68 ^ NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



of accurate information in regard to underlying deposits, but 

 would refer the reader to the topographic atlas sheets of the 

 United States Geological Survey for maps of the swamps that 

 have been surveyed. The lists prepared by Beck and Mather have 

 been frequently quoted and will be found in their reports for 

 1842 and 1843, respectively. They are also quoted by Leavitt^ 

 and Ries,2 and the latter has added an incomplete list of swampa 

 in the Adirondacks and central and western New York. 



PART 5 



Description of important swamps in New York State 



Drowned lands of the Wallkill. Along the Wallkill river is the 

 great swamp, known as the Drowned Lands of the Wallkill, which 

 extends from Sussex N. J. to New Hampton N'. Y. 



The bog varies in width from less than a mile at the state line 

 to 4 or 5 miles near Little island or Durandville. Several islands, 

 made up principally of gravel and undoubtedly of glacial origin, 

 lie within this tract. The principal ones are Pine island, Black 

 Walnut island. Big island and Little island, though other smaller 

 ones occur in various parts. 



The main portion of the swamp is on the east side of the Wall- 

 kill, though on the west side there is a swamp deposit that in 

 some places is nearly a mile wide. The north end of the swamp 

 and most of that portion on the west side of the river have been 

 pastured, so that natural conditions no longer exist. An exten- 

 sive tract extending from Orange Farm to a point about 2 miles 

 north of Pine island has been drained and is used for truck 

 gardening, but by far the greater part of the swamp is in its 

 natural condition. 



The name Drowned Lands may possibly give a mistaken im- 

 pression of the nature of the swamp, as one might imagine that 

 the surface is covered with water and would therefore be almost, 

 if not quite, inaccessible. This however is not at present the 

 case, inasmuch as very few places are covered with water, and 



^ Facts about Peat. p. 124. 



'Uses of Peat and its Occurrence in New York State. 21st Rep't of the 

 State Geologist. 



