7500; and, in 1857, it is estimated at 12,000. The Lake Shore Railroad, running from Chicago to Green Bay, makes a connection with the Racine and Mississippi Road at this place, opening to the city a vast extent of prairie country, depending upon the lake ports for its lumber, of which the shipments, for the first six months of the year 1856, amounted to over 9,000,000 feet, and 4,500,000 shingles, besides fence posts, timber, staves, &c. There are regular lines of steamboats touching at this port, on their way to Buffalo and points on Lake Superior. Three plank roads extend from this city into the interior; one, the Wilmot road, is twenty miles long, and runs southwest, through a rich and fertile country, into the State of Illinois. In 1851, its total imports and exports were $2,507,715; arrivals, 1462.

OZAUKEE is a thriving place on the shore of the lake, thirty-one miles north of Milwaukee. Large quantities of produce are shipped from here in steamboats. It contains several churches, foundries, manufactories, breweries, newspapers, and many stores. The population, in 1853, was 2500; now it has increased to about 5000.

SHEBOYGAN is situated on Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the river of the same name. It is one of the most important and flourishing ports in the State, and exports large quantities of lumber and other articles. In 1851, the value of its imports exceeded $1,400,000. The Milwaukee and Green Bay Railroad passes through the city, and, with its interior roads, and the Fond du Lac Plank Road, have very much increased its prosperity. It already contains churches of seven different denominations, manufactories of various kinds, four newspapers, and bids fair to be one of the largest ports on the lake.

MANITOWOC is a very thriving town on the shore of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the river of its own name.

A

few years ago it was almost unknown; but of late its commerce has increased at a most surprising rate. In 1851, its exports amounted to $77,120, and its imports, $106,721. It will be shortly connected with Milwaukee and Green Bay by the Lake Shore Railroad.

TWO RIVERS, fifteen miles above Manitowoc, is a town of considerable importance. The country adjacent is finely timbered, and furnishes large quantities of lumber for export. Its commerce for 1851 was estimated at about $300,000. The entrances, for the same year, were 822 steam and 192 sail vessels.

GREEN BAY, one of the oldest settlements in the Northwest, is beautifully situated at the mouth of the Fox or Neenah river, exactly at the head of a bay of the same name. In 1855, it contained a population of 1644; and now it is over 4000, being an increase of 2333 in two years. Such has been the immense immigration lately to the country tributary to it, that it has given new life to the place. For many years, Green Bay has been a great mart for fish and lumber, and is now rapidly becoming the largest commercial depot for the internal trade of Wisconsin. There is, at present, uninterrupted steam navigation from this place to the Mississippi, via the Fox River Improvement (steamboats have been through the entire length of this work), which will soon be one of the greatest thoroughfares in the West, and destined to make a great revolution in the present internal trade of the country. Mr. Andrews' reports the commerce of Green Bay, for 1851, to exceed $3,000,000. At present, there are three factories, averaging 100,000 shingles each per week; six sawmills in the city and vicinity, averaging, weekly, about 240,000 feet; within sixty miles there are, on each side of the bay, twenty-four saw-mills (mostly steam), which ave

1 Report on Colonial and Lake Trade.

rage, weekly, about 300,000 feet. The greater part of this lumber is sent to Chicago and Milwaukee for market. There are several railroads in process of construction to this place; one of them, the Lake Shore Road, is partly graded to Manitowoc, thirty miles distant. The city contains many spacious warehouses, fine churches, and elegant residences, and gives promise of great future prosperity.

There are, also, in different parts of the State, large numbers of flourishing towns and villages, of which our limits forbid a mention. In fact, it would be almost an impossibility, so rapidly are these new places springing up. "In many instances, large colonies of German, Norwegian, and other European emigrants, have purchased tracts of land, and built up their villages as if by magic; and the immediate neighbors are even ignorant of their presence, until they behold, with astonishment, the smoke curling over the new settlement."

CHAPTER VII.

DESCRIPTION OF COUNTIES

CENSUS OF THE STATE.

WISCONSIN is divided into fifty-one counties, of which we will give a short description of their soil, natural advantages, &c.

ADAMS lies on the Wisconsin, and is watered by the Lemonwier, and other streams. The soil is admirably adapted for agricultural purposes, and extremely productive. There are many dense forests in this county, from which large quantities of lumber are procured, and rafted down the Wisconsin. Large tracts of excellent land are yet subject to private entry at Government price. Germantown is the county-seat.

BAD AXE takes its name from the river of the same name, which flows through it, and on which the Winnebago Indians, under Black Hawk, met with their final defeat. This county, lying on the Mississippi river, possesses good waterpower, and is partly prairie, interspersed with fine timberland. Viroqua is the county-seat.

BROWN COUNTY, situated at the head of Green Bay, is a beautiful rolling country, interspersed with groves of timber; soil rich and deep, fine for grazing, and all spring crops; good farming lands may be purchased here from $2 to $5 per acre. De Pere is the county-seat. Green Bay, Navarino, and Bridgeport, are flourishing places.

BUFFALO, on the Mississippi river, at the mouth of the Chippewa, contains large quantities of the best farming

lands subject to entry or pre-emption, and is rapidly being settled. It is in the La Crosse Land District, and entries can be made only at that place. Waumandee City is the county-seat.

CALUMET lies on the east side of Lake Winnebago; is generally covered with a heavy growth of hard timber, consisting of oak, maple, &c., and small quantities of pine. It has a fertile soil, and is well watered; owing to its being the residence of the remnants of the Stockbridge and Brothertown Indians, it has made but little progress. It has increased very rapidly, however, the past year.

CHIPPEWA. This county is 91 miles long and 66 wide; it lies in the northern part of the State, and is watered by the river of the same name, and its tributaries. The land is of excellent quality, subject to pre-emption, and containing some of the most valuable pineries in Wisconsin.

COLUMBIA COUNTY is situated nearly in the centre of the most thickly settled part of the State. The soil is good, well watered by the Wisconsin and Fox rivers, but deficient in timber. The land was all entered almost as soon as it was in market. The La Crosse and Milwaukee, and the Milwaukee and Watertown Railroads, pass through this county. Population, in 1850, was 9,565; in 1856, 29,000; an increase, in six years, of 19,435.

CRAWFORD formerly was of great extent, including nearly the whole space northerly from the Wisconsin to the Michigan State line. A few years ago it was reduced to a small territory, containing about 600 square miles. It lies on the Mississippi and Wisconsin variety of soil and diversified scenery. and some copper, have been found. abundance of valuable timber, especially Wisconsin. Much good Government land is yet to be found.

rivers, and has a Quantities of lead, There is also an white pine, on the