It is a prodigious rock of red granite, said to be the solitary one of its kind in the county. The minerals found in the county, in greater or lesser quantities, embrace magnetic iron ore, iron and copper pyrites, green malachite, sulphuret of zinc, galena and other lead ores, native silver", serpentine, garnet, beryl, apatite, tremolite, white pyroxene, chlorite, black tourmaline, Sillimanite, monazite, Brucite, epidote, and sphene. But Westchester has never been in any sense a seat of the mining industry proper, as distinguished from the quarrying. In early times a silver

1(5

HISTORY

WESTCHESTER

COUNTY

now .nine was operated at Sing Sing, very near where the prison some stands and not far from the same Locality an attempt was made mining ventures seventy years ago to mine for copper. Both of these actual successno nting are of mere curious historical interest, represe the northalong ridges the In er. charact fu] production of a definite found. ern borders of the county considerable deposits of iron ore are that Somers, of History his in Culver, E. It is stated bv Mr. Charles (31 as high as d -yielde assay, the irou ores "of that town have, upon per cent." Teat swamps, affording a fuel of good quality, exist in several parts of the county, notably the Town of Bedford. There are various mineral springs, as well as other springs, yielding in some water of singularly pure quality, The latter being utilized for cases with commercial profit. A well-known mineral spring, whoso waters medicinal virtues are claimed, is the Chappaqua Spring, _ three miles east of Sing Sing. disinteof product the is The prevailing soil of Westchester County grations ofthe primitive rocks, and is of a light and sandy character, for the most pari not uncommonly fertile naturally, although the methods of scientific farming, which have been pursued from very early times, have rendered it highly productive.