DISMAL SWAMP, a large marshland lying partly in south central Virginia and partly in north-central North Carolina. Now somewhat reduced by drainage, the original area was about 4o m. long and from 15 to 25 m. wide. The region in which the swamp lies is a slightly undulating plain, with an elevation of from o to 20 ft. above sea-level. The maximum elevation is in the heart of the swamp, whither the slope grades toward sea-level. Along the western margin a well-defined ancient sea beach, the Nanse mond escarpment, rises from 5 to 5o ft. to constitute a natural boundary. Numerous waterways, most having their source in or near Dismal Swamp, traverse the region.
Drummond lake, the interior pool, is about seven m. long, and five wide, and 15 ft. deep. Dismal Swamp is the major north eastern extension of the great palustrine forest which once domi nated the landscape of much of the Coastal plain of the United States and of the lower flood plains of its southern streams, a forest characterized by cypress (Taxodium distichum), black gums (Nyssa biflora and N . aquatica), "juniper" (Chamaecyparis thyoides), swamp cotton gum (N. uniflora) and water ash (Frax inus caroliniana). Not all the area is forest-covered, however, there being extensive bands and patches of marsh grassland as well. The whole area of the swamp may be drained, but the cost of reclamation would probably make it an unprofitable venture. The forest cover has been in large measure removed.