﻿ILLINOIS. 



ILLINOIS. 



tM 



1000 rnUrn mora kre laid to ba in prograat of oonitmotion ; while 

 tita Uow of 00U0U7 for 600 mora milaa ha*a hoaa tyirtajad. The 

 pfineiiMU line* in operatiao w« thoM in oonnection with the 00m- 

 ntarcial capital of the atate, Chicago, in which city teven main-trunk 

 Unas meat. The Chicago and Rock Inland railway nuu from Chicago 

 00 Lake Kiohigan, in a louth aouth-weat direction, to Book laiaad 

 titf, at the oonfoanca of Rook Uirer with the Uiaiiauppi ; its langth 

 U 180 milea. The Oalena and Chicago ruua from Chicago to Qalaoa 

 and Freeport at the north-waitam cztnmity of the etate, 120 milaa, 

 with bnochea to Dixon 68 milaa, and to Beloit, in Wiaoonain, 

 SO roilM. The Chicago and Aurora, 66 milei long from Chicago to 

 Xaodota, it the only other line from Chicago which ii completed ; 

 but the Chicago and Cincinnati, to connect thoae placet, 87 milea 

 looK ; the Chicago and Fort 'iVayuo, and the Chicago and Uil- 

 waukie, 03 milea ; the Chicago and Mitaisaippi,* running to Alton, 

 180 milet; and the Chicago St Charles and Mitaittippi, 135 milet, 

 an in progrets; and 100 milea of the latt ara open. The Qrest 

 Wattem central line hat under 100 milet in operation. The mott 

 important of the liuea in progreat it the Illinoit Central, which is to 

 ba TOO milaa long, and with the other linea will connect all the 

 leading towna with each other, and with the chief trading placet in 

 the uaigbbouriog atatet and mott ]>arta of the Union, and likewite of 

 Canada. All the linet in progrett are expected to be completed 

 by 18(7. 



OtoUffif, Mintralogy, ie. — The rockt of Ulinoit belong to the 

 Palaoxoio order. In the extreme northern and wettem portion of 

 the ttate it a narrow band of Lower Silurian rockt, the aouthem 

 extremity of the Lower Silurian baain of Wiscontin. They coutiat 

 of landttone, in which occur numerous specimens of the Lingula 

 antiqua, and of blue lioiedtonet in which are the rich Icad-minea of 

 Oalena. South of the above, and exteudiug east and west, is a broad 

 belt of Upper Silurian rocks, chiefly light gray and magueaian lime- 

 atones. Between this bolt of Lower Silurian strata and Lake Michigan, 

 and alto on the south of the Silurian rocks, is a narrow band of 

 foatUiferous Devonian rocks. South of thete again, also extending 

 east and weet acroet the state, and along the whole western and 

 ■outham border, lying along the Miatiatippi and Ohio rivers, is a 

 narrow ttrip of Lower Carboniferous atrata, consisting of bituminous 

 alata, and fine-grained landstona. Above these, and occupying the 

 entire centra and eastern part of the state is a vast bed of Upper 

 Carboniferoua strata, doaely resembling the cool-bearing rocks of 

 England, but here forming port of a basin of these strata of a 

 grandeur and extrnt almost unparalleled. . 



Ulinoit it exceedingly rich in minerals. Silver is obtained in the 

 north-western part of the state in connection with galena. Load is 

 Tery widely diffused over the northern, and eepecially the north- 

 western district ; the lead-mines about Ualena are among the most 

 f reductive known. Copper ia also obtained largely in those parts, 

 ron-ore ia very widely distributed. Coal is however the mott 

 extentive and Taluable mineral of Illinois. It it bituminoua in 

 quality, and the bedi are of great tbickueat. The great coal region 

 it that vast apace mentioned above, at occupied by the Lower 

 Carboniferoua ttrata, extending quite across the ttate from Missouri 

 to Indiana, and from Iowa to Kentucky. Excellent building atone of 

 Tariout descriptiont it quarried over almost every part of the stata 

 Oranite bouldera of large size occur in many places. Salt springs 

 exist in leveral of the touthern and eattem counties, and there are 

 sulphur and chalybeate springs in varioiit partt. 



C'limatt, Soil, and Agriculture. — The climate is very much the tame 

 as that of Mitaouri, except that it ia more humid. There is a con- 

 siderable difference in the temperature between the northern and 

 touthern partt of the state. At New Uarmouy, which it in 3S° 11', 

 and opposite the southern port of the state, on the east bonk of the 

 Wabash, the thermometer has been observed as low as 6° below 

 sero of Fahrenheit. Everywhere however the winters are severe and 

 the summers hot and long, and the temperature subject to frequi-nt 

 ■ndden changes. In the southern parts of the state the suuiiner 

 beat it vary opprattive. South-wetterly winds blow during three- 

 fourths of the year. North and north-westerly winds prevail in winter. 



Illinoit poaaetiet a vast extent of excellent arable land. The toil 

 bowsvar varied it generally highly fertile. Along the river-valleys, 

 or bottoms, it oonsists of an extraordinarily rich alluvial deposit Due 

 of these tracts, the American Bottom, on the Hisaisaippi, extendinx 

 above the month of the Kaskoskia for 00 miles, is ea|ieciully uutud 

 for its fsrtUity. Its soil, which in the richest river alluvium, cun- 

 tioosa unchanged for 25 feat below the siirfao', and souie portions of 

 it which ore cn|tivat«d alwut the olil French towns, have produced 

 Indian com without interraiuiun and without manure fur nearly a 

 oentury and a half. A sixth of this alluviul loud is hoaevcr unfit 

 for cultivation, owing to iu liability to iuundationa The iirairies 

 though lest pnxluctive are still very fertile, and where timber is to ba 

 obtaiuad are |>refe> red for fanns on account of their superior salulirity. 

 The prairies ara ooDsequently steadily and rapidly becoming covered 

 with thriving groves of young trtes, the forerunners of busy farms. 

 Tba barrens, or oak openings, have frequently a thin soil. In the 

 northeni parts tliere ara stony tracts, but everywhere else it ia laid 

 that " the plough may pats over millions of acres without meeting 

 •o much as a jieible to impede its course." 



The following are the principal rssnlts of ths inquiries mada 

 respecting the agricultural statistics of Illinoit at the last census : — 

 The number of farma under cultivation in the state on the 1st of Juna 

 I80O waa 76,208. Tba extent of improved Und in farms was 5,030,515 

 aores, of uuimproved 6,&U7,iiG7 acres, together valued at 06,133,290 

 dollars. The farming implements and macbiuety were value<i at 

 6,405,561 dollars. The total produce of the principal crops in 1850 

 waa at follows:— Wheat, 9,414,575 bushels; rye, 88,364 buahelt ; 

 maiza, 57,646,084 busheU; oats, 10,087,241 buahelt; buckwheat, 

 184,504 bushels; barley, 110,795 bushels; peaa au<l beans, 82,814 

 bushels; poutoaa, 2,514,861 bushels; sweet puUtoes, 157,433 bushels; 

 tobaoco, 841,394 lb*. ; bops, 3551 lbs. ; hay, tiul,952 tons; clover and 

 other graas seeds, 17,807 bushels; flax, 160,063 lbs.; maple sugar, 

 248,904 lbs. The value of orchani producU was 446,049 dolUrs ; of 

 market-garden products, 127,494 dollun. Of wine only 2997 gallons 

 were made. A good deal of hemp is grown and prepared, but the 

 'Census lleport' statea (p. 1015), that with regard to it the "returns 

 were so confused, and all information from other sources so vsgua 

 and indefinite, that it was deemed advisable to ttrike the itamt of 

 hemp from the agrioultutal tables of the state." It may be as well 

 to state here that it mutt not be auppoaed that thete agricultural 

 retumt are at exact aa their apecific character would perhaps suggest, 

 but there can be little doubt that they do, in the words uf ths 

 'Report,' "give a very fair idea," undoubtedly a far clearer and 

 more correct idea than cau be gathered from any other souroa, "of 

 the state of the couutry iu 185U." 



With regard to live-stock, the retumt tbow that the number of 

 horses in the state iu lt>50 was 267,653; aases and mules, 10,573; 

 milch cows, 294,671; working oxen, 76,156; other cattle, 541,209; 

 sheep, 894,043; swine, 1,915,9U7. The value of live stock was 

 24,209.258 dollars; of animals slaughtenHl, 4,972,286 dollars. The 

 products of animals were — wool,2,150,113 lbs. ; butter, 12,626,543 lbs. ; 

 cheese, 1,278,225 lbs. ; beet' -wax, and honey, 869,444 Ibt. : silk oocoont, 

 47 1ba. 



Illinoit it in general well supplied with timber. The most common 

 trees ara various kinds of oaks, sycamores, wliich iu the alluvial toil 

 along the rivers grow to an immense size, sugar-maple, walnuts, 

 several kinds of ash, elm, cotton-wood, houey-lucust, hickory, buck- 

 eye, ]>eCHn, linden, wild cherry, sassafras, elder, and persimmon ; in 

 the southern and eastern parts yellow poplar and biroh, and near the 

 Uhio yellow pine and cedar. Hazel, red-bud, pawpaw, sumo, vines, 

 dug-wood, and other under-growihs are abuud^nt. There ara also 

 various valuable medicinal plants. 



The gray, black, uud pi-oirie wolf are still met with; the prairie 

 wolf iu coutiilerable numbers. PauLhers, wild-cats, foxet, racoons, 

 opotsums, and gophars, with musk-rats, otters, and occasionally 

 beavers are alto found, but they are being tteadily exterminateti 

 Partridges and prairie fowl abound ; ducks, geese, twaut, and variout 

 other aquatic birda visit the watera in the spring season. Fish in 

 the greatest possible variety swarm in the rivers and lakes. 



ilanu/acturet and Commerce. — At present the manufactures of 

 Illinois are chiefly connected with agriculture. Agricultural imple- 

 ments are extensively made ; there are numerous wheelwright's shops ; 

 saw, grist, oil, flour, and other mills. The only important manu- 

 factures not immediately connected with agriculture are the iron- 

 works, wouUen-factories, and tanneries. The whole number of 

 manufacturing eatablislimenti producing to the value of 500 doUara 

 and upwards in 1850 was 3099. Uf these two were pigiruu manu- 

 factories, employing 150 bands, and a capital of 65,0U0 dollars, 

 consuming annually 55UU tons of ore and 170,000 bushels of coke and 

 charoual, and producing 2700 tons of pig-iron ; and 29 establishments 

 engaged in the manufacture of cast-iron, employing 832 hands, and a 

 capital of 260,400 dollan : there was no wroughtriron manufactured in 

 the state. The woollen manufacture employs 178 hands, including 

 54 females, and a capital of 154,6UU dollars; tanneries 275 bonds (240 

 males), with a capital of 188,373 dollars ; flour-nulls, 834 persons ; saw- 

 mills, 937 ; distilleries, 176 ; pork and l>eef packing, 245 ; lead-mining 

 and amelting, 2 1 3 persons. The ' home-made manufactures ' for the 

 year were valued at 1,155,902 dollars. There are the usual olssses of 

 professional men ; the number of the principal classes were— -olei^- 

 men, 1023; Iswyers, 817; physicians, 1402; and surgeons, 3. 



The direct foreign coiiimeree of Illinois is chiefly with Oreat 

 Britain. The expoits, wholly of domestic jiroduce, for the year 

 ending June 30th 1862 auiouuted to 61,325 dullara ; the iio|ioris to 

 4832 doUan. The commerce of the state is chiefly centred in 

 Chicago, in our notice uf which lower down will be fouud some 

 further particulars respecting the trade of Illinois ; Alton on the 

 Mississippi, uud Cjolena, ore the utlier principal uummeiciol towns. 

 The internal trade is very considerable, and it is rapidly increasing 

 with the iucri'iuie of focUities of communication. 



Diriiiuni, Tuwnt, itc. — Illiuuis is divided into 99 ouunties. Spring- 

 field is the political capital of the state, but the must im|>urtant 

 town is CliiusLO. The towns for the most part have as yet but 

 small populations ; the following are oil which teem to require notice 

 here : tlie |io[iiilation is that of 1850 : — 



SpringJItld, the capital of the state, is sitoated on the border of a 

 brond prairie, about 4 miles from the left bank of the .Sangamon 

 River, in 3y 48' N. lat, 80" 33' W. long., i 



801 mUcs W.N.W. from 



