A Complete Descriptive and Statistical Gazetteer of the United States of America

A Complete Descriptive and Statistical Gazetteer of the United States of America provides detailed descriptions of the states, territories, counties, districts, parishes, cities, towns, and villages, as well as mountains, rivers, lakes, canals, and railroads. Additionally, it includes an abstract of the 1840 census and statistics, offering a comprehensive overview of the agricultural, commercial, manufacturing, and educational conditions and resources of the nation at that time.

Before proceeding to the Table of Contents below, please take a moment to read this page; it contains important explanations that will help you better understand the organization of states, counties, and towns. A word of caution: it seems the compilers of this book had some difficulties with alphabetical order, so don’t be surprised if counties aren’t listed exactly as expected. Also, note that "Ia" is used to represent Indiana, while "Io" or "Iowa" refers to the state of Iowa.

Abbreviation	Word	Abbreviation	Word
acad.	Academy	Miss.	Mississippi
Ala.	Alabama	Mo.	Missouri.
Ark.	Arkansas	mt. mts.	Mountain(s)
bush.	Bushels.	Md.	Maryland.
Cap.	Invested capital in manufactures	N. C.	North Carolina
C. H.	Court house	N. H.	New Hampshire
CO.	County	N. J.	New Jersey
Ct.	Connecticut	N. Y.	New York
Del.	Delaware	O.	Ohio
Dist.	District.	Pa.	Pennsylvania
for.	Foreign	par.	Parish
fac.	Factory.	Pop.	Population
Flor.	Florida	p-t.	Post township
Ga.	Georgia	p-v.	Post village
hund.	Hundred	p-b.	Post borough
isl.	Island	ret.	Retail
Ia.	Indiana	R. I.	Rhode Island
Ill.	Illinois	sq. ms.	Square miles
Io.	Iowa	S. C.	South Carolina
Ky.	Kentucky	sch	Common school, or schools.
La.	Louisiana	Te. or Tenn.	Tennessee.
m.	Mill or mills	t.	Township.
m. ms.	Mile, miles	Va.	Virginia
manufac.	Manufactures.	Vt.	Vermont
Me.	Maine	Wis.	Wisconsin
N. S. E. W	Points of the Compass	W.	Following a number, Washington City.
Ms. or Mass	Massachusetts	yds.	Yards.

Where no date is attached to the population, it is understood to be that of 1840

Example

Auburn, p-v., capital of Cayuga co., N. Y., 154 w. Albany, 333 W. There are 59 stores, cap. $341,447; 1 woolen fac, 1 cotton fac, 1 tannery, 1 distillery, 1 brewery, 4 flouring m., 2 saw m., 3 furnaces, 4 printing offices. Cap. in manufac. $643,550. 1 college, 48 students, 2 acad. 250 students, 9 sch. 740 scholars. Pop. 5,626:

Which should be read

Auburn, post village, capital of Cayuga county, New York, 154 miles west of Albany, 333 miles from Washington City. There are 59 stores, with a capital invested of $341,447; 1 woolen factory, 1 cotton factory, 1 tannery, 1 distillery, 1 brewery, 4 flouring mills, 2 saw mills, 3 furnaces, 4 printing offices. Capital invested in manufactures, 8043,550. 1 college, with 48 students, 2 academies, with 250 students, 9 common schools, with 740 scholars. Population, 5,626.

In the Northern states, every county is divided into townships, generally from 4 to 6 miles square, though their dimensions vary. In New England, the principal village takes the name of the township in which it is situated; but in some parts of the township, a village occasionally has a different name from that of the township. In New York, the villages have frequently an incorporation distinct from that of the township in which they are situated, and the village is often more prominent than the township; and in some instances, persons who know well the location of a prominent village, might not be able to name the township in which it is situated. The same is to a degree true in the states of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana. In the states south of Pennsylvania and of the Ohio River, and in Illinois, there is no such subdivision as townships; as an incorporated district, and a collection of houses, whether few or many, is called a town. In the following work, t. denotes a township, and v. a village, or collection of houses, whether few or many, whether with or without an incorporation. In South Carolina, districts answer to counties in other states, and in Louisiana, parishes. In Delaware, hundreds answer to towns. In those states where the division of townships does not obtain, the census was taken only by counties, and the statistics, therefore, will be found under the heads of the counties.

Source: A Complete Descriptive And Statistical Gazetteer Of The United States Of America, By Daniel Haskel, A. M and J. Calvin Smith, Published By Sherman & Smith, 1843.

A Complete Descriptive and Statistical Gazetteer of the United States of America

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