GEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF OHIO J. A. BOWNOCKER, State Geologist FOURTH SERIES, BULLETIN 27 FOR USE IN SCHOOLS GEOGRAPHY OF OHIO By RODERICK PEATIIE, Ph. D., ASSISTANT PROFESSOR CF GEOLOGY, THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY COLUMBUS 1923 • Blank Page TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Introduction ________ ~_______________________________________________ __ _ _ _ _ _ 1 CHAPTFR I-SURFACE FEATURES AND SOILS Relief_ _______________________________________________________ _: __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 3 Glacial plains______________________________________________________________ 4 Hill country_______________________________________________________________ 6 Physical history___________________________________________________________ 9 Soils_______________________________________________________________________ 11 CHAPTER II-CLIM-A-TE Controls of climate __________________________________________________ ~______ 15 Temperature_______________________________________________________________ 16 Precipitation ___ ~----------------------------------------------------------- 19 \Vinds_____________________________________________________________________ 21 Dat.a for Columbus_________________________________________________________ 22 \Veatherand crops_________________________________________________________ 24 Floods ______________________________________________________ .. _________ c- _ _ _ 24 Droughts__________________________________________________________________ 27 Natural vegetation_________________________________________________________ 27 CHAPTER III-AGRICULTURE Extent of cultivation ____________ "_________________________________________ 29 Cereals __________ . __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 34 Hay and grass_~___________________________________________________________ 40 Fruits_____________________________________________________________________ 41 Other crops________________________________________________________________ 43 Stock raising and dairying ___________________________________________ ~______ 45 The role of glaciation __________ --------------------------------------______ 50 Farm values---------------------------~----------------------------------- 53 Early conditions of agriculture ____________________________________________ ._ 55 Rural conditions today __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 56 CHAPTER IV-MINERAL RESOURCES Introduction-------------------------------------------------------------~- 61 Peat _______________ : _____________________ ·__________________________________ 63 Coal _______________________________________________ ----------------------- 64 Iron ore___________________________________________________________________ 69 Oil and gas________________________________________________________________ 70 Salt_______________________________________________________________________ 75 Gypsum _________ ~--------------------------------------------------------- 77 Industrial limestone________________________________________________________ 77 Cement_ ____________ ~ ___________________________________ -~___ __ _ _ _ __ __ _ _ _ _ _ 79 Lime______________________________________________________________________ 80 Building stone_· _________ i ___________________ '_ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ __ _ _ _ _ _ __ __ _ _ _ _ __ __ 80 Abrasives__________________________________________________________________ 82 Sand and gravel ____________________ :_______________________________________ 82 Clays and shales___________________________________________________________ 83 Mineral wa t.ers __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 86 (III) IV GEOGRAPHY OF OHIO CHAPTER V-TRANSPORTATION AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF INDUSTRIES rage Effect of early isolation upon industry________________________________________ 87 River traffic_____________________________________________________ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 89 Zane's Trace and tli'e National Highway____________________________________ 92 The canals_________________________________________________________________ 97 Iron manufacture and the influence of the lakes______________________________ 102 The railways_______________________________________________________________ 105 Clay industries_____________________________________________________________ - 107 Recent aspects of transportation____________________________________________ 108 CHAPTER VI-SETTLEMENT AND DEVELOPMENT The importance of position________________________________________________ _ l ll Conditions of Indian life_____________________________________________________ ll2 Early settlements and their settlers_________________________________________ ua The growth of the State_____________________________________________________ ll6 The character of the present population_____________________________________ 11~ The industrial growth_______________________________________________________ 121 The Cincinnati district_____________________________________________________ 125 • TABLE OF CONTENTS v ILLlJSTRATIONS PLATES Facing page I. A-Hill country, Monroe County ___ _ _ __ _ _______________ . __ __ ___ _ __ 42 B-Valley of :Muskingum River, Muskingum County. II. A-l\fining coal, Belmont County____________________________________ 68 B--Tipple for screening and loading coal, Belmont County. III. A-Oil field, Fairfield County__________ ----------------------------- 74 B-Tank form for storing oil, Fairfield County. IV.. A-Interior view of old salt furnace, Morgan County___________________ 82 B-Cutting pulp stone, Columbiana County. V. A-Remains of old iron furnace, Jackson County ___________ .___________ 90 B··-lVIodem iron furnace, Columbus. VI. A-Canal boat, Dayton__ --------------------- ---------------- 100 B-Canal at present, Tuscarawas County. VII. A-Ohio River at Sciotoville, Scioto County ------------------------ 108 B-Gorge of Licking River, Licking County. VIII. A-Shale pit, Licking County_______ _____ -------------------- ll8 B-Brick plant, Tuscarawas County. FIGURES Page 1. Physiographic pr9vinces____ _________ ------------------- 3 2. Contour map of portion of till plain------------ --------------------- 5 3. Contour map of portion of lake plain----------------------------------- 6 4. Contour map of portion of unglaciated plateau-------------------------- 7 5. Contour map of portion of glaciated plateau---------------------------- 9 6. Soil map ______ . ___________________________ .. __________________________ 11 7. Mean annual temperature_______________ --------------------------- 15 8. Annual temperature range _____ _____________ . _____ • _ ____ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ __ _ 17 0 9. l\lean last killing frost in spring________________________________________ 18 10. :\:Iean first killing frost in autumn_ ------------------------------------ 19 11. Length of growing Eeason_ _ __ __ _ _ ___ __ _ _ ________ _. _ _ __ _ _ __ _ ____ 20 12. Mean annual precipitation __ --------------------- ----------------- 21 13. Annual march of precipitation at Columbus_____________________________ 22 H. lmprovi:ment and value of farm lands _______________________ ~----------- 29 li.i. Acreage devoted to com in 1919__ __ _ __ __ __ __ _ __ ___ __ __ __ __ _ __ _ _ __ _ __ ___ 35 16. Acreage devoted to wheat in 1919_______________ --------------------- 37 17. Acreage devoted to oats iaJ 1919________________________________________ 39 18. Distrib,1tion of beef and dairy cattle in 1920____________________________ 47 19. Distribution of dairy receipts in 1919----------------------------------- 49 20. Geological map _________________ -------- ------------------------- ___ 63 ·"- 21. Coal fields, coal tovn1s, and clay towns ______ -------------------------- 66 --._ 22. Oil, gas, and salt fields________ --------------------------- 72 23. Limestone and gypsum_______ ----------------------- 78 24. Zane's Trace, the; National Highwa}, and the canals____________________ 94 25. Contour map ahout FindlaY------------------------------------------- 115 26. Contour map about Marietta___________________________________________ 117 27. Distribution of urban centers ______________________ -------------------- 120 ""-.. 2.'~. Distribution of rural population in 180()__ ______ ------------ _ -,----- 123 • ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author owes acknowledgment to many of his colleagues of the Geological Survey and Ohio State University. The.detailed knowledge of the Sbte possessed by Dr. John A. Bownocker, the State Geologist, and the fine criticism of Professor Eugene Van Cleef, a colleague in geography, have been invaluable. Other acknowledgments are made at the ends of the chapters with which various specialists have rendered assistance. (VI) • INTRODUCTION There is little about Ohio that is surprising. On the other hand, there is much that is interesting and a great deal that is unknown or little appreciated. Nf'arly square in shape, of uniform and moderate climate throughout, having no area without a rich natural endowment, its 40,740 square miles support some 5,759,394 people in harmony and prosperity. With the exception of the southeastern part of the State, communication is of uniform simplicity, hut even in that hilly section the mineral resources have supported the construction of railways. The shape of the State, the ease of c::nnmunication, the reasonably equal distribution of natural resources of one sort or another bring the five million and more people into relations with each