Tower Hill State Park
Encyclopedia
Tower Hill State Park is a state park
of Wisconsin
, USA, which contains the reconstructed Helena Shot Tower. The original shot tower
was completed in 1832 and manufactured lead shot
until 1860. The park abuts the Wisconsin River
and is bordered by state-owned land comprising the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway.
. The park lies within the Driftless Area, a region of the American Midwest that remained ice-free through three successive ice age
s. In the 19th century the Wisconsin River flowed directly past the base of the bluffs. The river has since shifted slightly, and a stream known as Mill Creek marks the northern boundary of the park.
on liquids in free-fall
, a technique developed in 1782. Molten lead can be poured through a strainer at the top of a tower or shaft. The droplets become spherical as they fall and cool in this shape during their descent. The pellets are caught in a water basin to break their fall and finish cooling.
In 1830 a businessman from Green Bay, Wisconsin
named Daniel Whitney was traveling along the Wisconsin River and recognized a sharp bluff near the town of Helena
as a promising location for a shot tower. Lead deposits had recently been discovered in several locations around Iowa County
. From the top of the bluff there was a 60 feet (18.3 m) sheer drop, below which the sandstone cliff sloped down to the riverbank, 180 feet (54.9 m) below the clifftop. Whitney formed the Wisconsin Shot Company with some other investors, and set his employee John Metcalf to oversee construction.
The 60 feet (18.3 m) cliff was a convenient headstart, but Metcalf needed someone to continue a shaft for the remaining 120 feet (36.6 m) to ground level. Access to the bottom of the shaft, where the lead shot would be collected, necessitated a 90 feet (27.4 m) horizontal tunnel. In 1831 Thomas B. Shaunce, a 22 year old lead miner in Galena, Illinois
, was hired for the task.
Shaunce worked mostly alone but received some assistance from a friend named Malcom Smith. They dug with pickaxe
s and a gad, using gunpowder
to loosen the harder rock of the lower layers. Shaunce used a plumb-bob
to ensure that he was keeping the shaft perfectly straight, and a windlass
to haul out the broken rock. Shaunce calculated where to begin digging the horizontal tunnel by standing across the water and sighting with his rifle directly below the top of the shaft. He dug in from the riverbank, using a line of stakes to maintain his alignment. When he first broke through from the horizontal tunnel to the bottom of the shaft, a blast of air knocked Shaunce unconscious and collapsed one of his lungs.
The project took 187 working days, interrupted in the spring of 1832 when Shaunce and Smith both returned to Galena and enlisted in the Illinois Militia to fight in the Black Hawk War
. Shaunce had been contracted to be paid $1000 for his work, but was ultimately offered land instead.
A smelting house was built at the top of the cliff, and the 60 feet (18.3 m) drop from there to the opening of Shaunce's tunnel was enclosed with a wooden shaft. A finishing house was built on the riverbank, where the shot was dried, graded, and sorted. This was joined by a warehouse and docks. In 1836 Whitney sold the property to a group of businessmen from New York for $10,000. Later Cadwallader C. Washburn
and a business partner purchased the site. In 1852 they replaced the finishing house and installed steam-operated equipment, nearly doubling the operation's productivity. The shot tower was operated by a crew of six, producing between 600 and 800 pounds of quality shot per day. Miscast pieces were melted and reused. The finished shot, graded by size, was transported to Milwaukee and then shipped east.
Operations ceased in 1860 during an economic downturn, and the buildings and equipment were sold away. The village of Helena was abandoned soon after. Thomas Shaunce died around 1860 as well. Throughout his life he experienced respiratory trouble from the air blast in the tunnel, and felt he had been cheated of his proper payment.
Historians have noted that the Helena Shot Tower, which allowed a frontier resource to be shipped in a finished form, was significant in the settlement and prosperity of southwestern Wisconsin. The overland teamster
route developed to transport the operation's output to the east evolved into a road and then a rail line. Returning wagon teams brought supplies and immigrants. Southwestern Wisconsin, once more closely tied to the Southern United States
via the Mississippi River
, built a population and culture closer to the northeast.
minister named Jenkin Lloyd Jones
, a member of a prominent Welsh-American family in the region. He created a recreational and educational retreat called the Tower Hill Pleasure Company, which provided outdoor recreation, visiting lecturers, books, and music. The retreat grew to include 25 cottages, as well as a dining pavilion, tennis courts, and other structures. One 1894 lecturer, a history professor, spent his free time excavating the shot tower's shaft and recovered several pieces of equipment which Lloyd Jones donated to the Wisconsin Historical Society
. In 1911 Jones' nephew Frank Lloyd Wright
began building his studio Taliesin
on a neighboring hill.
After Lloyd Jones died in 1918 his wife Edith donated the site to the state, and Tower Hill State Park was officially created in 1922. The smelting house and wooden shaft were rebuilt between 1970 and 1971 by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
and the Wisconsin Historical Society.
In 2006 parts of a horror film
called Witches' Night were filmed within the state park.
, the House on the Rock
, and Governor Dodge State Park
.
State park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...
of Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
, USA, which contains the reconstructed Helena Shot Tower. The original shot tower
Shot tower
thumb|The Shot Tower, Bristol, EnglandA shot tower is a tower designed for the production of shot balls by freefall of molten lead, which is then caught in a water basin. The shot is used for projectiles in firearms.-Process:...
was completed in 1832 and manufactured lead shot
Lead shot
Lead shot is a collective term for small balls of lead. These were the original projectiles for muskets and early rifles, but today lead shot is fired primarily from shotguns. It is also used for a variety of other purposes...
until 1860. The park abuts the Wisconsin River
Wisconsin River
-External links:* * * , Wisconsin Historical Society* * * *...
and is bordered by state-owned land comprising the Lower Wisconsin State Riverway.
Natural history
The bluffs along the Wisconsin River are formed of Jordan SandstoneSandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
. The park lies within the Driftless Area, a region of the American Midwest that remained ice-free through three successive ice age
Ice age
An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...
s. In the 19th century the Wisconsin River flowed directly past the base of the bluffs. The river has since shifted slightly, and a stream known as Mill Creek marks the northern boundary of the park.
History of the shot tower
Shot towers harness the effects of surface tensionSurface tension
Surface tension is a property of the surface of a liquid that allows it to resist an external force. It is revealed, for example, in floating of some objects on the surface of water, even though they are denser than water, and in the ability of some insects to run on the water surface...
on liquids in free-fall
Free-fall
Free fall is any motion of a body where gravity is the only force acting upon it, at least initially. These conditions produce an inertial trajectory so long as gravity remains the only force. Since this definition does not specify velocity, it also applies to objects initially moving upward...
, a technique developed in 1782. Molten lead can be poured through a strainer at the top of a tower or shaft. The droplets become spherical as they fall and cool in this shape during their descent. The pellets are caught in a water basin to break their fall and finish cooling.
In 1830 a businessman from Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
named Daniel Whitney was traveling along the Wisconsin River and recognized a sharp bluff near the town of Helena
Helena, Wisconsin
Helena is an unincorporated community in the town of Arena in Iowa County, Wisconsin, United States.-Black Hawk War of 1832:In the 19th century Helena was a village that played an important role in the manufacture and shipping of lead shot...
as a promising location for a shot tower. Lead deposits had recently been discovered in several locations around Iowa County
Iowa County, Wisconsin
Iowa County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of 2000, the population was 22,780. Its county seat and largest city is Dodgeville.Iowa County is part of the Madison Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:According to the U.S...
. From the top of the bluff there was a 60 feet (18.3 m) sheer drop, below which the sandstone cliff sloped down to the riverbank, 180 feet (54.9 m) below the clifftop. Whitney formed the Wisconsin Shot Company with some other investors, and set his employee John Metcalf to oversee construction.
The 60 feet (18.3 m) cliff was a convenient headstart, but Metcalf needed someone to continue a shaft for the remaining 120 feet (36.6 m) to ground level. Access to the bottom of the shaft, where the lead shot would be collected, necessitated a 90 feet (27.4 m) horizontal tunnel. In 1831 Thomas B. Shaunce, a 22 year old lead miner in Galena, Illinois
Galena, Illinois
Galena is the county seat of, and largest city in, Jo Daviess County, Illinois in the United States, with a population of 3,429 in 2010. The city is a popular tourist destination known for its history, historical architecture, and ski and golf resorts. Galena was the residence of Ulysses S...
, was hired for the task.
Shaunce worked mostly alone but received some assistance from a friend named Malcom Smith. They dug with pickaxe
Pickaxe
A pickaxe or pick is a hand tool with a hard head attached perpendicular to the handle.Some people make the distinction that a pickaxe has a head with a pointed end and a flat end, and a pick has both ends pointed, or only one end; but most people use the words to mean the same thing.The head is...
s and a gad, using gunpowder
Gunpowder
Gunpowder, also known since in the late 19th century as black powder, was the first chemical explosive and the only one known until the mid 1800s. It is a mixture of sulfur, charcoal, and potassium nitrate - with the sulfur and charcoal acting as fuels, while the saltpeter works as an oxidizer...
to loosen the harder rock of the lower layers. Shaunce used a plumb-bob
Plumb-bob
A plumb-bob or a plummet is a weight, usually with a pointed tip on the bottom, that is suspended from a string and used as a vertical reference line, or plumb-line....
to ensure that he was keeping the shaft perfectly straight, and a windlass
Windlass
The windlass is an apparatus for moving heavy weights. Typically, a windlass consists of a horizontal cylinder , which is rotated by the turn of a crank or belt...
to haul out the broken rock. Shaunce calculated where to begin digging the horizontal tunnel by standing across the water and sighting with his rifle directly below the top of the shaft. He dug in from the riverbank, using a line of stakes to maintain his alignment. When he first broke through from the horizontal tunnel to the bottom of the shaft, a blast of air knocked Shaunce unconscious and collapsed one of his lungs.
The project took 187 working days, interrupted in the spring of 1832 when Shaunce and Smith both returned to Galena and enlisted in the Illinois Militia to fight in the Black Hawk War
Black Hawk War
The Black Hawk War was a brief conflict fought in 1832 between the United States and Native Americans headed by Black Hawk, a Sauk leader. The war erupted soon after Black Hawk and a group of Sauks, Meskwakis, and Kickapoos known as the "British Band" crossed the Mississippi River into the U.S....
. Shaunce had been contracted to be paid $1000 for his work, but was ultimately offered land instead.
A smelting house was built at the top of the cliff, and the 60 feet (18.3 m) drop from there to the opening of Shaunce's tunnel was enclosed with a wooden shaft. A finishing house was built on the riverbank, where the shot was dried, graded, and sorted. This was joined by a warehouse and docks. In 1836 Whitney sold the property to a group of businessmen from New York for $10,000. Later Cadwallader C. Washburn
Cadwallader C. Washburn
Cadwallader Colden Washburn was an American businessman, politician, and soldier noted for founding what would later become General Mills and working in government for Wisconsin. He was born in Livermore, Maine, one of seven brothers that included Israel Washburn, Jr., Elihu B. Washburne, William D...
and a business partner purchased the site. In 1852 they replaced the finishing house and installed steam-operated equipment, nearly doubling the operation's productivity. The shot tower was operated by a crew of six, producing between 600 and 800 pounds of quality shot per day. Miscast pieces were melted and reused. The finished shot, graded by size, was transported to Milwaukee and then shipped east.
Operations ceased in 1860 during an economic downturn, and the buildings and equipment were sold away. The village of Helena was abandoned soon after. Thomas Shaunce died around 1860 as well. Throughout his life he experienced respiratory trouble from the air blast in the tunnel, and felt he had been cheated of his proper payment.
Historians have noted that the Helena Shot Tower, which allowed a frontier resource to be shipped in a finished form, was significant in the settlement and prosperity of southwestern Wisconsin. The overland teamster
Teamster
A teamster, in modern American English, is a truck driver. The trade union named after them is the International Brotherhood of Teamsters , one of the largest unions in the United States....
route developed to transport the operation's output to the east evolved into a road and then a rail line. Returning wagon teams brought supplies and immigrants. Southwestern Wisconsin, once more closely tied to the Southern United States
Southern United States
The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...
via the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
, built a population and culture closer to the northeast.
Later history
In 1889 the site was purchased for $60 by a UnitarianUnitarian Universalism
Unitarian Universalism is a religion characterized by support for a "free and responsible search for truth and meaning". Unitarian Universalists do not share a creed; rather, they are unified by their shared search for spiritual growth and by the understanding that an individual's theology is a...
minister named Jenkin Lloyd Jones
Jenkin Lloyd Jones (minister)
Jenkin Lloyd Jones was a Unitarian minister in the United States. He founded All Souls Unitarian Church in Chicago, Illinois, as well as its community outreach organization, the Abraham Lincoln Centre. A radical modernist, he joined the "Unity Men" and stressed a creedless "ethical basis" as the...
, a member of a prominent Welsh-American family in the region. He created a recreational and educational retreat called the Tower Hill Pleasure Company, which provided outdoor recreation, visiting lecturers, books, and music. The retreat grew to include 25 cottages, as well as a dining pavilion, tennis courts, and other structures. One 1894 lecturer, a history professor, spent his free time excavating the shot tower's shaft and recovered several pieces of equipment which Lloyd Jones donated to the Wisconsin Historical Society
Wisconsin Historical Society
The Wisconsin Historical Society is simultaneously a private membership and a state-funded organization whose purpose is to maintain, promote and spread knowledge relating to the history of North America, with an emphasis on the state of Wisconsin and the trans-Allegheny West...
. In 1911 Jones' nephew Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright
Frank Lloyd Wright was an American architect, interior designer, writer and educator, who designed more than 1,000 structures and completed 500 works. Wright believed in designing structures which were in harmony with humanity and its environment, a philosophy he called organic architecture...
began building his studio Taliesin
Taliesin (studio)
Taliesin , near Spring Green, Wisconsin, was the summer home of American architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Wright began the building in 1911 after leaving his first wife, Catherine Tobin, and his Oak Park, Illinois, home and studio in 1909. The impetus behind Wright's departure was his affair with...
on a neighboring hill.
After Lloyd Jones died in 1918 his wife Edith donated the site to the state, and Tower Hill State Park was officially created in 1922. The smelting house and wooden shaft were rebuilt between 1970 and 1971 by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is an agency of the state of Wisconsin. Its purpose is to preserve, protect, manage and maintain the natural resources of the state. The WDNR has the authority to set policy for itself and to recommend regulations for approval by the State Legislature...
and the Wisconsin Historical Society.
In 2006 parts of a horror film
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
called Witches' Night were filmed within the state park.
Recreation
Tower Hill State Park is open from May to October. Visitors can enter several historical structures. The smelting house contains exhibits about the construction and use of the shot tower. Structures remaining from the Tower Hill Pleasure Company include the pavilion (now the park's picnic shelter), a gazebo, and the foundation of a barn. There are two miles (3 km) of trails leading up to the tower and down to the riverbank, where visitors can enter the horizontal tunnel to the bottom of the shaft. There is a small campground with 15 campsites, drinking water, and pit toilets. Nearby attractions include Taliesin, the American Players TheatreAmerican Players Theatre
American Players Theatre is a classical theater located just south of Spring Green, Wisconsin. It includes a 1,148-seat outdoor amphitheater....
, the House on the Rock
House on the Rock
The House on the Rock, originally opened in 1959, is a complex of architecturally unique rooms, streets, gardens and shops designed by Alex Jordan, Jr...
, and Governor Dodge State Park
Governor Dodge State Park
Governor Dodge State Park is a Wisconsin state park in Dodgeville in Iowa County, Wisconsin. Named after Henry Dodge, the first governor of the Wisconsin Territory, the park contains geologic features indicative of the Driftless Area...
.