilwaukee 1 3,000,000
Carrollton 1 2,800,000
East Saginaw 8 19,750,000
Saginaw City 4 14,000,000
Bad River 2 4,500,000
Rafted Lumber 4,000,000
----------
Total 73,050,000
Valuation, at $8.50 per M. $620,925
Of the above lumber, 63,000,000 has been shipped; the rest is now on
the docks.
Shingles manufactured 25,000,000 at $2.50 $62,500
Lath " 5,000,000 at 1.00 5,000
Oak Staves
and shipped 2,000,000 at 30.00 60,000
Add Lumber 620,925
--------
Total $748,425
The supply of pine in some few localities is becoming exhausted, and
some few mills have ceased operating. This is the case at Lexington,
but the machinery and capital have been taken elsewhere. At the
present ratio of consumption, the supply of pine must rapidly become
diminished, but profitable employment will then be found in the
manufacture of hemlock and hard-wood. Some little has already been
done in the way of turning out hemlock. The manufacture of hard-wood
lumber is increasing very rapidly.
The copper interest of Michigan was first brought into public notice
by the enormous speculations and the mad fever of 1845. The large spur
of country which projects far out into the lake, having its base
resting on a line drawn across from L'Anse Bay to Ontonagon, and the
Porcupine Mountains for its spine, became the El Dorado of all
copperdom of that day. In this year the first active operations were
commenced at the Cliff Mine, just back of Eagle River harbor. Three
years later, in 1848, work was undertaken at the Minnesota, some
fifteen miles back from the lake at Ontonagon.
The history of the copper mines on Lake Superior shows that even the
best mines disappointed the owners in the beginning. We give the facts
relative to the three mines at present in the Lake Superior region to
illustrate this. The Cliff Mine was discovered in 1845, and worked
three years without much sign of success; it changed hands at the very
moment when the vein was opened which proved afterward to be so
exceedingly rich in copper and silver, producing now on an average
1,500 tons of stamp, barrel, and mass copper per annum.
The Minnesota Mine was discovered in 1848, and for the first three
years gave no very encouraging results. The first large mass of native
copper of about seven tons was found in a pit made by an ancient race.
After that discovery much money was spent before any other further
indications of copper were found. This mine yields now about 2,000
tons of copper per annum, and declared, for the year 1858, a net
dividend of $300,000. The dividends paid since 1852 amount to upward
of $1,500,000 on a paid-up capital of $66,000.
The same has been experienced at the Pewabic Mine. That mine commenced
operations in the year 1855, with an expenditure of $26,357, which
produced $1,080 worth of copper; the second year it expended $40,820,
and produced $31,492 of copper; in 1857 $24,484 of expenses produced
$44,058 worth of copper; 1858, the amount expended was $109,152, and
the receipts for copper $76,538; the total expense amounts to
$235,816, and the total receipts for copper to $153,168, leaving an
excess of expenses amounting to $82,648, which is, however, amply
covered by the extensive works established above and below ground at
the mine.
The Pewabic will undoubtedly take its place among the dividend-paying
mines of the present year.
It is scarcely ten years that mining has been properly commenced in
that remote region. At that time it was difficult, on account of the
rapids of St. Mary's River, to approach it by water with large craft.
Being more than a thousand miles distant from the centre of the Union,
destitute of all the requirements for the development of mines; every
tool, every part of machinery, every mouthful of provisions had to be
hauled over the rapids, boated along the shores for hundreds of miles
to the copper region, and there often carried on the back of man and
beast to the place where copper was believed to exist. Every stroke of
the pick cost tenfold more than in populated districts; every disaster
delayed the operations for weeks and months.
The opening of the Saut Canal has changed all this and added a
wonderful impetus to the business, the mining interests, and the
development of the Lake Superior country. Nearly one hundred different
vessels, steam and sail, have been engaged the past season in its
trade, and the number of these is destined largely to increase year
by year, an indication of the growth of business and the opening up of
the country. For the growth in the copper interest we have only to
refer to the shipments from that region year by year. These, in gross,
are as follows:
1853 2,535 tons.
1854 3,500 "
1855 4,544 "
1856 5,357 "
1857 6,094 "
1658 6,025 "
1859 6,245 "
The same facts of development would hold generally true, with regard
to the other industrial interests of that vast country.
It remains yet almost wholly "a waste, howling wilderness." At
Marquette, Portage Lake, Copper Harbor, Eagle River, Eagle Harbor, and
Ontonagon, and the mines adjacent, are the only places where the
primeval forests have given place to the enterprise of man, and these
in comparison with the whole extent of territory embraced in this
region, are but mere insignificant patches. What this country may
become years hence, it would defy all speculations now to predict, but
there seems no reason to doubt that it will exceed the most sanguine
expectations.
The copper region is divided into three districts, viz., the
Ontonagon, the most northern, the Keweenaw Point, the most eastern,
and the Portage Lake, lying mostly below and partially between the
range of the two. In the first are situated the Minnesota, the
Rockland, the National, and a multitude of other mines of lesser note,
profit, or promise. In the Cliff, the Copper Falls, and others. In the
last are the Pewabic, Quincy, Isle Royale, Portage, Franklin, and
numerous others. Each district has some peculiarities of product, the
first developing the masses, while the latter are more prolific in
vein-rock, the copper being scattered throughout the rock.
There have been since 1845 no less than 116 copper-mining companies
organized under the general law of our State. The amount of capital
invested and now in use, or which has been paid out in explorations
and improvements, and lost, is estimated by good judges at $6,000,000.
The nominal amount of capital stock invested in all the companies
which have charters would reach an indefinite number of millions. As
an offset to this, it may be stated that the Cliff and Minnesota mines
have returned over $2,000,000 in dividends from the beginning of
their operations, and the value of these two mines will more than
cover the whole amount spent in mining, and for all the extravagant
undertakings which have been entered upon and abandoned. While success
has been the exception and failure the rule in copper speculations,
yet it must be admitted that these exceptions are remarkably tempting
ones. Doubtless there is immense wealth still to be developed in these
enterprises, and this element of wealth in the Lake Superior region is
yet to assume a magnitude now unthought of.
The copper is smelted mainly in this city, Cleveland, and Boston, the
works in this city being the largest. There is one establishment at
Pittsburg which does most of the smelting for the Cliff Mine, we
believe; one at Bergen, N. Y., and one at New Haven, Conn. There are
two at Baltimore, but they are engaged on South American Mineral. The
Bruce Mines on the Canada side of Lake Huron have recently put
smelting works in operation on their location. Prior to this the
mineral was barreled up and shipped to London, being taken over as
ballast, in packet ships, at low rates.
The amount of copper smelted in this city we can only judge by the
amount landed here, but this will afford a pretty accurate estimate.
The number of tons landed here, in 1859, was 3,088. The copper yield
of Lake Superior will produce between 60 and 70 per cent, of ingot
copper, which is remarkably pure. The net product of the mines for
1859, is worth in the markets of the world nearly or quite $2,000,000.
This large total shows the capabilities of this region and affords us
some basis of calculation as to the value and probable extent of
future development.
Beside the amount already noticed as landed here there were 1,268 tons
brought to this city from the Bruce Mines, and sent on to London. The
mineral of this location is of a different quality from that of Lake
Superior and not near so productive of pure copper. The price of ingot
copper in New York the past season has arranged from 20-1/2 to 23-1/2
cents per pound, averaging full 22-1/2 cents.
There are indications that Michigan is slowly but surely taking the
rank to which she is entitled in the manufacture as well as production
of iron. The first shipment of pig iron of any consequence was made by
the Pioneer Company in the fall of 1858. Dr. Russell, of this city, is
turning out large quantities. His works went into operation about two
years and a half ago, but were burned after running sixty days. They
were immediately rebuilt by the enterprising proprietor.
The Lake Superior iron has been proclaimed the best in the world, a
proposition that none can successfully refute. Its qualities are
becoming known in quarters where it would naturally be expected its
superiority would be admitted reluctantly, if at all. It is now sent
to New York and Ohio, and even to Pennsylvania--an agency for its sale
having been established in Pittsburg. For gearing, shafting, cranks,
flanges, and, we ought by all means, to add, car-wheels, no other
should be used, provided it can be obtained.
A large amount of capital is invested in the iron interest in
Michigan, as the following figures prove:
Pioneer $150,000
Jackson 300,000
Collins 150,000
Cleveland 300,000
Lake Superior and Iron Mountain R. R. Co. 700,000
Northern Michigan Iron Company 110,000
Wyandotte Rolling Mills 236,000
Eureka Iron Company 117,000
Dr. G. B. Russell's 60,000
Ford & Philbrick's Steam Forge 25,000
---------
2,148,000
Marquette is the only point on Lake Superior where the iron ore
deposits have been worked. There are deposits of iron in the mountains
back of L'Anse, but this wonderful region leaves nothing more to be
desired for the present. At a distance of eighteen miles from the
lake, are to be found iron mountains named the Sharon, Burt, Lake
Superior, Cleveland, Collins, and Barlow, while eight miles further
back lie the Ely and St. Clair mountains. Three of these mountains are
at present worked, the Sharon, the Cleveland, and the Lake Superior,
and contain enough ore to supply the world for generations to come.
The mountains farther back embrace tracts of hundreds of acres rising
to a height of from four to six hundred feet, which, there is every
reason to believe, from the explorations made, are solid iron ore. The
extent of the contents of these mountains is perfectly fabulous, in
fact, so enormous as almost to baffle computation. The ore, too is
remarkably rich, yielding about seventy per cent. of pure metal. There
are now in operation at Marquette three Iron Mining Companies, and two
blast furnaces for making charcoal pig iron, the Pioneer and Meigs.
The Pioneer has two stacks and a capacity of twenty tons of pig iron
per day; the Meigs one stack, capable of turning out about eleven
tons. The Northern Iron Company is building a large bituminous coal
furnace at the mouth of the Chocolate River, three miles south of
Marquette, which will be in operation early in the summer.
Each of the mining companies, the Jackson, Cleveland and Lake
Superior, have docks at the harbor for shipment, extending out into
the spacious and beautiful bay which lies in front of Marquette to a
sufficient length to enable vessels of the largest dimension to lie by
their side and to be loaded directly from the cars, which are run over
the vessels and dumped into chutes, which are made to empty directly
into the holds. The process of loading is therefore very expeditious
and easy.
The amount of shipments of ore for 1859, from Marquette to the ports
below, reaches 75,000 gross tons in round numbers, and the shipments
of pig iron, 6,000 gross tons more. To this must be added the amount
at Marquette when navigation closed, the amount at the mines ready to
be brought down, and the amount used on the spot. This will give a
total product of the iron mines of Michigan for the past year of
between _ninety and one hundred thousand tons_. These mining companies
simply mine and ship the ore and sell it. Their profit ranges between
seventy-five cents and one dollar per ton.
The quality of the iron of Lake Superior is conceded by all to be the
best in the world, as the analysis of Prof. Johnson, which we
reproduce, shows. The table shows the relative strength per square
inch in pounds.
Salisbury, Conn., iron 58,009
Swedish (best) 58,184
English cable 59,105
Centre county, Pa. 59,400
Essex county, N. Y., 59,962
Lancaster county, Pa. 58,661
Russia (best) 76,069
Common English and American 30,000
Lake Superior 89,582
The manufacture of pig iron at Marquette will probably be carried on
even more extensively as the attention of capitalists is directed to
it. The following may be considered a fair statement of the cost of
producing one ton of pig iron at the Pioneer Iron Co.'s works:
1-1/2 tons iron ore, at $1.50 per ton $2 50
125 bushels charcoal at 7 cents per bushel 8 75
Fluxing 50
Labor 2 50
Incidental expenses 1 00
------
Cost at the works 15 00
Freight on R. R. and dockage 1 37
------
Cost on board vessel $16 36
The quantity of wood required for charcoal for both furnaces, is
immense. The pioneer furnace requires 2,500 bushels of coal in
twenty-four hours; and in blast as they are, day and night, for six
months, and at a yield of forty bushels of coal to a cord of wood, it
would require 15,000 cords of wood to keep them going. The company has
had 120,000 cords chopped this season. This vast consumption of wood
will soon cause the country to be completely stripped of its timber.
Coal will then come into use. The business of manufacturing pig iron
may be extended indefinitely, as the material is without limit, and
the demand, thus far, leaving nothing on hand.
These facts exhibit the untold wealth of Michigan in iron alone, and
point with certainty to an extent of business that will add millions
to our invested capital, dot our State with iron manufactories of all
kinds, and furnish regular employment to tens of thousands of our
citizens, while our raw material and our wares shall be found in all
the principal markets of the world.
The superior fish, found in such profusion in our noble lakes and
rivers, while they afford a highly-prized luxury for immediate
consumption, from one of our leading articles of export, and are very
justly regarded as constituting one of our greatest interests.
It is estimated by men of intelligence that the value of our yearly
catch of fish is greater than that of all taken in fresh waters in the
thirty-two remaining States of the Union. This may at first blush seem
like a broad assertion, but it is no doubt strictly within bounds. If
the claim be not too much of the nature of a truism, we may add that
so far as quality is concerned the superiority of our finny tribes is
even more strongly marked than in regard to quantity. In the sluggish
streams that abound in "ten degrees of more effulgent clime," the fish
partake of the slimy properties of their native element; it is only in
the limpid waters of the North that they are found of flavor so
unexceptionable as to please an epicurean taste, or exalt them to the
dignity of a staple of commerce. Fish possess peculiar qualities to
commend them as an article of food, independent of the arbitrary
preference of the epicure. They are universally esteemed as a
wholesome and nutritious diet. In that pleasant work, Irving's
"Astoria," a tribe of Indians are described who subsisted entirely on
fish, whose rotund appearance contrasted strongly with the physique of
their brethren of the forest. The profusion with which the finny
tribes propagate their species is a peculiarity said to be imparted to
those who partake freely and regularly of them for food, a supposition
which would seem to be strongly supported by facts. Fishermen are
proverbial for the number of their descendants. One of the tribe who
dries his nets in Sarnia, is the happy father of nineteen children,
and we can cite numerous proofs almost equally striking in support of
this theory.
The fisheries have always been a leading subject in the government
policy of seaboard nations. They are a prime source of revenue, and
have been the cause of numerous wars. The serious controversy between
the United States and Great Britain concerning the Newfoundland
fisheries, is still fresh in the memory of our readers. Recently the
earnest attention of the French government has been directed to
propositions for the artificial propagation of fish, as a means of
affording good and cheap food to the people at a merely nominal cost.
The gradual diminution of the species, as well as the ultimate
extinction of the large birds and quadrupeds, is everywhere a
condition of advanced civilization and the increase and spread of an
industrial population. To provide a remedy for the evil, the science
of pisciculture has latterly attracted no small degree of attention,
and, at this time, gentlemen prominently identified with our fishing
interest have it in contemplation to stock lakes in the interior of
Michigan with a view to the prosecution of the science.
Most of the fish packed on Lake Huron, and rivers St. Clair and
Detroit, find their way into the Ohio market. The trade with that
State has rapidly increased, but in its early stages it had some
difficulties to contend with, to one of which we will briefly allude.
Some twelve or fourteen years ago, a large quantity of fish, not less
than 8,000 to 10,000 barrels, which had been caught in Lake Superior,
were in the possession of a single dealer, who had them stored in the
large warehouse recently torn down at the Detroit and Milwaukee
Railway depot. He had opportunities to dispose of them at $8 per
barrel, but refused to sell them for less than $10, and the result was
that they were kept so long that many of them spoiled. They were
complained of as a nuisance, and 1,500 barrels were turned out into
the river at one time. Part of the lot was, however, sent to Ohio, and
the effect was, for a time, extremely prejudicial to our trade,
requiring a great deal of explanation before the Cincinnati dealers
could be again induced to stand in the position of customers. But when
confidence once more became fairly restored, the circumstance seemed
to have the effect to precipitate the trade between the two cities. At
least it grew rapidly from that day, our neighbors purchasing freely
of our staple articles and sending us sugar and molasses in return.
Thus, as in Samson's time, honey was gathered from the carcass of the
dead lion. Ohio has become a very large consumer of our fish, and her
influence is being extended rapidly into Indiana.
The habits of fish are as interesting as anything in the animal
economy, constituting a beautiful study for the lover of nature; but
this branch does not come within the scope of our article, and we must
content ourselves with a brief description of the principal varieties,
particularly such as are held in highest repute for packing, with such
statistics as we have been able to procure.
Whitefish are more highly prized than any other kind found in our
waters, being decidedly the most delicious in a fresh state, and when
packed command a higher price than any other by $1 per bbl. They are
found in the Straits and all the Lakes. They spawn in the fall, in the
Straits, and in shoals and on reefs about the Lakes. They are caught
in seines, gill nets, trap nets, and with spears; never with hooks.
Those found in Detroit river come up from Lake Erie regularly in the
fall to deposit their spawn. They were found in our lakes and rivers
in vast quantities when the white men first visited their shores. They
constituted, with other kinds, the principal food of the white and
Indian voyagers as they coasted around the lakes, and were invaluable
to the first settlers of the country, who, perhaps in some cases, but
for the assistance they afforded, would have been compelled to
relinquish their settlements. They could catch a supply at any time,
and they then had an unfailing resort when their crops failed.
Whitefish were a great favorite with the Indians. They would give many
times their weight in trout or any other species in exchange for them.
It is said that a person can subsist longer upon them than upon any
other kind.
Their ordinary weight is from 3 to 5 lbs, length 15 inches, though
some have been caught weighing not less than 18 lbs. They are a
beautiful fish, and when first taken out of the water and struggle and
flounder in the sun, they exhibit all the colors of the rainbow, but
they soon expire, and when dead they are of a delicate white color.
The trout, pike, and muscalonge devour them without mercy. Some of
these voracious kinds have been caught with the remains of six
white-fish in them.
The Detroit River white-fish are more juicy and better flavored than
those caught in the upper lakes, probably from the fact that they feed
on more delicate food, but those found in Lake Superior surpass all
others in size. They were once so numerous that eight thousand were
taken at a single haul. At present a haul of one or two thousand is
thought a very good one. In all the rivers they are growing scarce
very gradually, but surely. The ratio of decrease cannot be arrived at
with any degree of precision. A few years ago they were mostly taken
with gill nets, and when they fell of in one place, a corresponding
increase would be found in another. Now they are taken with trap nets
along the shore. The trap nets are a decided advantage over gill nets.
They allow the fish to be kept alive, and they are taken out at
leisure; they are therefore of better quality.
Pickerel are also held in high esteem. They are good either fresh, or
salted and dried, and for packing, rank next in value to white,
although held nominally at the same price as trout when packed. They
generally run up the rivers and lakes in the spring to spawn, where
they are caught in considerable numbers. Average weight, 2 lbs; large,
20 lbs; common length, 15 inches.
Lake or Mackinaw trout are as voracious as pike. They are chiefly
caught on Lake Huron with gill nets and hooks. Saginaw Bay appears to
be a favorite resort with them. Some winters large quantities are
caught in the Bay through the ice, with a decoy fish and spear. They
spawn in the fall, generally in the bays and inlets. Average weight 5
lbs; large 75 lbs.
Siscowits are mostly found in Lake Superior, and are preferred by some
to any other kind. They are of the trout family, and for fat are
unequaled; they are mostly taken in gill nets. They spawn in the fall,
and are very superior for packing. They are also of some value for
their oil. Common weight 4 pounds, length 16 inches.
Large herrings are very good fish, found only in the straits and large
lakes. They spawn in the fall; but few are caught. Average weight
1-3/4 pounds; common length 10 inches.
In addition to the above the muskelonge--a large and delicious
variety--black and white bass, rock bass, perch, sturgeon, and at
least twenty other kinds, abound in our waters; a minute description
of which we are compelled to forego. Whitefish are taken both spring
and fall, chiefly the latter; spring is the season for pickerel; trout
are taken at all seasons.
Something over a year since some excitement was occasioned by a mode
of fishing adopted by a party of fishermen on Detroit river, who
stationed nets over a mile and a half in extent across the mouth of
the stream, a proceeding that was not only calculated to destroy the
value of the seine fisheries above, but which would ultimately have
driven the fish out of the river altogether. A formidable opposition
was of course arrayed against this unusual and unwarrantable
proceeding, and the party found it expedient to desist, but the
Legislature, which met shortly after, failed to pass an inhibitive
measure. This action, or rather want of action, would have been
considered extraordinary in a State less favored by nature.
We have fortunately been able to procure estimates of the amount of
the catch at all the various fisheries, together with other leading
statistics; and with the view of imparting to the subject a more
general interest, we include two or three points beyond the limits of
the State. The estimates are furnished by gentlemen of intelligence
and experience, and may be relied on as substantially correct:
Sandusky fisheries, catch mostly sold fresh:
Whitefish, valuation $50,000
Pickerel, bass, etc 40,000
Value of seines and fixtures 16,000
Paid for wages 37,000
Maumee River, pickerel, white bass, etc., etc., mostly sold fresh:
Valuation $50,000
Seines and fixtures $15,000
Paid for wages 12,000
Maumee Bay and Monroe County, Michigan, white fish and pickerel:
Valuation $20,000
Pounds, seines, and fixtures 9,000
Paid for wages 10,000
Detroit River, nearly all white:
Valuation $75,000
Seines, fishing grounds, and
fixtures 40,000
Paid for wages 20,000
St. Clair River and Rapids, mostly pickerel:
Valuation $11,000
Cost of fixtures 2,000
Paid for wages 1,200
Port Huron to Point au Barque, 3,000 barrels, mostly white:
Valuation $25,000
Au Sauble 6,000 barrels, 3/4 white, the rest trout:
Valuation $50,000
Boats, nets, etc. 13,000
Paid for wages 7,000
Thunder Bay and vicinity, above Sauble River, 6,000 barrels, mostly
white:
Valuation $50,000
Saginaw Bay and River, 2,000 barrels pickerel and 1,500 white and
trout:
Valuation $32,000
Tawas, 600 barrels, mostly white:
Valuation $5,000
Between Thunder Bay and Mackinac, 500 barrels, mostly white:
Valuation $4,500
Mackinac, including all brought there, 7,500 barrels, 3/4 or 7/8
white:
Valuation $62,000
Beaver Islands and neighborhood, 7,000 barrels, nearly all white:
Valuation $59,000
Green Bay in Michigan, 3,000 barrels, all white:
Valuation $25,500
Island between De Tour and the Saut, 1,000 barrels, 2/3 white, the
rest trout:
Valuation $8,000
Green Bay in Wisconsin, 2,500 barrels white and 500 barrels pickerel,
all packed:
Valuation $25,000
Of the catch of Lake Huron, only an inconsiderable amount are sold
fresh. On Detroit River about 4,000 barrels were packed last year.
Having procured specific information of the cost of outfit and amount
paid for wages at the Sauble fisheries, we have taken such
expenditures as the basis for those of all the upper lake fisheries in
proportion to the catch, which in the main will doubtless prove
substantially correct. At the Sauble last season there were sixteen
boats employed for two months, and eight for the rest of the season.
The value of the boats was $200 each, and the nets, etc., cost an
additional sum of $600 for each, making the aggregate value of the
boats and their outfit about $13,000. About forty men were employed on
an average during the season, receiving a probable aggregate of $7,000
for wages. Taking these outlays, etc., as a fair average, and we have
the following result:
From Port Huron to the Beavers, inclusive, together with Green Bay in
Michigan, and the Saut Islands:
Cost of outfit $83,500
Amount paid for wages 45,000
Average number of men 300
The amount shipped from Lake Superior, as appears from the report of
the Superintendent of the Saut canal is 4,000 barrels. This is
probably not a tithe of what might be done. The mouth of almost every
stream in that region affords good fishing grounds, which is also true
of most of the islands, particularly Isle Royale, where the siscowit
is very abundant.
The fisheries on the east coast of Lake Michigan have for about six
years past increased very rapidly in importance, some years gaining
100 per cent, on the year preceding. A few years since a party of
Norwegians came on and embarked in the business, which they have
prosecuted ever since with advantage and profit. Trained in the severe
school of their rugged northern home, they exhibit the greatest
daring, going out in their tiny craft during the heaviest gales. They
frequently venture out twenty-five miles from shore, almost meeting
their countrymen from the Wisconsin side of the lake, who are engaged
in the same hazardous calling. We have the following returns:
Little Traverse, 600 barrels:
Valuation $4,000
300 nets and 6 boats, worth 1,800
Paid for wages 575
Big Point Sauble, 1,500 barrels:
Valuation $12,000
600 nets and 8 boats 3,600
Paid for wages 1,700
Little Point Sauble, 2,000 barrels:
Valuation $16,500
750 nets and 10 boats 4,500
Paid for wages 2,000
White Lake, 1,500 barrels:
Valuation $12,000
500 nets and 5 boats 3,000
Paid for wages 1,600
Grand Haven, 4,000 barrels:
Valuation $32,800
800 nets and 8 boats 4,000
Paid for wages 5,000
Saugatuck, 2,000 barrels:
Valuation $16,000
600 nets and 6 boats 3,600
Paid for wages 2,500
South Haven, 2,100 barrels:
Valuation $16,800
600 nets and 6 boats 1,200
Paid for wages 2,500
St. Joseph's 3,500 barrels:
Valuation $28,000
1,200 nets and 9 boats 7,500
Paid for wages
New Buffalo, 300 barrels:
Valuation $3,000
400 nets and 5 boats 2,600
Paid for wages 450
Michigan City, 3,000 barrels:
Valuation $30,000
1,020 nets and 18 boats 8,000
Paid for wages 4,400
Showing an aggregate of 21,000 barrels, of which about 18,000 barrels
are salted; valuation $169,800; value of fixtures $43,600; estimated
amount paid for wages, $22,000.
The fishing grounds of Michigan City are almost entirely within our
State. The number of barrels include those sold fresh as well as
salted, there being a considerable quantity of the former, in some of
the fisheries last named, Michigan City and New Buffalo especially,
from whence they are sent packed in ice to the different towns in
Michigan; also to Lafayette and Indianapolis, Indiana, to Louisville,
Kentucky, to Cincinnati, and also to Chicago, where they are repacked
in ice, and some of them find their way to St. Louis, Cairo, etc. From
St. Joseph and Grand Haven there are large quantities sent fresh to
Chicago and Milwaukee, where they are repacked in ice.
At a fair estimate for the few small fisheries on this coast from
which we have no return, together with those on the west coast of Lake
Michigan, they are worth at least $60,000, but we have no data by
which to form an estimate of the proportion packed.
The number of men employed, and the consequent expense, varies
according to the method employed. With seines the occupation is very
laborious, and requires a much stronger force than pound nets. One set
of hands can manage a number of the latter. Some of the fisheries on
Detroit and St. Clair rivers use seines altogether, to draw which,
horse-power is brought into requisition in some cases. A double set
of men are employed, working alternately day and night, and the
exposure is a most disagreeable feature of the business, particularly
in bad weather. The great bulk of the aggregate catch continues to be
taken with seines or gill nets, but pound (or trap) nets are on the
increase. They have been in use below Lake Huron more or less for the
past four or five years, but it is only about two years since their
introduction in the upper lakes. With these nets 100 barrels of
white-fish have been taken at a single haul. Of course their general
use must produce a material diminution in the supply.
As regards capital invested, there is in particular instances a wide
difference. George Clark, Esq., nine miles below Detroit, has $12,000
invested in his grounds, owing mostly to the cost of removing
obstructions. But this is an exception.
The barrels for packing constitute no inconsiderable item of this vast
and important trade. Their manufacture is a regular branch in Port
Huron, but most of them are made by the fishermen when not engaged in
their regular vocation. They are made at all the villages and fishing
stations on Lake Huron, pine being generally easy of access. The
barrels are worth 62-1/2 cents each; half-barrels, 50 cents. Over
two-thirds of the packages used are halves, but our estimated totals
of the catch represent wholes.
Formerly the nets used also to be made almost entirely by the
fishermen, who usually procured the twine from Detroit. Latterly, many
of them have been brought from Boston already made.
Salt is another large item. For packing and repacking, about
one-fourth of a barrel is used to each barrel of fish. For the amount
packed, therefore, in the fisheries we have described, about 20,000
barrels are used.
Total proceeds of Michigan fisheries $620,000
Total proceeds of all enumerated 900,000
Total capital invested 252,000
Paid for wages 171,000
Aggregate of barrels salted, say 80,000 bbls.
Cost of packages 70,000
Cost of salt 22,000
The catch at the Sauble and Thunder Bay showed a falling off last
season, owing not to the want of fish, but to the unfavorable weather.
At these points they congregate only from October to the close, and
the weather being very rough last fall, the catch was comparatively
light.
Mackinac has been famous as the greatest fishing point on the lakes.
Gill nets are mostly in vogue. The work in that locality is mostly
done by half-breeds, in the employ of the merchants, the latter
furnishes the salt, and paying them in trade, of which the outfit
generally constitutes a part. But with the late general depression,
prices declined some thirty or forty per cent., and consequently the
business, previously quite lucrative, lost its attraction for the time
being. The merchants advanced the means in summer, and could not
realize until the ensuing year. Small holders were obliged to sell,
some of the time by forcing the market, and this added to the
difficulty experienced by large holders in obtaining returns.
Much has been said in reference to the coal fields of Michigan, and
within the past two or three years, explorations, with a view of
developing these deposits, have been conducted in different portions
of the State. There is no longer any doubt of the existence of a
valuable field of coal in central Michigan. There have been openings
at different points in the State; at Jackson and Sandstone, in Jackson
county; at Owasso and Corunna in Shiawassee county; at Flint in
Genesee county, and at Lansing, coal has been found deposited in veins
of from twenty inches to four feet in thickness. Most of the openings
have been upon veins outcropping at the surface of the ground, and
there has been little difficulty in procuring samples of coal from
these veins in many localities in the State. These deposits of coal
found at, and near the surface, are producing coal in limited
quantities in different localities, but no works have been prosecuted
with a view to supplying any but a limited local demand. From the
surface evidences of a coal field on the line of the Detroit and
Milwaukee Road near Owasso, and from explorations and developments
already made, some specimens of the coal having been produced and
shipped to Detroit, it has been determined to prosecute the work at
that point.
In Jackson county, however, the matter of mining has become an
enterprise of some magnitude, and we are enabled to give some facts
and figures which exhibit in some measure the importance to the State
of this new branch of industry. There are several "workings" of coal
in the vicinity of Jackson, and several companies have been formed for
the purpose of mining coal. Considerable coal has been mined and sold
from these different workings and mines. The principal mine, and one
which in all its arrangements and provisions is equal to any mine in
the country, is that of the Detroit and Jackson Coal and Mining
Company. The works of this Company are at Woodville station on the
line of the Michigan Central Railroad, about three and a half miles
west of Jackson city.
The mine is situated on the north side of the Railroad and about half
a mile from the main track. The Coal Company have built a side track
from the Central Road to the mouth of their shaft. The shaft from
which the coal is taken is ninety feet deep, and at the bottom passes
through a vein of coal about four feet in thickness. This vein has
been opened in different directions for several hundred feet from the
shaft, and with a tram-road through the different entries the coal is
reached and brought from the rooms to the shaft, and then lifted by
steam to the surface. This coal has been transported to different
points in the State and is rapidly coming into use for all ordinary
purposes, taking the place of many of the Ohio coals and at a reduced
cost. The mine to which reference is made is within _four hours'_ ride
of Detroit, on the Central Road, and a visit of two hours (which can
be accomplished any day, by taking the morning train, leaving the city
at 9 45 and returning so as to reach here at half past six in the
evening,) will repay any one for the trouble. The station is called
Woodville, and is only three and a half miles west of Jackson.
Michigan, hitherto a heavy importer of salt, is in a fair way not only
to have amply sufficient for her own wants, but something perhaps to
spare. To aid in developing our saline resources, the Legislature
wisely provided a bounty upon the production, which has already
brought forth good fruits. At Grand Rapids, salt water has been
discovered much stronger than that of the Syracuse springs, requiring
only twenty-nine gallons to produce a bushel.--Arrangements have been
almost perfected for commencing the manufacture upon a very extensive
scale.
At Saginaw, within a few days, at the depth of 620 feet, copious
volumes of brine were revealed. This is also stronger than any in New
York. From some cause, it is sought to keep this information a secret,
but it is fair to presume it would soon have leaked out. The salt both
at Grand Rapids and Saginaw, is a beautiful article, of great purity.
When Nature formed the Grand River and Saginaw valleys, she seems to
have been engaged in an animated contest with herself. The
developments are such as to warrant the conviction that other and
perhaps equally valuable salt springs lie hidden in the intervening
space between those valleys. These and other discoveries plainly
indicate that the employment of a large amount of capital in
developing the latent resources of Michigan would amply "pay."
The inexhaustible plaster beds of Grand Rapids constitute one of the
prime sources of prosperity of that enterprising metropolis of the
Grand River Delta. Our whole State has also a great interest in the
trade, the material being, it is admitted, a better fertilizer than
the imported article.
CHAPTER XV.
Desirableness of a trip to the Lakes -- Routes of travel --
Interesting localities -- Scenery -- Southern coast --
Portage Lake -- Dr. Houghton -- Ontonagon -- Apostles'
Islands -- Return trip -- Points of interest -- St. Mary's
River -- Lake St. George -- Point de Tour -- Lake Michigan --
Points of interest -- Chicago.
A trip to the northern lakes, for variety and beauty of scenery to
such as are seeking enjoyment and pleasure, possesses advantages over
every other route of travel in the United States, and with the
exception of the works of art and the classical associations of the
old world, is unsurpassed by any on the globe. To such as are in quest
of health, no comparison can be instituted, as it has been
demonstrated that the Northwest, especially in the region of the
lakes, possesses the most invigorating climate in the world. A
reference to the mortuary tables removes all doubt on this point. In
the town of Marquette, on Lake Superior, containing a population of
over three thousand, there were during the last year but eight
deaths, and only a portion of that number was from disease.
Our object in this chapter is to notice the various routes of travel
to the interesting localities in the Northwest. During the summer
months the most pleasant mode of conveyance is by water. The Hudson
River boats, compared with which no inland steamers are superior,
leave, every day, the foot of Courtland street for Albany. By taking
passage on an evening boat, after a quiet night's rest the traveler
will find himself at Albany the next morning, where he can take the
cars for Buffalo, at which point he will be able to take a steamer for
Detroit. From thence he can take a steamer for Superior City, passing
through Lakes St. Clair and Huron, and up the Saut St. Mary to Lake
Superior. On the route from the Saut he will pass the following
points, Point Iroquois, White-Fish Point, Point Au Sable, Pictured
Rocks, Grand Island, Marquette, Manitou Island, Copper Harbor, Eagle
Harbor, Eagle River, Ontonagon, La Point, Bayfield and Point De Tour.
The usual time occupied in passing over this route is about
twenty-four hours. In leaving the Saut above the Rapids the steamer
enters Lequamenon, passing Iroquois Point fifteen miles distant on the
southern shore, while Gros Cap, on the Canada shore, can be seen
about four miles distant. The porphyry hills, of which this point is
composed, rise to a height of seven hundred feet above the lake, and
present a grand appearance. North of Gros Cap is Goulais Bay, and in
the distance a bold headland named Goulais Point can be seen. Indeed
the whole north shore presents a scene of wild grandeur. Near the
middle of Lequamenon Bay is Parisien Island which belongs to Canada;
opposite to this island on the north is seen Croulee Point, an
interesting locality in the vicinity of which are numerous islands.
Still further on the steamer passes Mamainse Point, another bold
headland once the seat of the works of the Quebec Copper Mining
Company, but now abandoned in consequence of their unproductiveness;
some fifteen or twenty miles further north, is located the Montreal
Company's copper mine. The traveler has now fairly entered the vast
mineral region of Lake Superior, and passes along a coast hundreds of
miles in extent, "abounding in geological phenomena, varied mineral
wealth, agates, cornelian, jasper, opal, and other precious stones,
with its rivers, bays, estuaries, islands, presque isles, peninsulas,
capes, pictured rocks, transparent waters, leaping cascades, and bold
highlands, lined with pure veins of quartz, spar and amethystine
crystals, full to repletion with mineral riches, reflecting in
gorgeous majesty the sun's bright rays, and the moon's mellow blush;
overtopped with ever verdant groves of fir, cedar, and mountain ash,
while the back ground is filled up with mountain upon mountain, until,
rising in majesty to the clouds, distance loses their inequality
resting against the clear vault of Heaven."
On the southern shore, beyond White Fish Point, immense sand hills can
be seen rising from four hundred to one thousand feet in height. After
passing Pictured Rocks, which we have elsewhere described, the steamer
approaches Grand Island, the shores of which present a magnificent
appearance. This island is about one hundred twenty-five miles from
the Saut and is about ten miles long and five wide. It is wild and
romantic. The cliffs of sandstone broken into by the waves form
picturesque caverns, pillars, and arches of great dimensions.
Forty-five miles further is the town of Marquette one of the most
flourishing places on the borders of the lake, and the entrepot of the
vast mineral wealth in that region. Near this place are the Carp and
Dead rivers, both which have rapids and falls of great beauty. Sailing
in a northwestern direction the steamer passes Standards Rock, a
solitary and dangerous projection, rising out of the lake at the
entrance of Keweenaw Bay. At the head of this bay stands the harbor
of L'Anse a short distance from which are located a Roman Catholic and
Methodist mission house and church, both of which, on each sides of
the bay where they are located, are surrounded by Indian tribes and
settlements.
Passing along, the steamer enters Portage Lake an extensive and
beautiful sheet of water extending nearly the entire breadth of the
peninsula of Keweenaw Point, which is a large extent of land jutting
out into Lake Superior, from ten to twenty miles wide and sixty in
length. This whole section abounds in silver and copper ores. After
passing Manitou Island, Copper Harbor, one of the best on the lake is
reached. At this place there is a flourishing village. The next points
are Agate Harbor, Eagle Harbor, and Eagle River Harbor. It was at this
point that the lamented Dr. Houghton was drowned in October 1845. He
was the State Geologist of Michigan, and while coming down from a
portage to Copper Harbor, with his four Indian companions _du voyage_,
the boat was swamped in a storm about a mile and a half from Eagle
River. Two of the _voyageurs_ were saved by being thrown by the waves
upon the rocks ten feet above the usual level of the waters.
The next point, three hundred and thirty-six miles from the Saut, is
Ontonagon situated at the mouth of a river of the same name. A
flourishing town is located here having several churches. In its
vicinity are the Minnesota, Norwich, National, Rockland, and several
other copper mines of great productiveness; silver is also found
intermixed with the copper ore, which abounds in great masses. La
Point, four hundred and ten miles from the Saut and eighty-three from
Superior City, which is next reached, is situated on Madeline Island,
one of the group of the Twelve Apostles. It was settled at an early
day by the Jesuit Missionaries and the American Fur Traders. The
population is mixed, consisting of Indians, French, Canadians and
Americans. It has long been the favorite resort of the "red man" as
well as the "pale face," and possesses a historic interest to
travelers. The adjacent islands of the Twelve Apostles grouped
together a short distance from the main land, present during the
summer months a most lovely and beautiful appearance. Cliffs from one
to two hundred feet, may be seen rising above the waters, crowned with
the richest foliage. Passing Rayfield, a village on the mainland, and
Ashland, a settlement at the head of Chag-wamegon Bay, and the Maskeg
and Montreal Rivers, the steamer, after rounding Point de Tour,
enters Fon du Lac, a noble bay at the head of Lake Superior, twenty
miles in width and fifty miles in length, on the shore of which stands
Superior City, near the mouth of St. Louis River. This is a
flourishing place, possessing great commercial importance, and which,
at no distant day, must be connected with the mouth of the Columbia
River and Puget Sound. On the return trip coasting along the
northwest, the steamer passes numerous points of interest. At the
extreme west end of Lake Superior, seven miles northwest from Superior
City, stands the village of Portland. Along the shore northward are
bold sandy bluffs and highlands which are supposed to be rich in
mineral wealth. Encampment, the name of a river, island, and village,
is a romantic spot. Immense cliffs of greenstone are to be seen rising
from two hundred to three hundred feet above the water's edge;
northward along the shore porphyry abounds in great quantity. This
point is noted for the singular agitation of the magnetic needle.
Hiawatha, Grand Portage, Pigeon Bay, Pie Island, Thunder Cape, and
Thunder Bay, surrounded by grand scenery; Isle Royale, Fort William, a
strong post of the Hudson Bay Company. Black Bay, Nepigon Bay, on the
extreme north of the lake. St. Ignace Island, State Islands, Pic
Island Michipicoten Island, formerly the seat of Lake Superior Silver
Mining Company of Canada. Montreal Island, Carabon Island and other
points of interest.
Re-entering the Saut the steamer shapes her course for Mackinaw. The
Garden River settlement, an Indian village ten miles below the Saut,
is on the Canada shore. A mission church and several dwellings
occupied by Chippewa Indians may be found here. The St. Mary's River
presents the finest scenery. A traveler in describing it says, "There
is a delicious freshness in the countless evergreen islands that dot
the river in every direction from the Falls to Lake Huron." The next
point is Church's Landing on Sugar Island, opposite to which is
Squirrel Island belonging to the Canadians. Lake George twenty miles
below the Saut is an expansion of the River which at this point is
five miles wide. The steamer soon enters the Nebish Rapids, after
passing Lake George, and the main land of Canada, stretching out to
the north in a dreary wilderness, is lost sight of. Sugar Island which
is a large body of fertile land belonging to the United States, near
the head of St. Joseph's Island is next reached, and then in
succession, Nebish Island, Mud Lake, another expansion of the river,
Lime Island, Carltonville, St. Joseph's Island, a large and fertile
body of land belonging to Canada, once the site of a fort; Drummond
Island, belonging to the United States, and Point De Tour, at the
mouth of the river, the site of a light-house and settlement. The
other points of interest are Round Island, Bois Blanc, at the head of
Lakes Huron and Mackinac, all of which we have elsewhere described. At
east the steamer enters the Straits of Mackinaw, and the site of the
old fort and town heave in view. These straits are from four to twenty
miles in width, and extend east and west about twenty miles.
Lake Michigan now spreads out its beautiful sheet of water, second in
size to Superior, and invites the traveler to sail along its shores
and among its islands. The points of interest are, La Gros Cap, a
picturesque headland; Garden and Hog Islands, Great and Little Beaver
Islands, Fox Island, on the west of which is the entrance to Green
Bay, and on the east the entrance to Grand Traverse Bay, the Great or
north Manitou, and the Little or south Manitou Islands, Kewawnee, Two
Rivers, Manitoulin and Sheboygan, Port Washington, Milwaukee, Racine,
Waukegan and other places of minor importance. After passing the
localities on the western shore, at length Chicago is seen in the
distance, stretching along for miles and presenting a fine
appearance. From this point the traveler can return to New York, by
way of Detroit, through Canada on the railroad, or he may if he
chooses take a southern route. Such are the facilities for travel that
the tourist will be at no loss during the entire season in finding
excellent steamers and good accommodations. Steamers of the first
class leave Cleveland on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays of
each week, for Lake Superior, touching at the various ports on the
route. Persons in the West or South, who may desire to visit the lakes
can thus be at any time accommodated.
Should the tourist prefer taking another route from Buffalo, instead
of passing over Lake Erie and up the Detroit River, he can go direct
to Collingwood at the foot of Georgian Bay, and from thence can take
steamer for Saut St. Mary, Chicago or any other point he may desire in
the Northwest.
THE END.
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