THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



Vol. IV. 



JANUARY 1, 1837. 



No. 9. 



EDMUND RUFFIN, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR, 



For the Fanners' Register. 



OnSERVATIONS 3IADE DURING AN EXCURSION 

 TO THE D1S3IAL SWAMP. 



By the Editor. 



"Whoever Ims heard any description, however 

 slight and impen'i'ct, of ihe great morass known 

 by the name of tlie Disairtl Swamp, must have 

 been interested and impressed by the peculiar fea- 

 tures and remarkable circumstances mentioned. 

 Yet Jt!\v persions have made any personal observa- 

 tion of, or paid much attention to these things, 

 except iliose whose near residence, and early and 

 long continued business and habits of lile, have 

 made tiieni so familiar with the swamp, that they 

 have lost, or perhaps never enjoyed, the freshness 

 of feeling which novelty would have excited. 

 Persons thus long acquainted with the ground, 

 do not seem to think its circumstances very re- 

 markable, and therefore do not offer their informa- 

 tion to strangers. On the other hand, strangers, 

 who at least might learn the liicts thus acquired 

 by residents, do not even direct inquiries so as to 

 draw them !i)rth, because totally ignorant oi" their 

 interest, and even existence. Few strangers would 

 cv^v have been induced by curiosity to attempt 

 the great labors necessary for even a slight exam- 

 ination ; nor would any have probabl3? seen more 

 than some points on the outer marijin, but for the 

 great highways now opened through the swamp — 

 the great canal, the road on i;s bank, from. Nor- 

 folk to North Carolina, and the railway which 

 dips into the northern extremity of the swamp. 

 These passages have given to thousands a rapid 

 passing glance at certain portions of the scenery : 

 but in every other respect, these numerous passen- 

 gers have added nothing to the scant inlormation 

 previously possessed by the public. No visiter 

 has made the investigation of the peculiarities of 

 this unknown land a main object — and still less 

 has any person paid attention to the geological and 

 agricultural aspects in which this reirion well de- 

 serves consideration. I am but little qualified, 

 either by scientific acquirements, or by opnoriuni- 

 ty for personal investigation, to supply these defi- 

 ciencies. Still, in the absence of better digested 

 and more accurate information, I will now offer 

 such ficts as were learned or observed, during a 

 recent hurried visit to the Dismal Swamp, togeth- 

 er with ihc speculations that these facts and ob- 

 servations suggested to my mind. Under circum- 

 stances so unfavorable for careful or full investiga- 

 tion, it is not probable that mistakes can be avoid- 

 ed. But I am willing to hazard being found in 

 error, in the hope that the needed corrections may 

 be lijrnished, and more full as well as correct in- 

 formation be given, by others better acquainted 

 with the localities. 



The part of the Dismal Swamp lying in Vir- 

 ginia, is about 2.5 miles from east to west, and 

 about 20 from north to south — that is from near 

 Sufiblk to the Carolina line. The swamp stretches 

 perhaps 20 miles more southward within North 

 Carolina, but v/ith much contracted width, and 



Vol. IV— 65 



limits not well defined on maps, or by report. 

 With such minor variations as will be mentioned 

 hereaiier, the whole of this extensive region is one 

 irreat morass, or quagmire, except lor the partial 

 firmness caused by its cover of vegetables, and 

 their matted roots. It would be naturally sup- 

 posed that the swamp was much lower than all 

 the surrounding lands, and the general receptacle 

 of the numerous streams flowing from them- 

 But, on the contrar}', the swamp is Iiighcr than 

 nearly all the firm and dry lands that encompass 

 it, and the interior of the swamp is generally high- 

 er than the outer parts. The only exception to 

 both these statements is found on the western side, 

 where for some distance, say 12 or 15 miles, the 

 streams flow from higher land into the swamp, 

 and supply all its abundant and overflowinj; wa- 

 ter. But towards the north, east, and south, the 

 waters flow from the swamp to different rivers, 

 and give abundant evidence, by their courses and 

 their rate of descent, of the swamp being higher 

 than the surrounding drier and firm groimd. I do 

 not mean that, at the junction of the two, the 

 swampy ground is highest. On the contrary, it is 

 frenerally bordered by a flat ridge of land percep- 

 tibly, though very little higher: but this ridge 

 slopes downward on all sides except the west, and 

 soon descends to a level greatly below the general 

 surfiice of the swamp. The accurately levelled 

 profile of the railvvay from Portsmouth to Sufiblk, 

 and of the Dismal Swamp Canal, and tfie Land 

 Company's Canal, all furnish still stronger and 

 more accurate evidences of the general fact slated. 

 The railway passes through about 4 niiles of the 

 northern extremity of the swamp — and is there 

 higher than when on the firm land some miles 

 away on either side; and is 6 to 7 feet higher than 

 on firm and drv ground near to Suflblk and to 

 Portsmouth. The central part of the swamp is 5 

 or 6 feet above the tniddle section of the Dismal 

 Swamp Canal, which section is some 13 feel 

 above the rivers into which it en)pties at both ends 

 — and these rivers are not more than 5 or 6 leet 

 below much of the dry but low-lying land of this 

 generally flat country. If it could be supposed 

 that the streams, which flow into the western part 

 of the present swamp, had lor ages been 

 bringing, not water, but mire almost as fluid as? 

 water, the spreadinfj of that mire over the basin 

 of firm subsoil, which now underlies the swamp, 

 would have caused nearly such slopc.=^, and form' 

 of the surface, as now exist — descending fi'om the 

 issuing streams on the west to the centre of the 

 area, and thence descending towards eveiy other 

 parr of thecircimiference. The surrounding slicht- 

 ly elevated rim, and various small and narrow 

 ridjies of poor and firm land, which rise like low 

 islands in various places above the surface of the 

 swamp, and the gradually descending slopes from 

 such summits under the adjacent swamp soil, all 

 give countenance to the supposition that the 

 swainp is a coinpensatively recent formation or 

 deposite on the lower foundation. 



But whence came this enormous deposite of 25 

 milee in width, and in many parts 10 to 15 feet Jn 



