A clergyman locates the Biblical Garden of Eden in Wisconsin, 1886

Found at Last : the veritable Garden of Eden, or a place that answers the Bible description of the notable spot better than anything yet discovered


David Oyer Van Slyke (1818-1890) was an itinerant minister, a "circuit rider," in western Wisconsin. He was also a fervent abolitionist who marched off to the Civil War at the age of 44 alongside his 17-year-old son. Although apparently not formally ordained, Van Slyke read the Bible from cover to cover more than 20 times and preached wherever a group of believers wanted him. He became convinced that the Garden of Eden as described in the Book of Genesis had in fact been located at Trempealeau, Wis. He makes that claim in this tiny (ca. 3x5 inch) pamphlet which he published himself in 1886. It was printed on very poor paper and most copies vanished long ago. The one given here was inscribed and sent to the Wisconsin Historical Society library by Van Slyke soon after its publication.

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Related Topics: Early Native Peoples
Immigration and Settlement
The Physical Geography of Wisconsin
Early U.S. Settlement
Creator: Van Slyke, D. O. (David Oyer), 1818-1890.
Pub Data: Galesville, Wis.: Independent Print. House, 1886.
Citation: Van Slyke, D. O. Found at Last: the veritable Garden of Eden, or a place that answers the Bible description of the notable spot better than anything yet discovered (Galesville, Wis.: Independent Print. House, 1886); Online facsimile at:  http://wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/search.asp?id=1708; Visited on: 4/25/2024