A Statistical, Political, and Historical Account of the United States of North America

CHAPTER XXXII.

MISSOURI TERRITORY.

SITUATION AND BOUNDARIES.-The Missouri territory extends from the Mississippi, on the east, to the Rocky mountains, on the west, and from the Gulf of Mexico, on the south, to Canada, on the north. It lies between 29° and 49° of north latitude, and 12 50′ and 32° of west longitude from Washington. Its length, from south to north, is about 1400 miles, and its breadth, from east to west, 886 miles, containing an area of about 985,250 square miles, or 630,560,000

acres.

Aspect of the Country, and Nature of the Soil.Country Watered by the Missouri River.-On the northern side of the Missouri river, fine rich meadows extend from its mouth to the junction of the two streams known by the name of Charaton. Here the hills recede from the river; they afterwards approach opposite Grand river, above which they again

• As this account of the country watered by the Missouri is taken entirely from the Narrative of Lewis and Clarke, it has not been thought necessary to make references to that work in detail.

recede as far as the Sauk Prairie, where they are lost to the view, and re-appear at Charaton Scarty. After this they are scarcely visible till we arrive at the mouth of the Kansas. Throughout the same distance, on the southern side, the elevated ridge approaches nearer to the Missouri, but sinks considerably above the mouth of the river Osage. The hills are generally elevated above the level of the river, from 150 to 200 feet, covered with a blackish soil, more or less fertile, and but thinly wooded, except between the Osage and Kansas rivers. Beyond these hills there are high, open, and fertile plains. From the mouth of the Kansas to that of the Nadawa river, the distance between the chain of hills on each side of the Missouri, is generally from four to eight miles. On the northern side, above the Nadawa, the meadows stretch out so far, that the hills, to the distance of twenty-seven miles beyond the Platte, disappear, except at intervals. On the southern side, the Missouri washes the foot of the hills, from the ancient village of Kansas to the distance of fifty miles beyond the mouth of the Platte river. The lands are fertile, and well adapted for settlements. Above the Ayoway village, the hills on the northern side of the Missouri recede, and again approach towards the mouth of Floyd's river, a distance of nearly 320 miles. On the opposite side, near Council Bluffs, they also retire from the view, and re-appear at the Mahar village, a distance of 200 miles, in which tract there is much less wood than below the junction of the Platte river. Near Floyd's river the northern hills approach the Missouri, and recede at the mouth of the Sioux ri

ver, whose course they direct; and again appear, with less elevation, at the junction of the Whitestone river. On the southern side they disappear beyond the Mahar villages, and are again seen, at the distance of forty-four miles, at a place called the Cobalt Bluffs, from which they stretch along the banks as far as Yellow-stone river, more than 1000 miles. From the mouth of James river, the two ridges gradually approach nearer; towards Musselshell river, the intervening breadth is from one to three miles; thence it contracts to the cataract, where the Missouri has forced its passage through the ridge itself. The hills, in general, are not too elevated for culture; above Wood river they do not rise to more than 150 feet above the water; towards the mouth of the Osage they preserve the same height; after which they sink till near the Mandan villages, whence they rise till their union with the northern hills, which preserve an elevation of from 200 to 300 feet, to the great chain of mountains. In many places there would not be timber sufficient for the purpose of establishments, especially above the mouth of the Platte.

tile, and well wooded.

Below this river the soil is fer

Above the Poncas village are seen large masses of pumice, gypsum,* Glauber's salt, † and common salt, ‡ in a crystallized state. Trunks of trees, in a petrified state, are embosomed in masses of clay, which proves that the surface was formerly wooded. The change may have been produced by the burning of coal, which abounds in this district. Above

Sulphat of lime. + Sulphat of soda. + Muriat of soda.

the mouth of the Platte river, in the vicinity of rivers which empty themselves into the Missouri, the vegetable soil has been entirely consumed; and, on entering this plain, it exhibits the aspect of a city in ruins. The whole country, from the distance of 200 or 300 miles, from the river Mississippi to the base of the Rocky mountains, is one continued prairie, or level surface, except along the rivers, the alluvial soil of which is considerably lower than the surrounding country, and the breadth in proportion to the magnitude of the river. The Missouri river is generally from 150 to 300 feet below the level of the surface.

A Summary Statement of the Rivers, Creeks, and most remarkable Places on the Missouri, from its Mouth to the Rocky Mountains, with their Distances from each other, and from the Mississippi, as ascertained by Captains Lewis and Clarke in their Journey in the years 1804, 1805, and 1806.