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ebook History of Watertown, Wisconsin

Farm Land, Quality of

Dodge and Jefferson Counties

1847

Watertown Chronicle, 06 23 1847

Probably no portion of the territory is so well adapted to farming purposes as the countries of Jefferson and Dodge. In two very essential requisites a decided advantage over those counties to the south and west them, viz: in timber and running water. In all sections of the Territory except the prairies, timber enough may be easily obtained may for present purposes; but the day is not far distant, when the want of that article will be most severely felt. The scarcity of running water is already a cause of great complaint in the prairie and many portions of the burr oak country; and whenever it may become necessary for the farmer to confine his stock to his own premises, has main dependence for this element must be upon the pump. Abounding Jefferson and Dodge counties do in [are] timber and water, the advantages, in these respects, which they hold out to new comers, are worthy of great consideration. But in addition to this, their soil is remarkably well adapted to the cultivation of all kinds of grain crops - while their climate is acknowledged to be as healthy as that of any other portions of the Territory, and more so than many portions of it. But these counties are by no means exclusively covered with heavy growth of timber. A fair proportion of them is composed of openings and prairies, which may be readily converted into as fine farms as can be found in the Territory.