100 GEOLOGY OF ILLINOIS. 



north, through the townships of Bonus, Boone and Leroy, to Capron, 

 and on nearly to the State line j thence west a few miles ; thence south 

 along the center township line of the county, through Shermauville, to 

 the starting point ; thence north-west to Caledonia, and a few miles 

 north of the same ; thence back on any convenient road to the starting 

 point ; thence west on the north Rockford road to the county line, and 

 on all this extent of country gone over, I only saw indications of this 

 limestone. Only a few imperfect, crumbly outcrops were seen in the 

 faces of some of the little hills ; not such as would pay to work. 



On the Upper Beaver and round the feeding springs of one of the 

 Kinnikinniks, some poor specimens of stone are quarried, such as are 

 used for the foundations of houses about Capron and in that part of the 

 county. 



Blue Limestone. On the map I have marked the north-western part 

 of Boone county with the colors indicating the lower divisions of the 

 Trenton formation. Its close proximity to Eoscoe and Beloit, with some 

 surface indications, lead me to believe that these would be the surface 

 rocks, if the superincumbent clays were removed. No outcrops, how- 

 ever, were noticed, and the matter is of little general or economical in- 

 terest. 



Economical Geology. 



Building Stone. Building stones are scarce in Boone county. They 

 are worth about five dollars per cord in the quarries, after being dug 

 and prepared for loading. 



The quarry on Beaver creek furnishes a solid, massive, hard stone, 

 very suitable for bridge piers, culvert%atttt other railroad masonry, or 

 any solid enduring masonic work. It requires, however, a good deal of 

 labor to adapt it to the lighter kinds of masonry. The stone is in 

 .active demand, owing to the scarcity of other quarries in the surround- 

 ing country. Most of the heavy building stones used in Belvidere, 

 such as church foundations and other like work, are obtained at this 

 place. 



The quarry in the Cincinnati shales south of Belvidere, already re- 

 ferred to, furnishes most of the stone used in that city for the lighter 

 kinds of work, such as foundations for ordinary houses, ordinary cellar 

 walls, walling wells, and light kinds of masonry generally. It also fur- 

 nishes stone for a large extent of country over the surrounding prairies. 



The ease with which they can be quarried and broken into blocks of 

 any required superficial area, makes them well adapted for these pur- 

 poses. The layers are from two to four or five inches thick, and break 

 with ease in any required direction. 



