OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK. EMBRACING ITS PHYSICAL FEATURES, CLIMATE, GEOLOGY, MINERALOGY, BOTANY, ZOOLOGY, HISTORY, PURSUITS OF THE PEOPLE, GOVERNMENT, EDUCATION, WITH STATISTICAL TABLES, AND A SEPARATE DESCRIPTION AND MAP OF EACH COUNTY. ACCOMPANIED BY A LARGE OUTLINE MAP AND GEOLOGICAL CHART. FOR THE USE OF SCHOOLS, FAMILIES, ETC. BY J. H. MATHER, AUTHOR OF A SERIES OF OUTLINE MAPS AND KEY. AND L. P. BROCKETT, M. D. CORRESPONDING MEMBER OF THE NEW YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY, AND HARTFORD: J. H. MATHER & CO. NEW YORK, MARK H. NEWMAN & CO., ROE LOCKWOOD & SON; ALBANY, E. H. PEASE. UTICA, H. H. HAWLEY & CO. SYRACUSE, HALL & DICKSON. ROCHESTER, SAGE & BROTHER. BUFFALO, 0. G. STEELE. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1847, by J. H. MATHER AND CO. in the Clerk's Office of the District Court for the Southern District of New York. 9178 PREFACE. wwww In offering to the people of New York a Geography of their state, the compilers deem it proper to explain briefly the reasons which have led them to prepare such a work. They regard the geography of home as the first thing which should be acquired by the pupil. It is the first impulse of the child, even in infancy, to acquaint himself with the objects around him, and with localities which possess an interest for his juvenile fancy. This disposition leads the school boy to familiarize himself with the villages, roads, churches and dwellings of his native county. We would cultivate this natural taste still farther; we would place before the youth whatever is interesting and important for him to learn, respecting his native county and state, and when he is familiar with this, we would lead him step by step, to other states and countries, till he has acquired a knowledge of the different countries and nations of the earth. Believing that the outline system of instruction affords the best means of impressing upon the mind the form of countries and the location of places, and, by the principle of association, aids in the recollection of historic facts, we have adopted that system in our work, and in addition to outline maps of each county, which have been inserted in the book, we have prepared a large Outline Map of the state, to accompany the work. In this, as well as the county maps, all the town lines are delineated. Regarding it as desirable that the benefits of the late Geological Survey should be extended as widely as possible among all classes, we have compiled, from the natural history of the state, brief sketches of the Geology, Mineralogy, Botany and Zoology of the state, and have prepared a Geological Chart, from the map published by the state geologists. We have also endeavored, by brief but comprehensive historical sketches of the state, and of each county, and by official and other statistics, to render the work a valuable manual for every class of citizens. 1* 1083451 |