GUERNSEY COUNTY (OHIO) METEORITES. 



(Fell May 1, 1860.) 



These meteorites were first called Concord meteorites, as the 

 one first described was found near the village New Concord; 

 but I have thought proper to call them the Guernsey County 

 meteorites, since we are commonly in the habit of distinguishing 

 the meteorites found in this country by the name of the county 

 in which they fell or were found. All but one of the great 

 number of meteoric stones that fell on this occasion were found 

 in Guernsey County, and that exceptional specimen fell in Mus- 

 kingum, on the edge of Guernsey County. 



This fall of meteorites was the most remarkable ever observed 

 in this country, and equal to, if not surpassing, the famous fall 

 at l'Aigle, in France, with which it has many points of interest 

 in common that will be stated in the course of this paper. 



My attention was first directed to this occurrence, by a short 

 notice of it in a newspaper, as being an earthquake that had 

 occurred in eastern Ohio, accompanied with a shower of stones. 

 Suspecting the true nature of the phenomenon, I immediately 

 visited the spot where it was said to have occurred, and col- 

 lected the statements of those persons who had witnessed the 

 fall. It was ascertained that on Tuesday, May 1, 1860, re- 

 markable phenomena transpired in the heavens, of which the 

 following are accounts given by different observers, men of 

 intelligence and observation. 



Mr. McClenahan states that at Cambridge, in Guernsey 

 County, Ohio (lat. 40° 4', long. 81° 35'), about twenty minutes 

 before one o'clock p.m., three or four distinct explosions were 

 heard, like the firing of heavy cannon, with an interval of a 

 second or two between each report. This was followed by 

 sounds like the firing of musketry in quick succession, which 

 ended with a rumbling noise like distant thunder, except that 

 it continued with about the same degree of intensity until it 



