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Notes on Early Lead Mining in the Fever (or Galena) River Region
Page 271;
I634-]       NOTES ON EARLY LEAD MINING. 27I
NOTES ON EARLY LEAD MINING IN THE FEVER (OR GALENA) RIVER REGION/
BY THE EDITOR.
No evidence exists, nor is it probable, that the aborig¬ inal inhabitants of the Upper Mississippi valley made any- considerable use of lead previous to the appearance among them of French missionaries, explorers, and fur-traders. The French were continually on the search for beds of mineral, and questioned the Indians very closely regard¬ ing their probable whereabouts. The savages, although superstitious with regard to minerals, appear soon to have made known to the whites the deposits of lead in the tract which now embraces the counties of Grant, Iowa, and La Fayette, in Wisconsin; Jo Daviess and Carroll counties in Illinois; Dubuque county, in Iowa, and portions of eastern Missouri. Undbubtedly this is one of the richest lead- bearing regions in the world, and when once brought to the notice of the pioneers of New France its fame became widespread. The French introduced fire-arms among the Northwestern Indians, and induced them to hunt, on a large scale, fur-bearing animals; thus lead at once assumed a value in the eyes of the latter, both for use as bullets in their own weapons, and as an article of traffic with the traders.
^Not presented as a formal treatise upon this interesting subject. I have but thrown together in outline, as useful material for those who may wish to develop it, these rough notes on early lead mining in the Fever (or Galena) River region, the result of a somewhat protracted in¬ vestigation, which has not, however, been carried to its utmost possi¬ bilities. The field is an interesting one, and deserves to be fully worked, in an historical monograph. An abstract of these notes ap¬ peared in the Report of the American Historical Association for 1893.
Page Title Notes on Early Lead Mining in the Fever (or Galena) River Region
Author Thwaites, Reuben Gold, 1853-1913
Place of Publication Madison, Wis.
Source Publisher State Historical Society of Wisconsin
Source Creation Date 1895
Digital Identifier TP162000
Description Mining of lead in southwestern Wisconsin can be traced back to at least 1670. These notes by the Society's second director are a chronological summary of sources describing lead mining before the great boom of the 1830's. Though not strictly an eyewitness account, this review article quotes from most of the early primary sources and cites where they can be found in full, so was thought worth including here
Owner Wisconsin Historical Society Library
Recommended Citation Thwaites, Reuben Gold. "Notes on Early Lead Mining in the Fever (or Galena) River Region" Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, vol. 13 (Madison, 1895): 271-292. Online facsimile at http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/search.asp?id=896
Document Number TP162
Size p. 271-292 ; 23 cm.
URL http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/search.asp?id=896
Owner Collection Stacks
Owner Object ID F576 .W81 vol.13
Series Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin ; v. 13
County Dane County; Grant County; Iowa County; Lafayette County; Sauk County
City Blue Mounds; Prairie du Chien; Prairie du Sac;
State/Province Wisconsin; Illinois; Iowa; Missouri
Race and Ethnicity British Americans; French Americans; Native Americans
Sub-Topic Arrival of the First Europeans; Lead Mining in Southwestern Wisconsin
Event Years 1634-1847
Topography Mines and mineral resources; Rivers
Manufacturing and Industry Lead mines and mining
Indian Tribe Ho-Chunk;
Page Title Page 271;
Size 23 cm.
Full Text I634-] NOTES ON EARLY LEAD MINING. 27I NOTES ON EARLY LEAD MINING IN THE FEVER (OR GALENA) RIVER REGION/ BY THE EDITOR. No evidence exists, nor is it probable, that the aborig¬ inal inhabitants of the Upper Mississippi valley made any- considerable use of lead previous to the appearance among them of French missionaries, explorers, and fur-traders. The French were continually on the search for beds of mineral, and questioned the Indians very closely regard¬ ing their probable whereabouts. The savages, although superstitious with regard to minerals, appear soon to have made known to the whites the deposits of lead in the tract which now embraces the counties of Grant, Iowa, and La Fayette, in Wisconsin; Jo Daviess and Carroll counties in Illinois; Dubuque county, in Iowa, and portions of eastern Missouri. Undbubtedly this is one of the richest lead- bearing regions in the world, and when once brought to the notice of the pioneers of New France its fame became widespread. The French introduced fire-arms among the Northwestern Indians, and induced them to hunt, on a large scale, fur-bearing animals; thus lead at once assumed a value in the eyes of the latter, both for use as bullets in their own weapons, and as an article of traffic with the traders. ^Not presented as a formal treatise upon this interesting subject. I have but thrown together in outline, as useful material for those who may wish to develop it, these rough notes on early lead mining in the Fever (or Galena) River region, the result of a somewhat protracted in¬ vestigation, which has not, however, been carried to its utmost possi¬ bilities. The field is an interesting one, and deserves to be fully worked, in an historical monograph. An abstract of these notes ap¬ peared in the Report of the American Historical Association for 1893.
Notes on Early Lead Mining in the Fever (or Galena) River...
Notes on Early Lead Mining