Complete Annual Report of the Illinois Department
of Public Welfare
MANTENO STATE HOSPITAL
By Ralph T. Hinton, M. D.
Managing Officer
I submit herewith the first annual report of the Manteno
State Hospital. This report is for the periods ended
June 30, 1930. The Fifty-fifth general assembly appropriated
one million dollars for the acquiring of land and construction
of buildings for a new institution for the care of the
insane. Approximately one thousand acres of land were
purchased near Manteno. This city is located on the
main line of the Illinois Central Railroad. It is also
on Route 49, a forty foot highway leading from Chicago.
During November, 1928, a survey was made of two hundred
and eighty acres in Section 23, Soil test borings were
also taken at this time. Under the direction of the
supervising architect, Messrs. Schmidt, Garden and Erikson,
Chicago, prepared plans for the Administration building
and eight cottages for patients. The cottages were to
be two stories in height and each was to provide accommodations
for approximately one hundred patients. Bids for general
and mechanical work on these buildings were taken and
on December 8, 1928, the following contracts were awarded:
General work, English Brothers, Champaign, Illinois,
$936,301 : heating, Klein and Heckman, Dixon, Illinois,
68,940: plumbing, Klein and Heckman, Dixon, Illinois,
$62,940: electric wiring, Dionne Electric Company, CHicago,
Illinois, $20,144, and ventilating, Wm. V. Hoier Company,
Chicago, Illinois, $13,800.
Bad weather conditions, with excessive snow and ive,
delayed the beginning of construction; but after Dec.
24, 1928, materials and equipment began to arrive. Further
consideration deemed it advisable to change the original
site of the location of the Administration building
and ward buildings and accordingly a survey was made
of the north 240 acres of Section 26. Test borings were
again made and in the southeast portion rock was found
within two feet of the surface.
Excavation for the first cottage was started May 23,
1929. Soil bearing tests were made at each building
and footings and foundations were completed in July.
All excavations were completed by the middle of August.
Considerable difficulty, due to water, was encountered,
and it was necessary to keep pumps running continuously.
Brick work was started on the 20th of July and had
reached the first floor by the first of August. The
outside walls were faced with colonial No. 7 face brick,
while interior walls and partitions were faced with
cream colored brick above a brown face wainscot.
The first floor of cottage 18A was poured during the
first week of August and first floors of the remaining
buildings were poured at the rate of one building each
week. By the end of August the brick work had advanced
far enough to permit the pouring of the second floor
in two of the buildings. These floors are of steel joist
construction with concrete slabs carried on metal laths,
the finished floors being the dame as on the first floor,
i.e. brass strip terrazzo with terrazzo base and cove,
with the exception of the wash rooms, toilets, and utility
rooms, where hexagonal white tile is used. About a month
later brick work on other of the ward buildings had
been completed up to the cornice and the attic floors
were constructed. Steel joists were used as on the second
floor. All of the structural floors were completed by
the middle of November, 1929. Roof framing, sheet metal
work and slate work was completed the first part of
January, 1930.
The construction of the Administration building did
not advance as rapidly as the ward buildings. The foundations
were completed the first week of September, the erection
of structural steel and brickwork for the gables and
tower was completed by the middle of December and the
framing of the roof was then started. During this time
it was necessary to heat all materials and to keep the
buildings warm by the use of salamanders. After the
completion of the roofing and sheet metal work the finishing
of the interior was started, but progress was slow,
due to severe winter weather. The first of March a heavy
snow storm stopped the work altogether, and all roads
to the grounds were impassable for several days.
At the end of March, lathers and plasterers started
their work and good progress toward completion of the
interior, ceilings, walls and cornices in the cottages
and Administration building was made. About the middle
of April a strike of terrazzo workers occurred and the
progress on interior work was halted for a time. Some
difficulty was encountered in obtaining mill work according
to specifications, notwithstanding the fact that the
contractor sent a representative to the mill and had
him remain there until all of this work was completed,
Inspection disclosed the fact that some of the cases
and clothes lockers did not comply with the specifications.
Later this was adjusted and a credit obtained. By the
middle of June the plastering had been practically completed
and marble work was started in the toilet rooms and
waiting rooms of the Administration building. On the
23rd of June, during a heavy storm, the tower of the
Administration building was struck by lightning, necessitating
replacing dome of the stone work.
During the latter part of June some difficulty was
encountered in getting the painting started. A short
time after the beginning of the work the painters' union
made an agreement whereby the jurisdictional boundary
was changed. As a result Manteno came within the jurisdiction
of the Joliet union with an increase of twenty-five
cents per hour in the scale paid to painters. An agreement
between the contractor and the inion could not be reached
and finally the painting contract was let to W. p. Nelson
Company, Chicago. Paining of all the buildings was started
on January 23. The work was pushed rapidly with thirty-five
painters on the job. An inspection of some of the ward
buildings at this time disclosed the fact that the putty
on the windows was cracked and falling out. All the
window panes of the nine buildings had to be reputtied
and this delayed the painting contractor to some extent.
The heating and plumbing for the Administration building
progressed with the general work with no delays, At
first the electrical wiring progressed satisfactorily
but about the end of February the contract for this
work was taken over by the National Surety Company,
the bonding company for the Dionne Electrical Company.
RAILROAD TRACK
On January 5, 1929, the Illinois Central Railroad was
given a contract for the construction of a switch. This
switch leads from the north bound main line of the Illinois
Central to the institution. The original contract price
was $51,000; later an additional $6,990 was added for
the construction of 1600 extra feet of track. The total
trackage at the present time is 12,500. The main track
starts near section 29, turns east crossing route 49
and then east to the west property line. Here it makes
a curve, then goes to the power house, one spur is alongside
of the kitchen platform and in addition there is one
center track on which extra cars can be switched. There
was later allowed $5,191.23 for the construction of
the extra spur and relocation of the original spurs.
DEEP WELL
A contract for a deep well to be approximately 1800
feet in depth was awarded to J. P. Miller Artesian Well
Company on May 18, 1929. The original contract amounted
to $18,806. The material and equipment for drilling
this well arrived during the latter part of May. The
well was located 575 feet north of the center line of
the institution and four hundred feet west of the east
tracks. The well was started with a twenty-three inch
hole. Limestone was encountered thirty-six feet below
the surface. At a depth of sixty-three feet the hole
was reduced to nineteen and one fourth inches. On July
16, at a depth of 317 feet, shale was encountered and
continued to a depth of 392 feet. At this point limestone
was again encountered and continued to a depth of 454
feet. On July 26, shale was again encountered. The strata
reached a depth of 470 feet below the surface, at which
point the hole was reduced to fifteen inches. On September
15, St. Peter's sand was reached at a depth of 885 feet.
At a depth of 935 feet the bit became stuck and fishing
for it continued from September 19 to October 14. A
mud vein was found at a depth of 1,00 feet. The tools
were again stuck and remained here from October 18 to
October 30. On November 6, limestone was reached. Here
the drill was broken and work was stopped on account
of cold weather until January 17. Drilling was then
resumed and Potsdam sand was encountered at a depth
of 1,395 on January 24. Limestone was again reached
at 1,425 feet. Drilling continued to a depth of 1,755
feet, where two strings of tools were lost. The tools
were finally recovered during the week of April 26.
The hole was cleaned out and when measured found to
be 1,760 feet deep. Testing of the well was postponed
until the storm sewer north of the well could be completed
and a pipe then run from the well to the sewer. A meter
was installed in the line and several testes were made,
including a continuous test of seventy-seven hours.
During this time an average of 470.7 gallons per minute
were pumped. A contract was awarded to S. P. Geiger
and Company, CHicago, for the installation of a deep
well turbine pump, connected direct with a seventy-five
horse power motor. The original contract price was $6,100,
and later credit was accepted for the use of Cumberland
turned ground steel instead of stainless steel shackling.
OUTDOOR SUBSTATION
On October 7, 1929, a contract was given to the U.S.A.
Company, Chicago, for the construction of a 33 K. V./2300
outdoor substation, to have three step-down transformers
in each of two banks. The contract price was $11,440.
This substation was located 167 feet north of the center
line and 152 feet 6 inches from the east track. Materials
arrived the latter part of November and in January the
transformers were set. In February, English Brothers
started work on the platforms and foundations, but the
work was delayed on account of inclement weather. In
March, the meter house was completed and a switching
station installed. The lines from Momence were cut in
and tested the first part of April.
ELEVATED WATER STORAGE TANK
On October 7, 1929, a contract was given to the Chicago
Bridge and Iron WOrks for the construction of an elevated
steel water storage tank to have a capacity of 500,000
gallons. The contract price was $42,100. The tank was
to be constructed on eight fabricated steel columns
and to have a height from the foundation to the eaves
of approximately 137 feet. The tank was to have an inside
diameter of fifty-one feet and equipped with revolving
ladders on the inside and on the roof. The tank was
placed exactly on the center line of the institution.
Excavating was started the latter part of January, but
progress was retarded by severe cold weather. The excavation
was completed the first part of April. A soil bearing
test was made at each pier. The first pier was poured
the first of March and all eight were completed by the
middle of April. The piers had spread footings and the
minimum depth was eleven feet six inches. There was
a slight delay in the work of construction, due to the
fact that the Chicago Bridge and Iron Works used non-union
men. Later an agreement was reached by the union and
contractor and by the middle of June the tank was ready
for testing. In the meantime, arrangements were made
to use the pumping equipment of the various contractors
to fill the tank with water.
CHIMNEY
On October 10, 1929, the Alphonse Costodis Company,
Chicago, was given a contract for the construction of
a chimney. The contract price was $11,810. On October
25, the chimney was located forty-one feet north of
the center line of the institution and seventeen feet
eleven inches west of the building line of the power
house. Excavating was started the latter part of October.
An octagonal base faced with No. seven red colonial
brick was carried to height of forty feet. Above this
base, perforated radial brick were used with a four
inch radial brick lining. The thickness of the wall
was reduced from eighteen and one-fourth inches at the
base to seven and one-half at the top. The chimney has
a height of 180 feet above the base and an inside diameter
of ten feet. The top was finished with reinforced cement
cap. A breech opening, fourteen feet one inch by six
feet one inch, and lined with fire brick was constructed
with the bottom twenty-one feet above the foundation.
The work was done during the winter weather and completed
during the latter part of December.
WATER DISTRIBUTING AND FIRE PIPING SYSTEM
The drawings and specifications for the water distributing
and fire piping systems were prepared by Mr. L. A. Snider.
On February 19, the contract was let to Merkle Contracting
Company, Kansas City, Missouri. The contract price was
$44,000.
SANITARY AND STORM SEWER SYSTEM
On February 19, 1930, a contract for the installation
of the sanitary and storm sewer system was awarded to
Geo. G. Anderson Company. The drawings and specifications
were prepared by Mr. L. A. Snyder, consulting engineer.
The contract price was $117,872. It was necessary to
formulate in advance a systematic and comprehensive
plan of procedure for the correlation of this work with
that of the contractors on the water lines and construction.
This was necessary so that all could work simultaneously
and with efficiency. Arrangements were made to have
reinforced concrete sewer pipe, from thirty-two inches
to forty-eight inches in diameter, fabricated in Manteno
adjacent to the Illinois Central tracks. The progress
of the work was handicapped by poor working conditions.
Considerable difficulty was encountered on account of
the caving of the banks. By the end of June the contractor
had completed the sanitary and storm sewer system north
of the center lines as well as practically all thirty
inch and twenty-four inch lines south of the center
line. When the forty-eight inch outlet sewer was installed
it cut off a number of farm drain tiles ranging from
six inches to twenty inches in diameter. These lines
were part of an extensive farm drainage system which
took care of the farm belonging to the State and to
neighboring farmers. To meet this emergency, a twenty-four
inch farm drainage tile was installed adjacent to the
main outlet sewer for a distance of 1,700 feet.
SEWAGE DISPOSAL PLANT
On February 19, 1930, Keuhn Brothers were given a contract
for the construction of a sewage disposal plant. This
plant consists of one preliminary settling tank, six
aeration tanks, one final settling tank, a sludge bed
and a pump house. The plans and specifications were
prepared by Mr. L. A. Snider, consulting engineer. The
contract price was $62,200. The plant was located with
the south line o the digestion tank forty-seven feet
from survey line sixty; and the east end of the screen
boc 225 feet east of survey line 0. Excessive surface
and ground water made excavating difficult and four
pumps were kept going constantly. The excavation in
rock was approximately six feet in depth. After the
aeration tanks had been excavated to a point where forms
could be set, additional pumps had to be used to keep
the tanks dry. At this writing concrete is being poured
but it will be some considerable time before the plant
is finished.
TUNNELS AND WATER STORAGE RESERVOIR
On April 13, 1930, Mr. Wm. C. F. Kuhne was awarded
a contract for the construction of the water storage
reservoir, heating tunnels, and transformer vaults.
Plans and specifications were prepared by Mr. L. A.
Snider, consulting engineer. The contract price was
#132,895. The water shortage reservoir is designed to
have two equal compartments and a small valve room on
the north side. Excavations were started on May 20,
and completed by the end of the month.
The contractor then started excavating for the tunnel.
Concrete work was delayed on account of the slow delivery
of reinforcing steel. Footings and floors of the water
storage reservoir were poured in the middle of June.
The tunnels were divided into forty foot sections. The
floors were poured in consecutive sections while the
sides and tops were poured in alternate sections.
POWER HOUSE
In November, the firm Granger and Bollenbacher, Chicago,
prepared plans for the power house, male and female
dormitories, five cottages for physicians, alterations
to the managing officer's residence and the farm house.
These plans and specifications were prepared under the
direction of the supervising architect, Mr. C. Herrick
Hammond. On March 12 1930, English Brothers, Champaign,
Illinois, were awarded the contract for the general
work. This contract amounted to $588,896. On march 13,
the power house was staked out and tied in with the
present chimney. Excavating was then started. Slight
discrepancies between the plans, elevations and structural
drawings were straightened out and a revised set of
structural drawings was issued on March 28. Toward the
end of March, a heavy snow storm delayed the excavating.
During the progress of excavating it was found that
part of the foundations, including the hopper bottom,
were on solid rock, while most of the interior col,m
footings and part of the outside wall footings had bearings
on blue clay. It was then decided that piers extending
to solid rock should be placed under these interior
columns and under the exterior walls at intervals of
ten and twenty feet. The cost of the extra piers was
partly offset by reducing the size of the columns and
by omitting the special spread footings originally designed
for bearings on blue clay. Work was delayed until revised
footing plans could be received. However, work was resumed
on May 2, and the contractor started pouring concrete
during the same week. As soon as the footings had been
completed, the walls on the north side were poured and
the steel columns and framing installed so that the
boiler room floor could be poured. This was done on
June 28, and the work on the north and center sections
was pushed in order to permit the erection of the boilers.
ELECTRICAL DISTRIBUTION
The plans for the electrical distribution system prepared
by Mr. Snider, under the direction of the supervising
architect, include the following:
Electrical wiring for the tunnels and transformer vaults.
Telephone conduit and duct system.
Street lighting system, consisting of 136 lights distributed
through the grounds.
A 2300/230-115 volt distribution system consisting
of an indoor switching substation connected to an outdoor
transformer substation and an interconnected primary
and secondary cable and duct system running through
the grounds and furnishing service connections to the
various buildings.
The contract for this work was awarded to George S.
Schugmann, Abingdon, Illinois, on April 18, 1930, The
contract amounted to $70,258. The contractor began the
work the latter part of June.
KITCHEN
The kitchen is a one-story building designed to have
an officers' and employes' dining room in the front
section. The rear section is given over to the kitchen
requirements, including cold storage and bakery. There
has been considerable delay in the construction of this
building due to revision of plans and consequent delays
pending a settlement of additional cost.
Excavating the main tunnel which passes through the
kitchen on the north side was started the later part
of May. Excavating for wall footings followed and concrete
work was begun in June. At this writing the construction
of this building has not progressed above the foundation.
EMPLOYES' DORMITORIES, PHYSICIANS' COTTAGES ETC.
The general work on these buildings was done by English
Brothers, Champaign, Illinois. The mechanical work was
executed by the following contractors, under contracts
dated March 12: Electrical contract, C. R. Cento, $11,990;
plumbing contract, Carson-Payson, $23,459; and heating
contract, Home Company, $14,490.
Excavating for the male dormitory was started on Monday,
April 19. It was completed by April 25, and a soil bearing
test was made. Work on the female dormitory was started
the following week. Rock was encountered above the finished
floor and in order to avoid expensive excavating in
rock the finished basement floor level was raised approximately
six inches. The dormitories are two story buildings,
having 52 rooms each. The floors are reinforced concrete
girder, beam and joist construction. The finished floors
are terrazzo. The exterior walls are faced with red
colonial brick similar to that used in other buildings.
Steel trusses and roof framing were used with slate
roofing. This also matches the roofing on buildings
previously constructed. By the middle of May, the foundation
of the male dormitory had been completed and brick work
started. Footings for the male dormitory has been poured,
the form work for the concrete walls were constructed,
the foundation walls being poured the latter part of
May. By the end of June, the brick work on both buildings
had been completed to the second floor. The painting
of these buildings was sublet to W. P. Nelson Company,
Chicago.
The heating and plumbing progresses satisfactorily
with the general work. Some difficulties were encountered
in connection with the electrical work due to inaccuracies
in laying out the in-exposed conduits, lack of material,
etc. As a consequence this work lagged behind other
trades.
Work on the physicians' cottages was started the first
part of April. The footings and foundations were completed
the first of May. The brick work was then started but
there was some delay pending the arrival of stone sills
and window frames. The physicians' cottages are one-story
bungalows of masonry construction, faced with red colonial
face brick, similar in type, each having a kitchen,
bath, serving room, and dining room, living room and
two bed rooms and a screen porch just off the living
room. The fifth cottage is similar in type, with the
exception that it had one additional bed room.
The brick work progressed rapidly and the roof framing
was started the first part of June.
The work on the managing officers' residence consisted
of a complete remodeling of a house formerly used as
a farm house, with the addition of a two-car garage,
a large sun porch, fireplaces, chimney, etc. The foundations
of the building were repaired and new foundations were
constructed where necessary. Old partitions were removed
or repaired as were necessary. Old partitions were removed
or repaired as were necessary and new partitions with
metal lath and plaster installed throughout.
Roof framing was repaired and slate roofing and copper
gutters were installed. The heating work consisted of
the installation of a complete radiation with necessary
hot water storage tank and piping. This is connected
with the central heating plant. An entire new plumbing
system was installed in the building.
The work at the farm house consisted largely of patching
the roof, removing and changing interior partitions
and plastering where necessary. Interior painting ands
decorating an the refinishing of the interior and porch
floors were also done.
DEDICATION CEREMONIES
With a brief but impressive ceremony the corner stone
of the Administration building was placed in position
on the morning of November 21, 1929, by C. Herrick Hammond,
supervising architect. An audience of approximately
one hundred state and city officials and residents of
the vicinity watched the operation, which concluded
a program of speeches dealing with the work accomplished
in Illinois toward providing adequate accommodations
for persons suffering with mental disorders. The ceremonies
were in charge of Mr. Rodney H. Brandon, Director of
Public Welfare. Mr. Brandon stressed the importance
of expanding the present system of state institutions
without unnecessary delay.
"With the completion of this hospital, the state,"
Mr. Brandon said, "will have a total of ten such institutions
and the citizens of Illinois will have the satisfaction
of knowing that the unfortunates within its boundaries
are receiving the best treatment possible in hospitals
that rank with the best in the world.
"This hospital, when completed, will house approximately
6,000 patients." He also referred to the number of beds
being provided by the Department for the care of patients
in this and other hospitals. He added that when this
hospital is finally completed it would be the largest
and best of any located west of New York and a real
monument to the work being done in behalf of those stricken
with mental disease.
Governor Emmerson found it impossible to be present,
but sent his best wishes for the success of the hospital.
Before coming to the hospital, Mr. Brandon stated, the
Governor had entrusted him with the following letter
to read:
"The rapid progress being made in the construction
of the necessary buildings to make the new state hospital
at Manteno a going institution is keeping faith with
the people of Illinois by providing adequate care for
the state's unfortunate wards. Improvements will be
rushed at all our state institutions until every inmate
is furnished proper quarters.
"Within recent years much of the horror has been taken
out of the state hospitals. The padded cell and all
that it typifies is gone. Occupational therapy, music,
calisthenics and entertainment have replaced the gloomy
monotony of institution life.
"Over forty-three and one-half million dollars, or
35.49 per cent of the state's biennial income, is now
devoted to the work of the Department of Public Welfare.
Maintenance of our charitable and penal institutions
constitutes the state's greatest burden but the work
cannot be allowed to lag.
"Illinois will go ahead building new hospitals where
needed, adding to the old, keeping pace with the demand.
While doing our most to relieve the suffering of the
mentally sick, we must work to restore reason while
seeking means of prevention.
"The spirit of helplessness and hopelessness which
have characterized the general conception of insanity
must give way to one of optimism as new institutions
such as the one at Manteno provide improved facilities
for adequate scientific observation of the mentally
afflicted. In such study we may eventually see the light
that will bring joy to thousands of unfortunates who
are now grouping in mental darkness."
Dr. Sidney Wilgus, state alienist, followed Mr. Brandon
to the speaker's stand and spoke briefly on the functions
of a hospital for the treatment of mental ailments.
Dr. Wilgus stated that the number of persons annually
being committed to state institutions for the insane
is on the increase and the problem of caring for them
is becoming greater each year. The fact that more inmates
are being admitted now than in previous years, he stated,
is not a reflection on Illinois but on the other hand
shows that the citizens have provided places where they
can be treated and are not allowing them to roam around
by themselves.
The increase of mental cases during the past thirty-five
years, the doctor said, has almost doubled and state
hospitals, besides providing a place for the care of
those stricken, are also being used as a training school
where capable physicians can study the problems and
be able to conduct a fight to reduce insanity in the
country. The new Manteno institution, he stated, will
be such a place and will fill a real need both as hospital
and as a research school for physicians desiring to
become better acquainted with the treatment of mental
diseases.
Carl Jewel, Manteno, represented the mayor of that
city, and expressed appreciation of the citizens that
the State had chosen Manteno for the site of the new
institution. He also traced the history of development
of the State's program of taking care of the mentally
afflicted and lauded the work now being done along those
lines.
The relation between a state hospital and the community
where it is located was related by Mr. A. L. Bowen,
superintendent of charities, of the Department of Public
Welfare. Mr. Bowen predicted that the city of Manteno
would grow around the institution and at some future
time the hospital would be located in the center of
the city instead of on the edge as it is at present.
A city which possesses such an institution, he said,
is the envy of its neighbors and is certain of becoming
a more important center of activity as a consequence
of having a hospital within its borders.
The selection of Manteno as the site for the new institution,
he stated, was made with care and both the State and
the city can justly be proud of the establishment. "WIth
it as a landmark, Manteno," Mr. Bowen said, "is assured
of a continuous growth and will never regret that the
State decided to erect the hospital in its territory."
The services were conducted on the steps of the Administration
building and were opened with invocation by the Reverend
Peterson, and closed with benediction by Monsignor Primeau,
Manteno. A platform for the speakers was erected on
the stairs and before the stone was placed into position,
the state officials who accompanied the party from Springfield
and prominent citizens of the community were introduced
to the audience by Mr. Brandon. Among those present
were Colonel Frank Wipp, superintendent of prisons,
Mrs. Silvis, assistant director, A.C. Everingham, state
farm advisor, C. H. Hammond, state architect, and Dr.
George Edmonson of Kankakee State Hospital. The audience
also included more than a scare of persons prominent
in public life in Kankakee.
The stone was carved out to permit the insertion of
a copper box containing various documents and other
material to serve as a record of the occasion. The photographs
of Governor Emmerson, Ex-Governor Len SMall, and members
of the present state administration were also included
in the contents of the box. The task of sealing the
stone was not completed until the following day. This
was done in order to permit the insertion of the two
Kankakee newspapers of this date and the regular edition
of the Manteno paper.
CONCLUSION
While the above report is a brief outline of the building
operations that have been under way for the past few
months, it is believed that several months will have
elapsed before patients can be received. If the work
progresses according to schedule, it is thought that
the first quota of patients can be received during the
early winter.
GEOLOGY NOTES:
*St. Peter's sand is considered to
have been derived from erosion of older sedimentary
rocks because of its high degree of (quartz) purity
and degree of rounding of grains. Copyright © Arkansas
Tech University ALL RIGHTS RESERVED http://www.atu.edu/acad/mining/people/misk/histfld1.htm
*The St. Peter Sandstone was named
by Owen (1847, p. 169-170) for the exposures along the
river then called St. Peter (now the Minnesota River)
in southern Minnesota. A St. Peter type section was
later designated (Stauffer, 1934) as the exposures in
the bluff at the junction of the Minnesota and Mississippi
Rivers. This name has had wide use in the Midwest and
in Kentucky. Copyright © 1997 The Trustees of Indiana
University http://igs.indiana.edu/geology/structure/compendium/html/comp0y78.cfm
*All the deepest wells in this region terminate in the
midst of a great sandstone formation, the Potsdam sandstone,
This is the lowest known rock formation in the State,
and is shown at the bottom of the section. Some of the
wells penetrate this sandstone several hundred feet,
but none pass through it. In parts of Wisconsin it has
a thickness of 1,000 feet. This lower group of sediments,
the Potsdam sandstone, which is very widely distributed
in the United States, is of later Cambrian age. Since
this is the earliest of the Paleozoic formations in
the northern interior, it is evident that a large part
of the continent was land area and was exposed to denudation
while the earlier Cambrian formations were being deposited
in the eastern and western seas. Chicago Geology: Paleozoic
by Ellin Beltz http://ebeltz.net/folio/cfol-2.html
