gravel and yellow loam, tolerably free from stone; a great portion of it, if not the whole, is arable land, when cleared and prepared for cultivation. It is better adapted to grass than to grain, although good crops of oats, barley and other coarse grain have been raised on it; like other high ground, it is subject to late and early frosts, and in winter, to heavy falls of snow; the climate is healthy, and the water and air pure. The waters from the summit of this ridge flow to the north-west and north into lake Erie, Niagara river, and Genesee river, and to the south and south-east into the Allegany river, although a few small streams at its eastern extremity, fall into Genesee river, yet the whole territory, south and south-east of the dividing ridge may well be termed the valley of the Allegany.

That part of this valley lying north of the Allegany river, is hilly and rolling, but not mountainous; it is well watered by crystal springs and purling streams; the timber is beech, sugar maple, pine, cherry, elm, black oak, hemlock, basswood, white ash, and cucumber: the soil in general, is gravelly or sandy loam, containing no limestone, and very few stone of any kind; stone quarries, however, are to be found scattered through the whole territory: it is well adapted to the growth of barley, oats, peas, flax, potatoes, and various other esculent roots; and has produced tolerable crops of spring wheat, rye and corn; and the hardier kinds of fruit, such as apples, pears, and cherries are cultivated with success in this district. The climate is rather mild, and the snows seldom fall over one or two feet deep; but the summer season is usually from two to three weeks shorter than it is in the vicinity of the lakes, north of the dividing ridge; the water and air of this district are pure and salubrious.

The territory south of the Allegany river, is mostly rough, covered by precipitous, rocky hills of considerable height, some portions of it, such as the flats on the streams and less rugged borders, are, or rather were covered with excellent pine timber; much of the land thus timbered, is arable and fertile, after being brought to a state of cultivation, although in a cold climate; but by far the greater portion of the whole, is sterile, waste land or rocks covered at the interstices with mountain laurel, dwarf pines and other evergreen shrubs.

The narrow glade of land between the dividing ridge and lake Erie, from Cattaraugus creek to the Pennsylvania line, gradually descends from the termination of the ridge to the lake shore; the

soil is gravelly or sandy loam, timbered with beach, sugar maple, whitewood, basswood, hemlock, and some pine; yielding abundant crops of grass, wheat, rye, corn, oats, barley and the several kinds of esculent roots and vines produced in this region. It is well watered with springs and numerous streams descending from the dividing ridge; although the earth is calcarious, there is no lime stone in this region, and very few stone of any kind, except in quarries. The climate is not severe, although subject to sudden changes, being in a great degree controlled by the vacillating lake. winds. Apples, peaches, pears, plums and similar fruits are produced in great abundance on this territory. The lake shore furnishes several small harbors, as Silver Creek, Dunkirk, Van Buren and Barcelona.

The country north of the dividing ridge, including the head waters of Cattaraugus, Eighteen Mile of Lake Erie, Buffalo, Tonawanda and Allan's Creeks, forms another district, possessing great uniformity of character. This is a rolling country, well watered with pure water: the timber is beech, sugar maple, elm, basswood, cherry, white ash and hemlock; the soil is gravelly loam, with clay in some sections, containing no lime stone, nor a surplus of any kind of stone. It produces good grass, and at least middling crops of most kinds of grain and esculent roots raised on the Purchase; winter wheat is probably the only exception, for which spring wheat is substituted; of fruits, apples, pears, cherries and a variety of plums are grown in this district. The climate is generally mild and salubrious, the snow is seldom deep, and the summer season, usually is long enough to bring crops to maturity: this may be called the central district.

The territory north of the central district and south of the steep which causes the falls of Niagara, including the vallies or plains of the Buffalo and Tonawanda creeks, and the head waters of the Oak Orchard, forms another district the face of which although somewhat rolling, is comparatively level, and as a whole, forms a glade of upland heavily timbered with beech, sugar maple, white oak, elm, whitewood, basswood, chestnut, cherry, white ash and hemlock, although it contains some districts of openings, thinly occupied by shrubby oaks and some of swamps and swales, timbered with black ash, white cedar and other lowland timber, of which the chief is Tonawanda swamp stretching itself in a kind of broken chain from near the Niagara river, two or three miles north of the mouth

of Tonawanda creek in an eastern direction to the Genesee river, south of Rochester, where it is called "black creek swamp." This territory is not as well watered as the other districts described: the prevailing winds are from the south-west or rather south of west from the surface of lake Erie, which renders the air pure and salubrious. This is a limestone district: the soil in general, is a calcarious gravelly or sandy loam, covered generally with rich vegetable mould, and easily cultivated; it produces in great abundance, grains of the various kinds, wheat, rye, corn, oats, barley, &c. including all the different kinds of grain, esculent roots, melons and other vegetable productions of Western New York. The climate is milder, and the summer season continues longer, exempt from frosts than in the more southern districts of the Purchase, on account of its less elevated situation, and its contiguity to the lakes. The soil and climate combined renders this district very productive in almost all the fruits raised in the temperate zone, among which, are apples, pears, cherries, peaches, apricots, plums and grapes of various kinds; perhaps the productions of the soil in no country on earth yield a greater variety and at the same time so great an abundance of the substantials, delicacies and luxuries for food and refreshment as this territory.

The territory lying north of the Niagara steep, forms the lower plateau of the Purchase. This district is poorly watered, when compared with the southern and middle districts, although it has many fine streams passing through it, emptying into lake Ontario. These are the main bodies of the Eighteen, of Lake Ontario, and Oak Orchard creeks, the Four Mile, Twelve Mile, Golden Hill, Johnson's, Otter, and Marsh creeks, and the head waters of a branch of Sandy creek. This district is divided near its centre by the Ridge Road running through it in an eastern and western direction. The face of the country is apparently level, although it gradually descends to the north towards lake Ontario. South of the Ridge Road the soil is gravelly loam, interspersed with considerable tracts of alluvion near the Niagara steep. The soil on the north side of the Ridge Road is of a lighter loam than on the south. The timber on this tract, is beech, sugar maple, white oak, black walnut, elm, whitewood, basswood, white ash, and hemlock; black walnut abounds the most on the south side of the Ridge Road, and white oak the most on the north. Although there is no limestone north of the Niagara steep, or mountain ridge, that the soil is cal

carious, that is, impregnated with lime, is fully proved by the large crops of plump and perfect wheat produced on this plateau. The productions of the soil, and the climate, are so similar to those of the second or upper plateau, that an enumeration of their items, and statement of their qualities would be a mere repetition. If any distinction was to be made, it might be alledged that the productions of the soil on the lower plateau are not quite so diversified, and that the climate is more mild and uniform than on the upper. For the productions of the several portions or districts of the territory, as experimentally ascertained, both as to kind and quantity, see statistics of the several counties accompanying the maps.

GENESEE COUNTY

This having been the Pioneer county, or rather the old hive from which counties have swarmed, a sketch of its organization has occurred in the course of our narrative. It remains but to add some statistics-such as it is intended shall accompany the map of each county-which taken collectively, will in a distinct form, enable the reader to ascertain the population and vast resources of the Holland Purchase in 1845; and to estimate them, by a ratio of increase, in 1849. The district of country embraced in the Holland Purchase, may date the commencement of its settlement, in 1799. Upon a comparison of the statistics that will be given, with those of other portions of the United States, it will be found, that no where, has there been as much consummated in a half century, in population, resources, wealth and improvement; and that too, as will have been seen, under early disadvantages, such as have no where been exceeded:

That part of the county of Genesee included within the Holland Purchase, lies principally on the second terrace, although the south part occupies a portion of the central district as described in the topography of the Purchase. It contains about 219,520 acres of land, 127,508 acres of which were under cultivation in 1845, according to the state census of that year. It then contained a population of 9,660 males, of whom 4,221 were entitled to vote; and 9,100 females; 5,155 were children between 5 and 16 years of age, and 49 were persons of color. The year preceding, (1844,) the territory produced 416,000 bushels of wheat, 53,623 of barley,