44 GEOLOGY OF ILLINOIS. 



mines from 1821 to 1.S5S was Si0,(>2:,83J pounds, and the value of lead 

 shipped from 1821 to 1805 was not less than 40,000,000. The New Cali- 

 fornia diggings, a few miles south of the Marsden lead, has been yield- 

 ing; a great deal of mineral since their discovery, but 1 have no means 

 of knowing; the amount. These are but a few of the figures and statis- 

 tics. Hundreds of small ranges, mines and leads have not been men- 

 tioned. Multitudes of surface diggings have been carried on, for the 

 purpose of obtaining "float mineral," none of which were very extensive, 

 but the -sum total of which aggregated a great deal of lead. 



From these figures and they are imperfect enough it can be seen 

 that the mineral interest of this county in the past has been a matter of 

 great magnitude. Together with Shullsburgh, Mineral Point and Dn- 

 buqne, this North-western lead basin has been, and yet is, one of the 

 greatest mining localities in the world. 



The superficial area of the county underlaid by productive lead de- 

 posits, so far as known at the present time, is limited, embracing but a 

 small fraction of the area of the Galena limestone. The lodes or ranges 

 are principally located in groups. The diggings, mines or workings are 

 in patches ; but seem to have many features in common. The most 

 southern productive mines in the county are on the great east and west 

 range of mineral passing through and just north of Eli/abeth. This 

 mineral range commences at the mouth of Yellow creek, a few miles 

 south-east of Freeport, in Stephenson county, where an old shaft exists, 

 which used to be heavily worked a good many years ago. The next 

 group of mines on this range to the west is at Morseville, in the south- 

 eastern part of Jo Daviess county. Here lead has been mined more or 

 less for many years. Several men have accumulated a competence, 

 especially the former proprietors of the old Trice lead. The workings 

 are shallow, and the water strong at twenty-five or thirty feet deep. 

 Prospect holes cover the hill sides, and piles of red clay indicate them 

 along many of the ravines. The following ranges or leads are worked 

 at the present time : the l>lair range, about one-fourth of a mile west of 

 the village, near the road ; the Company lead, a little south of the vil- 

 lage ; Clevinger & Mitchell's range, just south of Mr. Morse's house; 

 Mumina & Livingston's Igad, west of the village, which is the old Price 

 mine ; and a lead called the Lyons lead. No one seems to know the 

 amount of mineral produced from these mines. One gentleman in- 

 formed me that it had been about one-half million of pounds. At the 

 present time one or two of the leads are furnishing a considerable quan- 

 tity of excellent looking heavy lead ; some of it is in large cubes. The 

 stone thrown out from these leads has a granular, greenish, blue look, 

 resembling what is called the green openings of the AVisconsin lead 

 bearing rocks, but probably higher up in the series. 



