About this record
Mining of lead in southwestern Wisconsin can be traced back to at least 1670. These notes by the Society's second director are a chronological summary of sources describing lead mining before the great boom of the 1830's. Though not strictly an eyewitness account, this review article quotes from most of the early primary sources and cites where they can be found in full, so was thought worth including here.Citation
Thwaites, Reuben Gold. "Notes on Early Lead Mining in the Fever (or Galena) River Region" Collections of the State Historical Society of Wisconsin, vol. 13 (Madison, 1895): 271-292.