98 W. H. HOBBS — METEORITE FROM ALGOMA, WISCONSIN 



post-office, Ah napee township, Kewaunee county, Wisconsin. The man 

 who w^as guiding the plow noticed the heavy metal as it was turned up 

 by the plow from the depth of but a few inches. Mr Richard Runke, son 

 of the farmer, was present and reports that the hired man placed the 

 object upon a large stone and struck it a number of blows with another 

 stone used as a sledge, in an attempt to break it. The evidence of this 

 maltreatment it bears in a series of dents, especially upon its convex sur- 

 face (« a, figure 1 ; see also plate 8). Subsequent!}^ it was vigorously 

 attacked with cold chisel and hammer (see especially the groove upon 

 its concave side, plate 4). A curiosity merely, the Algoma iron remained 

 about the farm on which it was found until March of the present year 

 (1902), when Mr Richard Runke, now a graduate of the University of 

 Wisconsin and teacher of science in the Madison High School, brought 

 it to the writer for examination. On being told that it was a meteorite 

 and of considerable scientific value Mr Runke very generously presented 

 it to the university. 



The spot at which the meteorite was plowed up can be located within 

 a few feet, because of its proximit}" to a large pile of boulders upon the 

 lot. Mr Runke has made some search in the vicinity and has also made 

 extensive inquiries among the neighbors, but as yet with no positive 

 results. As will be shown below, there was reason to think that frag- 

 ments might exist in the vicinity and the search was continued with the 

 aid of dial compass and dip needle, but without success. 



Size and Shape 



Instead of the usual irregular form or the paraboloid shape of some 

 oriented meteorites (Hraschina, Allegan, Long Island), the Algoma 

 iron is almost unique in having a discoid or shield-like form. In the 

 surface of greatest extension the outline is roughly elliptical, with major 

 and minor axes 25 and 16* centimeters. From a thickness of about 2^ 

 centimeters near the geometric center the disc varies irregularl3^ gener- 

 all}^ to smaller values and locall}^ even to a knife edge at and near the 

 circumference (see plate 6, figure 1). The convex surface in the plane 

 of the minor axis of its outline and its normal has a radius of curvature 

 of about 21 centimeters and the concave surface a considerably larger 

 value, about 32 centimeters. The two broad surfaces are spoken of as 

 the convex and concave surface respectivel3% because the former invari- 

 ably recedes near its margin (though concave at one place and in one 

 plane near its center). The other surface is more nearly concave than 



