Between South Bend and Chicago there used to be a marshy area called the Kankakee Marsh.  This marsh was famous for the acres and acres of hardwood trees that it contained.  Mr. Oliver, I&#039;m sure, made use of this great source of hardwood lumber for the construction of his plows.  However, from 1881 onward, the Singer Sewing Machine Company, also located in South Bend, was deforesting the marsh&#039;s hardwood for the sewing machine cabinets it was making.  Basically, by the early 1900s most of the hardwood was taken from the marsh, the marsh was drained and turned into rich farm land.

Thought you&#039;d like to know.

Travis C.<!-- s:D --><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/icon_biggrin.gif" alt=":D" title="Very Happy" /><!-- s:D -->