Captain John Cleves Symmes Jr. (November 5, 1780 – May 28, 1829) was an American Army officer, trader, and lecturer. Symmes is best known for his 1818 variant of the Hollow Earth theory , which introduced the concept of openings to the inner world at the poles.
141-715: John Cleves Symmes Jr. was born in Sussex County, New Jersey , son of Thomas and Mercy ( née Harker) Symmes. He was named for his uncle John Cleves Symmes , a delegate to the Continental Congress , a Colonel in the Revolutionary War , Chief Justice of New Jersey , father-in-law of US President William Henry Harrison and pioneer in the settlement and development of the Northwest Territory . Though Justice Symmes had no male children,
282-463: A Derbyshire family and was a wealthy soap-maker in London. As a child, Halley was very interested in mathematics. He studied at St Paul's School , where he developed his initial interest in astronomy, and was elected captain of the school in 1671. The following year, Halley's mother, Anne (probably née Robinson) died. In July 1673, he began studying at The Queen's College, Oxford . Halley took
423-545: A diving bell , a device in which the atmosphere was replenished by way of weighted barrels of air sent down from the surface. In a demonstration, Halley and five companions dived to 60 feet (18 m) in the River Thames , and remained there for over an hour and a half. Halley's bell was of little use for practical salvage work, as it was very heavy, but he made improvements to it over time, later extending his underwater exposure time to over 4 hours. Halley suffered one of
564-477: A map of the southern stars. Oxford would not allow Halley to return because he had violated his residency requirements when he left for Saint Helena. He appealed to Charles II, who signed a letter requesting that Halley be unconditionally awarded his Master of Arts degree, which the college granted on 3 December 1678. Just a few days before, Halley had been elected as a fellow of the Royal Society , at
705-554: A pistol duel with Lieutenant Marshall. Symmes suffered a wound in his wrist; Marshall one in his thigh. Afterwards, the two men became friends. On December 25, 1808, Symmes married Mary Anne Lockwood ( nee. Pelletier), a widow with six children, all of whom he was to raise alongside his own children by Mary. During the War of 1812 , Symmes was initially stationed in Missouri Territory until 1814 when his 1st Infantry Regiment
846-607: A Hollow Earth, Symmes and some of his contemporaries certainly thought Euler had. In an 1824 exchanges of newspaper letters with Symmes, D. Preston implied that Symmes' theory was not original, and cited both Halley and Euler as earlier examples. Symmes himself insisted that he had not known of Hollow Earth proposals of Halley and Euler at the time he conceived his theory, and that he had only learned of their works much later. Symmes' disciple, James McBride , promoting and explaining Symmes' theory in his book, Symmes's Theory of Concentric Spheres (1826), cited Euler as an earlier proponent of
987-552: A Hollow Earth—and to build support for a polar expedition to vindicate his theory. In its original form, Symmes's Hollow Earth theory described the world as consisting of five concentric spheres, with our outer earth and its atmosphere as the largest. He visualized the Earth's crust as being approximately 1,000 miles (1,610 km) thick, with an Arctic opening about 4,000 miles (6,450 km) wide, and an Antarctic opening around 6,000 miles (9,650 km) wide. Symmes proposed that
1128-691: A captain in the Royal Navy , recommissioned the Paramour on 24 August 1699 and sailed again in September 1699 to make extensive observations on the conditions of terrestrial magnetism . This task he accomplished in a second Atlantic voyage which lasted until 6 September 1700, and extended from 52 degrees north to 52 degrees south. The results were published in General Chart of the Variation of
1269-576: A doubt of its being round; others no less knowing imagin'd all they were not acquainted with, desart and uninhabitable. But now geography and hydrography have receiv'd some perfection by the pains of so many mariners and travelers, who to evince the rotundity of the earth and water, have sail’d and travell'd round it, as has been here made appear; to show there is no part uninhabitable, unless the frozen polar regions, have visited all other countries, tho never so remote, which they have found well peopl'd, and most of them rich and delightful…. Astronomy has receiv'd
1410-478: A female householder with no husband present, and 23.7% were non-families. 18.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.24. In the county, the age distribution of the population shows 27.9% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 31.5% from 25 to 44, 25.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age
1551-443: A grand expansion of European knowledge of the world: What was cosmography before these discoveries, but an imperfect fragment of a science, scarce deserving so good a name? When all the known world was only Europe, a small part of Africk, and the lesser portion of Asia; so that of this terraqueous globe not one sixth part had ever been seen or heard of. Nay so great was the ignorance of man in this particular, that learned persons made
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#17327824848311692-516: A license to trade with the Fox Indians. However, his business venture was unsuccessful and in 1819, Symmes moved his family to Newport, KY . But while failing as a trader, Symmes was contemplating the rings of Saturn and developing his theory of the Hollow Earth—a theory which he would spend the remainder of his life promoting. I declare the earth is hollow, and habitable within; containing
1833-606: A light suburban atmosphere, instead of the sparsely populated rural region it once was, especially in the eastern half of the county. Around 450 million years ago, the Martinsburg Shale was uplifted when a chain of volcanic islands collided with proto North America. These islands slid over the North American plate, and deposited rock on top of the plate, forming the Highlands and Kittatinny Valley. At that time
1974-725: A low of 17 °F (−8 °C) in January to a high of 84 °F (29 °C) in July. Average monthly precipitation ranged from 2.86 inches (73 mm) in February to 4.76 inches (121 mm) in June. According to the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service soil survey , the area receives sunshine approximately 62% of the time in summer and 48% in winter. Prevailing winds are typically from
2115-909: A maximum elevation of 1,803 feet (550 m) at High Point , in Montague Township. Between Kittatinny Mountain and the Delaware River is the Wallpack Ridge , a smaller, narrow ridge spanning 25 miles (40 km) in length from the Walpack Bend near Flatbrookville north to Port Jervis, New York . Wallpack Ridge encloses the watershed of the Flat Brook and its two main tributaries Little Flat Brook and Big Flat Brook , and ranges in elevation from 500 to 900 feet (150 to 270 m) and reaching its highest elevation at 928 feet (283 m). The Kittatinny Valley lies to
2256-410: A median income of $ 50,395 versus $ 33,750 for females. The per capita income for the county was $ 26,992. About 2.8% of families and 4.0% of the population were below the poverty line , including 4.1% of those under age 18 and 5.4% of those age 65 or over. As of the 2006–2010 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, 3.6% of county residents were living below the poverty line which
2397-425: A medical practice, but is largely known for his interest in mineralogy which led to his developing commercial uses for zinc and for discovery of several rare minerals (chiefly various ores of zinc). Many of these zinc minerals are known for fluorescing in vivid colors when exposed to ultraviolet light . Because of both the rich deposits and many of these minerals are not found anywhere else on earth, Franklin
2538-430: A number of solid concentrick spheres, one within the other, and that it is open at the poles 12 or 16 degrees; I pledge my life in support of this truth, and am ready to explore the hollow, if the world will support and aid me in the undertaking. On April 10, 1818, Symmes announced his Hollow Earth hypothesis to the world, publishing his Circular No. 1. While a few enthusiastic supporters would ultimately lionize Symmes as
2679-418: A planetary nature, from the greatest to the smallest, from the sun down to the most minute blazing meteor or falling star, are all constituted, in a greater or less degree, of a collection of spheres". Ultimately, Symmes was to simplify his theory, abandoning the series of concentric inner spheres, and teaching "only one concentric sphere (a hollow earth), not five" by the time he embarked on his lecture tour of
2820-570: A popular survey of science as natural theology . Swiss mathematician Leonhard Euler has often been claimed as a proponent of a Hollow Earth theory. The version of the Hollow Earth theory ascribed to Euler lacked the concentric spheres of Halley's proposal, but added the element of an interior sun. But Euler may never have actually suggested any such thing; Euler scholar, C. Edward Sandifer, has examined Euler's writings and found no evidence for any such belief. Whether or not Euler ever proposed
2961-466: A relatively rural and forested area. In the western half of the county, several state and federal parks have kept the large tracts of land undeveloped and in their natural states. The eastern half of the county has had more suburban development because of its proximity to more populated areas and commercial development zones. With its location at the top of New Jersey, Sussex County is the only county to neighbor both New York and Pennsylvania. Because it
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#17327824848313102-599: A ridge along the county's eastern flank. Sussex County's rivers and watersheds flow in three directions; north to the Hudson River , west and south to the Delaware River, and east toward Newark Bay . Historically, these rivers and streams were used to power various types of mills (i.e. grist mills, fulling mills, etc.), transport goods to market, and later to generate electric power (after 1880). Today, these rivers are chiefly used in local recreational activities —including canoeing and fishing . The Fish Culture Unit of
3243-631: A satire of Symzonia itself. Symmes features as the source of information about the hollow Earth used as a literary trope in Grigsby, Alcanoan O and Mary P. Lowe 's "Nequa, or The Problem of the Ages" (1900). Compare a fictional echo of Symmes in Ian Wedde 's Symmes Hole (1987); and a focus on both Symmes and Reynolds in James Chapman's Our Plague: A Film From New York (1993). Symmes' work
3384-846: A similar theory. For the first two years after the publication of his theory, Symmes confined his promotional efforts to circulars and letters published in newspapers and magazines. In all, he issued seven additional circulars from 1818 to 1819, including Light Between the Spheres, which gained a national audience via its publication in the National Intelligencer . But though Symmes made converts, his theory continued to be greeted with general ridicule. In 1819, Symmes moved his family from St. Louis to Newport, Kentucky . And in 1820, Symmes began to promote his theory directly, lecturing on it in Cincinnati and other towns and cities in
3525-663: A twenty-four-foot (7.3 m) long telescope with him, apparently paid for by his father. While still an undergraduate, Halley published papers on the Solar System and sunspots . In March 1675, he wrote to John Flamsteed , the Astronomer Royal (England's first), telling him that the leading published tables on the positions of Jupiter and Saturn were erroneous, as were some of Tycho Brahe 's star positions. In 1676, Flamsteed helped Halley publish his first paper, titled "A Direct and Geometrical Method of Finding
3666-433: Is further reflected in the number of dairy farms and milk cows in 1982 as compared to 2002. In 1982 there were 137 dairy farms; by 2002 the number had decreased to only 30. In 1982 there were 6,406 milk cows; in 2002 the quantity had fallen to 1,943. According to county agricultural statistics, 17.3% of all crop sales ($ 1.4 million in 2002) were in hay. Nearly 80% of tilled farmland, or 21,195 acres (8,577 ha), on 43% of
3807-555: Is known as the "Fluorescent Mineral Capitol of the World." Fowler, who later briefly served in elected political office, operated the local iron works and bought several abandoned zinc and iron mines in the area. Shortly after his death, two companies were created to exploit the iron and zinc deposits in this region; they acquired the rights to Fowler's holdings in Franklin and nearby Sterling Hill . These companies later merged to form
3948-585: Is largely formed by sedimentary rock . The New York-New Jersey Highlands , or Highlands region, located in the county's eastern section is older. An extension of the Reading Prong formation stretching from Pennsylvania to Connecticut, the Highlands were created from geological forces created from when a small continent went over the North American plate. This rock created the highlands of Sussex County. Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rock approximately 500 million years ago. The watersheds within
4089-461: Is not to Halley's credit that he failed to acknowledge Gregory's priority in this matter. In 1717–18 he discovered the proper motion of the "fixed" stars (publishing this in 1718) by comparing his astrometric measurements with those given in Ptolemy's Almagest . Arcturus and Sirius were two noted to have moved significantly, the latter having progressed 30 arc minutes (about the diameter of
4230-742: Is referenced in Vladimir Obruchev 's 1915 novel Plutonia (novel) . John Cleves Symmes also makes an appearance in Rudy Rucker 's steampunk novel, The Hollow Earth , and in Felix J. Palma 's The Map of the Sky . Samuel Highgate Syme, the subject of The Syme Papers in Benjamin Markovits 's book of the same name, is based on John Cleves Symmes. Sussex County, New Jersey Sussex County ( / ˈ s ʌ s ɪ k s / )
4371-424: Is roughly 19.6% of the county's land area. The county-wide total agricultural product sales in 2007 was $ 21,242,000, up from $ 14,756,000 in 2002. Total county market value of land and buildings in 2007 was $ 888,955,000, an increase from $ 520,997,000 in 2002. The average market value per farm was $ 838,636 (2007), up from $ 505,823 (2002). This results in a per acre price of $ 13,625 (2007), up from $ 7,136 (2002). With
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4512-495: Is shaped roughly like a diamond or rhombus with its point matching the cardinal points of the compass, its boundary lines are roughly oriented along the ordinal or intercardinal directions . Because of its location in the higher elevations of northwestern New Jersey's Appalachian mountains, Sussex County has a cooler humid continental climate or microthermal climate ( Köppen Dfb) which indicates patterns of significant precipitation in all seasons and at least four months where
4653-843: Is the dominant geological feature in the western section of the county. It is part of the Appalachian Mountains , and part of a ridge that continues as the Blue Mountain in Eastern Pennsylvania, and as Shawangunk Ridge in New York to the north. It begins in New Jersey as the eastern half of the Delaware Water Gap , and runs northeast to southwest along the Delaware River. Elevations range from 1,200 to 1,800 feet (370 to 550 m) and attains
4794-488: Is the northernmost county in the U.S. state of New Jersey . Its county seat is Newton . It is part of the New York metropolitan area and is part of New Jersey's Skylands Region . As of the 2020 census , the county was the state's 17th-most-populous county , with a population of 144,221, a decrease of 5,044 (−3.4%) from the 2010 census count of 149,265, which in turn reflected an increase of 5,099 (+3.5%) over
4935-479: Is the rock of soil material transported or deposited by glacial ice. In this case, the most recent glaciation (i.e. the last ice age ), the Wisconsinian continental glacier , deposited a till plain composed of ground and recessional moraines . This glaciation reached its maximum extent roughly 22,000 years ago. Glaciofluvial deposits (or "outwash") are rock and soil materials that melting glaciers deposit as
5076-484: The Bodleian Library at Oxford. He also completed a new translation of the first four books from the original Greek that had been started by the late David Gregory . He published these along with his own reconstruction of Book VIII in the first complete Latin edition in 1710. The same year, he received an honorary degree of doctor of laws from Oxford. In 1716, Halley suggested a high-precision measurement of
5217-882: The New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife stocks these waterways each year with various species of trout . Some of these rivers—especially the Flat Brook, Paulins Kill and Pequest—have become well known as trout streams and for their suitability for fly-fishing . The Flat Brook and its tributary the Big Flat Brook are regarded as the state's premiere trout stream. According to the Natural Resource Conservation Service , Sussex County soils are derived from parent materials that are largely till and glaciofluvial deposits , alluvium , and organic matter deposits . Till
5358-512: The New Jersey Zinc Corporation (today known as Horsehead Industries ). At this time, Russian , Chilean , British , Irish , Hungarian and Polish immigrants came to Franklin to work in the mines, and the population of Franklin swelled from 500 (in 1897) to over 3,000 (in 1913). Declining deposits in the Franklin area, the expense of pumping groundwater from mine shafts, tax disputes and misdirected investments by
5499-657: The Ordovician period and Appalachian orogeny — by a continent striking North America the creating Kittatinny Mountain, Blue Mountain, and the Appalachian Mountains . This physiographic province occupies approximately two-thirds of the county's area (the county's western and central sections) dominated by Kittatinny Mountain and the Kittatinny Valley. This province's contour is characterized by long, even ridges with long, continuous valleys in between that generally run parallel from southwest to northeast. This region
5640-695: The Paulins Kill watershed and Pequest River watershed flowing southwest. This valley floor consists of shale and slate (part of the Ordovician Martinsburg Formation ) and of limestone (part of the Jacksonburg Formation). Several parties have argued about the possibility of natural gas extraction in the region's Martinsburg and Utica shale formations, similar to the Marcellus Shale formations to
5781-517: The U.S. Department of Agriculture 's National Agricultural Statistics Service , Sussex County has 1,060 farms totaling 65,242 acres (26,403 ha; 101.941 sq mi) out of New Jersey's total 10,327 farms managing 773,450 acres (313,000 ha; 1,208.52 sq mi). This is up from 1,029 farms in the 2002 Census estimate. However, acreage dedicated to agriculture declined by 13.6% from 75,496 acres (30,552 ha; 117.963 sq mi) in 2002. Note though that 102,547 acres—roughly 30% of
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5922-557: The aurora borealis . He suggested, "Auroral rays are due to particles, which are affected by the magnetic field, the rays parallel to Earth's magnetic field." In 1693 Halley published an article on life annuities , which featured an analysis of age-at-death on the basis of the Breslau statistics Caspar Neumann had been able to provide. This article allowed the British government to sell life annuities at an appropriate price based on
6063-450: The " Newton of the West", in general the world was not impressed. Symmes had sent his declaration (at considerable cost to himself) to "each notable foreign government, reigning prince, legislature, city, college, and philosophical societies, throughout the union, and to individual members of our National Legislature, as far as the five hundred copies would go." Symmes's son Americus wrote of
6204-532: The 131st-highest per capita income of all 3,113 counties in the United States (and the ninth-highest in New Jersey). Average per capita income was $ 49,207 and was 23.2% above the national average. As of the 2000 Census, the median household income was $ 65,266 and the median family income was $ 73,335. Males had a median income of $ 44,544 compared with $ 32,487 for females. The per capita income for
6345-493: The 144,166 persons at the 2000 census . Based on 2020 census data, Vernon Township was the county's largest in both population and area, with a population of 22,358 and covering an area of 70.59 square miles (182.8 km ). The county is part of the North Jersey region of the state. In 2015, the county had a per capita personal income of $ 55,497, the ninth-highest in New Jersey and ranked 220th of 3,113 counties in
6486-508: The 1720s, spreading north into Sussex County in the 1740s and 1750s as additional German emigrants arrived. Also during this time, Scottish settlers from Elizabethtown and Perth Amboy , and English settlers from these cities, Long Island , Connecticut and Massachusetts , came to New Jersey and moved up the tributaries of the Passaic and Raritan rivers, settling in the eastern sections of present-day Sussex and Warren counties . By
6627-468: The 1750s, residents of this area began to petition colonial authorities for a new county to be formed; they complained of the inconvenience of long travel to conduct business with the government and the courts. By this time, four large townships had been created in this sparsely populated Northwestern region: Walpack Township (before 1731), Greenwich Township (before 1738), Hardwick Township (1750) and Newtown Township (1751). On June 8, 1753, Sussex County
6768-471: The 1880s and consolidating their assets. He developed a process of crushing and milling iron-bearing minerals and separating iron ore from the material through large electromagnets , and built one of the world's largest ore-crushing mills near Ogdensburg. Completed in 1889, the factory contained three giant electromagnets and was intended to process up to 1200 tons of iron ore every day. However, technical difficulties repeatedly thwarted production. However, in
6909-536: The 1890s, richer soft-grade iron ore deposits located in Minnesota 's Iron Range rendered Edison's Ogdensburg operation unprofitable and he closed the works in 1900. Edison adapted the process and machinery for the cement industry and invested in producing Portland Cement in other locations. In the early 19th century, Samuel Fowler (1779–1844) settled in Franklin Furnace (now Franklin) to open up
7050-664: The Aphelia, Eccentricities, and Proportions of the Primary Planets, Without Supposing Equality in Angular Motion", about planetary orbits , in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society . Influenced by Flamsteed's project to compile a catalogue of stars of the northern celestial hemisphere , Halley proposed to do the same for the southern sky , dropping out of school to do so. He chose
7191-730: The Astronomer Royal, John Flamsteed, and the Anglican Church questioned his religious views, largely on the grounds that he had doubted the Earth's age as given in the Bible . After Flamsteed wrote to Newton to rally support against Halley, Newton wrote back in hopes of reconciliation, but was unsuccessful. Halley's candidacy was opposed by both the Archbishop of Canterbury , John Tillotson , and Bishop Stillingfleet , and
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#17327824848317332-521: The Astronomy of Comets ); in this, he stated his belief that the comet sightings of 1456, 1531, 1607, and 1682 were of the same comet, and that it would return in 1758. Halley did not live to witness the comet's return, but when it did, the comet became generally known as Halley's Comet. By 1706 Halley had learned Arabic and completed the translation started by Edward Bernard of Books V–VII of Apollonius 's Conics from copies found at Leiden and
7473-753: The Compass (1701). This was the first such chart to be published and the first on which isogonic , or Halleyan, lines appeared. The use of such lines inspired later ideas such as those of isotherms by Alexander von Humboldt in his maps. In 1701, Halley made a third and final voyage on the Paramour to study the tides of the English Channel . In 1702, he was dispatched by Queen Anne on diplomatic missions to other European leaders. The preface to Awnsham and John Churchill 's collection of voyages and travels (1704), supposedly written by John Locke or by Halley, valourised expeditions such as these as part of
7614-571: The Congress ordered two colonels, Benjamin Flower and Thomas Maybury to take possession of the iron works at Andover in order to equip General Washington's army. During the middle of the 19th century, under the management of Cooper and Hewitt, the Andover mine produced 50,000 tons of iron ore each year. The firm manufactured railroad rails and the country's first structural steel , which and led to
7755-655: The Earth is Hollow, Habitable Within, and Widely Open About the Poles, Compiled by Americus Symmes, from the Writings of his Father, Capt. John Cleves Symmes (not to be confused with the book of a very similar title published by James McBride in 1826). Edgar Allen Poe's' short story "MS. Found in a Bottle" (1833), which describes a ship driven toward the South Pole by a storm and consumed by a whirlpool there, may have been inspired by Symmes' assertions, or have been intended as
7896-580: The East Coast. Writing in August 1817 to his stepson, Anthony Lockwood, Symmes for the first time stated that "I infer that all planets and globes are hollow". But Symmes' theory was far from unprecedented. While the idea of polar openings leading into a Hollow Earth was Symmes' innovation, the concept of a Hollow Earth had an intellectual pedigree dating back to the 17th century and Edmond Halley . Halley proposed his Hollow Earth theory as an explanation for
8037-710: The Highlands provide fresh water resources for millions of residents in New Jersey and the New York City Metropolitan Area. Because of this, the region was protected by the New Jersey Legislature and Governor Jim McGreevey under the Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act enacted in 2004. This act sought to protect these water resources from development by promoting open space and farmland preservation, creating new recreational parks, and consolidating
8178-459: The Highlands region range from 1,000 to 1,500 feet (300 to 460 m). Officially, the county's lowest elevation is approximately 300 feet (91 m) above sea level along the Delaware River near Flatbrookville. However, local authorities claim unofficially that the mine adit descending 2,675 feet (815 m) at the Sterling Hill Mine in Ogdensburg is the lowest elevation in New Jersey. Because of its topography, Sussex County has remained
8319-419: The Hudson and Delaware rivers. The Munsee spoke a very distinct dialect of the Lenape and inhabited a region bounded by the Hudson River , the headwaters of the Delaware River and the Susquehanna River , and south to the Lehigh River and Conewago Creek . As a result of disruption following the French and Indian War (1756–1763), the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), and later Indian removals from
8460-475: The Paulinskill River, the Flatbrook, which drain into the Delaware River, the Wallkill River which flows north to the Hudson River. There are many smaller creeks that drain into these water sheds. Sussex County is located within two of New Jersey's physiographic provinces: (1) The Ridge and Valley Appalachians , and (2) the New York-New Jersey Highlands regions. The features of the Ridge and Valley province were created approximately 400 million years ago during
8601-419: The Revolution years before. As deposits were depleted, the iron mining industry began to diminish by the mid-19th century. During the late 19th century, prolific American inventor Thomas Edison began to explore the commercial opportunities of processing poor-quality low-grade iron ore to combat the growing scarcity of iron deposits in the United States. He began to purchase mining companies in Sussex County in
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#17327824848318742-414: The Sun. Upon his return to England, he was made a fellow of the Royal Society , and with the help of King Charles II , was granted a master's degree from Oxford . Halley encouraged and helped fund the publication of Isaac Newton 's influential Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica (1687). From observations Halley made in September 1682, he used Newton's law of universal gravitation to compute
8883-402: The United States. As of 2010 The Bureau of Economic Analysis ranked the county as having the 131st-highest per capita income ($ 49,207) of the 3,113 counties in the United States (and the ninth-highest in the state). The county was established in 1753 from portions of Morris County and named after the county of Sussex in England. The area of Sussex County and its surrounding region
9024-431: The West in Pennsylvania and New York. Of special interest is Rutan Hill , a 440-million-year-old patch of igneous rock known as nepheline syenite . This site, north of Beemerville in Wantage Township, was once an ancient volcano —the only extant dormant volcano site in the state. Dividing the Kittatinny Valley (and the Ridge and Valley Province) from the Highlands region is a narrow fault of Hardyston Quartzite. Many of
9165-497: The accuracy of his observations; Halley stayed with Hevelius and checked his observations, finding that they were quite precise. By 1681, Giovanni Domenico Cassini had told Halley of his theory that comets were objects in orbit. In September 1682, Halley carried out a series of observations of what became known as Halley's Comet ; his name became associated with it because of his work on its orbit and predicting its return in 1758 (which he did not live to see). In early 1686, Halley
9306-450: The addition of many constellations never seen before. Natural and moral history is embelish'd with the most beneficial increase of so many thousands of plants it had never before receiv'd, so many drugs and spices, such variety of beasts, birds and fishes, such rarities in minerals, mountains and waters, such unaccountable diversity of climates and men, and in them of complexions, tempers, habits, manners, politicks, and religions…. To conclude,
9447-471: The age of 22. In 1679, he published Catalogus Stellarum Australium ('A catalogue of the stars of the South'), which includes his map and descriptions of 341 stars. Robert Hooke presented the catalogue to the Royal Society. In mid-1679, Halley went to Danzig ( Gdańsk ) on behalf of the Society to help resolve a dispute: because astronomer Johannes Hevelius ' observing instruments were not equipped with telescopic sights , Flamsteed and Hooke had questioned
9588-415: The age of the purchaser. Halley's work strongly influenced the development of actuarial science . The construction of the life-table for Breslau, which followed more primitive work by John Graunt , is now seen as a major event in the history of demography . The Royal Society censured Halley for suggesting in 1694 that the story of Noah's flood might be an account of a cometary impact. A similar theory
9729-407: The area was first a tundra with lichens and mosses. After a few thousand years, coniferous forests began to grow. As climate grew warmer around 8000 B.C., deciduous forests began to grow with nut trees such as oak, and maple. Around 3000 B.C. other nut bearing trees began to grow such as hickory, butternut, walnut and beech. This allowed the Paleo Indian populations to increase. The county is drained by
9870-506: The average temperature rises above 10 °C (50 °F) This differs from the rest of the state which is generally a humid mesothermal climate, in which temperatures range between −3 and 18 °C (27 and 64 °F) during the year's coldest month. Sussex County is part of USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 6 . During winter and early spring, New Jersey in some years is subject to " nor'easters "—significant storm systems that have proven capable of causing blizzards or flooding throughout
10011-399: The behest of King William III , Halley was given command of the Paramour , a 52 feet (16 m) pink , so that he could carry out investigations in the South Atlantic into the laws governing the variation of the compass , as well as to refine the coordinates of the English colonies in the Americas . On 19 August 1698, he took command of the ship and, in November 1698, sailed on what was
10152-553: The building of railroads and commercial development in the county. Iron from the Andover mines was fashioned into cable wire for the bridge built at Niagara Falls and for the beams used to rebuild Princeton University 's Nassau Hall in Princeton, New Jersey after a fire undermined the structure in 1855. During the American Civil War , Andover iron found its way into rifle barrels and cannonballs just as it had during
10293-595: The cause of atmospheric motions. He also established the relationship between barometric pressure and height above sea level. His charts were an important contribution to the emerging field of information visualisation . Halley spent most of his time on lunar observations, but was also interested in the problems of gravity . One problem that attracted his attention was the proof of Kepler's laws of planetary motion . In August 1684, he went to Cambridge to discuss this with Isaac Newton , much as John Flamsteed had done four years earlier, only to find that Newton had solved
10434-425: The company led to the abandonment of the mines. Today, both the Franklin and Sterling Hill mines are operated as museums. Beginning in the 1950s and 1960s, construction or improvements of Interstate 80 , Route 181 and Route 23 triggered rapid growth to Sussex County. Since 1950, the population nearly quadrupled from 34,423 people to 130,943 people in 1990. This has caused Sussex County to begin developing into
10575-536: The county was $ 26,992. About 6.30% of families and 8.40% of the population were below the poverty line , including 10.50% of those under age 18 and 8.00% of those age 65 or over. The median value of all homes in Sussex County as of Q4 2021 was $ 323,687, up 12.1% from the prior year. As of 2010 , there were a total of 54,881 households enumerated in the 2010 census, with a reported median household income of $ 84,115, or mean household income of $ 96,527. Males had
10716-417: The county's gross domestic product was $ 4.6 billion in 2021, which was ranked 20th in the state and was a 3.9% increase from the prior year. As of the 2010 Census, the county's unemployment rate was 11.0%. The Census Bureau reported a population of 118,420 persons (above age 16) available for the labor force of which 82,449 (69.6%) were actively employed in civilian labor, and 35,971 (30.4%) were not in
10857-579: The county's annual crop revenues but account for 30% of crop production. Despite the decline of dairy farming, it is still the largest contributor to the county's annual agricultural revenues. According to the Sussex County Comprehensive Farmland Preservation Plan (2008): Dairy production has steadily trended downward since 1971, when the county produced 138 million pounds of milk. By 2005 this quantity had fallen to 38.4 million pounds. The decrease
10998-407: The county's land area—are under farmland assessment for the purpose of calculating property tax levies. This decrease is total acreage is due, in large part, to " suburban sprawl " as farmers capitalized by converting to commercial and residential development. The average size of a farm in 2007 was 62 acres (25 ha) acres, down from 73 acres (30 ha). The 2007 acreage dedicated to agriculture
11139-402: The county. The population density was 277 inhabitants per square mile (107/km ). There were 56,528 housing units at an average density of 108 units per square mile (42/km ). The racial makeup of the county was 95.70% White , 1.0% Black or African American , 0.11% Native American , 1.20% Asian , 0.02% Pacific Islander , 0.74% from other races , and 1.14% from two or more races. 3.30% of
11280-407: The curvature of the rim of these polar openings was gradual enough that it would be possible to actually enter the inner earth without being aware of the transition. He argued that due to the centrifugal force of Earth's rotation, the Earth would be flattened at the poles, leading to a vast passage into the inner Earth. Symmes's concept of polar openings connecting the Earth's surface to the inner Earth
11421-558: The different locations of the geographic and magnetic poles of the Earth. While Halley's contemporaries found the geomagnetic data he had gathered to be of interest, his proposal of a Hollow Earth was never widely accepted. The theory remained dear to Halley; he chose to have his final portrait (as Astronomer Royal) painted depicting him holding a drawing of the Earth's interior as a set of concentric spheres. Some scholars have proposed that Symmes may have learned of Halley's Hollow Earth via Cotton Mather 's book, The Christian Philosopher,
11562-687: The distance between the Earth and the Sun by timing the transit of Venus . In doing so, he was following the method described by James Gregory in Optica Promota (in which the design of the Gregorian telescope is also described). It is reasonable to assume Halley possessed and had read this book given that the Gregorian design was the principal telescope design used in astronomy in Halley's day. It
11703-443: The earliest being the one accepted. These dates were wrong by thousands of years, but the idea that scientific methods could be used to date ancient monuments was revolutionary in its day. Halley succeeded John Flamsteed in 1720 as Astronomer Royal, a position Halley held until his death in 1742 at the age of 85. He was buried in the graveyard of the old church of St Margaret's, Lee (since rebuilt), at Lee Terrace, Blackheath . He
11844-411: The earliest recorded cases of middle ear barotrauma . That same year, at a meeting of the Royal Society, Halley introduced a rudimentary working model of a magnetic compass using a liquid-filled housing to damp the swing and wobble of the magnetised needle. In 1691, Halley sought the post of Savilian Professor of Astronomy at Oxford. While a candidate for the position, Halley faced the animosity of
11985-576: The east of Kittatinny Mountain and ends with the Highlands in the east. It is largely a region of rolling hills and flat valley floors. Elevations in this valley range from 400 to 1,000 feet. It is part of the Great Appalachian Valley running from eastern Canada to northern Alabama. This valley is shared by three major watersheds—the Wallkill River , with its tributaries Pochuck Creek and Papakating Creek flowing north; and
12126-786: The eastern United States, the main Lenape groups now live in Ontario in Canada, and in Wisconsin and Oklahoma in the United States. As early as 1690, Dutch and French Huguenot colonists from towns along the Hudson River Valley in New York began permanently settling in the Upper Delaware Valley (known as the " Minisink "). The route these Dutch settlers had taken was the path of an old Indian trail and became
12267-437: The empire of Europe is now extended to the utmost bounds of the earth, where several of its nations have conquests and colonies. These and many more are the advantages drawn from the labours of those, who expose themselves to the dangers of the vast ocean, and of unknown nations; which those who sit still at home abundantly reap in every kind: and the relation of one traveler is an incentive to stir up another to imitate him, whilst
12408-415: The farms in the county is dedicated to hay production. Much of hay is grown for feed on livestock farms — especially dairy farms — and never makes it to market and is therefore not included in federal agricultural census data. In 2002, 4,059 acres (1,643 ha) were dedicated to corn cultivation, the majority of it used for feed on the same farms. According to the 2007 Census of Agriculture compiled by
12549-418: The first purely scientific voyage by an English naval vessel. Unfortunately problems of insubordination arose over questions of Halley's competence to command a vessel. Halley returned the ship to England to proceed against officers in July 1699. The result was a mild rebuke for his men, and dissatisfaction for Halley, who felt the court had been too lenient. Halley thereafter received a temporary commission as
12690-508: The first telescopic catalogue of the southern sky, and observed a transit of Mercury across the Sun. Focusing on this latter observation, Halley realised that observing the solar parallax of a planet—more ideally using the transit of Venus , which would not occur within his lifetime—could be used to trigonometrically determine the distances between Earth, Venus, and the Sun. Halley returned to England in May 1678, and used his data to produce
12831-447: The glacier recedes. Alluvium is materials that are deposited by floodwaters from engorged bodies of water—chiefly streams and rivers. Organic deposits are largely the result of decomposing plant material. According to the U.S. Census Bureau , as of the 2020 Census, the county had a total area of 535.54 square miles (1,387.0 km ), of which 518.66 square miles (1,343.3 km ) was land (96.8%) and 16.88 square miles (43.7 km )
12972-439: The government defined as an annual household income under $ 22,350 for a family of four. However, recent surveys indicate that in the county's town centers, Sussex Borough (15.1%), Newton (12.8%) and Andover Borough (12.7%), poverty levels reach double-digits. Of these poverty-level residents, an estimated 44% are employed, many of them underemployed despite working multiple jobs. The Bureau of Economic Analysis calculated that
13113-502: The labor force. Early industry and commerce chiefly centered on agriculture , milling, and iron mining . As iron deposits were exhausted, mining shifted toward zinc deposits near Franklin and Ogdensburg during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The local economy expanded due to the introduction of railroads and shortly after the Civil War, the town centers hosted factories. However, the factories, railroads and mining declined by
13254-702: The last 50 years it is still the majority of agricultural production in the region. Trucking has replaced railroads in the transportation of milk products to regional production facilities and markets. Rising taxes, regulation and decreasing profitability in dairy farming have forced farmers to adapt by growing other products or converting their farms to other uses. Many farmers have sold their properties to real estate developers who have built residential housing . Many Sussex County farms are nursery farms producing ornamental trees , plants and flowers used in horticulture , floristry or landscaping . Christmas trees and nursery and greenhouse plants contribute to 51% of
13395-469: The late 1960s. Today, Sussex County features a mix of rural farmland , forests and suburban development . Because agriculture (chiefly dairy farming ) has decreased and that the county hosts little industry, Sussex County is considered a " bedroom community " as most residents commute to neighboring counties ( Bergen , Essex and Morris counties) or to New York City for work. Although Sussex County's dairy farming industry has declined significantly in
13536-616: The mid 18th century, several entrepreneurial colonists began mining iron in area around Andover, Hamburg, and Franklin present-day Sussex County and establishing forges and furnaces to create pig iron and bar iron . During the American Revolution, the Quartermaster Department of the Continental Army complained to Congress of difficulties in acquiring iron to support the war effort and
13677-520: The mint was profiting from it. In 1698, the Czar of Russia (later known as Peter the Great ) was on a visit to England, and hoped Newton would be available to entertain him. Newton sent Halley in his place. He and the Czar bonded over science and brandy. According to one disputed account, when both of them were drunk one night, Halley jovially pushed the Czar around Deptford in a wheelbarrow. In 1698, at
13818-437: The moon) southwards in 1800 years. In 1720, together with his friend the antiquarian William Stukeley , Halley participated in the first attempt to scientifically date Stonehenge . Assuming that the monument had been laid out using a magnetic compass, Stukeley and Halley attempted to calculate the perceived deviation introducing corrections from existing magnetic records, and suggested three dates (460 BC, AD 220 and AD 920),
13959-520: The mountains in the Highlands are not part of a solid, linear ridge and tend to randomly rise from the surrounding land as the result of folds, faults and intrusions. Elevations in the Highlands region range from 1,000 to 1,500 feet. The more prominent mountains in this area are Hamburg Mountain (elevation: 1,495 feet (456 m)), Wawayanda Mountain (elevation: 1,448 feet (441 m)), Sparta Mountain (elevation: 1,232 feet (376 m)) and Pochuck Mountain (elevation: 1,194 feet (364 m)) which form
14100-517: The name should be pronounced in the context of the astronomer or the comet. The alternative / ˈ h eɪ l i / is much more common in the latter context than it is when used as a modern surname. Colin Ronan , one of Halley's biographers, preferred / ˈ h ɔː l i / . Contemporary accounts spell his name Hailey, Hayley, Haley, Haly, Halley, Hawley and Hawly , and presumably pronunciations varied similarly. As for his given name, although
14241-441: The northeastern United States. Hurricanes and tropical storms , tornadoes , and earthquakes are relatively rare. The Kittatinny Valley to the north of Newton, part of the Great Appalachian Valley , experiences a snowbelt phenomenon and has been categorized as a microclimate region known as the "Sussex County Snow Belt." This region receives approximately forty to fifty inches of snow per year and generally more snowfall that
14382-471: The orbit of comet Kirch, based on Flamsteed's observations in 1680–1681. Although he was to accurately calculate the orbit of the comet of 1682, he was inaccurate in his calculations of the orbit of comet Kirch. They indicated a periodicity of 575 years, thus appearing in the years 531 and 1106, and presumably heralding the death of Julius Caesar in a like fashion in 45 BC. It is now known to have an orbital period of circa 10,000 years. In 1691, Halley built
14523-569: The periodicity of Halley's Comet in his 1705 Synopsis of the Astronomy of Comets . It was named after him upon its predicted return in 1758, which he did not live to see. Beginning in 1698, Halley made sailing expeditions and made observations on the conditions of terrestrial magnetism . In 1718, he discovered the proper motion of the "fixed" stars . Halley was born in Haggerston in Middlesex . His father, Edmond Halley Sr., came from
14664-496: The persistent misconception that Halley received a knighthood , it is not the case. The idea can be tracked back to American astronomical texts such as William Augustus Norton 's 1839 An Elementary Treatise on Astronomy , possibly due to Halley's royal occupations and connections to Sir Isaac Newton . Halley married Mary Tooke in 1682 and settled in Islington . The couple had three children. There are three pronunciations of
14805-405: The population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Among those residents listing their ancestry, 24.5% were of Italian , 22.9% German , 22.2% Irish , 10.7% English, 8.1% Polish and 5.2% Dutch ancestry according to Census 2000. In 2000 there were 50,831 households, out of which 39.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 65.0% were married couples living together, 8.0% had
14946-413: The population were under the age of 18, 7.6% from 18 to 24, 23.9% from 25 to 44, 32.6% from 45 to 64, and 12% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.8 years. For every 100 females, the population had 98.5 males. For every 100 females ages 18 and older there were 96.9 males. As of the 2000 United States census there were 144,166 people, 50,831 households, and 38,784 families residing in
15087-410: The population. Of the 54,752 households, 33.5% had children under the age of 18; 61% were married couples living together; 9% had a female householder with no husband present and 25.8% were non-families. Of all households, 21% were made up of individuals and 7.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.69 and the average family size was 3.14. 24% of
15228-599: The post went instead to David Gregory , who had Newton's support. In 1692, Halley put forth the idea of a hollow Earth consisting of a shell about 500 miles (800 km) thick, two inner concentric shells and an innermost core. He suggested that atmospheres separated these shells, and that each shell had its own magnetic poles , with each sphere rotating at a different speed. Halley proposed this scheme to explain anomalous compass readings. He envisaged each inner region as having an atmosphere and being luminous (and possibly inhabited), and speculated that escaping gas caused
15369-650: The problem, at the instigation of Flamsteed with regard to the orbit of comet Kirch , without publishing the solution. Halley asked to see the calculations and was told by Newton that he could not find them, but promised to redo them and send them on later, which he eventually did, in a short treatise titled On the motion of bodies in an orbit . Halley recognised the importance of the work and returned to Cambridge to arrange its publication with Newton, who instead went on to expand it into his Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica published at Halley's expense in 1687. Halley's first calculations with comets were thereby for
15510-475: The public consciousness, and popular support for his proposed Arctic expedition started to build. In 1820, he sat for a never-completed portrait by artist John J. Audubon for Cincinnati's Western Museum. Audubon wrote on the back of the sketch, "John, Cleeves Simms—The man with the hole at the Pole—Drawn and a good likeness it is". Some have claimed he was the real author of: Symzonia; Voyage of Discovery , which
15651-630: The quartzite, and allowed it to bend, creating an uplift. as cooling occurred this cemented the quartz pebbles and conglomerate together. This is how the Kittatinny Ridge was created. The strike from this continent was from the south east, this is why the Kittatinny ridge is on a northeast–southwest axis. The Wisconsin glacier which covered the entire county from 23,000B.C to 13,000 B.C. created many lakes and streams. The glacier covered Kittatinny mountain. As climate warmed around 13,000 B.C.,
15792-444: The reaction to Circular No. 1 in 1878, recounting "[i]ts reception by the public can easily be imagined; it was overwhelmed with ridicule as the production of a distempered imagination, or the result of partial insanity. It was for many years a fruitful source of jest with the newspapers." Symmes, though, was not deterred. He began a campaign of circulars, newspaper letters, and lectures aimed at defending and promoting his hypothesis of
15933-458: The region, making use of a wooden globe with the polar sections removed to reveal the inner Earth and the spheres within. (Symmes's modified globe can now be found in the collection of Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University .) Symmes was not a commanding lecturer; he was uncomfortable as a public speaker, hesitant in speaking, and possessed a nasal voice. Still, he persevered. Symmes began to make converts and his ideas began to filter into
16074-526: The regulatory authority over land use planning in a regional planning commission known as the Highlands Council . The Delaware River forms the western and northwestern boundary of Sussex County. This region is known as the Upper Delaware Valley and historically as the Minisink or Minisink Valley. Elevations in the regions along the river range from 300 to 500 feet. Kittatinny Mountain
16215-590: The repeal of several prohibition-era alcohol laws in 1981, 43 wineries have become licensed and are operating in the state. New Jersey wines have grown in stature due to increased marketing and quality, recent successes and awards in competitions, and appreciation by critics. Sussex County is home to three established and operating wineries and three more are in development. Edmond Halley Edmond (or Edmund ) Halley FRS ( / ˈ h æ l i / ; 8 November [ O.S. 29 October] 1656 – 25 January 1742 [ O.S. 14 January 1741])
16356-562: The rest of Northern New Jersey and the Northern Climate Zone. This phenomenon is attributed to the orographic lift of the Kittatinny Ridge which impacts local weather patterns by increasing humidity and precipitation , providing the ski resorts of Vernon Valley in the northeastern part of this region with increased snowfall. In recent years, average temperatures in the county seat of Newton have ranged from
16497-512: The rest of mankind, in their accounts without stirring a foot, compass the earth and seas, visit all countries, and converse with all nations. In November 1703, Halley was appointed Savilian Professor of Geometry at the University of Oxford, his theological enemies, John Tillotson and Bishop Stillingfleet having died. In 1705, applying historical astronomy methods, he published the paper Astronomiae cometicae synopsis ( A Synopsis of
16638-964: The route of the Old Mine Road and stretches of present-date U.S. Route 209 . These Dutch settlers penetrated the Minisink Valley and settled as far south as the Delaware Water Gap , by 1731 this valley had been incorporated as Walpack Precinct. Throughout the 18th century, immigrants from the Rheinland Palatinate in Germany and Switzerland fled religious wars and poverty to arrive in Philadelphia and New York City. Several German families began leaving Philadelphia to settle along river valleys in Northwestern New Jersey and Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley in
16779-561: The sessions of the county's courts, the state legislature eventually voted to divide Sussex County in two, using a line drawn from the juncture of the Flat Brook and Delaware River in a southeasterly direction to the Musconetcong River running through the Yellow Frame Presbyterian Church in present-day Fredon Township (then part of Hardwick). On November 20, 1824, Warren County was created from
16920-411: The sole support of the family, with an estate significantly in debt. Americus provided for his mother and siblings and paid off his father's debts. He also championed his father's legacy, erecting a memorial to him (a pylon topped with a globe carved in the shape of a hollow sphere) and publishing in 1878 an edited collection of his father's papers, Symmes's Theory of Concentric Spheres: Demonstrating That
17061-424: The south Atlantic island of Saint Helena (west of Africa), from which he would be able to observe not only the southern stars, but also some of the northern stars with which to cross-reference them. King Charles II supported his endeavour. Halley sailed to the island in late 1676, then set up an observatory with a large sextant with telescopic sights. Over a year, he made observations with which he would produce
17202-607: The southern territory of the Sussex County. Throughout the 18th, 19th, and 20th centuries, Sussex County's economy was largely centered around agriculture and the mining of iron and zinc ores. Early settlers established farms whose operations were chiefly focused towards subsistence agriculture . Because of geological constraints, Sussex County's agricultural production was centered around dairy farming . Several farms had orchards —typically apples and peaches—and surplus fruit and grains were often distilled or brewed into alcoholic beverages (hard ciders, applejack and fruit brandies). This
17343-461: The southwest for most of year; but in late winter and early spring come from the northwest. The lowest recorded temperature was −26 °F on January 21, 1994 . The highest recorded temperature was 104 °F (40 °C) on September 3, 1953. The heaviest one-day snowfall was 24 inches (610 mm) recorded on January 8, 1996; combined with the next day, total snowfall was 40 inches (1,000 mm). The heaviest one-day rainfall - 6.70 inches (170 mm)
17484-499: The spheres revolved at different rates and upon different axes, and that the apparent instability of magnetic North in the Arctic could be explained by travelers moving unawares across and along the verge between the inner and outer earths. Symmes generalized his theory beyond just the Earth, claiming that "the Earth as well as all the celestial orbicular bodies existing in the inverse, visible and invisible, which partake in any degree of
17625-496: The surname Halley . These are / ˈ h æ l i / , / ˈ h eɪ l i / , and / ˈ h ɔː l i / . As a personal surname, the most common pronunciation in the 21st century, both in Great Britain and in the United States, is / ˈ h æ l i / (rhymes with "valley"). This is the personal pronunciation used by most Halleys living in London today. This is useful guidance but does not, of course, tell us how
17766-518: The western part of Sussex County was under a shallow inland sea. Fossils of sea shells and fish can be found west of the Kittatinny ridge. Then approximately 400 million years ago, a small, narrow continent collided with North America. Pressure from the collision, created heat in the bed rock which folded and faulted the Silurian Shawangunk Conglomerate that was under the shallow sea. The pressure created intense heat, melted
17907-604: The younger John Cleves Symmes was often referred to by his later military rank, or with the suffix of "Jr.", so as to distinguish him from his uncle. Symmes "received a good common English education" and on March 26, 1802, at the age of twenty-two, obtained a commission as an Ensign in the US Army (with the assistance of his uncle). He was commissioned into the 1st Infantry Regiment and was promoted to Second Lieutenant on May 1, 1804, to First Lieutenant on July 29, 1807, and to Captain on January 20, 1813. In 1807, Symmes fought
18048-471: Was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.6 males. Sussex County is considered an affluent area as many of its residents are college-educated, employed in professional or service jobs, and earn above the state's average per capita income and household income statistics. As of 2010 , the Bureau of Economic Analysis ranked the county as having
18189-488: Was an English astronomer , mathematician and physicist . He was the second Astronomer Royal in Britain, succeeding John Flamsteed in 1720. From an observatory he constructed on Saint Helena in 1676–77, Halley catalogued the southern celestial hemisphere and recorded a transit of Mercury across the Sun. He realised that a similar transit of Venus could be used to determine the distances between Earth, Venus, and
18330-621: Was attributed to "Captain Adam Seaborn". A recent reprint gives him as the author. Other researchers argue against this idea. Some think it was written as a satire of Symmes's ideas, and believe they identified the author as early American writer Nathaniel Ames. Symmes himself never wrote a book of his ideas, as he was too busy expounding them on the lecture circuit, but others did. His follower James McBride wrote and published Symmes' Theory of Concentric Spheres in 1826. Another follower, Jeremiah N. Reynolds apparently had an article that
18471-503: Was created from these four municipalities, which had been part of Morris County when Morris stretched over all of northwestern New Jersey. Sussex County at this time encompassed present-day Sussex and Warren Counties and its boundaries were drawn by the New York-New Jersey border to the north, the Delaware River to the west, and the Musconetcong River to the south and east. After several decades of debate over where to hold
18612-578: Was elected to the Royal Society's new position of secretary, requiring him to give up his fellowship and manage correspondence and meetings, as well as edit the Philosophical Transactions . Also in 1686, Halley published the second part of the results from his Helenian expedition, being a paper and chart on trade winds and monsoons . The symbols he used to represent trailing winds still exist in most modern day weather chart representations. In this article he identified solar heating as
18753-530: Was independently suggested three centuries later, but is generally rejected by geologists. In 1696, Newton was appointed as warden of the Royal Mint and nominated Halley as deputy comptroller of the Chester mint. Halley spent two years supervising coin production. While there, he caught two clerks pilfering precious metals. He and the local warden spoke out about the scheme, unaware that the local master of
18894-795: Was interred in the same vault as the Astronomer Royal John Pond ; the unmarked grave of the Astronomer Royal Nathaniel Bliss is nearby. His original tombstone was transferred by the Admiralty when the original Lee church was demolished and rebuilt – it can be seen today on the southern wall of the Camera Obscura at the Royal Observatory, Greenwich. His marked grave can be seen at St Margaret's Church, Lee Terrace. Despite
19035-618: Was occupied for approximately 8,000-13,000 years by succeeding cultures of indigenous peoples . The Munsee Indians inhabited the region at the time of European encounter. The Munsee were a loosely organized division of the Lenape (or Lenni Lenape), a Native American people also called "Delaware Indians" after their historic territory along the Delaware River . The Lenape inhabited the Mid-Atlantic coastal areas and inland along
19176-525: Was published as a separate booklet in 1827: Remarks of Symmes' Theory Which Appeared in the American Quarterly Review . In 1868 a professor W.F. Lyons published The Hollow Globe which put forth a Symmes-like Hollow Earth theory, but did not mention Symmes. Symmes's son Americus then republished The Symmes' Theory of Concentric Spheres to set the record straight. Symmes's death left his eldest son, seventeen-year-old Americus Symmes,
19317-607: Was recorded on August 19, 1955. The 2010 United States census counted 149,265 people, 54,752 households, and 40,626 families in the county. The population density was 287.6 per square mile (111.0/km ). There were 62,057 housing units at an average density of 119.6 per square mile (46.2/km ). The racial makeup was 93.46% (139,504) White , 1.79% (2,677) Black or African American , 0.16% (234) Native American , 1.77% (2,642) Asian , 0.02% (36) Pacific Islander , 1.19% (1,783) from other races , and 1.60% (2,389) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 6.44% (9,617) of
19458-561: Was sent to Canada , arriving just in time to provide relief to American forces at the Battle of Lundy's Lane . Symmes also served during the Siege of Fort Erie , and continued in his Army career until being honorably discharged on June 15, 1815. After leaving the Army, Symmes moved to St. Louis (then a frontier settlement) and went into business as a trader. He sold supplies to Army, and obtained
19599-643: Was the economic model until the mid-19th century when advances in food preservation and the introduction of railroads (e.g. the Sussex Railroad ) into the area allowed Sussex County to transport farm products throughout the region. Railroads also promoted the building of factories as companies relocated to the area at the end of the 19th century—including that of the H.W. Merriam Shoe Company (1873) in Newton. The Highlands Region of Northwestern New Jersey has proven to possess rich deposits of iron ore . In
19740-451: Was to be his unique contribution to Hollow Earth lore. Such polar openings would come to be known as "Symmes Holes" in literary Hollow Earths. Symmes held that the inner surfaces of the concentric spheres in his Hollow Earth would be illuminated by sunlight reflected off of the outer surface of the next sphere down and would be habitable, being a "warm and rich land, stocked with thrifty vegetables and animals if not men". He also believed that
19881-716: Was water (3.2%). It is the fourth-largest of the state's 21 counties in terms of area. Sussex County lies within the Kittatinny Mountains of Northwestern New Jersey and the overall Appalachian Mountains range. High Point , located at the northernmost tip of New Jersey in Montague Township , is the highest natural elevation in the state at 1,803 feet (550 m) above sea level. Nearby, Sunrise Mountain in Stokes State Forest has an elevation of 1,653 feet (504 m). Many mountains in
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