THE DIAMOND FIELD OF THE GREAT LAKES 



The diamonds which have from time to time been discovered 

 in the region of the Great Lakes of North America, now num- 

 ber seventeen, not including those of microscopic size. With the 

 augmentation of the number of stones the problems arising out 

 of their distribution in the glacial drift, and particularly those 

 relating to the source or sources from which they have been 

 derived, assume increasing interest. 



HISTORICAL INTRODUCTION 



The first mention of diamonds from this region in any scien- 

 tific work appears in the Mineral Resources of the United States for 

 the year 1883-4? in which Kunz refers to the sensation caused 

 by the reported diamond discovery near Waukesha, Wisconsin, 

 in 1883. The "booming" of the property for diamond mines 

 and the alleged discovery subsequently of two diamonds which 

 Kunz found to have the aspect of African stones, very naturally 

 led this eminent authority to discredit the discovery at this 

 place of the larger stone as well, and to consider the entire 

 affair as a so-called " plant " to influence speculation. 



In the summers of 1887, 1888, and 1889, Mr. G. H. Nichols, 

 of Minneapolis, assisted by Messrs. W. W. Newell and C. A. 

 Hawn, of Rock Elm, Wis., prospected for gold in the bed of 

 Plum Creek, Rock Elm township, Pierce county, Wisconsin. In 

 the course of their work they found ten or more diamonds, vary- 

 ing in weight from y 2 carat to 2 carats, besides a number of 

 stones of microscopic dimensions. 2 The stones were found 



1 G. F. Kunz : Mineral Resources of the United States, U. S. Geol. Surv. 1883-4 

 (1885), p. 732; see also Gems and Precious Stones of North America, New York, 

 1890, p. 35. 



<;. F. K.UNZ: Diamonds in Wisconsin, Eng. and Min. Journ., Vol. L, 1890, p. 

 686; see also a paper by the same author in Bull. Geol. Soc. Am., Vol. II, 1891, 

 p. 638. 



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