At daybreak [we came to] Evansburg, where we changed horses. At six o’clock, in bright sunshine, we were at Newcomerstown, a very scattered little village in Oxford Township, Tuscarawas County, which had no more than seven to eight houses. The area is pleasant and wooded, with much variety [of landscape]: green hills, meadows, rocks, much forest, and beautiful water views on the canal. [The canal] cuts through dark forests and, to its right, always has lowlands with forests, marshes, and settlements. The Tuscarawa, or Tuscarawas, flows on the left. In the marshes, iris and Nymphaea [grew]. A yellow-striped colubrid [snake] swam very fast in the canal. Yesterday we saw a blacksnake and a water snake. The bank of the canal was frequently overgrown with Rhus, possibly typhinum.

We reached a village called Port Washington, where a new canal boat was being built. The valley is wide and [flanked] on both sides [by] wooded mountains, [with] some forest on the valley floor. The redheaded woodpecker, the Baltimore, and the bluebird were flying near the canal. [Next] we reached the Tuscarawas River, with dark brown water; the canal runs along the right riverbank. On its banks there is a fine forest. The river [ran] fairly strong.

About eleven o’clock we reached Gnadenhütten, a small village of about seven houses originally founded by the Moravians. Now there were a few stores on the canal, one of them [with] a German sign. The inhabitants were mostly descendants of Germans and still spoke German. [There were] also some recent immigrants there.

We [next] came to [some] coal mines on the canal, where mine cars were unloaded. At twelve thirty [we arrived] in Trenton, a small town just before a lock. The place is located in Butler County [sic]. The houses are all wood, some [of them] painted reddish brown. Many sheep are raised there. Horses for our boat were changed at Trenton.

A few hours later, we reached the coal mines near New Castle, where a lock is located. Here, too, mine cars were run [on top of] scaffolding and unloaded at the end. The coal falls down [in a] heap right at the bank, [where it is] loaded on boats at once and transported farther. New Castle is a new place, not listed in the Ohio Gazetteer for 1833. Rubus odoratus grows in the picturesque rocks nearby and in front of the locks.

From here on, a dam is all that separates the canal from the Tuscarawas River. On the riverbanks [there is] a beautiful, dark forest, which the canal cuts through in a picturesque way. Now and then [there are] broad expanses of water up to the forested hills that mark the extent of the valley on the left.

A little farther [and] we reached Lockport, a small village in Tuscarawas County. On the other side, the river was very picturesque—on its banks, tall woodlands; old channels were completely covered with Nymphaea and other water plants. In the lowlands some colossal Platanus [trees] were standing; in a few places the trees had perished as a result of the wetness. Soon we had a nice, straight view through the forest along the canal toward white buildings in the distance. This was Dover, an attractive town where the river and the canal lay close to one another. A colossal wooden covered bridge—we saw many of these in the United States—was built across the river with a great waste of wood. The arrival of a traveling menagerie had been announced here with placards that showed an elephant, a rhinoceros, and many very rare animals. I suspect it was the menagerie that spends [its] winters in Philadelphia and travels in summer.

In the valley of the Tuscarawas [River], we saw nightjars flying in bright daylight. [They] seemed to be Caprimulgus americanus. From here on, the canal closely follows the course of the river, mostly through a lovely forest valley with alternating thickets, woodlands, and water views. To the left, on a hill not far from the canal, there was a young forest of oak, Cercis, [several] types of walnut trees, Rhus, and the like; [these were] mostly [new] shoots from stumps, since they had made space for the canal [by cutting down trees]. Evening approached, and the light of the setting sun was splendid; the cooling effect was also agreeable. Caprimulgus americanus flew around in several places in bright daylight.

From Dover we went on to Zoar, a charming settlement of German [religious] separatists who had come here from Württemberg. A certain Beimeler is the head of this colony. [He is] already advanced in years but, as I have been told, is a very capable man. [Zoar] is located in Tuscarawas County [in] Lawrence Township on the eastern bank of the Tuscarawas [River]. In the year [18]33, the place had approximately 60 very nice buildings, all newly roofed with red tiles, which looked very friendly in the green valley and is quite rare in America. The inn has the shape of a church, and one could see large buildings in the distance. The Ohio Gazetteer (p. 510) states that the place was laid out originally on an area of 4,000 acres purchased [by the settlers] in the year 1818. A large part of this land is now under excellent cultivation. In addition, [the residents] own 1,500 to 2,000 acres in the neighborhood. They [also] own two vineyards and produce very good wine. The site of this place is very beautiful—in a broad, flat valley with fertile fields [and] tall trees, a little removed from the river. The [town] appears, as stated, [to be] very friendly, neat, clean, and prosperous. They are said to have various factories, [too]. Unfortunately, we could not stop here to get better acquainted with this interesting place. They had built a long wooden bridge across the canal and the river, where we stopped. To the left of the bridge, an inn was located, built by the community, called the Zoar Canal Hotel.

At that moment, a shepherd drove a considerable flock across the bridge. I talked to him, and he answered in authentic Swabian [dialect], “Freili sei mer Dütsche!” [Naturally, we are Germans!]. He was dressed [exactly like] German shepherds, [which is] quite unusual in America—[he] carried a shepherd’s crook [and wore] a broad leather bandoleer with brass figures on it, a gray coat of thick material, and a flat round hat. His German shepherd dogs [ably] performed their duties [and] kept the sheep together.