The Tioga is a feeder of the eastern branch, and rises north of the mountains, near the boundary of New York; it is navigable for boats 50 miles. The Alleghany rises west of the mountains in the northern part of Pennsylvania, and flows northerly into New York, where it curves to the southwest, and reënters Pennsylvania; it then flows south, till, after a course of 400 miles, it joins the Monongahela below Pittsburg. This last river has its source among the Laurel Mountains, in Virginia, and running north, enters Pennsylvania, and joins the Alleghany at Pittsburg; it is 300 miles in length. Both these rivers have a boat navigation for a great part of their course, and their united waters form the great stream of the Ohio, which, after a short course, passes out of this State. The Youghiogeny is a tributary of the Monongahela, and rises east of the Laurel Mountains, through which it passes, and runs into the Monongahela, 15 miles above Pittsburg. The Ohiopyle Falls are upon this river. 5. Harbors. About 40 miles of the northwestern border of the State lie upon Lake Erie; this extent of coast contains the harbor of Presqu' Isle, or Erie, which affords a good haven for small vessels. 6. Climate. Under this head, Pennsylvania may be regarded as comprising three separate divisions, namely, the eastern slope of the mountains, the mountainous region, and the western slope. In the country east of the mountains, the climate does not differ greatly from that part of New Jersey in the same parallel. Its greater distance from the sea, and somewhat higher level, render the cold of winter in a slight degree more sensible, but the climate may be characterized in general terms as mild and temperate. The mountainous country lies exposed to the chilling northwest winds, and the winter in this part is severe, with deep snows. West of the mountains, the climate becomes milder; here the easterly winds of the Atlantic coast are unknown, and the country is not exposed to the sudden changes which they occasion. The heat of summer is not so great as upon the coast, and the autumn is long, serene, and temperate. 7. Soil. To the east of the mountains, the soil is excellent; in this part, the land is level, and enriched from the washing of the hills and uplands. In the interior, the soil is rocky and barren, with fertile spots in the valleys, and along the borders of the streams. Some of these valleys contain land as rich as any in the State, the soil being generally a black mould two or three feet deep; but among the mountains, it is not well adapted to cultivation. West of the mountains, the country improves, and around the head streams of the Ohio, is generally fertile. 8. Geology and Minerals. Pennsylvania is characterized by the inexhaustible abundance, rather than by the variety, of its useful minerals; iron-ore of several species, lime, marl, sandstone, clays, and slates, serviceable for agriculture, architecture, and other economical purposes, salt, and coal, occur in profusion; but the pretended deposits of silver and tin, lead, zinc, and copper, assigned to various localities, have no existence. By far the greater portion of the rocks belong to the secondary formations of the lower series, only the southeastern section furnishing some members of the transition and primary groups. The rocks of the Blue Ridge, comprising various slates, sandstones, and conglomerates, are referred to the former; east of this extends a newer group of red shales and sandstones, and variegated conglomerates, the prolongation of the belt ranging across New Jersey. Still another portion of this region is occupied by primary rocks of the stratified class, consisting chiefly of micaceous gneiss, mica, talcose, and chlorite slates, limestones, &c. Valuable deposits of magnetic iron-ore here, as elsewhere, characterize the primary strata, and traces of zinc (blende) and copper occur in the red sandstone formation; but the ores are not in sufficient quantity to be workable. The city of Philadelphia is indebted to the limestone beds of this tract for the beautiful marbles which adorn her streets. The rock formation of the great valley west of the Blue Ridge, consists of alternating belts of limestone and slate, occupying a low place in the geological series, and perhaps belonging to the transition group. The limestone is often argillaceous and slaty, generally blue, sometimes fossiliferous, and occasionally assuming the aspect of a marble, either pure white or of a gently variegated hue, with a fine, even fracture, susceptible of a beautiful polish. Some bands yield an excellent hydraulic cement, the usual place of which is near the contact with the slates; hematitic iron ore, which is easily reduced, and yields a large proportion of metal of superior quality, is also plentifully associated with these limestones. Some of the slate strata afford quarries of good roofing and writing slates. The vast tract west of the Blue Mountains is divided by the Alleghany ridge into two strongly marked regions, of widely different aspect and geological structure; that on the east, comprising the various chains of the Kittatinny group, consists of numerous alternating strata of limestones, slates, shales, and sandstones, which have been broken up and thrown into great disorder, generally tossed into highly inclinea positions, and often so much tilted up as to become perpendicular. The valleys of this region are valleys of elevation. West of that range, on the other hand, the rock strata preserve a nearly undisturbed horizontal position; but they have been cut through, and partially washed away by the action of water, so that only isolated patches of what once formed a continuous platform now remain, capping the summits of the loftier table lands, and separated by wide and deep valleys of denudation. The former of these regions contains vast deposits of anthracite, and some patches of bituminous coal; the latter is richly stored with bituminous coals and salt, and both contain inexhaustible quantities of iron-ore. Geologists have generally referred the coal-measures of the Kittatinny region to the transition. formation, but the State geologist assigns to all the coal-measures of the State the same position in the series, placing the anthracite and likewise the coal of Broad Top in a position strictly equivalent to that occupied by the carboniferous strata west of the Alleghany Mountains. The anthracite or non-bituminous coal is distributed in enormous quantities in three great fields, in a tract lying east of the Susquehanna, between the Blue Mountain and the North Branch, and extending eastward, to the Lehigh on the south, and nearly to the head of the Lackawannock on the north. The first, or Mauch Chunk, Schuylkill, and Lyken's Valley coal-field, extends from the Coal Mining. Lehigh, across the head branches of the Schuylkill, to Wiconisco Creek, in Dauphin county, being about 65 miles in length and about 5 of average breadth, having Broad Mountain on the north, and Sharp Mountain on the south; there are above 100 miles of railroads within this field, which is worked at both ends and in the middle, and at present yields annually about 500,000 tons, which are brought to market by the Lehigh, the Schuylkill, and the Susquehanna. The Lehigh or Mauch Chunk coal, which is procured from the northern end of the field, is somewhat heavier, harder, and more difficult of ignition than that from the southern portion, and it leaves white ashes on burning; it is highly prized for purposes requiring an intense and lasting heat, especially in the close-drawing or chemical furnace for warming buildings. The summit-mine, near Mauch Chunk, is an open colliery, the stupendous masses of coal being laid open by removing the soil and loose materials, and worked precisely like a quarry; the thickness of the beds varies from 12 or 20 to 35 and even 60 feet. The Room Run mines, in the same vicinity, have been more recently opened, and are found to contain 18 coal-seams of from 5 to 40 feet thick, presenting a total thickness of 240 feet. The Schuylkill coals, or those nearer the centre of the field, burn more freely and are more easily ignited than the Lehigh mineral, and generally leave a residuum of red ashes; there are upwards of 60 seams, some of which are from 25 to 30 feet thick. Here mining operations are carried on more largely than in any other portion of this field. The second coal-field lies north of the Broad Mountain; it is known as the Beaver Meadow, Shamokin, or Mahanoy field, but being buried behind dense chains of mountains, and having no direct southern outlet, it has been less thoroughly explored than the former; it is known, however, to contain coal seams of 20, 30, and even 50 feet thick, and it is worked at the northern extremity, where the Quakake Creek affords to the Beaver Meadow mines an outlet to the Lehigh, and towards the western, where the Mahanoy Creek renders a similar service. The third and last field is the Wyoming and Lackawanna coal-field, which occupies a long valley or trough of about the same extent as the others, extending from Carbondale, on the Lackawannock, to 10 miles below Wilkesbarre, on the Susquehanna. The beds are very numerous, varying from 1 to 30 feet in thickness, and are generally more accessible than those of the other fields. The northeastern extremity has been connected with the Hudson by the Delaware and Hudson Canal and the Carbondale Railroad, and has thus readier access to the eastern markets. The Lackawanna and Wyoming coals are of the harder variety, more difficult of ignition than the Schuylkill coals, but yielding an intense, durable heat. Quantity of Anthracite brought to Market from 1830 to 1838. The southwestern part of this geological region contains bituminous coal of good quality; the coal-seams of Broad Top Mountain and of Will's Mountain are about 6 feet in thickness, but they have yet been little worked. Salt springs also occur in this section. Iron-ore is abundant through the whole tract between the Blue Mountain and the Alleghany, and is generally found in the limestones, but it occurs also in some of the slates; some of the deposits are of enormous thickness. The ores are hematites and hydrates, some being of the variety called pipe-ore, which is easily smelted, and yields a high percentage of excellent metal. The portion of the State west of the Alleghany escarpment, forms the northwestern angle of the vast bituminous coal formation, which occupies a large part of the Mississippi Valley. As the rocks have a general dip towards the west, the coal-fields of the eastern part occupy only the more elevated spots, and they occur in detached basins; such are the Towanda, Blossburg, Wellsboro, and Lycoming Creek basins, which once formed continuous beds, but are now insulated by the wearing down of the surface of the ancient table-lands, and the washing away of the intermediate portions of the coal-beds. The seams here are commonly five in number, comprised within a thickness of from 100 to 150 feet; about three of these are of sufficient thickness to be worked, averaging about three feet. Further west, the coal is found in almost every county, in vast fields, often presenting numerous seams lying one above another, in the cliffs of the ravines and river-valleys. The annual consumption in Pittsburg is about 250,000 chaldrons; about 150,000 are used at the salt-works on the Alleghany, Kiskiminetas, Monongahela, &c., and a good deal is carried down the Ohio and Mississippi. Rich deposits of nodular argillaceous iron-ore are extensively distributed throughout this region, associated with beds of limestone and seams of coal, offering every facility for its conversion into metal Salt is also extensively diffused in brine-springs, and is advantageously manufactured at various localities; the sandstones and shales from which the brine is drawn, are of more recent date than those of the New York springs, belonging to the carboniferous series. The quantity an nually produced here is estimated at 1,000,000 bushels. Petroleum or Seneca oil, and carbu retted hydrogen, appear in many places; sulphur, and alum, saltpetre, and copperas earths occur 9. Mineral Springs. The Bedford Springs, near the town of that name, among the moun tains in the south of the State, were discovered in 1804. They arise from a limestone rock at the foot of a mountain. The water is cold, odorless, soft, and agreeable to the taste; it is charged with iron, magnesia, and lime, and is efficacious in removing cutaneous and chronic complaints. There are several salt springs in the State, which are noticed under the head of minerals. 10. Caves. In the Laurel Mountain, is a cavern with a very narrow entrance, and various winding passages, which has been traversed two miles. It is formed of a soft sandstone, and its roof is covered with millions of bats. At Durham, in Bucks county, on the Delaware, is a cave in the limestone rock, abounding with pools and rivulets of water. At Carlisle, is another, somewhat similar, in which human bones have been discovered, probably of the aborigines. 11. Vegetable Productions. In this respect, Pennsylvania differs little from the interior of New York. The forests which cover so large a portion of the State, furnish immense quantities of timber trees. 12. Face of the Country. The level district on the east of the mountains is but a small proportion of the whole State. The mountainous country may be described as an elevated tableland, surmounted by numerous parallel ridges. The country west of the mountains is comparatively leve' 2. Canals. The State works, begun in 1825, comprise a series of railroads and canals extending across the country from tide-water to the Ohio, and branching off in different directions, to almost every section of the State; they embrace 810 miles of canals, and 118 miles of railroad, executed at a cost of about 25,000,000 dollars. The Grand Trunk extends from Philadelphia to Pittsburg, a distance by this route of 400 miles. The first division of the work is a railroad from Philadelphia to Columbia, on the Susquehanna, 81 miles; here the canal begins, and is continued up the Susquehanna and the Juniata to Holidaysburg, 172 miles, part of which distance is occupied by pools; the rise and fall in this section is 748 feet, and the summit at Holidaysburg is 684 feet above Columbia; the canal is 40 feet wide at top and 4 feet deep; locks, 111; dams, 18; aqueducts, 33. The Alleghany ridge is then surmounted by the Alleghany Portage Railroad, 37 miles in length, with a total rise and fall of 2,570 feet the road comprises 10 inclined planes, about 4 miles in length, passed by stationary steamengines; the summit level is 2,325 feet above the sea; cost, including 3 locomotives, 1,749,500 dollars. There is a tunnel on this road 870 feet long, 20 feet high, and 16 feet wide, cut through the solid rock, 200 feet below the top of the hill. At Johnstown, the western section of the canal begins, and is continued down the Conemaugh or Kiskiminetas and Alleghany to Pittsburg, 104 miles, with a total lockage of 471 feet; locks, 64; dams, 10; aqueducts, 16. The Delaware Branch of the Pennsylvania Canal extends from Easton to Bristol, on the right bank of the river, 60 miles, with a descent of 170 feet. The Susquehanna division extends up the Susquehanna and the North Branch, from the mouth of the Juniata to that of the Lackawannock, 115 miles, and the continuation to the northern boundary line is now in progress. The West Branch division runs from Northumberland up the West Branch of the Susquehanna to Farrandsville, 73 miles. A continuation of this section to the Alleghany, forming an uninterrupted water communication across the mountains, is contemplated. The French Creek division extends up the river of that name from Franklin, at its mouth, to Meadville and the Conneaut Lake; total length, 46 miles. The Beaver Branch, from the Ohio to Newcastle on the Shenango, is 30 miles long. Receipts from the Public Works in 1835, 1836, and 1837. The canals executed by companies are as follows: The Mahoning or Pennsylvania and Ohio Canal, connecting the Beaver division of the Pennsylvania works with the Ohio Canal at Akron, and the Sandy and Beaver Canal, connecting the same works through the valleys of the Little Beaver and Sandy rivers, are principally in Ohio. The Lackawaxen Canal, extending from the Delaware, at the mouth of the river of that name, to Honesdale, 25 miles, is a continuation of the Delaware and Hudson Canal, and is itself connected with the Lackawanna coal-field by the Carbondale Railroad, 16 miles in length. The Lehigh Navigation consists of a series of canals and slack-water pools, produced by dams; length of the works to Whitehaven, 66 miles. The Mauch Chunk, Room Run, and Beaver Meadow railroads, connect this work with the first and second coal-fields. The Delaware division of the Pennsylvania Canal, and the Morris Canal through New Jersey, continue the navigation to Philadelphia and New York; tolls received in the first half of the year 1837 (to August 1st), 85,000 dollars. In a portion of this work the locks have a lift of from 20 to 30 feet, and are passed in the same time as locks of the ordinary lift; there are 29 locks of this construction, equivalent to 75 locks of 8 feet lift, making a saving of 4 hours in the distance of 20 miles. The lower portion of the work, executed at a cost of 1,560,000 dollars, comprises 9 dams and 54 locks, with a rise of 365 feet; width, 60 feet; depth, 5 feet. The Schuylkill Navigation is of a similar character to the Lehigh, and it connects the central part of the first coal-field with tidewater at Philadelphia; length, 108 miles, 36 feet wide at top, and 31⁄2 feet deep; 129 locks, with a rise of 610 feet; 34 dams; and a tunnel 385 feet in length. The coal in 1836 was brought to the canal by the following railroads : Danville and Pottsville (from Girard mines in second field), Tons. 13,347 122,892 Schuylkill Valley (from Port Carbon to Tuscarora, with branches, 25 miles), 55,921 Mill Creek (from Port Carbon up Mill Creek, with branches, 7 miles), 56,583 Little Schuylkill (Port Clinton to Tamaqua, 23 miles), West Branch (Schuylkill Haven to Nine Hill Gap, with branches, 20 miles), 115,992 Other sources, 35,159 Total, 49,890 449,784 The Union Canal connects the Schuylkill at Reading with the Susquehanna at Middletown, 82 miles; 93 lift and 2 guard-locks, with a lockage of 520 feet, 14 aqueducts, 1 tunnel 730 feet in length; breadth at top, 36 feet; depth, 4 feet. It affords, with the Schuylkill and the Pennsylvania Canals, an uninterrupted navigation from Philadelphia to the Lackawanna, Farrandsville, and Holidaysburg. A navigable feeder runs up the Swatara to Pine Grove, 23 miles, whence there is a railroad 4 miles in length to the coal mines of the first coal-field. The Conestoga Navigation extends from Lancaster to the Susquehanna, 18 miles, and the Codorus Navigation from York to the same river, 11 miles. The Susquehanna Canal, extending from Columbia down the river to Port Deposit, connects the great works above with the Chesapeake Bay; length, 40 miles. The Nescopeck Canal is designed to connect the Lehigh Canal at Whitehaven with the State works by the valley of the Nescopeck, and the Bald Eagle Navigation, 25 miles, facilitates access to the great iron and coal deposits of that region. 3. Railroads. The principal railroads, exclusive of those made by the State, and those in the coal region, which have been above enumerated, are as follows: The Philadelphia and Trenton Railroad, connecting those two cities, 26 miles in length, forms a link in the continuous line of railroad from Washington to New York. The Philadelphia and Wilmington Railroad, of which 17 miles is within this State, makes the southern continuation of this line. The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad runs up the valley of the Schuylkill 56 miles; there is a tunnel cut through the solid rock 1,932 feet in length, 19 feet wide, and 17 high. A continuation of this road extends to Port Clinton, 20 miles, and from that point the Little Schuylkill Railroad extends 20 miles to Tamaqua. From Tamaqua, the Susquehanna and Little Schuylkill Railroad extends to Catawissa on the former river, 38 miles. The Central or Dansville and Pottsville Railroad, from Pottsville to Sunbury, is 44 miles long, with a branch to Danville, 7 miles in length; on this road there are several self-acting planes, and a tunnel 800 feet in length. The Lancaster and Harrisburg Railroad leaves the Columbia railroad near Lancaster, and extends to Harrisburg, 37 miles. The Westchester Railroad connects that village with the Columbia Railroad, and is 9 miles long. The Cumberland Valley |