The Mountain State, 
 
 A DESCRIPTION OF THE NATURAL RESOURCES 
 
 OP 
 
 WEST VIRGINIA, 
 
 Prepared for Distribution at the 
 
 WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION 
 
 BY 
 
 GEO, W, SUMMERS, B, Ph, 
 
 EDITOR OP THE CHARLESTON DAILY GAZETTE. 
 
 UNDER THE DIRECTION OF THE 
 BOARD OF WORLD'S FAIR MANAGERS FOR WEST VIRGINIA. 
 
 THE i mm OF THE 
 
 CHARLESTON, W. VA. f /\ M i O 
 
 Moses VV. Donnally, Piunter. JMIV 1 O t 
 1893. 
 
 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS 
 
BOARD OF WORLD'S FAIR MANAGERS FOR WEST VIRGINIA, 
 
 Hon. W.N. Chancellor, President Parkersburg. 
 
 Hon. George M. Bovvfrs, Treasurer Marti nsburg. 
 
 tloN. RoBT. S. Carr Charleston. 
 
 Hon. John S. Naylor Wheeling. 
 
 Hon. Sidney Haymond Quiet Dell. 
 
 M. C. McKay, Secretary Rav enswood 
 
INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 By an Act of the Legislature of West Virginia, ai)pioved irlarch 
 sixteenth, 1891, the Board of World's Fair Managers for West 
 Virginia was created, and the Governor directed to appoint the 
 members of the Board. On the seventh day of May, 1891 the 
 gentlemen named on the preceding page were appointed.' At 
 their first meeting, held in Charleston, an organization was effected 
 by the election of Hon. W. N. Chancellor, President; Hon. Geo 
 M. Bowers, Treasurer, and M. C. McKay, Secretary. 
 
 In June, 1892, contract was made by the Board with Geo. W 
 Summers to prepare, as a supplement to the State's exhibit at the 
 Columbian Exposition, a work on the resources of West Viro-inia 
 and several months were spent by hirr. in visiting the vaHous' 
 counties of the State in search of the information desired to be con- 
 tained in the work. Circumstances beyond the control of either 
 the Board or Mr. Summers put a stop to the work and it Avas not 
 till m March, 1893, after the publication of the book had been pro- 
 vided lor by an additional appropriation by the Legislature, that a 
 new contract was made and steps taken to complete the work. 
 
 In the main the work has been prepared from personal visits to 
 every county in the State and from interviews with the leading and 
 best informed citizens of each of the counties, and it may be relied 
 upon as -being as nearly accurate as any similar work extant. 
 While some of the statements made concerning the resources of the 
 ^tate may seem extravagant, investigation will show that they are 
 in the main correct. Every effort has been made not to over-esti- 
 mate the value or extent of any resource, but to present for the in 
 
 853574 
 
4 
 
 Introductory. 
 
 formation and guidance of those who wish to know more of the 
 magnificent commonwealth of the AUeghanies than they do, the 
 facts as they are found, without any attempt at exaggeration. Be- 
 lieving that more injury could be done to the-State by making 
 erroneous claims which could not be substantiated, than by leav- 
 ing unsaid apart of the truth, the aim has been to err in the latter 
 way rather than in the former. Mistakes will undoubtedly be 
 found, but the intent of the board and of the writer to present to 
 those who seek it such information as will give them valuable 
 knowledge of the State has never been lost sight of and the work is 
 presented to the public with the hope and in the belief that it may 
 draw to West Virginia more of the capital required to make her 
 vast resources available, the labor that must go hand in hand with 
 capital, the settlers who are to people our hills and valleys, the pros- 
 perity that must come, soon or late, to a State so endowed by kind- 
 ly Nature as is West Virginia. 
 
 To those who have rendered their assistance in the preparation 
 of the work, the writer desires hereby to tender his acknowledge- 
 ments, knowing that without their generous aid he could not have 
 prepared it. 
 
West Virginia. 
 
 WEST VIRGINIA. 
 
 West Virginia had an unfortunate start in life as a State. Born 
 in the midst of that fearful civil strife which plunged the entire na- 
 tion into a debt from which it has oever yet recovered, which 
 plucked in their prime so many thousands of the fairest flowers of 
 all the land and saw them wither and decay, which plunged deep 
 into debt and desolation the whole fair southern land, wrecking at 
 once great fortunes and happy homes, bringing death and destruc- 
 tion and poverty over all the southern States and sadness over all, 
 the early days of W^est Virginia were not conducive to the rap>id ad- 
 vancement of the State. In the old State, that part west of the 
 mountains had always been looked down on as more of a wilderness 
 than anything else, and little attention was ever given to it. The 
 people complained for years that they were permitted by the State to 
 do nothing but pay their taxes. Their representation in the coun- 
 cils of the State was small, and by the "Old Dominion^' that portion 
 of her domain west of the mountains was practically ignored. Ham- 
 pered and held down by the proud and powerful "Mother of Pres- 
 idents," at the beginning of the civil war the part of Old Virginia 
 which was afterwards set apart to form the new State gave but littie 
 promise of the glorious destiny that was in store for her. Her wealth 
 was little known. The immense value of her timber forests, the al- 
 most inexhaustible deposits of her coal, the flowing wells of oil and 
 gas, the richness of her iron ores, the great fertility of her hills and 
 valleys were never dreamed of, and, aside from the desire to have the 
 new State pay the old State debt, Virginia did not care for the loss, 
 by separation, ot her better half. 
 
 I 
 
6 
 
 West Virginia. 
 
 At first the new State's prospects were not bright. Along the 
 bor<ler of the north and south, the sympathizers of both sides were 
 numerous in the new State's bounds, and both sides felt most keenly 
 the depressing results of the terrible civil war. The unhappy polit- 
 ical situation, the poverty of the country, particularly of the people 
 of this State, many cf whom had lost their every dollar, the un- 
 settled condition of the times in general, prevented at the first the 
 development of any of the vast resources of the State. After the 
 lapse of a few years, when the situation had been somewhat relieved, 
 when the constitution had been altered and the liberties of the 
 people much increased, when capital was coming in and the State 
 Avas building up, then came the j)anic which brought again disaster 
 through the Union and set the State of West Virginia back ten 
 years. 
 
 The Centennial Exposition in 1876 brought prominently before 
 the w^orld the wonderful resources of the State and West Virginia 
 took a fresh start. With its fine exhibit of the coals and irons and 
 timber here to be found the State attracted capital from all parts of 
 the world. The development of the State dates practically from 
 that time. Soon after the State had shown to the world the vast- 
 ness of her resources and had drawn the attention of the entire 
 civilized world to her possessions, new mines were opened, new 
 saw mills built, new people came in and settled among us, and rail- 
 road building took a start that brought the State up gradually to 
 the front, till last year no other State in all the Union exceeded 
 West Virginia in the amount of its railroad mileage completed with- 
 in the year. 
 
 From practical oblivion, known only as the muddy, mountain- 
 ous part cut off from old Virginia, our State has grown and still is 
 growing until it now stands near the top among the list of States, 
 and takes high rank among them all in the production of all those 
 things to which her hills and vales are iitt(!d. We have come out 
 of the woods and in the place of the forests arc s})ringing up new 
 towns. The Stn.te is not yet fully explored, the real extent of all 
 her vast resources is hardly known, each new year adding some 
 new discovery of value to the State ; but stop by step the forest 
 fastnesses are being ])enetrated, the homes of man replace the haunts 
 of beasts of prey and every part of the State is being brought in 
 
West Virginia. 
 
 7 
 
 touch with the busy life of the outside world. In 18G3 a single 
 line of railroad passed through a few of the northern counties of the 
 State. To-day there are but 11 out of the 54 that have no railroad, 
 and from the present prospects, within the next few years the iron 
 arteries of trade will pierce the confines of them all and not a 
 county in the State will be without its railroad and the industries 
 that always accompany and follow the building of a road. In 1863 
 a few small coal mines produced a little coal principally for domes- 
 tic consumption, and some was used for the manufacture of "cannel 
 coal oil," but the coal trade so far as the shipment of coal to other 
 markets than our own was concerned was almost unknown. In 
 1870 the coal production was but 608,878 tons. Last year two 
 hundred mines were in operation, employing over 15,000 men and 
 producing nearly nine million tons of coal in addition to the small 
 mines for local consumption which still, exist in the State as they 
 did at that day. The timber then was only cut to get it out of the 
 way of the farmer who wished to improve his land, and was burned 
 or deadened and allowed to decay ' To-day the timbering and 
 lumbering industries of the State employ some fifteen thousand 
 men, saw mills are in operation in every county of the State and 
 the lumber produced from the West Virginia forests is shipped to 
 every country in the world. The oil production of the State is 
 next to that of Pennsylvania now, while thirty years ago the only 
 oil produced was that which was extracted from the cannel coal.. 
 To-day the Sisters ville oil field is the largest oil field in the world 
 or rather the oil field producing the largest amount of oil. In 1863 
 no coke was made in V^est Virginia. Last year there were 1,314,- 
 449 tons of coke made in the State. In every way the State is rap- 
 idly forging forward toward the front. The population is rapidly 
 increasing, the increase for the last decade being about 19 per cent. 
 The capital invested is many times that of a few years ago. Devel- 
 opment is bringing to the markets of the world the hidden riches 
 Providence has bestowed upon the Mountain State. Manufactur- 
 ing is growing in extent and variety and we stand upon thethresh- 
 hold of a new era of prosperity, which will cause the State to grow 
 in people and in wealth, in the variety of its products and in all 
 that goes to make a State great and prosperous. 
 
 The abundance of opportunity and the absence of capital for the 
 
8 
 
 West Virginia. 
 
 proper development of the State invite the attention of all who are 
 in a position to aid in bringing West Virginia to the front and at 
 the same time to reap a share of the prosperity that is surely com- 
 ing to the State. The possibilities for West Virginia are not ex- 
 ceeded by those of any other State in the Union, and to the atten- 
 tion of those who will aid in its development these possibilities are 
 in this volume called. 
 
(JOAL. 
 
 9 
 
 COAL. 
 
 It is a difficult matter to convey to the mind of one not familiar 
 with the facts any adequate idea of the immensity and value of the 
 West Virginia coal fields. To say that sixteen thousand out of the 
 twenty -four thousand square miles of the territory in the State is 
 underlaid with coal, gives but a vague idea of what there really is. 
 To say that over ten million acres of West Virginia is coal land, on 
 which there is an average thickness of ten feet of coal, means but 
 little more. When we say that there is a sufficient quantity of coal 
 hidden away in the hills and beneath the' surface of the State to 
 supply the wants ©f the entire world for centuries to come, then 
 does the mind begin to realize the real extent of the coal deposits of 
 the State. Going further and estimating the amount of the coal in 
 the State at the usual average rate of production, the ten million 
 acres would yield one hundred billion tons. The coal production 
 in this State for 1892, the greatest for any year in the history of the 
 State, was something over eight million tons. Increasing this to an 
 average rate of ten million tons a year, the coal of West Virginia, 
 constantly mined, would last ten thousand years. The entire amount 
 of bituminous coal consumed in the United States during the year 
 1889, according to the last census, was a little over ninety-five million 
 tons. Increasing this to one hundred million tons a year, the coal 
 in West Virginia alone would supply the entire United States with 
 all its coal for the next one thousand years. If all the coal in West 
 Virginia were, by some miraculous means, mined at once and loaded 
 into railroad cars of twenty tons capacity, the whole would make a 
 continuous train that would reach one thousand five hundred times 
 
10 
 
 Coal. 
 
 around the earth. Accordinsj to the last United States census, the 
 average value of the coal of the United States, on cars at the mine, 
 was 99 cents a ton. At this rate the value of the coal of West Vir- 
 ginia, still unmined, would be ninet)''-nine thousand million dollars, 
 enough to make ninety-nine thousand millionaires in the State of 
 West Virginia. When the facts are looked at in this light, and the 
 value of the hidden de[)Osits of coal within the State are made 
 ai)})arent in such a way that they can be appreciated, there seems 
 little room to doubt the statement made by Professor I. C. White, 
 one of the best authorities in the country on geological matters, that 
 the coal alone of West Virginia is worth more than all the gold and 
 silver of the Pacific coast. Of the fifty-four counties in the State, 
 there are but three — Jefferson, Hardy and Monroe — in which no 
 coal has yet been found. Every other county in the State contains 
 coal of some kind in varying quantities, most of them having an 
 abundance. All kinds are found— anthracite, splint, bituminous, 
 cannel and all the intermediate varieties — in some places all of them 
 except the anthracite being found in the same counties and fre- 
 quently on the same property. The veins range in thickness from 
 a few inches to nearly thirty feet, and frequently the veins are found 
 on the same property one above the other until the entire thickness 
 of the combined veins aggregates very many feet- In one mountain 
 in the State there are no less than eleven veins, one above the other, 
 from 2 feet 7 inches to 20 feet in thickness, aggregating 68 feet II 
 inches of coal. Aggregate thicknesses of from 25 to 50 feet of coal 
 over the same property are not infrequent. 
 The following brief description of 
 
 WEST VIRGINIA COAL FIELDS 
 
 is taken from an article written recently by Prof. White for the 
 Kanawha Gazette: 
 
 To the largest and most valuable coal lield in the world, geolo- 
 gists have given the nam<^ Appalachian. It covers an area of 
 nearly 60,000 square miles, and beginning near the northern line of 
 Pennsylvania extends soutliward across that State, and taking in 
 nearly the whole of West Virginia, and a broad strip from the 
 southern part of Ohio, passes on through eastern Kentucky and 
 Tennessee to end in Alabama, nearly 900 miles from its northern 
 
Coal. 
 
 11 
 
 terminus. The shape of this great* field is roughly that of a eanoe, 
 and West Virginia lies within the zone of its broadest and richest 
 portion. 
 
 In only four of the fifty-four counties in West Virginia is it im- 
 possible to find bituminous coal, viz: Jefferson, Berkeley, Morgan, 
 and Monroe- 
 
 The column of rocks which holds the coal beds in the Appa- 
 lachian field has been subdivided into several groups, and as these 
 come to the surface in different portions of the State, and contain 
 coals of distinctly different qualities, I shall briefly describe each, 
 and trace the lines of their outcrops across the State. 
 
 At the base of the series, and therefore the lowest group of the 
 true coal measure rocks, we have what is usually termed the con- 
 glomerate measures; because the great sandstones which are there 
 interstratified with the beds of coal and slate often contain pebbles 
 of quartz and other hard rocks in great abundance. The group 
 has also received several other names, among which may be men- 
 tioned No. 12 conglomerate, Pottsville conglomerate, serai conglom- 
 erate and the millstone grit of the English geologists. The group 
 of coal beds which these rocks contain have been termed the New 
 River coal series, from that region of our own State where the beds, 
 as a whole, have their grandest development. 
 
 The sandstones of this series are noted for their hardness and con- 
 sequent power to resist the action of the elements. Being com- 
 posed almost entirely of quartz pebbles and sand grains, they form 
 great sheets of protecting rock which is almost indestructible by 
 atmospheric influence, and thus it happens that this group of beds 
 is the principal factor in forming the picturescj[ue scenery of our 
 Mountain State. The wild gorges and canyons of the Cheat, the 
 Gauley, the New, the Guyandotte, the Big Sandy and other West 
 Virginia rivers are all formed by this series of rocks. All of the 
 ridges and peaks of the • AUeghanies are capped and protected by 
 this friendly mantle. Wherever these rocks come to the surface, 
 wildness, barren soils, and precipitous slopes prevail, but when they 
 dip below the drainage levels the mountains disappear, and in their 
 stead we find rounded hills, with gentler slupes and broader valleys. 
 
 Another peculiarity of this series is that although it forms a con- 
 tinous sheet of beds under all of the 60,000 sqaare miles of the Ap- 
 
12 
 
 Coal. 
 
 palachian coal field, yet it contains coal in workable thickness 
 and purity only around the borders of the field in a comparatively 
 narrow rim. Thus while there are valuable coal beds in Jackson 
 county, Ohio, along the northwestern border of the group, and also 
 opposite this along the southeastern border, in Fayette county, West 
 Virginia, no workable coal would be found, if a shaft shoul 1 be sunk 
 to the series, say at the mouth of the Great Kanawha, or at any 
 other point 20 to 30 miles distant from the respective borders of the 
 field. The same hard sandstones and pebble-beds would be encoun- 
 tered, but they would hold only thin streaks of coal and bituminous 
 slates. 
 
 Another feature of these conglomerate coal measures is the great 
 purity of the coal beds when they attain workable dimensions. 
 These early formed coals are singularly free from injurious quanti- 
 ties of sulphur and ash, the bane of some coals. Their purity in 
 this re.-^pect is probably due to the fact that just previous to the 
 spread of the great peal swamps of this early epoch, the floor of the 
 entire Appalachian coal field was sheeted with a deposit of clean 
 sand and gravel, thus effectually covering up the muddy sediments 
 of a previous epoch, and causing the streams which drained into 
 the peat or coal marshes of the time to be clear and free from rm- 
 purities, like our own mountain brooks of the present; but however 
 this may be, the fact remains that these conglomerate coals are of 
 exceptional purity. 
 
 Another strange thing about these coals is that along the north- 
 western border of the Appalachian field, the quality of the coal is 
 entirely different from that found on the opposite, or southeastern 
 rim of the field. Along the former, through Pennsylvania and 
 Ohio, these coals are nearly always non-coking and can frequently be 
 used in furnaces just as they are brought from the mines, and are 
 hence often called "block" coals; but on the southeastern side, 
 through West Virginia, .Virginia, Kentucky, &c., the coals oi this 
 series are universally of the coking kind, and being so pure they 
 are fast becoming justly celebr^ited for the production of coke of the 
 highest grade. 
 
 The conglomerate rocks crop out on the surface in West Virginia 
 through the following counties, beginning at the north: Preston, 
 Mineral, Grant, Tucker, Randolph, Webster, Pocahontas, Greenbrier, 
 
Coal. 
 
 13 
 
 Nicholas, Fayette, Raleigh, Summers, Mercer, Wyoming, McDowell 
 and Logan. 
 
 Until we get southward as far as Nicholas aud Webster, there ap- 
 pears to be but one workable bed of coal in these conglomerate 
 measures, and it lies near the bottom of the ser ies. I have observed 
 it at several localities, however, in Preston, Tucker and Randolph, 
 in each of which the bed is about three feet thick, and very fair 
 coking coal But on southward through Webster and Nicholas, 
 into Fayette, the whole group of rocks increases in thickness very 
 fast, and when we come to the New River, m Fayette county, these 
 rocks have a thickness of 1,400 feet, and contain three workable 
 coal beds, with thicknesses of three to five f^et. It is from these 
 beds that the famous New River coke is manufactured, which now 
 sells in the market at a higher figure than the Connellsville product. 
 
 But although Webster, Nicholas, Greenbrier, Fayette and Sum- 
 mers all have splendid fields of these purest of coals, yet it is not, 
 however, till we come to Raleigh, Mercer, Wyoming and McDowell 
 counties, at the extreme southwestern corner of the State, that we 
 find the thickest and most productive coal beds in this series of 
 rocks; for here the great Pocahontas bed attains a thickness of six 
 to ten feet over an area of several hundred square miles, while at 
 many localities two other beds may be found above the Pocahontas 
 vein, with a thickness of four to six feet. 
 
 The proximity of this great field of pure coking coals to the i-n- 
 mense iron ore deposits of the South, renders it valuable beyond 
 computation, and yet its development has only just begun. It is 
 only about six y< ars since the first car load of coal was shipped 
 from the Pocahontas region, near the line of Mercer county, and yet 
 during the past year, one million tons of coal and coke have gone to 
 market from this region alone. 
 
 Lying on top of the conglomerate, or New River coal measures, 
 we find another group of rocks with valuable coal beds included, 
 and to this series has been given the name of Lower coal measures. 
 To this group belong the coal beds which have recently attracted so 
 much attention and capital to Clearfield, Jefterson and Cambria 
 counties, Pennsylvania. Within the limits of these measures there 
 are usually five coal beds which at one time or another furnish 
 valuable fuel, viz : in descending order : Upper Freeport, Lower 
 
14 
 
 Coal. 
 
 Freeport, Upper Kittanning, Middle Kittanning, Lower Kittanning 
 and Clarion Coal beds. 
 
 This coal series enters West Virginia from Pennsylvania in 
 Monongalia and Preston counties, with a thickness of 250 to 300 
 feet, and contains two valuable coal beds, the Up]')er Freeport and 
 the Lower Kittanning, tlie foi-mer being locally known as the "Austin 
 coking" coal, and the latter as the ''Newburg shaft" seam, on the 
 Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. These two beds are separated by an in- 
 terval of shales and sandstones 100 to 180 feet thick, and they are 
 both easily accessible over a very large area in Monongalia and 
 Preston. They have an average thickness of five to six feet each, 
 and both make splendid coke. The same two beds reappear on the 
 North Potomac, where they underlie an immense area along the 
 West Virginia Central Railroad, in Mineral, Tucker and Grant 
 counties. They are both mined near Davis, the upper one being 
 called the "Thom.as seam," and the lower one the "Davis seam." 
 Both have been successfully tested for coke in the Davis region. 
 
 On southward from the counties already mentioned, the outcrop of 
 this series may be traced through Taylor, Barbour, Randolph 
 (where the U Freeport is the celebrated "22-foot seam"), Upshur, 
 Braxton, Webster, Nicholas, Clay, Kanawha, Fayette, Raleigh, Wy- 
 oming, Boone, Logan, Lincoln, Wayne and Cabell. These are the 
 counties along the eastern side of the Appalachian field, where the 
 coals of this series come up to the surface, while on the opposite 
 side of the fields the only locality where they come up to daylight 
 is in Hancock county, and for a short distance along the Volcano up- 
 lift in Wood and Wirt. The series, hovever, underlies all the other 
 counties of the State, which lie west from the belt first mentioned, 
 and unlike the conglomerate series below, seems to have valuable 
 c();i,l beds in it at every locality. This we learn from the records of 
 drill holes which have been made in nearly every part of the State. 
 
 One of these l)eds is now mined at Wellsburg by a shaft 200 feet 
 deep, and the drill shows that the same valuable bed underlies 
 Wheeling at a depth of only 500 feet, while at Parkersburg a good 
 l)ed of coal seven feet thick and belonging to this same series was 
 parsed at a depth of 1,100 feet, and the same bed has been drilled 
 through at Mannington, 1,300 feet below the valleys. These depths 
 may be regarded by some as rendering the coal beds in question en- 
 
Coal. 
 
 15 
 
 tirely valueless, but such should remember that the development of 
 'this country has only just begun, and that England raises nearly all 
 her immense output of coal from depths of 1,000 to 3,000 feet. 
 These facts are mentioned simply to show the vastness of our resour- 
 ces in coal, and the permanency of supply of this "main-spring of 
 civilization," and hence that the railroads, cities and manufactories 
 which may be built within our borders, can depend on an abund- 
 ant supply of fuel for many centuries, even from the beds of coal 
 which can be operated from the surface; but when these shall have 
 been exhausted, we shall still have an infinite wealth of these "black 
 diamonds," which can be easily obtained by going down a few hun- 
 dred feet below the surface. When that time comes West Virginia 
 will possess a monopoly of coal in the Appalachian field, for it will 
 be practically exhausted from all the States around us before that 
 from our easily accessible beds is used up. 
 
 In passing from the northern part of the State south-westward to the 
 region of the Great Kanawha, the lower coal measures expand won- 
 derfully in thickness, and instead of a rock series of 250 or 300 feet 
 as in Preston and Monongalia, we get 1,000 feet of rock between the 
 uppermost coal bed of the group and the top of the conglomerate 
 series below. Accompanying this expansion of the measures there 
 is a great change in the character of the coal in the different beds. 
 Instead of soft coking coal, we find cannel (in Wayne, Lincoln and 
 Boone, the Upper Freeport coal forms one of the largest areas of pure 
 cannel known in any country of the world) and "l)lock" and "splint," 
 which being quite hard, and crumbling with difiiculty, make splen- 
 did shipping coals, and the perfection of domestic fuel. The lowest 
 bed, however, the Clarion or Eagle seam, makes a splendid coke, and 
 the Lower Kittanning or Campbell's Creek seam, can also be coked 
 successfully in some regions. Hence the territory along the Elk 
 and its tributaries, the Great Kanawha and its tributaries, as well as 
 the Guyandotte, Twelve Pole and the Big Sandy, abounds in splen- 
 did coal beds of this Lower coal measure series. 
 
 To the next higher group of rocks geologists have given the name 
 of Barren measures, because the coal beds they contain are usually 
 thin, irregular in thickness and poor in quality. Along with much 
 sand stone, thin limestone and other rocks, this group of beds con- 
 tains a great deal of soft red shale, and hence it makes a broad belt 
 
16 
 
 Coal. 
 
 of red soil almost exactly in the central line of the State, from Mon- 
 ongalia clear through to Wayne. The thickness of the series varies 
 usually between 500 and 600 feet, except toward the southwestern 
 portion of the State, where it expands in thickness like all the other 
 groups, and measures 800 feet near Charleston. 
 
 Although usually meriting the name "Barren Measures," yet oc- 
 casionally some good coal is found in this group over restricted 
 areas. The Masontown coal or "four foot" bed of Preston county, 
 is one of those exceptions, and the Brush Creek bed which caps the 
 hills at Coalburg on the Kanawha, and furnishes some fine "block" 
 coal in several counties of the southwestern part of the State, is 
 another. These two beds belong in the lower half of the group, and 
 thtt last named is the lower one. The "Barren Measures" are lim- 
 ited above by a great bed of coal, the most important one in the 
 Appalachian field, the famous Pittsburg bed. This bed marks the 
 beginning of another, and the last of the groups of the true coal 
 measure rocks, which is termed the "Upper Coal Measures." This 
 series, unlike those below it, attains its maximum thickness and 
 importance at the northern end of the State, instead of the southern. 
 In Monongalia county it has a thickness of 380 feet, and contains 
 four valuable coal beds, disposed as follows: At base, the great Pitts- 
 burg bed, with a workable thickness of seven to nine feet; forty feet 
 above this comes the Redstone bed, with a thickness of four to five 
 feet; sixty feet above the latter lies the Sewickly bed, having a 
 thickness of five to six feet, while 260 feet above the last, and capping 
 the series, we get the Waynesburg bed, with a workable thickness 
 of six to seven feet. Thus it happens that in many of the hills of 
 Monongalia twenty to twenty-five feet of merchantable coal may be 
 mined without shafting. 
 
 In coming southward from Monongalia the Pittsburg, Sewickly 
 and Waynesburg coals hold their usual thickness through Marion 
 county, but the Redstone beds thin out before reaching there, and 
 on beyond Marion the Sewickly and Waynesburg beds dwindle 
 down to thin and unimportant layers, leaving the Pittsburg as the 
 only valuable coal in the group, but the latter maintains such 
 a standard of thickness and value as to amply compensate for the 
 loss of the higher members possessed in more favored Monongalia 
 and Marion. As we pass westward from the Monongahela river, in 
 
Coal. 
 
 17 
 
 the last mentioned counties, these U|)pcr coal measure heds dip be- 
 neatli the surface down into the jjjrcat trough of the Appalachian 
 basin and do not come up to daylight again till we reach the Ohio 
 river valley near Wheeling, and here we find that only the Pitts- 
 burg remains important, the others being represented by thin, and 
 vslaty beds, hence it will observed that so far as our State is con- 
 cerned the Upper coal measures derive their chief injportance from 
 the presence of one bed, the Pittsburg, but it is so valuable as to 
 merit a more detailed description than could be given to the other 
 individual seams within the limited space of this article. 
 
 This Pittsburgh bed, as we have already stated, is the most im- 
 portant seam in the entire Ap})alachian field. It is the same bed 
 which 'furnishes ti.e coal for the manufacture of the famous Con- 
 nellsville coke, and hence is often called the Connellsville and 
 Youghiogheny bed. Coming as it does so high up in the series of 
 rocks, it has suffered more from erosion than any other of the coal 
 beds below it, having been worn away from many thousands of 
 square miles, where it once existed. This we realize when crossing 
 the AUeghanies to Piedmont, and find the same Pittsburgh bed 
 lepresented in the "Big Bed" of that region and the George's creek 
 basin, where it is fifteen to twenty ft^et thick. We also discover the 
 same coal bed on the heights at Elk Garden, on the West Virginia 
 Central Railroad, and in the isolated patch at Fairfax Summit, 
 more than 3, SOU feet above the sea. The remnant of this bed in 
 Copeman's Knob, near Kingw^ood, the scattered patches on the hill 
 top around Newburg, and the few acres of it on the highest sum- 
 mits near Belington, taken in connection with the Fairfax and 
 Elk Garden areas will give the reader some idea of the vast inter- 
 mediate surface from which it lias already l)een mined by the cease- 
 less action of the elements. i>ut fortunately for our State, the 
 deepest portion of the Appalachian trough passes across its territory 
 from the Pennsylvania line clear tlirough to the Kentucky border 
 in Wayne county, and has thus })reserved for us in its ample fold, 
 a very large area of this valuable ])ed. Its outcrop has been fol- 
 lowed from the State line southward past Morgan town, Fairmont, 
 Clarksburg, Weston, Troy, Gle'nville, Sutton, Sissonville, and on 
 the Great Kanawha at Raymond Cit3^ Beyond this river the coal 
 is thin, and found in interrupted patches, but it has recently been 
 
18 
 
 Coal. 
 
 opened in the tops of the hills back from Huntington, and the last 
 patch of it within the State is in the summit of a high knob over- 
 looking the Big Sandy, and ten miles above its mouth. Kentucky- 
 receives all of the coal beds under this one from our State, but she 
 gets not an ounce of the great Pittsburgh seam, for it passes into the 
 air over the tops of her highest hills, from a point in our State with- 
 in a stone's throw other territory. 
 
 On the Ohio river side of West Virginia, this bed comes into the 
 tops of our hills opposite Steubenville, and dipping down from the 
 north is only 100 feet above water level at the mouth of Wheeling 
 creek. It has thus been the bed rock of Wheeling's industries and 
 prosperity, and it is the foundation stone on which her sister city, 
 Pittsburgh, has built such a grand superstructure of manufacturing 
 interests. And notwithstanding the temporary advantages of natu- 
 ral gas, this coal bed will be the main source of the future greatness 
 of the two cities. 
 
 Followed below Wheeling, this coal gradually approaches the river 
 level and passes beneath the same a short distance below Benwood, 
 and although it is reached by the shafts at Moundsville^ the horizon 
 of the coal keeps constantly below water level till we reach the Vol- 
 cano oil uplift, a short distance below St. Marys. Here the place 
 where it should be is lifted 250 to 300 feet above the river for two or 
 three miles, but the coal is wanting or so thin that it is practically 
 absent, and the same thing is true all along this arch from Eureka 
 thr. ugh by Volcano to Burning Springes and beyond toward Spencer. 
 How broad this barren belt may be we cannot yet certainly deter- 
 mine, owing to want of observations in the central part of the State, 
 but therf^ are some reasons for believing that this barren region is 
 coincident with the course of the Volcano arch, and that it thus 
 extends from Eureka through to Burning Springs on the Great 
 Kanawha, 10 miles above Charleston; and that along this line ior a 
 distance of several (10 to 15) miles on each side, no valuable deposits 
 of this coal can be found. We know, however, that the coal comes 
 in again west of this arch, for when the Ohio turns north below 
 Letart Falls the rise of the rocks soon brings th^i coal to the surface 
 at Hartford City and other points in that region, where it is still a 
 valuable bed, though much reduced in thickness from its normal 
 size at the northern end of tiie State. 
 
Coal. 
 
 19 
 
 The counties then which have this great coal bed may be enumer- 
 ated as follows: About one-half of Brooke, nearly all of Ohio, all 
 of Marshall, Wetzel, Tyler, Dod(lridge, the eastern halves of Ritchie 
 and Gilmer, the northern half of Braxton, the large areas in western 
 Upshur, Barbour and Taylor, much of Lewis, nearly all of flarrison, 
 three-fourths of Marion, and two-thirds of Monongalia. On the 
 west side of the barren strip, this coal will be found in the [portions 
 of Putnam and Mason north from the Great Kanawha, probably all 
 of Jackson, and the most of that portion of Kanawha north from the 
 Elk and Kanawha rivers. 
 
 Of course under much of this large area, the bed can only be 
 reached by shafting, but a depth of 300 to 400 feet will reach it 
 along most of the valleys, even where it is deepest, except near the 
 summits of the divides, where it is deeper of course, but still within 
 the limits of easy access whenever the time shall come that it is 
 needed for fuel supply. 
 
 One of the finest areas of this coal, and the most easily accessible, 
 lies along the Monongahela river, between the Pennsylvania line 
 and the tier of counties through which this river flows, viz : Lewis, 
 Harrison, Marion and Monongalia. The distance from the State 
 line to Weston, by the meanders of the river, is more than one hun- 
 dred miles, and throughout this long distance the great Pittsburgh 
 bed is almost constantly above water level, and cropping out from 
 either bank of the stream at a moderate elevation above the same, so 
 as to be most fortunately situated for cheap and successful mining. 
 
 The universal excellence of this coal for all purposes of fuel, gas. 
 coke and every other use to which coal can be put, renders the field 
 in question one of the most valuable in the country, or in the 
 world for that matter, and the railroad that first opens it up to 
 market will have a monopoly of good things in the coal traffic for a 
 long time 
 
 It w^as formerly supposed that this coal would not make mer- 
 chantable coke, but the successful working of nearly 200 ovens at 
 Montana, on the Fairmont, Morgantowm and Pittsburgh railroad, 
 together with the successful plants at Fairmont, Clarksburg, Tyr- 
 connell, Monongah, etc., have set this question happily at rest, and 
 proven that the coal in question will make a coke hut little inferidr, 
 
20 
 
 Coal. 
 
 if any at all, to that from the celebrated Connellsville region, of 
 which the Monongahela country is simply a southward extension. 
 
 THE BASIS OF OUR PROSPERITY. 
 
 It will be seen from the hasty and imperfect review of the coal 
 fields of our State that the quantity of this valuable fuel which 
 , underlies the surface of our hills and valleys and mountains, is al- 
 most beyond conception, and it does not aid the mind much to be 
 told that if we put the workable thickness of coal underlying the 
 10,000,000 acres of our coal field, at only ten feet, the available 
 product will be at least 100,000,000,000 tons. But impossible as it 
 may be to comprehend the real meaning of such an array of figures, 
 we can at least be assured that the basis of our future prosperity is 
 grounded so firmly in this wealth which lies hidden in our hills, 
 that nothing conceivable to human reason can thwart our growth 
 or prevent our continued progress in 'everything pertaining to in- 
 dustrial welfare. 
 
 The West Virginia coal field is one and a half times larger than 
 that of Great Britain, the production of whose mines is now nearly 
 two hundred million tons annually. In the not distant future 
 when the network of railways which the benefactors of our State 
 are now planning for its development, shall have connected our 
 mines with links of steel to the great arteries of trade and com- 
 merce, and our production of coal shall have ris^n to even half 
 what Great Britain's is, then will our people begin to realize more 
 clearly the enormous value of the fuel wealth to which we are heirs. 
 
 The outline of the distribution of the coals of West Virginia, 
 by Professor White, given above, together with the brief descriptions 
 of the coal of each county given in the subsequent pages of this 
 volume, will suffice to give a general idea of the coal fields of the 
 State. The space at our command is not sufficient to permit a more 
 lull description. 
 
 With this almost limitless amount of coal locked up in the bowels 
 of the earth, comparatively little has ever been done toward its 
 development. With sixteen thousand square miles of coal but 200 
 collieries are now in operation. The 'total capital invested in the 
 production of coal in this State, according to the last census, is 
 
Coal. 
 
 21 
 
 $10,508,050. The total number of persons employed in and about 
 the mines of the State in the last year was 15,393. It is only 
 within the last few years that the coals of \V est Virginia have 
 attracted any attention Irom the men m other States who had the 
 capital to develope them, but the growth of the mining industry 
 since that time has been rapid. Twelve years ago less than a sixth 
 as much coal was produced annually as is now mined. In 1880 the 
 State ranked seventh in the Union in the production of coal; last year 
 but three other States produced as much as West Virginia. The 
 growth of the business is shown by the following table : 
 
 YEARS. 
 
 1880. 
 1881 
 1882. 
 1883. 
 1884. 
 1885. 
 1886, 
 1887. 
 1888, 
 1889, 
 1890 
 1891 
 1892_ 
 
 This increase, rapid as it has been, would have been much larger, 
 but for the want of adequate facilities for the transportation ' of the 
 coal. Every railroad in the State that passes through coal regions 
 has all it can do to handle the product of the mines along its line 
 and the development of new fields is much retarded from this cause. 
 The construction of new roads, the double tracking of old ones, 
 and the purchase of hundreds of new cars and other equipments 
 are assisting materially in developing the coal, but still there is room 
 for more. The railroads can little more than handle the present 
 output of the mines and as fast as new ones are built they are 
 crowded to their fullest capacity. Those sections w^iich ape favored 
 with river transportation suffer less from this cause than the others, 
 but every new facilit}' for reaching the market materially increases 
 the output of the mines. The activity in railroad building in this 
 State indicates that this can not longer remain the cause for the 
 want of proper growth of the mining industry. Last year the State 
 
 Insif^e 
 Miuers. 
 
 Outside 
 Laborers 
 and 
 Cokp. W'rk'rs 
 
 Total 
 Production 
 Ton 2,000 lbs. 
 
 Percentage 
 of 
 
 Increase. 
 
 2..553 
 
 1,173 
 
 1,401,008 
 
 
 3;063 
 
 1,407 
 
 1,803,984 
 
 28.48 
 
 3,573 
 
 1,641 
 
 2.416.960 
 
 33.90 
 
 4,438 
 
 1,9.^6 
 
 3.142.234 
 
 30.00 
 
 4,627 
 
 1,724 
 
 3.249,839 
 
 3.40 
 
 5.486 
 
 1.806 
 
 3.369,062 
 
 3.60 
 
 6.081 
 
 1.181 
 
 3,.598,664 
 
 6.80 
 
 7.023 
 
 1,582 
 
 4.936,820 
 
 37.18 
 
 7,269 
 
 1,705 
 
 5,375.564 
 
 8.89 
 
 7,764 
 
 1.882 
 
 5,405,173 
 
 0.55 
 
 9.173 
 
 2,. 324 
 
 6.002.080 
 
 11.04 
 
 10,434 
 
 2,589 
 
 8,1.5.5.202 
 
 35.87 
 
 9,884 
 
 5,509 
 
 8,710.888 
 
 6.81 
 
 Average 
 Ann ual 
 Increase. 
 
 5 ■— 
 
 - 05<} 
 
 < 
 
22 
 
 Coal. 
 
 stood first of , all in the amount of railroad built within the year, 
 and from all the indications, l)ids fair to do the same again this year. 
 New lines are projected in every direction and through all the coun- 
 ties of the State, and ample facilities will soon be afforded for all 
 the shipments of coal that may be desired. 
 
 Several causes :-oinbine to ^'ive the coals of West Virginia their 
 enormous value — the great area and thickness of the beds, making 
 the largest deposit of coal in any State in the Union; the purity of 
 the coal, wliich is singularly free from sulphur and other impuri- 
 ties; the variety of the kiiids found, anthracite, splint, cannel and 
 bituminous all being found, and all but the first in enormous quanti- 
 ties and frequently upon the same property; the value of the coal, 
 much of which commands a liigher price in the market than other 
 similar coals ; the ease v>^ith wiiicli it can be worked, in half the 
 State, ])erl]aps, the coal all being above the water level, and in all 
 the rest being much nearer the surface than is the coal of other 
 places which is constantly worked, as in England where shafts are 
 put down as deep as 2,600 feet below the surface of the earth, the 
 shaft costing half a millicn dollars; the nearness to market, being 
 much nearer to the southern and western markets than is the coal 
 of Pennsylvania, its only competitor, and having several through 
 lines to the'north-west and the east; its nearness to the great Vir- 
 ginia iron ore fields, where much iron is now made and more will 
 be; the cheapness of the lands upon which the coals are found and 
 the cheapness vvith which it can be mined, the average cost of min- 
 ing coal in West Virginia being lower than in any other State in 
 the Union save one. 
 
 ANTHRACITE COAL. 
 
 The amount of anthracite coal in the State is comparatively small, 
 though there is enough of it to be of considerable value. It is found 
 in but two counties —Bei-keley and Morgan— lying in the hills that 
 separate the two. As long ago as 1835 the owners of some property 
 in these counties had some investigations made to see what amount 
 of coal there was there and the value of it. A six-foot vein of an- 
 thracite coal was then found, but water filled the mine and it was 
 abandoned. At various times since' then efforts have been made 
 to ascertain the extent and value of the coal deposit, but until 
 
Coal. 
 
 23 
 
 recently nothing was done in a determined way, and little more was 
 known than that there was anthracite coal in the hills, and that 
 it was pretty hard to get at. In 1883 further efforts were made 
 hy other parties to get at the coal and a ten-foot vein was struck. 
 This shaft also filled with water and remains so to the present 
 time. In 1889 on experienced mining engineer wps sent from 
 Pottsville, Pa., to look into this property and report upon it. His 
 report says the coal is "of fair quality and compares favorahly with 
 Pennsylvania anthracite coal." Later a New York geologist was 
 sent to look into the field. He made an opening and at five feet 
 from the surface, struck the top of the largest seam of coal yet 
 found, 'The shaft was sunk to the distance of forty-two feet. His 
 report s-ays : "At five feet from the surface the top of the coal was 
 reached and the shaft continued in coal to the bottom. At the bot- 
 tom a cut is made across the vein from east to west. This is cut 
 from wall rock to wall rock, and is 24 feet 9 inches wide and de- 
 velopes a width of 15 feet 7 inches of good anthracite coal." The 
 coal is found in four beds, separated slightly, one of which con- 
 tains 5 feet 9 inches of solid coal, another 4 feet, one 26 inches and 
 the fourth 44 inches. He says, "There are not less than five seams 
 of anthracite coal in 'Third Hill' mountain." This seam has been 
 followed and its presence shown by openings for a distance of twenty- 
 five miles. No coal has ever been mined here save the few samples 
 taken out by persons prospecting. Several analysCvS have been 
 made of the coal from this deposit, a few of which we give 
 as follows: One gives the water and volatile matter at 11 per 
 cent. , the fixed carbon 82.54, and the ash 6.46. Another gives: 
 fixed carbon 88.05, volatile matter 5.28, and ash 6.66. Still another 
 gives: moisture at 100 degrees, 2.45, volatile matter 6.85, fixed carbon 
 86.29, ash 4.40. 
 
 SPLINT COAL. 
 
 The splint coal is a very hard variety found principally in 
 the Middle and Lower measures and almost entirely in that part 
 of the State between Braxton county in the center and Wayne 
 in the southwest, the borders of the area extending for a consider- 
 able distance on either side of the central line. The coal is thus 
 spoken of by Professor Maury : "For the combined purposes of 
 
24 
 
 Coal. 
 
 steam, domestic use and the manufacture ot iron, it may be looked 
 upon as the most useful and valuable coal of the^State. Its value is 
 due to its firmness and solidity, which enables it to be handled, 
 shifted and stored with very little loss ; it burns well, leaving but 
 little ash; has both high calorific power and intensity; is usually 
 remarkably free from sulphur (iron pyrites) and other impuritie?*; 
 has little or no tendency to clinker; is free from the danger of firing 
 by spontaneous combustion — a great desideratum in storage and 
 ocean transnortation ; is first rate as a steam and household fire and 
 has a particular adaptability in the raw state to the manufacture of" 
 iron in the blast furnace, for which purpose it is easterly sought in 
 districts accessible to market, as it makes a quality of iron which 
 can only be surpassed by the use of charcoal." It is an especial 
 favorite for shipping because of the small loss in handling or from 
 ex})osure to the weather and finds a ready market from the variety 
 of uses to which it is adapted. It is mined extensivel}^ in the Great 
 Kanawha valley and along the western end of the Norfolk & Wes- 
 tern railroad in this State. The coal is very hard but splits easily 
 and smoothly and is mined in large lumps. In some of the Wayne 
 coun.ty mines the coal has a tendency to split into long and thin 
 pieces so that it has been likened by some to fence rails. 
 
 CANNEL COAL. 
 
 Thecannel coal is one of the most valuable varieties found in the 
 State. It is rich and oily, and contains a larger proportion of vola- 
 tile matter than any of the other coals found in the State. Its ap- 
 pearance is doubtless known to all our readers. Of a dull, black 
 color, the coal will take, when polished, a brilliant lustre. It is more 
 tenacious and less brittle than other coals and may be cut or carved 
 into any shnpe. The coal is clean and will not soil the whitest sur- 
 face nnd yet contains ;i large amount of oil. It was from the rich 
 and oily cannel coal tliat oil was made before the war. From good 
 cannel coal from 40 to 80 gallons of crude oil were produced to the 
 ton; the Peytona coal yielding 20 gallons of crude illuminating oil, 
 52 gallons of crude lubricating oil, and 7.2 gallons of oily paraffine. 
 Total 70.2 gallons to the ton. The discovery of petroleum made oil 
 so much cheaper than it could be made from coal that the "cannel 
 coal oil" was soon displaced and gradually fell into disuse. But for 
 
Coal 
 
 25 
 
 making gas there is no better coal, more gas and that of greater 
 brilliancy being produced from a pound of cannel coal than from 
 any other coal found in America. For fuel the cannel coal is not 
 surpassed. It burns with a brilliant light, makes an intense heat 
 and leaves but little refuse. It brings a much higher price than any 
 other coal found in the State. 
 
 BITUMINOUS COAL. 
 
 By far the most widely distributed coal found in the State is the 
 ordinary bituminous coal, valuable for fuel, gas, steam and coking 
 purposes. It is found in almost every county in the State and in 
 great variety. . Not only is it found in counties where the other coal 
 is not, but nearly always in the same veins with other coals, bitu- 
 minous is also found. This coal is mined more than any other in 
 the State, and by reason of the greater variety of uses to which it 
 may be put and the cheapness with which it may be mined, the 
 demand for it is greater than for any other kind. The veins vary 
 in thickness from a few inches to more than 20 feet and the char- 
 acter of the coals varies almost as much. While splint and cannel 
 coals are largely mined, it is the softer coals that give the value to 
 the coal fields of West Virginia, and employment to thousands of 
 its people. From them the fa:nous West Virginia coke is made, 
 which rivals the celebrated coke from Connellsville, and in the 
 manufacture of which long rows of blazing furnaces may be seen 
 from almost any passing railroad train, brightening the hillsides 
 with th'^ir lurid light and filling the valleys near them with their 
 smoke. 
 
 The character of the West Virginia coals can be seen from the 
 analyses given in the following tables. Their richness in both vol- 
 atile matter and fixed carbon, their freedom from injurious sulphur 
 and ash, their many points of excellence and their superiority over 
 other coals whose analyses are also given may all be noted by the 
 careful observer. 
 
28 
 
 Coal. 
 
 analyses of coals. 
 
 Name of Colliery. 
 
 Crown Hill 
 
 (^oiill)iir^; 
 
 I'iunt Creek 
 
 Puint. ('reek 
 
 Aoine 
 
 Acme 
 
 Black Band 
 
 Bliicksburg 
 
 Cedar Grove 
 
 Willi I re de 
 
 I'eel Splint Coal Co 
 
 Averaj;(^ Kana-wiia, Gas 
 
 Cloaks 
 
 Gauley Mountain 
 
 Po\v<') Iton 
 
 Great Kanawha 
 
 Great Kanawha 
 
 Crescent 
 
 Black Peerless 
 
 rampbell's Creek 
 
 Nuttallbur^- 
 
 Nuttallhur^ 
 
 Fire Creek 
 
 Quinnimont 
 
 Average of all New River 
 
 Mines 
 
 Averaae of 10 sample^* 
 
 Flat Top Coal 
 
 Prati's Lands 
 
 Twelve Pole 
 
 Stevens" Branch 
 
 Tnii Fork 
 
 Cas.svllle 
 
 Ferguson 
 
 Peytona Cannel 
 
 Cannelton Cannel 
 
 Lost Run Cannel 
 
 Twelve Pole Cannel 
 
 Redstone Coal 
 
 Redstone ( 'oa l 
 
 R-wieklH-y Coal 
 
 Waynesbiiri^i,- C oal 
 
 Clements 
 
 Montana 
 
 Monongah 
 
 Despard 
 
 Howard 
 
 Austen 
 
 Davis 
 
 '■J'honias 
 
 Bofigs Run 
 
 Moundsviilf! 
 
 K anawha 
 
 Fayette . . 
 
 Kanawha 
 Fayette . . 
 
 Mercer and 
 McDowell. 
 Webster 
 Wa vne . 
 
 Roone. 
 Kanawha 
 Taylor.. . 
 Wayne . . 
 VI on on pal 
 Marion . . . 
 Monongalia 
 
 Marion 
 
 Harrison.. 
 
 Preston 
 Tucker. 
 
 Ohio 
 
 iMarshali 
 
 62. 61 
 
 62. 00 
 
 63. 71 
 60.77 
 57.90 
 53. 22 
 57.48 
 56. 75 
 61.27 
 58.73 
 57.78 
 
 56.26 
 64.00 
 61.75 
 58.43 
 59. 89 
 59.10 
 58 62 
 61.07 
 70. 67 
 69. 00 
 75.50 
 79.29 
 
 74.01 
 
 74.06 
 68.20 
 56. 35 
 60.10 
 61.18 
 44.89 
 51.35 
 41.00 
 23.50 
 42 32 
 42.59 
 54.36 
 50. 33 
 54.31 
 66.36 
 
 55. 02 
 
 56. 57 
 58.48 
 53.03 
 55.76 
 68. 00 
 67.18 
 72.76 
 46. 30 
 44. 30l 
 
 33.26 
 33. 50 
 30.13 
 36.26 
 37.09 
 41.36 
 38. 58 
 41.17 
 36. 83 
 36. 33 
 35.34 
 
 37.36 
 32.60 
 34.91 
 38.48 
 34.61 
 
 36. 72 
 38. 05 
 35. 64 
 25.35 
 29. 59 
 22.42 
 18. 65 
 
 23. 20 
 
 18.83 
 29.40 
 37.60 
 36.40 
 38.74 
 43.22 
 38 70 
 46.00 
 58.00 
 23.08 
 49.40 
 37.88 
 40.97 
 35.78 
 35.36 
 37.00 
 36.78 
 36.92 
 34.00 
 
 37. 36 
 
 38. 00 
 26.84 
 22.90 
 43.29 
 45. 17 
 
 2.14 
 3 . 65 
 
 'i.'84 
 1.93 
 1.66 
 2. 24 
 1.23 
 
 'i.36 
 1.75 
 
 1.25 
 1.40 
 0.94 
 
 0. 62 
 
 1. 14 
 
 0.90 
 1.51 
 1.35 
 0. 34 
 0.73 
 0. 76 
 
 0. 83 
 
 0. 69 
 0.95 
 1.60 
 1.70 
 
 1.56 
 3.45 
 
 0.18 
 0.35 
 
 0. 62 
 0.80 
 
 0. 36 
 
 1 
 
 28 
 
 0 
 
 23 
 
 0 
 
 16 
 
 0 
 
 56 
 
 0 
 
 81 
 
 1 
 
 27 
 
 0 
 
 77 
 
 0 
 
 37 
 
 0 
 
 57 
 
 0 
 
 78 
 
 0 
 
 53 
 
 0 
 
 23 
 
 0 
 
 50 
 
 0 
 
 7fi 
 
 0 
 
 55 
 
 0 
 
 57 
 
 0 
 
 72 
 
 0.82 
 
 1 
 
 92 
 
 0.37 
 
 2.87 
 
 1.01 
 
 4.27 
 
 0. 44 
 
 3.10 
 
 0.74 
 
 0.70 
 
 1.00 
 
 0. 80 
 
 1.42 
 
 0.71 
 
 1.52 
 
 1.08 
 
 I.IO 
 
 1.82 
 
 1.50 
 
 0. 50 
 
 0. 80 
 
 1.68 
 
 0.96 
 
 0. 59 
 
 1.20 
 
 
 1.01 
 
 1.23 
 
 1.81 
 1.50 
 6. 13 
 1.13 
 3.08 
 3.75 
 1.70 
 0. 85 
 1.90 
 2 
 5.13 
 
 3.85 
 2 00 
 2.40 
 1.91 
 4.36 
 2.91 
 2. 43 
 1.21 
 2. 10 
 1 
 
 0.80 
 1.11 
 
 1.43 
 
 64 
 45 
 05 
 50 
 88 T 
 33 
 50 
 00 
 50 
 01 
 41 
 
 Authority, 
 
 07 C 
 
 Dewey, Vance & Co. 
 
 1). G. M. Levette. 
 
 R O. Uoremus. 
 
 P. B. Wilson. 
 
 K. L. Howard, U. S. G. S. 
 
 R. M. Byrnes. 
 
 Win if rede Coal Co. 
 A. R. Otter. 
 
 C. & 0. Coal Agencv. 
 VV. N. Page. 
 Ily. Froeling. 
 
 A. S. McCreath. 
 .]. W. Mallet. 
 F. W Dewey, U. S. Govt. 
 Riverside Iron Co. 
 Prof. Eggleston. 
 
 E. Wright. 
 .\. S. McCreath. 
 Prof. Eggleston. 
 
 M. F. Spruce. 
 
 A. S McCreath. 
 Hy. Froeling. 
 Wormlev. 
 
 'aylor. 
 Dwight. 
 Hy. Froeling. 
 Manhattan Gas Light (.'o. 
 
 C. E. Dwight. 
 
 9.47 
 7. 55 
 
 6.00 A. S. McCreath. 
 4.51 
 7.001 
 
 e.OrlWashingfn Gas Light Co 
 3.96is. C. P'ord. 
 0.20 P. B. Wilson. 
 3.50 
 
 2. 79 J. W. Powell. 
 9. 30 C. E. Dwight. 
 8.29 
 
TiMBKR. 
 
 27 
 
 TIMBER. 
 
 The claim is made, and figures are given to prove it, that West 
 Virginia has a greater amount of hard wood timl)er in its forests 
 than any other State In the Union. Ex Governor Wilson says: "I 
 have the statistics to prove that West Virginia has more of a surplus 
 of hardwoods than any other ten States in the Unions This is rather 
 an extravagant claim for so small a State but a thorough examina- 
 tion of the forests will show that nearly or quite one-half the State 
 is still uncleared, and by far the greater portion of the uncleared 
 lands is still in virgin forests where the axe of man has never found 
 its way and where the magnificent specimens of forest growth stand 
 thickly side by side and reach a towering height which gives the 
 forests of the State their splendid values. Except in California 
 where the redwood trees attain tremendous size no finer timber 
 may be found within the confines of the Union than that which 
 grows in West Virginia. The splendid forests of thousands of acres 
 of untouched timber, where nearly every kind of timber found in 
 the North American continent may be seen, where trees grow to 
 such size that ordina»y methods will not suffice to handle them and 
 where the forests are so thick that the light of day scarce penetrates 
 their shade and pathways must be cut before the axemen can find 
 room to work, have yielded annually many million feet of timber 
 which has gone to nearly every country on the earth and given the 
 West Virginia timber a world-wide reputation. From European 
 countries capital has come and been invested in the woods of West 
 Virginia, and agents come from England every year to purchase 
 West Virginia timber. No finer oak or poplar grows beneath the 
 sun than that which may be found in almostan y county in the State. 
 The magnificent size, the excellent quality of the timber and the 
 great variety give to the timber lands of West Virginia unusual 
 value and have, particularly in the last few years, attracted 
 
28 
 
 Timber 
 
 the attention of timber men from almost every quarter. Som 
 ten or fifteen thousand men are now engaged in one way ( 
 another in timber, lumber, sawmill or kindred business. Tn 
 mendous onslaught has been made upon the forests. Great armi( 
 of choppers have, with their axes, made inroads on the wooc 
 throughout the State and every rise brings out of every stream, hov 
 ever small', its quota of logs or ties or other timber. It is almo 
 impossible to get any statistics on the lumber business and tl: 
 amount of . lumber cut annually in the State. In 1880 the tot; 
 amount of various kinds cut within the State was about 180,00C 
 000 feet. To-day it is far more than twice as much. New sav 
 mills are building every day, new territory being opened, and it 
 safe to say that now the total cut of all the mills is no less tha 
 500,000,000 feet a year. The forests are being rapidly destroye* 
 Not only trees of proper timber size are being cut, but smaller om 
 for telegraph poles and railroad ties are also taken out. The tre( 
 both large and small, the bark for tanbark and small hickories f( 
 hoop-poles are all removed and bat a short time is required to chan^ 
 a forest to a farm, to bare the mountain tops and clear their side 
 to turn the timber into ties or work it into lumber or its product 
 To show the size of some of the trees cut from the West Virgini 
 forests we give the following measurement of a poplar tree recentl 
 milled at Camden on the Gauley,. cut in Nicholas county in one ( 
 the finest poplar regions in the State : 
 
 2 Logs 60 luches Diaiueter, 16 Feet Long, ScMled 5,912 Fe«'t, Board Measure. 
 2 " 63 " 16 " " 6.802 '• 
 
 1 " 63 " " 12 " " 2,611 " 
 
 1 " 69 " ■' 10 " " 2,641 " 
 
 2 " Kroken, Scaled 6,761 " 
 
 Total 24,727 " 
 
 DISTRIBUTION AND VARIETY. 
 
 Writing of the forests of West Virginia for the World's Fair ed 
 tipn of the Baltimore Evniing News^ Maj. Jed Hotchkiss, one ot th 
 best posted men in the South, particularly on the resources of tl 
 two Virginias, has the following to say : 
 
 "West Virginia is undoubtedly the timber State of all the Stat( 
 east of the Mississippi; in fcict of all the States on the Atlantic slo^ 
 
Timber. 
 
 29 
 
 of the continent. Fully three-fourths of its 24,645 square miles of 
 area are still covered by virgin forests, and in all the remainder of 
 the State where the forest maps indicate that the valuable timber 
 has been largely removed, there are still large numbers of timber 
 trees included in the portions of farms that are held for forest pur- 
 poses. 
 
 "This State is very favorably located for the growth of forests. Tt 
 is in the favored belt of temperature between about 37 degrees and 
 4L degrees of north latitude. Within its boundaries, trending 
 northeast and southwest, thus opening the country to the damp, 
 warm winds from the Gulf, are numerous ranges of the great Appa- 
 lachian, or Atlantic Highlands, but by far the larger portion of the 
 State lies oil the westward slope of these mountains in the Trans- 
 Appalachian belt, the waters of which rnostly run to the northwest- 
 ward to the Ohio. The altitude of the country descends from the 
 Backbone or Alleghany range of the Appalachians, from an alti- 
 tude of from 2,500 to 4,500 feet to from 500 at the southwestern 
 corner of the State on the Ohio, at Kenova, to about GOO on the 
 same river at Wheeling. The altitude of the eastern corner of the 
 State at Harper's Ferry is 272 feet ; so the range of altitudes in the 
 State is from 272 feet to about 5,000, giving a climatic range of 4,728 
 feet or the equivalent of about 16 degrees of latitude; consequently 
 this State has extensive areas of adaptability for every variety of 
 forest growth that is foui:^d within the limits of the United States 
 east of the Rocky Mountains. Dr. Charles F. Millspaugh, in his 
 Preliminary Catalogue of the Flora of West Virginia, 1892, says of 
 this State: 'It appears to be the southern limit of many boreal, 
 the northern of many austral and the eastern of many occidental 
 forms. It bids fair also to continue to present m^rfy novelties.' 
 
 "The most e'evated portion of the State, the great eastern border 
 of the ridgy plateau from which the Trans-Appa achian country 
 descends, a territory some 200 miles in length from the head waters 
 of the Big Sandy to the head waters of the North Branch Potomac, 
 a region that in the main is from 3,000 to 5,000 feet in altitude, 
 furnishes a congenial home to theb'ack spruce, the white pine, and 
 other evergreen trees peculiar to northern latitudes. 
 
 "It is probab'e that nowhere in the United States are now exist- 
 ing denser forests than those of black spruce in the belt of country, 
 
30 
 
 Timber. 
 
 more than 100 miles in length and from 10 to 20 in breadth, tha 
 extends through Greenbrier, Pocahontas, Rando ph and Tucke 
 counties. From measured acres of this territory as many as G0,00i 
 feet of board measure of lumber have been cut. Only the northerj 
 end of this vast spruce forest has been penetrated by railways 
 the West Virginia Central & Pittsburg R. R, being the only on 
 that has yet really entered into it. In this same e'evated regioi 
 there are extensive forests of wild cherry of a luxuriant growth 
 One white pine belt, with a length of 70 mi'es and an aveiag 
 breadth of 10 miles, borders this spruce belt on the southeast in th 
 basin of the Greenbrier river. Another white pine belt, some 6( 
 miles in length and having an average breadth of 10 miles, pene 
 trates this spruce belt from the northeast up and along the basin o 
 Cheat river; while another white pine area, some 30 miles in lengtl 
 and 10 in breadth, is found in the counties of Raleigh and Wyo 
 ming. On the crests and higher slopes of the dozen or more moun 
 tain ranges of the Appalachian system that traverses the State in i 
 northeast southwest direction from its eastern border to the west 
 ward, are found other species o. pine and several species of birch 
 oak, maples and other trees such as are peculiar to the higher alti 
 tudes of the country. 
 
 "The remainder of the State is covered mainly with hard- 
 wood forests interspersed with a per centage of the soft- 
 woods such as poplars, asli, etc. As an illustration of the kinds 
 and distribution of these trees an example may be taken from, 
 the southwestern portion of the State, from the basin of the Wef^t 
 Fork of 12-Pole river, in Wayne and Logan counties, where the 
 merchantable timber on 12,263 acres, or nearly 20 square miles, was 
 actually measured" and counted. The trees that were measured 
 were those that were 18 inches in diameter and upward, four feet 
 above the ground, with the exception of locusts, hickories and 
 black walnuts which were measured from a diameter of 10 inches 
 and upward. The varieties and numbers of commercial timber 
 trees at this time growing on this area are as follows: 
 
Timber. 31 
 I.— TABLE OF HARDWOODS. 
 
 1. White Oaks 24,760 
 
 '2. Chestnut Oaks 38,848 
 
 3. Black Oaks 8,525 
 
 4. Red Oaks 943 
 
 5. Hickories 21,298 
 
 6. Chestnuts 7,681 
 
 7. Locusts 1,996 
 
 8. White Maples 1,583 
 
 9. Sugar Maples 450 
 
 10. Birches . 1,344 
 
 11. Gums 1,044 
 
 12. Black Walnuts ^ 393 
 
 13. Sycamores 13 
 
 Whole number of Hardwood Trees .... 108,878 
 
 2.— TAB„E OF SOFTWOODS. 
 
 1. Tulip-Poplars : • 12,450 
 
 2. Pines 3,472 
 
 3 Lindens 2,325 
 
 4. Cucumbers 240 
 
 5. Buckeyes 28 
 
 6. Ashes 271 
 
 7. Hemlocks 903 
 
 Whole number of Softwood Trees 19,689 
 
 "This summary shows that this area contained 128,567 timber 
 trees of 32 species; 25 of these kinds or 108,878 trees, were hard- 
 woods; and 7 of these, or 19,689 trees were softwoods; making the 
 percentages of the whole number of timber trees as 84 per cent, of 
 hardwoods and 16 per cent of softwoods. The average number of 
 these timber trees to the acre is ten and a fraction. 
 
 "Interspersed with the tre^s of these tables are found nearly all 
 of the varieties of smaller trees that are subsequently named in this 
 article as exhibited in the West Virginia collection at Chicago. 
 These countings were made on lands extending from the West 12- 
 
32 
 
 Timber. 
 
 Pole River up to the summits of the dividing ridges on either side 
 taking in a range of altitude from about 650 feet to a little over 
 1,000 feet. This specimen of forest fairly represents the entire north- 
 Avestern portion of the State from the Ohio River to the southwest 
 for about 75 miles. In other words, a ])olt of country 160 miles long 
 from northeast lo southwest and 75 miles wide from northwest to 
 southeast. 
 
 "Another illustration of the distribution of commercial trees for 
 the intermediate country between the high plateau and the belt 
 above mentioned may be taken from the counting of a thousand 
 acres on the headwaters of Cherry River in Greenbrier county, 
 West Virginia, in a region having from 2,500 to 3,000 feet of alti- 
 tude. The trees counted and measured were all from 18 inches and 
 upward, except the hickories and locusts. The species and numbers 
 were as follows : 
 
 I.— TABLE OF HARDWOODS. 
 
 1. White Oaks - . . 
 
 2. Chestnut Oaks. 
 
 3. Red Oaks .... 
 
 4. Hickories 
 
 5. Chestnuts 
 
 6. White Maples . . 
 
 7. Sugar Maples . . 
 
 8. Locusts ... 
 
 9. Beeches 
 
 10. Birches 
 
 11. Gums 
 
 12. Cherries 
 
 13. White Walnuts 
 
 1,513 
 3.258 
 7,291 
 4 
 
 1,965 
 1,120 
 
 104 
 349 
 1 
 
 132 
 159 
 889 
 8() 
 
 Whole number of Hardwood Trees 
 
 16,871 
 
 2.— TABLE OF SOFTWOODS. 
 
 1. Tulip-Poplars. . . 
 
 2. White Lindens 
 
 3. Yellow Lindens 
 
 4. Ashes 
 
 5. Hemlocks 
 
 6. Yew Pines 
 
 529 
 1,014 
 937 
 576. 
 2,303 
 34 
 
 Whole number of Softwood Trees 
 
 5,393 
 
Timber. 
 
 ''Of these 19 species of trees, 13 are hard woods and 6 soft woods. 
 The whole number of trees is 22,264, of which 16,871, or 76 per 
 cent, are hard woods, and 5.393, or 24 per cent, are soft woods. The 
 average number of timber trees per acre is over 22. 
 
 "The differences in the varieties, numbers and percentages of trees 
 shown in these two tables are quite remarkable. The timber belt 
 which is represented by this second table is one that extends across 
 the State for full 200 miles, from McDowell county in the south- 
 west to Preston county in the northwest. It has an average 
 breadth of about 25 miles and is probably the most valuable of the 
 timber regions of the State. As it is bordered on the east by the high 
 region of evergreen timbers first described, it is evident that, taking 
 this belt and that together, making a belt of timber extending 
 somewhat centrally across the State from southwest to northwest 
 for 200 miles, and with an average breadth of about 35 miles, that 
 West Virginia has in this 7,000 square miles of territory one of the 
 most valuable timber regions, in the extent, variety, qualit}^ and 
 quantity of its timber now remaining in the United States." 
 
 VALUE OF TIMBER. 
 
 In addition to this, further information as to the extent and 
 value of the timber forests o'f the State may be found in the fol- 
 lowing extract from the article written recently by Maj. John 
 Moulton for the Kanawha Gazette^ at Charleston, in which he esti- 
 mates — and his estimate is rather low than high — the value of tim- 
 ber standing in the State at seventy million dollars. He says : 
 
 "With the exception of the highest mountain ranges, where there 
 are to be found large forests of white pine and spruce, the timber 
 throughout the State consists almost wholly of hard woods, comprised 
 of the different kinds of oak, chestnut, hickory, poplar (tulip), cherry , 
 black walnut, white walnut, ash, birch, locust, sugar maple, etc. 
 Of these, the oak family is by far the best represented, comprising 
 probably one-third of the entire growth; and of the oaks the white 
 is by far the most plentiful. Next among our valuable timber 
 trees in quantity is the poplar which, owing to its adaptability to 
 so many uses, makes it one of the most valuable timber trees in 
 the whole country. Black walnut and cherry are our most valu- 
 able woods and are found scattered throughout the State, but no- 
 
34 
 
 Timber. 
 
 where in great quantity. Ash is also found throughout the State, 
 in greater quantities than walnut or cherry, but much less than 
 poplar. 
 
 "Of all the different species of hard woods, oak, poplar, black 
 walnut, cherry and ash comprise principally the hard woods which 
 have been manufactured into lumber, owing to the fact that they 
 only furnished lumber whose price would justify the cost of manu- 
 facturing and transportation to distant markets and of these, only 
 excepting walnut, such trees have been used as would make largely 
 'the better qualities of sawed lumber, or in oak, staves. 
 
 " The mountainous character of the State has also confined opera- 
 tions in lumbering to streams large enough to float logs on to the 
 lines of the railroads, leaving a large part of the State untouched. 
 
 "While this characteristic of the State increases the cost of put- 
 ting the manufactured lumber into the hands of the consumer and 
 preventing its manufacture entirely over large districts, it is not 
 without its future benefit to the State and to the owner as it has 
 curtailed the manufacture, preventing a cut of timber beyond the 
 demands and increasing its value in decreasing the aggregate amount 
 by use only of that more attainable. 
 
 "Any estimate of the standing timber in the State can only be a 
 matter of opinion but taking the amount of the surface of the State 
 still covered with timber, which I believe is nearly two-thirds, and 
 deducting from it the lands cut over for good timber along streams 
 and railroads, by a liberal estimate two-fifths of the State is still in the 
 virgin forest or about seven million acres which estimating at two 
 and one-half thousand feet per acre at an average price of two dol- 
 lars per thousand would make the large sum of thirty-five million 
 dollars as the value of the standing good timber. 
 
 "This estimate of the number of acres of timber lands and amount 
 per acre, may be considered small, but it must be taken into con- 
 sideration that I am only considering such timber, oak, poplar, 
 walnut, cherry and ash, as would make lumber mostly suitable for 
 shipping, and also that parts of the land, such as barren south 
 hillsides, are substantially bare of timber, and that I do not include 
 the white pine and spruce of the upper mountain regions. 
 
 "But in regarding the timber values of the State, shipping lum- 
 
Timber. 
 
 ber, or the best grades, should not by any means be alone taken into 
 account. 
 
 "Our wild lands, it is well known, are held very generally in 
 large bodies, and valued to a great extent for the minerals under- 
 lying them. For the development of these minerals all the coarser 
 grades of timber, comprising every kind of hard wood, will be 
 needed, and will aggregate in value for this home consumption 
 fully as much as that of the higher and better grades. 
 
 "Again, unlike some other sources of national wealth, the quan- 
 tity and quality of the timber of our State, depends on no contin- 
 gency, audits value must increase, as eveiywhere the consumption 
 of lumber is greater than the natural growth , of the forests. 
 
 "Of the quality of our timber there is no longer any question of 
 its being eagerly sought after by manufacturers all over the 
 country." 
 
36 
 
 Iron. 
 
 IRON. 
 
 In a recent pamphlet on the iron ores of the two Virginias, Judge 
 Homer A. Holt, of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, 
 and Adam C. Snyder, ex-Judge of the same court, give facts and 
 figures to show that in the world's iron production in the future 
 the Virginias must take a prominent part. From an exhaustive 
 treatise on the subject w^e take the following extracts: 
 
 The world's production of iron in round numbers has been as fol- 
 lows : 
 
 The ratio of increase is thus shown to be for the first period of 
 eleven years about forty per cent. ; for the second period over fifty- 
 one per cent; for the third a little less than eighty per cent., and for 
 the single year ending in 1890 nearly seven per cent. If this accel- 
 erating ratio of increase is maintained, and the probabilities are 
 tliat it will be greatly exceeded, then the production for the year 
 1900 will be in excess of fifty million tons. 
 
 In 1856 
 In 1867 
 In 1878 
 In 1889 
 In 1890 
 
 6,600,000 gross tons, 
 
 9,300,000 " 
 14,100,000 
 25,000,000 " " 
 26,500,000 " ' " 
 
Iron. 
 
 37 
 
 
 1867. 
 
 1878. 
 
 1889 
 
 1890. 
 
 
 Per cent. 
 
 Per cent. 
 
 Per cent . 
 
 Per cent. 
 
 
 14.50 
 
 16.80 
 
 30.57 
 
 33.00 
 
 
 52.80 
 
 45.20 
 
 33.16 
 
 28.23 
 
 ;ium 
 
 26.00 
 
 28.75 
 
 27.98 
 
 
 
 6.70 
 
 9.25 
 
 8.29 
 
 
 The relative per cent, of the world's product from 1867 to 1890 
 has been as follows : 
 
 United States 
 Great Britain 
 
 All other countries - 
 
 It is thus shown that the production of the United States, which 
 was only 14.50 per cent, in 1867, rose in the succeeding twenty- 
 three 3'ears to 33.00 per cent., equal to one-third of the entire pro- 
 duQtion of the world, while Great Britain, which up to 1889 pro- 
 duced more iron than any other nation, fell off in the same twenty- 
 three years from 52.80 to 28.23 per cent., nearly fivQ per cent, less 
 than the United States, which is now the leading iron producing 
 country of the world. 
 
 The following table shows the p^g-iron production in the United 
 States for the past thirty-five years and the per cent, of increase at 
 stated periods: 
 
 Net- tons. Increase. 
 
 In 1856 the product was - - - 883,137 
 
 In 1867 " " "... 1,461,626 65 pr. ct. 
 
 In 1878 " " . . - 2,577,361 76 pr. ct. 
 
 In 1889 " " u . _ _ 8,516,068 238 pr. ct. 
 
 In 1890 <' " _ . _ 10,309,028 20 pr. ct. 
 
 This presents the capabilities and progress of the iron industry in 
 the United States in a degree unprecedented in any other country 
 of the world. The rate of increase in the eleven years ending in 
 1889 was more than three-fold as great as it was for the eleven years 
 immediately preceding, and that for the year 1890 was over twenty 
 per cent, more than the very heavy product of 1889. 
 
 Great Britain, France, Germany and Belgium, together with the 
 United States, produced more than ninety per cent, of the entire 
 iron product of the world. In regard to these the statistics show 
 that neither Great Britain nor France has produced as much in any 
 one year since 1882 as it did in that year, and that the aggregate 
 production of Germany and Belgium in any year since 1883 has ex- 
 ceeded^ their aggregate product for that year less than one million 
 
38 
 
 Iron. 
 
 tons. Since these, the principal iron producingcountries of Europe, 
 have not increased their production to any appreciable extent in the 
 last seven years, during which period the United States has doubled 
 its production, it is safe to assume that they are not likely to increase 
 it to any greater extent in the future. 
 
 The increased production of iron in the United States for the year 
 1889 over the year 1888 was about 800,000 tons greater than it was 
 in all the other countries of the world, and notwithstanding this 
 startling fact the consumption of iron in one form or another by 
 the people of the United States during the year 1889 exceeded the 
 domestic production of that year nearly one million tons It will 
 therefore be concluded that the increased demand of the world for 
 iron must be mainly, if not entirely, supplied by the United St*ates. 
 In support of this conclusion, Mr. Edwrard Atkinson, in a paper on 
 the future situs of the principal iron production of the world, says: 
 
 "What will be the product in the United States in 1900 as com- 
 pared to 1889 if the world demands forty to fifty million tons of 
 iron? Where will it come froA? Who will supply it? Will it 
 not be sixty per cent, of the whole or more? * * * If the increase 
 from 1890 to 1900 should be ten per cent, per annum the product of 
 the year 1900 will be about 42,000,000 tons. From what other sec- 
 tion of the earth's surface will an additional supply of iron, rated at 
 the lowest at 1,000,000 tons a year, year b^j year, and perhaps rising 
 in years of extensive railroad construction to double or treble, be 
 derived ? * * * I may not venture to say in this treatise that the 
 supremacy in this branch of industry has passed away from Great 
 Britain, but the increasing scarcity of her fine ores, the increasing 
 depth of her coal mines, the great heat and difficulty in working 
 them, the near exhaustion and consequent high price of coking coal 
 and the change in the condition of the workmen in Great Britain 
 may sustain such a conclusion. The question is not, however, 
 whether the United States will take away any part of the present 
 iron production from Great Britain. The true question is: Can the 
 iron producing countries combined, readily meet the prospective increase of 
 demand?'''' 
 
 Ever since iron has been produced by the use of mineral fuel in 
 this country, Pennsylvania has made more than one-half of the entire 
 output. Next to Pennsylvania, though far behind her, the States 
 
Iron. 
 
 39 
 
 of Ohio, New York, Illinois and New Jersey have, until the last few 
 years, been the principal iron producing States. These older pro- 
 ducing States have, in a measure, exhausted all their easily available 
 ores. They are obliged to depend largely upon a basis of supply 
 hundreds of miles from their furnaces. Of these States, Pennsyl- 
 vania and Ohio are the only ones that have any considerable quan- 
 tity of both iron ore and coal within their own territory, and each 
 of these States 'obtains the greater part of its iron ore supp'y from 
 the Lake Superior mines, or by the importation of foreign ores on 
 which latter they have to pay a duty of seventy-five cents per ton. 
 Neither New York nor New Jersey has any coal, and Illinois has no 
 iron ore within the State. 
 
 In the growing competition of the iron industry and the lessening 
 of its profits, iron must be made where the conditions are most 
 favorable and where it can be made the cheapest, and not where it 
 is made at present, simply because it has been made there hereto- 
 fore to advantage. 
 
 Industry must, and always will, sooner or later, adjust itself to 
 the most favorable conditions. It finally becomes simply a question 
 of "the survival of the fittest." The present state of the iron pro- 
 duction in these older States is largely maintained by the momen- 
 tum of the great capital invested in plants and ways for transporta- 
 tion in the centres of iron making. This cannot be changed on a 
 sudden, but when competition from points possessing more favor- 
 able conditions reduces the price of the product below the cost of 
 production, then, if not sooner, the change will be made. It may 
 not be ventured to assert that this state of affairs has already 
 arrived, but it is possible to believe that the present depression in the 
 iron industry is in part, if not largely, due to the persistent efforts of 
 interested capitalists and railroad companies to maintain the major 
 part of the industry at points where iron production has ceased to 
 be remunerative. If the capital which is invested in plants and 
 means of transportation in the older iron producing sections were 
 transferred to more favorable localities, iron could be produced 
 there at present prices at a fair profit. The depression, therefore, is 
 due less to the price of iron than to the disadvantages and unfavor- 
 able conditions under which it is produced. 
 
 Three things are essential to the production of iron, namely, ore, 
 
40 
 
 Iron. 
 
 coal and limestone ; and these must be so situated geographically 
 as to be cheaply brought together; for the value of raw material 
 does not more consist in what it is than where it is. 
 
 The "centre of gravity" of the iron industry will, sooner or later, 
 adjust itself at the point where the facilities for obtaining the raw 
 material are the best and the cost of assembling them at the furnace 
 is the least. These requisites, as we have seen, do not, to the extent 
 desirable, exist at the points where the principal iron production is 
 now and has heretofore been maintained. The important inquiry 
 then presents itself: Are there any points within the United States 
 possessing conditions more favorable for the production of iron 
 cheaply ? 
 
 In maintaining that the South has superior natural resources for 
 the production of iron, and that in the near future it will attain an 
 important, if not the controlling, position in this industry, it is not 
 necessary to assert that there v\ill be any immediate decrease in the 
 production in other sections It is maintained, however, and the 
 facts seem to warrant the conclusion, that in view of the more 
 favorable natural conditions of the South, it is not probable that 
 any important part of the ificreased production necessary to meet the 
 prospective demand will be had in the older producing States. It 
 may, and probably will for years, tax the capabilities of all points 
 and sections within the United States to supply, not only the 
 present, but the enormous prospective demands of the world. 
 
 In 1870 the South produced only 184,540 tons of iron; in 1880 
 she increased her production to 359,436 tons, and in 1890 she made 
 the phenomenal advance to 1,780,909 tons, or over eighteen per 
 cent, of the entire product of the United States. This was an in- 
 crease of seven per cent, oi her relative production in the decade 
 from 1880 to 1890, thus showing that the North and West fell off 
 that much. 
 
 The greatest activity in the development of the iron industry in 
 the South during the last decade was in Alabama, and in the past 
 few years it has been very great in Virginia. The increase over 
 the production in 1880 in the former was 1,328 per cent, and in the 
 latter 1,589 per cent. Of the thirty-nine furnaces under construc- 
 tion at the close of the census year 1890, nine were in Virginia and 
 seven in Alabama and only five in Pennsylvania. 
 
Iron. 
 
 41 
 
 The facts above stated show the great importance that must 
 attach to West Virginia ores, which, though yet practically unde- 
 veloped, nevertheless are known to abound in many, if not most, 
 of the counties of the State. 
 
 At various times, before and since the organization of the State, 
 iron has been made from West Virginia ores. Small furnaces 
 have been operated in nearly all the counties where iron ores are 
 found and in many counties utensils are now in use which were 
 made many years ago at local furnaces and foundries. The ores, 
 in nearly every instance, produc( d an excellent article of iron and 
 made the business profitable while it lasted. The mountainous 
 character of the State, the absence of railroad facilities and the 
 difficulty of getting articles of iron into the country homes 
 from far-away markets, was the necessity which brought about the 
 erection of iron furnaces throughout the counties of the State 
 where iron ores are found. They were operated only for local use 
 and were necessarily small. When railroads began to be built into 
 the State and iron made at larger furnaces in older localities and 
 with better facilities began to be sent in by rail, the business o{ the 
 local furnaces ceased. Gradually they all closed down, and now 
 there is not a turnace running in the State. But still the ores are 
 here, of sufficient richness and in sufficient quantities to be prof- 
 itably worked, if railroads were to open up the valuable ores. In 
 nearly all the counties through the centre of the State, from Monon- 
 galia and Preston southward clear to Wayne, ores of greater or less 
 value may be found. In many of these counties iron has been 
 made but the fintst ores, the richest and the most, are found in the 
 eastern border counties along the Alleghany mountains. In all 
 these counties ores abound, of splendid quality and in large seams, 
 but owing to the difficulty with which they can be reached by rail, 
 no development has ever yet been made. Just across the border, 
 in Virginia, numerous furnaces have been in operation making 
 iron for years, and for all these furnaces the coal and coke is taken 
 from the West Virginia beds to use in making iron. On this side 
 of the moun-tains we have the same iron ores which are so success- 
 fully worked in the old State, we have the limestone for the fluxing, 
 we have the finest coking coal in the world and almost at the mouth 
 of the ore pits, so that iron at least the equal of the Virginia iron 
 
42 
 
 Iron. 
 
 could be successfully made in our own State and at a smaller cost 
 than on the eastern side of the line. 
 
 The Alleghany mountains form the entire eastern border of the 
 State, and from Jefferson county, in the north-east, to Mercer and 
 McDowell on the south-west, the same kinds of valuable iron ores 
 are found in great abundance. The same are found on both sides of 
 the mountains in the two Virginias. In the old State more has 
 been done toward their development than in the new and they are 
 better known, but in some parts, at least, of the western State, the 
 ores excel those of the eastern neighbor and in nearly every part 
 are similar to those similarly situated across the border. Professor 
 Orton, a somewhat noted geologist of Ohio, who has made an exam- 
 ination of the Potts Valley ores, lying partly in Virginia and 
 partly in West Virginia, has made a very favorable report upon 
 them. As the greater part of the iron ores in the eastern border 
 counties of the State are similar to these described, we quote from 
 Professor Orton to give a general idea of the ores of the Alleghany 
 counties of the State. He says: 
 
 "The Oriskany ore is in all cases a hydrated peroxide or limonite, 
 popularly known as brown hematite. * * Potts Creek ores, 
 which I sampled in the field and the analyses of which have just 
 been completed by Prof. N. W. Lord, Chemist of the State Geolog- 
 ical Survey of Ohio, show the composition given below, the samples 
 having been selected from eight different points in the ore field, 
 numbered, respectivel}^, from one to eight. 
 
 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 
 Iron - - 49.90 50.03 51.94 50.00 49.90 49.90 55.50 56.00 
 Silica - - 11.61 13.26 10.15 9.67 15.76 12.05 4.45 10.69 
 Manganese, - .18 .11 .14 2.96 .39 .25 .29 .09 
 
 Phosphorus - 1.64 2.78 .65 .68 .18 .95 1.07 .18 
 
 "The average of the eight is as follows: Iron, 51.70; Silica, 10. 95; 
 Manganese, .55; Phosphorus, 70. 
 
 "In regard to these results it remains to be said that so far as the 
 first three elements are concerned we have nothing to ask. The Potts 
 Creek ores will certainly give ^ larger yield of iro7i than any of the 
 Oriskany ores now worked in Virginia. They can be depended upon 
 for nearly fifty per cent, of iron. One sample is seen to contain an 
 exceptional amount of manganese, but even this is scarcely outside 
 
Iron. 43 
 
 the allowable limits. In any case, it would be easy to exclude this 
 phase of the ore in mining. 
 
 "There remains to be considered the last of the constituents re- 
 ported in our analyses, viz., phosphorus. It would be too much to 
 expect that all possible advantages should be concentrated in a 
 single district, and accordingly we find by examination of the fore- 
 going analyses that some of the Potts Creek ores run higher in 
 phosphorus than is to be desired. Excluding, however, a single 
 sample (No. 2) from the list above given, the average of the seven 
 remaining samples is .574. 
 
 "When account is taken of the high percentage of iron that these 
 ores carry, it is obvious that they must come within the limits of 
 acceptance. * * 
 
 "I must not fail to call attention to the splendid showing of 
 the Upper Bennett bank (No. 8) in the table of analyses. T/ie finest 
 outcrop of if row ?i hematite in Virginia is at the same time the richest and 
 purest ore of its class ^ 
 
 Of the same ores Prof. A. S. McCreath, a Pennsylvania geologist, 
 says: 
 
 "These ores may be classed as Brown Hematite, which are hy- 
 drated oxides of iron. But the proportion of chemically combined 
 water varies considerably, and they may be said to vary between 
 the extremes of a true Limonite with 14.40 per cent, combined 
 water, and Red Hematite with theoretically no combined water. So 
 far as the percentage of iron is concerned, the ores are all of high grade , 
 and many of them equal the very best brown ores that are minedT 
 
 The ores thus described in the pamphlet above referred to lie in 
 the counties along the southern border of West Virginia, while 
 northward through all the border counties of the State the same va- 
 rieties of ore may generally be found. In subsequent portions of 
 this work where the counties are taken up separately and described, 
 more full descriptions of the iron ores of those localities will be 
 found. The red fossililerous ore, which is found in large deposits 
 in some of the north-eastern counties, is a valuable ore, comparing 
 most favorably with the ores of more successful and more noted 
 iron regions of the country. 
 
 While most of the best and most valuable iron ores are found 
 along the eastern border of the State, they are not all found there. 
 
44 Iron. 
 
 for to the westward throughout most of the counties of the State 
 ores of greater or less value are to be found. The western border 
 counties do not seem to have much iron, but through the center of 
 the State to the eastward the ores are plentifully scattered. Through 
 the central part of the State in the coal measures two kinds of ores 
 are found — carbonates of iron and black band ores. Speaking of 
 the former, Prof. M. F. Maury says: "Under this head may also be 
 classed the brown hematites of the coal measures, as they are merely 
 the results of the decomposition of the carbonates, and in fact, when 
 a seam of the former is discovered, we may expect it to turn into 
 the latter as soon as w^e go far enough under ground to get beyond 
 atmospheric influences. 
 
 "We see the result of this decomposition in the pieces of Brown 
 Oxide that are found on the hills in every portion of the State. 
 These have led to many erroneous ideas as to the richness of certain 
 localities in this mineral, which came originally from Mie carbon- 
 ates of iron existing in the beds that were once superimposed upoii. y 
 the present strata, and have long since been worn away by erosion.^' 
 As this took place, the lighter materials were washed ofi' by the cur 
 rents, while the heavier ore settled down and was left resting on our 
 hill sides. Sometimes a great deal was deposited in one place, and 
 the soil is full of it, while in others but a single lump was left, and 
 hence it is that on many of our mountains we find the 'blossom' of 
 good ore, and yet have no bed of it near by." 
 
 Of the black band ore, a very valuable ore, found in the central 
 to the south-western part of the State, principally south of the Great 
 Kanawha river. Prof. Maury says : 
 
 "This is nothing more than a carbonate of iron, of a more or less 
 black color, by reason of an admixture of bituminous matter. So 
 far as yet known, it is confined entirely to the southern part of the 
 State, where it has been discovered only within the last few years. 
 From the fact of its very often resembling black slate in its struc- 
 ture, it may often have been passed over unnoticed, and careful 
 search will no doubt show it in many places, where it is not now 
 suspected. 
 
 "It is a class of material that makes an excellent iron, and from 
 which much of the celebrated Scotch-pig is smelted. It possesses 
 an especial value, from the fact that, in many cases, a low grade ore 
 
Iron. 45 
 
 can be roasted into a higher grade. For instance take that from 
 Davis Creek, in Kanawha county. When mined, it contains 33 per 
 cent, of metallic iron, and 26 per cent, of carbonaceous matter. By 
 piling it in heaps, and setting fire thereto, the carbonaceous matter 
 is burnt out, and in the process of combustion, generates enough 
 heat to convert the carbonate of iron in the ore into a richer oxide, 
 so that the mass, after being thus roasted, analyzes 65 per cent, of 
 metallic iron. 
 
 "Unfortunately, we can never reckon or depend upon any seam 
 of it continuing of a uniform value, for in one place it will contain 
 an ore well worth working, while half a mile off it may become so 
 mixed with slate or earthy impurities as to be utterly valueless. 
 As an example : On Bell creek, Fayette county, an excellent bed 
 about 4 feet thick was found by Mr. L. Bemelmans, of Charleston. 
 Some 2 or 3 miles from this place, up a ravine a short distance be- 
 low the mouth of Bell, the same seam showed only 12 to 14 inches 
 of the good material, while on Little Elk run, of Gauley river, some 
 three miles to the north, the results of two analyses from the same 
 seam gave only 5 and 7 per cent, respectively of metallic iron. If 
 we search for it in another direction, it may open to a very valuable 
 deposit. From this irregularity and from the fact that it has been 
 well proven in this field, it will be readily understood that careful 
 search may find it in many places where it has never yet been no- 
 ticed, and wherever it is found in workable quantity its presence 
 adds great value to the land." 
 
 Otto Wuth, of Pittsburg, who made an analysis of some black 
 band ore found in Kanawha county, says : "Thoroughly roa^^ted, it 
 would then contain about 65 per cent, of metallic iron, while there 
 is more than enough carbonaceous matter to roast it. I consider it 
 a black band ore ol the first quality." 
 
 Analyses of the iron ores taken from various counties of the State 
 will be shown in the following table : 
 
46 
 
 Iron. 
 
 
 7>- 
 
 d 
 3 
 _o 
 
 Metallic 
 Iron . 
 
 Phosphorus. 
 
 Sulphur. 
 
 Siiioa. 
 
 Manganese. 
 
 AUTHORITY . 
 
 
 Mineral 
 
 38.43 
 
 
 
 
 
 Prof. W. H. Rogers 
 
 " 
 
 and 
 
 84.29 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Grant 
 
 38 . 28 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 
 
 33. 17 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 
 
 Preston 
 
 44.43 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 
 
 " 
 
 39 . 87 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 
 
 
 4(3 67 
 
 
 
 24 96 
 
 
 
 Average of vari 1 
 
 
 32 . 52 
 
 0. 66 
 
 0.13 
 
 
 
 u 
 
 ous S:iraples. \ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Monongalia 
 
 3 1 . 86 
 
 0.23 
 
 0. 15 
 
 
 
 0. E. Dwight. 
 
 
 34. 69 
 
 0.31 
 
 0. 12 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 49.69 
 
 0. 19 
 
 0. 13 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 41. 94 
 
 O.IG 
 
 0. 20 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 41 35 
 
 0.87 
 
 0.30 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 40.71 
 
 0.27 
 
 0.22 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 30. 24 
 
 0.30 
 
 0.33 
 
 
 
 
 " 
 
 
 44. 95 
 
 
 
 
 
 Prof. Rogers. 
 
 
 
 43.04 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 " 
 
 Taylor 
 
 38. 91 
 
 0. 29 
 
 0 05 
 
 
 
 C. E. Dwight. 
 
 " 
 
 35 98 
 
 0. 20 
 
 0 48 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 39. 10 
 
 0. 23 
 
 0 42 
 
 
 
 
 Brown Hematite.. 
 
 Raleigh 
 
 55. 54 
 
 0. 81 
 
 0 35 
 
 
 
 
 Kossil 
 
 Greenl)rier 
 
 52.23 
 
 
 
 
 
 J.-B. Brittou. 
 
 Pipe 
 
 
 61 .75 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Hematite 
 
 
 57. 17 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Hlulf Ore 
 
 
 36 69 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 IJrown Hematite.. 
 
 
 44 42 
 
 .13 
 
 .73 
 
 
 
 C E. Dwight. 
 
 Red i^'ossiliferou.s. 
 
 
 56 23 
 
 58 
 
 42 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 56 58 
 
 .012 
 
 .169 
 
 
 
 
 Red b'ossiliferous. 
 
 Hardy 
 " 
 
 59 36 
 
 .69 
 
 04 
 
 
 
 
 Red Hematitp 
 
 51.09 
 
 ;o5 
 
 '.03 
 
 
 
 
 Itrou n Hematite. 
 
 
 62 01 
 
 .16 
 
 .04 
 
 
 
 
 lied Kc^ssiliferous 
 
 Grant 
 
 52. 52 
 
 .88 
 
 .09 
 
 
 
 II 
 
 Hrowu Hematite.. 
 
 Hampshire 
 
 51.47 
 
 .10 
 
 .48 
 
 
 
 
 
 52.67 
 
 .03 
 
 .82 
 
 
 
 
 
 Monroti 
 
 58.83 
 
 0. 44 
 
 
 2. 82 
 
 0.21 
 
 Hy. Froehling. 
 
 
 
 58.40 
 
 0.71 
 
 
 3.60 
 
 0 74 
 
 
 
 
 48.50 
 
 1.02 
 
 
 17.67 
 
 0.27 
 
 
 
 
 57.11 
 
 0.71 
 
 
 6.23 
 
 0.08 
 
 u 
 
 
 
 51.95 
 
 0.59 
 
 
 14.85 
 
 
 
 
 
 50.22 
 
 1.04 
 
 
 15. 34 
 
 0.14 
 
 
 
 
 45 92 
 
 U.66 
 
 
 21 .20 
 
 0. 10 
 
 
 
 
 52.09 
 
 1.25 
 
 
 12.74 
 
 0.11 
 
 
 
 
 .51.80 
 
 1.06 
 
 
 13 02 
 
 0.10 
 
 
 
 Pendleton 
 
 57.10 
 
 .438 
 
 
 3. 64 
 
 
 W. H. Boggs. 
 
 Red Fossililerous. 
 
 
 55.15 
 
 . 542 
 
 
 7.31 
 
 
 
 Manganetio 
 
 
 .588 
 
 .292 
 
 
 19.11 
 
 40.78 
 
 
Coke. 
 
 47 
 
 COKE, 
 
 Analyses and tests show that the coke of West Virginia is superior 
 to that of Pennsylvania, which for so long a time held the highest 
 place in the markets of the United States. Statistics show that 
 there is more coking coal in West Virginia, many times over, than 
 there is in Pennsylvania, and that in the production of coke West 
 Virginia ranks next to Pennsylvania. With the best coking coal 
 in the United States, if not in the world, and more of it than in any 
 other State, and with a rapidly growing demand for coke, the fact 
 is readily seen that West Virginia must soon become one of the 
 greatest coke making centers in the world. Ah-eady there are no 
 less than four large coking districts in the State in active operation, 
 producing annually enough coke to make the State even now among 
 the largest coke producing States of the Union. But few years ago 
 the production was almost nothing. Last year the State produced 
 almost a million and a half tons of coke. The growth of the coke- 
 making industry in the last twelve years is shown in the following 
 table : 
 
 YEARS. 
 
 631 
 689 
 878 
 962 
 1,00,5 
 1,078 
 1,154 
 S,080 
 2,137 
 2,4.53 
 3,442 
 4,117 
 .5,490 
 
 40 
 189 
 
 84 
 
 43 
 127 
 
 63 
 317 
 442 
 
 68 
 142 
 184 
 
 206, 
 272, 
 321, 
 360, 
 385, 
 41,5, 
 425, 
 698, 
 786. 
 562. 
 
 1,377. 
 
 1,899. 
 
 2,011, 
 
 121. 
 16i: 
 202, 
 225. 
 228. 
 260. 
 264: 
 i42. 
 499, 
 360, 
 892, 
 1,238 
 1,313 
 
 BO 
 
 318,797 
 429,.57] 
 520,437 
 563,490 
 425,952 
 485,188 
 513,843 
 976,732 
 
 0 . 
 
 1 =eEH 
 
 2 30 
 2 26 
 2 19 
 1 91 
 1 
 
 1 94 
 
 2 21 
 
 o c 
 
 60.0 
 
 61.0 
 
 63 0 
 
 63.0 
 
 62.0 
 
 63.0 
 
 62.0 
 
 63.3 
 
 63.6 
 
 64.1 
 
 &i.S 
 
 65.21 
 
 65 29 
 
48 
 
 (%)KE. 
 
 The regions of the State which now produce the greatest 'amount 
 of coke each year are those along the Monongahela river near Fair- 
 mont, where the Pennsylvania coal fields extend up into West Vir- 
 ginia, and where last year a quarter of a million tons were made; 
 the great New River and Upper Kanawha district, which extends 
 for nearly a hundred miles south-east from Charleston, and last year 
 produced 682,527 tons of coke; and the Pocahontas region, in the 
 extreme south of the State, yielding in the last year from Mercer 
 and McDowell counties 282,687 tons. It is in this latter region that 
 the increase is now most rapid. 
 
 The table just preceding shows a marked and constant increase 
 in the percentage of coke yielded l)y the coals. . Thi,^ is due to the 
 improved methods constantly being adopted in its manufacture. 
 Many and valuable have been the improvements in the method of 
 making coke since first it became an important industry in the 
 State, and now the figures show that in its making but little over a 
 third of the coal is lost or wasted. In fact the refuse is put to use 
 and very little of the whole is lost except the smoke. Wherever 
 proper coals are found coke making proves more profitable than the 
 sale of coal, and now there are some 6,000 coke ovens in blast in 
 the State, giving employment to over 1,500 men, besides those who 
 get out the coal which goes to make the coke. Long rows of blazing 
 ovens, shedding their lurid light the landscape o'er, line almost 
 every railroad track that passes through the State and pour their 
 clouds of smoke on high to hide the mountain tops and dim the 
 sky. 
 
 In high percentage of fixed carbon, low percentages of ash and 
 sulphur, and freedom from water and phosphorus the cokes of West 
 Virginia stand pre-eminent. 
 
 A previous chapter shows the extent and distribution of the 
 coking coals of West Virginia, and the following table wUl show 
 the analyses of the cokes now made in different sections of the 
 State, as compared with those made in other States and foreign 
 countries: 
 
Coke. 
 
 49 
 
 COLLIERY 
 
 Codar Grove 
 
 Mast liank 
 
 Powellton 
 
 tireat Kauawha.. 
 
 Crescent 
 
 Ea^ie aud j 
 St. Clair. i ••• 
 
 NuttalJburg 
 
 Edlio 
 
 Capffton 
 
 Fire Creek 
 
 Stone Cliff 
 
 Quinuimont 
 
 Echo 
 
 Pocahontas 
 
 Pocahontas No. 3 
 Stephenson / 
 aud M oilier f 
 
 Clements 
 
 Montana , 
 
 Monon»ah , 
 
 Austen 
 
 Davis 
 
 Tliomas 
 
 Bradford / 
 Caperton f 
 
 Seymour 
 
 Holmes tt Uro 
 
 Pratt lied 
 
 Dade Mines 
 
 Etna " 
 
 Hromney 
 
 Mous 
 
 Westphalia 
 
 c 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 .2 
 
 
 
 0 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 4) 
 
 rt 
 o 
 o 
 
 a- 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 ij 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Kanawha 
 
 95 
 
 02 
 
 
 
 4 
 
 40 
 
 
 
 89 
 
 95 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 13 
 
 
 Eayette 
 
 93 
 
 25 
 
 1 
 
 50 
 
 .5 
 
 15 
 
 1 .10 
 
 95 
 
 86 
 
 
 
 3 
 
 62 
 
 
 
 90 
 
 31 
 
 1 
 
 77 
 
 
 92 
 
 
 
 90 
 
 48 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 00 
 
 
 
 93 
 
 00 
 
 
 
 (3 
 
 76 
 
 
 
 97 
 
 71 
 
 0 
 
 14 
 
 
 86 
 
 0.29 
 
 
 94 
 
 62 
 
 0 
 
 21 
 
 4 
 
 91 
 
 0^23 
 
 
 91 
 
 94 
 
 0 
 
 49 
 
 (5 
 
 92 
 
 0.10 
 
 
 89 
 
 66 
 
 2 
 
 68 
 
 (5 
 
 60 
 
 0.06 
 
 
 93 
 
 85 
 
 
 
 
 85 
 
 
 
 92 
 
 73 
 
 0 
 
 71 
 
 5 
 
 15 
 
 1.41 
 
 Mercer and I 
 McDowell f 
 
 92 
 
 58 
 
 0 
 
 49 
 
 6 
 
 04 
 
 0.19 
 
 92 
 
 21 
 
 0 
 
 71 
 
 
 28 
 
 0. 18 
 
 
 92 
 
 81 
 
 1 
 
 05 
 
 4 
 
 91 
 
 0. 66 
 
 ISrariou 
 
 67 
 
 50 
 
 
 
 11 
 
 00 
 
 0.30 
 
 
 89 
 
 85 
 
 
 90 
 
 8 
 
 40 
 
 .76 
 
 
 91 
 
 08 
 
 1 
 
 85 
 
 6 
 
 17 
 
 .24 
 
 Preston 
 
 87 
 
 98 
 
 
 
 11 
 
 57 
 
 0.45 
 
 Tucker 
 
 90 
 
 60 
 
 1 
 
 49 
 
 6 
 
 96 
 
 . 18 
 
 " 
 
 90 
 
 05 
 
 1 
 
 16 
 
 7 
 
 94 
 
 . 15 
 
 Connellsville 
 
 89 
 
 57 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 11 
 
 
 Peiins^'l vania 
 
 89 
 
 15 
 
 
 
 9 
 
 65 
 
 
 Blossburs, I'a. 
 
 84 
 
 76 
 
 
 
 13 
 
 84 
 
 
 Beaver Co., Pa. 
 
 84 
 
 
 
 
 12 
 
 63 
 
 
 A hibama 
 
 88 
 
 87 
 
 0 
 
 75 
 
 8 
 
 99 
 
 0.19 
 
 Georgia 
 
 75 
 
 91 
 
 1 
 
 09 
 
 21 
 
 75 
 
 0 54 
 
 Tennessee 
 
 85 
 
 45 
 
 1 
 
 10 
 
 11 
 
 08 
 
 0.85 
 
 J^n^'land 
 
 91 
 
 58 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 86 
 
 
 Helijinm 
 
 91 
 
 30 
 
 
 
 6 
 
 20 
 
 
 Germany 
 
 85 
 
 06 
 
 
 
 0 
 
 40 
 
 
 0.58 
 0.378 
 
 0.51 
 0.59 
 
 0.50 
 
 0.27 
 0.56 
 0.54 
 0.53 
 0.66 
 0 30 
 0.58 
 
 0.67 
 
 0.56 
 
 0.54 
 
 1.20 
 0.82 
 
 .70 
 .82 
 1.20 
 .998 
 1.99 
 1.18 
 0.67 
 1.45 
 
 AUTHORITY 
 
 M. A. Scoville. 
 
 Hy. Froehling'. 
 A. S. McCreaih. 
 J. \V. Mailett 
 
 i'orter and Going. 
 
 C. E. DwiKht. 
 J. li Hritton. 
 
 A. S. McCn-alh. 
 Heavier iV \V i(;kham. 
 ,1. H. Brittoii. 
 lleager it Wickham. ' 
 
 McCreath aud d'Invilliers. 
 
 A. S. McCreath. 
 
 P. B. Wilson. 
 
 J. W. Powell. 
 
 A. S. McCreath. 
 
 B. (. rowther. 
 
 A. S. McCreath. 
 
 McCreath and d'Invilliers. 
 
 Bell. 
 
 DeMaisilly. 
 M ueck. 
 
50 
 
 Kducation. 
 
 EDUCATION. 
 
 BY U. S. MORGAN, EX-bTATE SUPERINTENDENT OF FREE SCHOOLS. 
 
 The educational advantages offered by the State comprise an ex- 
 cellent system of pubhc schools, six State Normal schools, a State 
 University, an institution for the higher education of the colored 
 people, a reform school, a school for the Deaf and the Blind, and nu- 
 merous private and denominational institutions. 
 
 FREE SCHOOLS. 
 
 The people of West Virginia have always manifested a deep in- 
 terest in public education, and long before the organization of the 
 State, a number of counties under special acts of the mother State 
 had established systems of free schools. 
 
 The present efficient system of public schools rests upon the fol- 
 lowing constitutional requirement: "The legislature shall provide 
 by general law for a thorough and efficient system of free schools." 
 The Constitution, however, does not limit the State in its encour- 
 agement of education to a system of free schools, but requires the 
 Legislature "to foster and encourage moral, intellectual, scientific 
 and agricultural imprr^vement, and when it may be practicable, to 
 make suitable provision for the blind, mute and insane, and organize 
 such institutions of learning as the best interests of general educa- 
 tion in the State may demand." That these requirements have also 
 been met by the Legislature in a spirit of liberality^ will appear 
 from the ample provisions made for higher education in the Normal 
 schools and the State University, the State Reform School, and the 
 
Education. 
 
 51 
 
 institutions for the education of the deaf, dumb and blind, and for 
 the care of the insane. 
 
 The law establishing the free school system was passed December 
 10, 1863, and was put into operation just as rapidly as practicable. 
 The system has steadily grown in popularity and increased in effi- 
 ciency until it will compare very favorably with those long in op- 
 eration in the older States. 
 
 The law was re-enacted in 1873, with such improvements as the 
 practical working of the system had indica'ed to be necessar}^ ; and 
 this law, with some slight amendments made from time to time, 
 constitutes the present school law. 
 
 ADMINISTRATION AND PLAN OF SYSTEM. 
 
 In the organization of the free school system the existing political 
 divisions have been used as far as practicable. Every magisterial 
 district in each county is made a school district, which is divided 
 into as many sub-districts as may be necessary for the convenience 
 of the schools therein. 
 
 The regular civil, county and State officers collect and in part 
 disburse the school revenues. 
 
 The officers charged with the administration of the free school 
 system are : 
 
 (1.) District boards of education. 
 
 (2.) Sub-district trustees. 
 
 (3 ) A county superintendent of free schools. 
 
 (4.) A State superintendent of free schools. 
 
 The general control of the schools of each district is placed in 
 the hands of a board of education, composed ot a president and 
 two commissioners elected by the people, which is made a corpora- 
 tion capable of suing and being sued, of contracting for and buying 
 and selling property for the school purposes of the district. The 
 school year begins the first of July, and the board is required to 
 hold its first meeting on the first Monday in July. 
 
 The principal duties of the board are to lay the school levies, deter- 
 mine the number of sub-districts, locate and build the school houses, 
 supply them with furniture and appliances, fix the salaries ot 
 teachers, transact the financial interests of the district and exercise 
 
52 
 
 Edctcation. 
 
 a general supervision over all the educational interests of the district. 
 
 The trustees of each su])-district serve tliree years and are ap- 
 pointed by the boards of education. Th^y have charge of the 
 school or schools in their respective sub-districts, appoint the teach- 
 ers, purchase fuel, see that the school house is kept in repair and 
 proper condition and exercise immediate control over the educa- 
 tional interests of the sub-district. 
 
 The county superintendent, who is required to be a person of 
 temperate habits, and skill and experience in the art of teaching, is 
 elected })y the people and serves for a term of two years. His 
 duties are to distribute the State school fund to the several districts, 
 distribute the school blanks to boards of education, encourage and 
 attend county institutes, to act as president of the county board of 
 examiners, and keep a register of teachers certificates, visit the 
 schools of his county at least once each year, and report the condi- 
 tion of the schools to the State Superintendent. 
 
 The State Superintendent is elected by the people, and serves for 
 a term of four years, and is required to reside at the capital. The 
 la,w requires that he shall be "ot good moral character, of temperate 
 habits, of literary acquirements and skill and experience in the art 
 of teaching." He receives a salary of $1,500, paid out of the general 
 school fund. He exercises a general supervision over the free school 
 system and is charged with the preparation and distribution of all 
 school blanks, the apportionment of the State school fund, and the 
 organization of teachers' institutes. It is his duty also to collect 
 the school statistics and make an annual report to the Governor of 
 .the condition of the school system. 
 
 There is a County Board of Examiners lor each county, composed 
 of two experienced teachers appointed by the presidents of the dis- 
 trict boards of education, at a meeting held for that purpose in Jul}^ 
 of each year, and the county superintendent, who is ex-oflicio pres- 
 ident of the board, which is authorized to issue three grades of 
 teachers' certificates. The first grade is valid for a period of four 
 years, the second grade for two years, and the third grade for one 
 year. 
 
 There is also a State Board of Examiners, consisting of four com- 
 petent teachers ap})()inted by the State Superintendent, which is au- 
 thorized to issue two grades of certificates, valid throughout the 
 
Education. 
 
 53 
 
 State, the first grade being granted for a period of twelve years, and 
 the second grade for a period of six. 
 
 No person is authorized to teach under the general school law, 
 who has not been licensed by one of these boards. 
 
 REVENUES FOR THE SUPPORT OF THE FREE SCHOOL SYSTEM. 
 
 The Constitution has made the following provision lor the crea- 
 tion and management of an invested or permanent school fund: 
 "The existing permanent and invested school fund, and all money 
 accruing to this State from forfeited, delinquent, waste and unap- 
 propriated lands; and from lands heretofore sold for taxes and pur- 
 chased by the State of Virginia, if hereafter redeemed or sold to other 
 than this State ; all grants, devises or bequests that may be made to 
 this State for the purposes of education orwhere the purposes of such 
 grants, devises or bequests are not specified; this State's just share 
 of the literary fund of Virginia, whether paid over or otherwise liq- 
 uidated ; and any sums of money, stocks or property which this 
 State shall have the right to claim from the State of Virginia for ed- 
 ucational purposes; the proceeds of the estates of persons who may 
 die without leaving will or heir, and of all escheated lands; the pro- 
 ceeds of any taxes that may be levied on the revenues of any cor 
 porations; all moneys that may be paid as an equivalent for exemp- 
 tion from military duty ; and such sums as may from time to time 
 be appropriated by the Legislature for the purpose, shall be set apart 
 as a separate fund, to be called the "School Fund" and invested 
 under such regulations as maybe prescribed by law, in the interest- 
 bearing securities of the United States, or of this State, or if such 
 interest-bearing securities can not be obtained, then said "School 
 Fund" shall be invested in such other solvent interest-bearing se- 
 curities as shall be approved by the Governor, Superintendent of 
 Free Schools, Auditor and Treasurer, who are hereby constituted 
 the "Board of the School Fund," to manage the same under such 
 regulations as may be prescribed by law; and the interest thereof 
 shall be annually applied to the support of free schools throughout 
 the State, and to no other purpose whatever. But any portion of 
 said interest remaining unexpended at the close of a fiscal year shall 
 be applied to and remain a part of the capital of the "School Fund:" 
 Fi'ovided, that all taxes which shall be received by the State upon 
 
54 
 
 Education. 
 
 delinquent lands, except the taxes due to the State thereon, shall be 
 refunded to the county or district by or for which the same were 
 levied." 
 
 The constitution also requires that "the Legislature shall provide 
 for the support of free schools, by appropriating thereto the interest 
 of the invested "School Fund," the net proceeds ot all forfeitures 
 and fines accruing to this State urder the laws thereof; the State 
 capitation tax, and by general taxation of persons and property or 
 otherwise. It shall also provide for raising in each county or dis- 
 trict, by the authority of the people thereof, such a proportion of 
 the amount required for the support of free schools therein as shall 
 be prescribed by general laws." 
 
 In carrying out this provision the school law provides "that for 
 the support of free schools there shall be a State tax levied annually, 
 of ten cents on the 100 dollars valuation of all real and personal 
 pro})erty of the State," which with the interest on the school fund, 
 and the amounts received from capitations, forfeitures and fines, 
 form the State fund which is annually distributed to the several 
 counties. 
 
 The school law also provides that district boards, of education 
 "Shall annually levy by the authority of the people such a tax on 
 the pr(<perty taxable in the district, as will, with the money re- 
 ceived from the State, l)e sulhcient to keep such schools in operation 
 at least four months in the year; provided the said tax in any year 
 shall not exceed the amount of fifty cents on every one hundred 
 dollars valuation. The amount of this levy and the fund received 
 from the State tax constitute the "Teachers' Fund," and is used 
 only in paying teacher's salaries. 
 
 To provide school houses, grounds, furniture, fuel, &c., &c. , the 
 district boards are required to lay an annual levy not to exceed 
 forty cents on the one hu dred dollars valuation of all property. 
 The amount secured by this levy constitutes a "Building Fund," 
 and can be used only for those purposes named above. 
 
 The school law has made provision for three grades of freeschools, 
 primary, graded and high schools. It is the duty of the board of 
 education to establish at least one primary school in every sub-dis- 
 trict. Graded schools may be established by the board on its own 
 authority in towns, villages and densely populated neighborhoods; 
 
Education. 
 
 55 
 
 but before a public high school can be established, the ([uestion 
 must be submitted to a voite of the people and receive not less than 
 three-fifths of the votes cast. The number of schools of all classes 
 reported in the State Superintendent's report for the year ending 
 June 1892, was 5,1G7. 
 
 In the primary and graded schools the branches of learning required 
 to be taught are, orthography, reading, penmanship, arithmetic, 
 English grammar, history, geogrnphy, physiology, single entry book- 
 keeping and civil government. These branches dre arranged in a 
 graded course of study, which prescribes the order in which the sev- 
 eral branches shall be taken up and studic^d, and the time to be de- 
 voted to them respectively, with provision for advancement from 
 class to class, also for examination and graduaiion of all pupils who 
 satisfactorily complete the prescribed course. This course of study 
 is accompanied by a manual of instruction prepared by the State 
 Superintendent, which is intended for the general guidance of the 
 teacher in the discharge of his duties. 
 
 The schocl law seeks to secure proper moral instruction, and "all 
 teachers, boards of education, and other school officers are charged 
 with the duty of providing that moral training for the j^outh which 
 will contribute to securing good behavior and manners, and furnish 
 the State with exemplary citizens." 
 
 SPECIAL OR INDEPENDENT SCHOOL D ISTRICTS, 
 
 Under special acts of the Legislature the larger towns of the State 
 have been cut off into separate districts, and made independent for 
 school purposes of the magisterial district or districts of which the}^ 
 formed a part. This course has been found necessary in order to 
 provide these rapidly growing towns with adequate educational fa- 
 cilities. 
 
 As early as 1849 the city of Wheeling was made an independent 
 school district, and was continued as*feuch when the first free school 
 law was passed by the State. Since the organization of the free 
 school system forty-five more special districts have been established, 
 and under the larger powers granted them for taxation and other 
 school purposes these districts have been enabled to build splendid 
 modern school buildings and provide in addition to primary, thor- 
 ough graded and high school facilities. 
 
56 
 
 Education. 
 
 Among the towns that may be noted as having made special ad- 
 vancement in the improvement of their public schools, are Wheel- 
 ing, Parkersburg, Huntington, Charleston, Martinsburg, Fairmont, 
 Clarksburg, Grafton, Wellsburg, Moundsville, Morgantown, Pied- 
 mont, Keyser and Bnckbannon. 
 
 No other State has made a more marked public school growth than 
 West Virginia. Beginning with 133 school houses and 387 teachers 
 in 1865, the State Superintendent's report for 1892, shows a total of 
 5,004 houses, and 5,747 teachers. The total value of school prop- 
 erty in 1865 was $52,856, and in 1892 it was $2,746,234. 
 
 The average school term throughout the State for 1892, was five 
 months and a half. The statistical tables appended hereto, com- 
 piled from the latest report of the State Superintendent, (1892), show 
 the most important statistics connected with the history of the free 
 school system, since its organization, such as the enumeration, en- 
 rollment, and daily average attendance of school youth, for each 
 year, the number of schools and school houses, the value of school 
 property, the amounts of the general and invested school fund each 
 year, and the amount expended each year on building fund and 
 teachers fund. These tables make a record of progress of which 
 any people might justly be proud. 
 
Education. 
 
 57 
 
 YEA.R. 
 
 18fin. 
 186G 
 18(57 
 1868. 
 18(59. 
 1870. 
 1871. 
 1872. 
 1873. 
 1874. 
 1875. 
 J 876. 
 1877. 
 1878. 
 1879. 
 1880. 
 1881. 
 1882 
 1883. 
 1881. 
 1885. 
 1886. 
 1887. 
 1888. 
 1889. 
 1890. 
 1891. 
 1892. 
 
 3 
 
 M to 
 
 1,517 
 1,8-,'n 
 
 310 
 356 
 
 2,631 
 3.124 
 
 361 
 
 363 
 
 305 
 
 370 
 
 375 
 
 378 
 
 37 
 
 378 
 
 374 
 
 371 
 
 384 
 
 383 
 
 37< 
 
 378 
 
 3.383 
 3,529 
 
 3,779 
 3,855 
 3,887 
 4,035 
 4,142 
 4,288 
 4.302 
 4,549 
 4,651 
 4,755 
 4,866 
 
 o 
 o 
 Si 
 
 o . 
 
 "A 
 
 133 
 412 
 
 702 
 1,306 
 1,618 
 2,113 
 2,059 
 2,216 
 2,612 
 2,830 
 2,959 
 3,137 
 3,216 
 3,297 
 3,479 
 3,557 
 3.704 
 3,839 
 3,915 
 4,097 
 4,159 
 4,260 
 4,465 
 4.567 
 4,655 
 4,814 
 4,899 
 5,004 
 
 431 
 
 935 
 1,14^ 
 1 ,756 
 2,198 
 2,5 Hi 
 2,323 
 2,54() 
 2.857 
 3,021 
 3,233 
 3,343 
 3,390 
 3,511 
 3,725 
 3,811 
 3,912 
 4,028 
 4,116 
 4,254 
 4,078 
 4,437 
 4,603 
 4,819 
 4,868 
 4,784 
 5,026 
 5 167 
 
 387 
 937 
 1,222 
 1,810 
 2,2K5 
 2,40:1 
 
 2,4(;s 
 
 2.645 
 3,082 
 3,345 
 3,461 
 3,693 
 3,789 
 3,747 
 4,131 
 4,134 
 4,287 
 4,360 
 4,455 
 4,643 
 4,81! 
 4,925 
 5.089 
 5,238 
 5.341 
 5,491 
 5,600 
 5 747 
 
 63,458 
 118,607 
 115,310 
 l.H0,Hi»3 
 151,818 
 162,432 
 172,337 
 ]53.91() 
 171.793 
 175,612 
 179,897 
 184,760 
 192,6U() 
 301,237 
 206,123 
 210,113 
 213,191 
 216,598 
 220.980 
 228,185 
 236,245 
 242,752 
 248,178 
 256,360 
 25^,934 
 266,326 
 271,334 
 276,452 
 
 15,9< 
 
 34,219 
 3r>,30l 
 53,721 
 73, 1 1 1 
 8r.3;5() 
 76.999 
 85,765 
 81,101) 
 110,530 
 117,816 
 125,501 
 125,33- 
 130,184 
 135,526 
 142,850 
 145.2C 
 155,544 
 160,904 
 166,27- 
 166,25-; 
 179,501 
 172,257 
 189.-251 
 187.528 
 193,064 
 198.376 
 200,789 
 
 — o 
 
 O 0; 
 
 ) 52.856 
 322,946 
 375.822 
 693,67'; 
 945,621 
 1,012.932 
 1,064,717 
 1,164,578 
 1,401.655 
 1,540,460 
 1,605,627 
 1,660,467 
 1,714.599 
 1,688,349 
 1,676,871 
 1,670.534 
 1,753,143 
 1,823,987 
 1.811,(561 
 1,871,235 
 1,979,847 
 1,9(54,915 
 2,041,128 
 2,045,456 
 2,;«(),718 
 2.483,528 
 2,151,336 
 2,746.234 
 
 106,122 78 $ 
 88,772 55 
 172,023 15 
 208,397 37 
 ^16,761 06 
 229,300 00 
 278,069 9-, 
 284,717 18 
 316,152 31 
 315,320 48 
 325,213 34 
 :«9,987 9*; 
 344.531 45 
 354,811 4S 
 375,154 52 
 4-23.98S 85 
 411.947 25 
 174,305 :i 
 504,461 26 
 514,159 33 
 549,258 00 
 570,473 18 
 590,493 25 
 t506.-l(i2 OH 
 619,962 08 
 620,011 48 
 678.203 93 
 706,025 75 
 
 "3 3 
 
 67,318 96 1. 
 195.562 16 
 175.394 24 
 183,496 68 
 149,568 58 
 233,139 02 
 174,896 35 
 237.215 8S 
 231,135 
 214,791 :« 
 209,124 :38 
 207,263 98 
 195. LS3 
 251, -ill .nO 
 22(1,:.':!:! 54 
 
 22i.i;i(; : 
 
 I>:],7s:! f 
 
 272,SI2 ;!:! 
 
 252,529 90 
 218,208 
 
 161.520 .50 
 
 :?r)7.724 96 
 
 4(12.396 87 
 
 :!',)(),5()4 88 
 
 :m lo.Kis 
 :](!(), ]:!l 23 
 
 31)1,487 81* 
 336,389 61 
 
 +^ -13 o 
 ° o o ^ 
 
 2 82 
 4 00 
 
 3 12 
 
 2 90 
 
 3 35 
 3 -48 
 
 3 53 
 
 4 14 
 4 24 
 4 25 
 4 00 
 3 33 
 3 44 
 3 37 
 3 56 
 
 4 36 
 
 5 ()2 
 5 07 
 4 89 
 
 4 69 
 
 5 16 
 
 244,386 67 
 246,470 96 
 207,267 66 
 212,033 51 
 124,791 42 
 150,880 95 
 224,1^37 02 
 255,233 29 
 247,6:^0 45 
 209,740 50 
 180,113 70 
 204,874 55 
 185,069 67 
 212,877 56 
 2(55,(57 4 8 4 
 ;!()2.254 49 
 305. 5fi; 8)! 
 
 ;;2i.is8 46 
 :50i,i:!i 10 
 
 330,727 84 
 416,950 59 
 457,()3;? 9!) 
 397,903 31 
 546,019 83 
 491,757 05 
 
 3 ^, -1* a 
 o s oi 3 
 
 < 
 
 277,4(55 
 329,152 
 262.891 
 365,(585 
 411,945 
 456,110 
 480.430 
 508,579 
 514,035 
 539,273 
 501,7(34 
 504.196 
 522,483 
 5;«,647 
 6(10,203 
 615.1 K) 
 
 (v.ti.so:! 
 
 7! 9.080 
 7;'5.()89 
 756.946 
 823.699 
 856,667 
 805,201 
 914,673 
 944.305 
 
 7,722 90 
 172,734 00 
 3r24,517 31 
 520,852 44 
 576,623 69 
 470,129 43 
 577.718 72 
 536,736 60 
 606,991 18 
 701.767 86 
 763.812 45 
 786.117 94 
 770,658 86 
 681,848 31 
 709,071 30 
 707,552 89 
 758,475 22 
 865,878 41 
 94 7,370 97 
 9'.)7 431 46 
 ,013.269 06 
 .036.020 46 
 ,087.744 70 
 ,240.649 91 
 .313,701 03 
 ,293,164 98 
 ,3(50.(593 5 4 
 ,436.062 53 
 
58 
 
 Education. 
 
 NORMAL SCHOOLS. 
 
 The Stnte has in successful operation six normal schools, geo- 
 graphically located so that every section of the State is conveniently 
 accessible to some one of them. Their chief work being the edu- 
 cation and training of teachers for the public schools, they really 
 form an essential })art of the free school system. In all of them, 
 however, there is established an acarlemic department, in which 
 students may prepare for entrance to college, or for active business. 
 . There was enrolled in these schools, for the year 1892, one thou- 
 sand and hfteen students. 
 
 They are controlled and managed by a board of regents, composed 
 of the State Superintendent, who is ix-officio president, and one 
 member from each Congressional district appointed by the Gov- 
 ernor, whose service continues during his pleasure. 
 
 The board has full authority to adopt and establish such by-laws, 
 rules and regulations for their government, as it may deem neces- 
 sary ; to njipoint and remove teachers and fix their salaries; to pre- 
 scribe the preliminary examination of pupils, and the terms on 
 which they shall be received and instructed and the branches of 
 learning to be taught in each department; to determine the num- 
 ber of pupils to be received in the normal department from each 
 county and the mode of selecting them. 
 
 It is the duty of the State Superintendent to prepare suitable 
 diplomas to be granted to the students of the normal department 
 who have completed the prescribed course of study. 
 
 The board is required to appoint three persons, residents of the 
 county in which each school is located, who shall constitute a local 
 executive committee for the care and management of each school,- 
 subject to the rules and regulations prescribed by the board. 
 
 The Rules and Regulations of the Regents, published in 1891, 
 contains the following in regard to the management of these schools : 
 
 One thousand normal pupils, with free tuition, are entitled to 
 attend the six schools, apportioned among the several counties, 
 according to the census of 1890, as follows: Barbour 12, Berkeley 
 17, Braxton 5, Boone 9, Brooke 6, Cabell 13, Calhoun 6, Clay 3, 
 Doddridge 10, Fayette 11, Gilmer 7, Grant 5, Greenbrier 15, Hamp- 
 shire 10, Hancock 5, Hardy 6, Harrison 20, Jackson 16, Jefferson 
 15, Kanawha 32, Lewis 13, Lincoln 8, Logan 7, Marion 17, Marshall 
 
Education. r^g 
 
 18, Mason 22, Mercer 7, Mineral 8, Monongalia 15, Monroe 11 
 Morgan 5, McDowell 3, Nicholas 7, Ohio 37, Pendleton 8, Pleasants 
 6, Pocahontas 5, Preston 19, Putnam 11, Raleigh 7, Randolph 8 
 Ritchie 13, Roane 12, Summers 8, Taylor 11, Tucker 3 Tvler u' 
 ;Upshur 10, Wayne 14, Webster 3, Wetzel 13, Wirt 7 ' Wcx)d 2o' 
 Wyoming 4. ^ ' ' 
 
 I Application for appointment to the normal department must be 
 inade to the principal of the school or to the county superintendent 
 ;)i the county in which the applica t resides. Male pupils must 
 lot be less than fourteen years of age, and females not less 
 ihan thirteen. Each applicant must obligate himself to teach at 
 |east one year in the Ave scliools of the State, or refund the amount 
 A the tuition fees paid by other pupils while under instruction. 
 Two departments, a normal and an academic have been estab- ' 
 shed in each school. The normal course consists of three year^ 
 iz. junior, middle, and senior. The Junior yeai embraces Ortho^r- 
 :aphy, Reading, Writing, Arithmetic, Geography, Language Lessons 
 nd Elementary English Grammar, U. S. History and Physiology 
 The Middle year embraces: Orthography by written exercises 
 eading. Sentence Analysis, Rhetoric and Composition begun ' 
 hysical Geography, Algebra to Quadratics, Elements of General 
 istory, Pedac^ogy, Theory and Practice of Teaching, School Law, 
 ncient and Modern Languages optional. 
 
 The Senior year embraces : Spelling, English Literature, Rhetoric 
 Igebra, Plane Geometry and Trigonometry, Elements of Physics' 
 atural History, Botany, Civil Government, Drawing, Book-keeping' 
 sychology and History of Education. 
 
 There are regular exercises in composition and declamation 
 roughout the course, and frequent exercises in hearing classes 
 cite, methods discussed, school organization exemplified, (fee, <kc. 
 Diplomas are conferred upon the graduates, and this diploma 
 titles the holder to receive a State certificate after having taught 
 ree years on a first grade county certificate. 
 
 The Academic Course of Study consists of two years, Junior and 
 nior 
 
 The Junior year embraces: Geography, Arithmetic, English 
 ammar, Latin Lessons, Reader and Grammar, Physiology and Hy- 
 
Education 
 
 60 
 
 $ 20 00 
 
 Junior Normal Course, per year 
 
 Middle or Senior Nornuil Course, per year • • • 
 
 Ap.uloTuical Department, per year 
 
 tion thereof 
 
 formed by the Normal Sohoo's^ purchase o 
 
 The total amount expended by he ^^ate or I 
 ,.o„nd and the constru<^oo up t 
 
 libraries, apparatus and fuel jor the seve 
 September 30th, 1892, is $14o,802. 
 
 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE STATE NORMAL SCHOOL AND TH 
 BRIEF DEbCKl SEVERAL BRANCHES. 
 
 r OOTTEGE THE STATE NOBMAL ScHOOL-Is located 
 
 Marshall College, thi-. oi „„t„i,i;=hpd in ISii? T 
 
 Huntington, in Cabell county, and ^ J^^^^^^^^^^^ hundre 
 buildings are ample lor the --"^^f/^^^^^^^^^^^ „,ounds o 
 pupils, with dormitones ior ^^out o- hun^^^^^^^^ r^^^ ^^^^^^ 
 
 :£rt:j?— ^^^^^^ 
 
Education. 
 
 institution has a well selected library of several hundred volumes, 
 which receives an annual appropriation from the State, and a good 
 working equipment of chemical, ph^^sical and philosophical ap- 
 paratus. 
 
 The enrollment for 1892 was 183, and the number of graduates 8. 
 The present Principal is Thos. E. Hodges. 
 
 Fairmont Branch of the State Normaf. Sciioor. - Is located at 
 Fairmont, in Marion county. This school was estaldished in 1868, 
 when the State purchased tlie grounds and buildings , devoted to a 
 private Normal school, and made it a branch State Normal school. 
 The institution has enjoyed uninterrupted prosperity from the day 
 it Avas opened. Although the original building was enlarged more 
 than once, it was found necessary a few years ago to provide larger 
 and more commodious buildings and grounds The old building 
 and grounds were sold by the State in 1891 to Fairmont Independ- 
 ent Public School district, and a spacious site purchased just outside 
 the corporate limits of the town. The new normal building is one 
 Df the best school l)uildings in the State, and will accommodate at 
 least five hundred students. The school is well supplied with ap- 
 paratus and has made a creditable beginning toward the collection 
 3f a suitable library. 
 
 For the year 1892, the number of pupils enrolled was 26U and the 
 number of graduates 27. The present Principal is J. Walter Barnes. 
 
 Shepherd College Branch State Normal School. — This school 
 s located at Shepherdstown, Jefferson county, and was opened as 
 I State Normal school in September, 1873. The building occupied 
 jj this school is a two-story, commodious brick structure, well ar- 
 ranged for school purposes, and sufficient to accommodate two hun- 
 Ired and filty pupils. It is beautifully situated on an eminence in 
 ;.he center of the town and surrounded by beautiful grounds. This 
 iichool is also supplied with suitable apparatus and a library. 
 . The number of pupils enrolled for 1892 was 90, and the number 
 )f graduates 7. The present Principal is A. C. Kimler. 
 
 Glenville Branch Normal School— Is located at Glenville, Gil- 
 ner county, and was opened to students January, 1873. The bulki- 
 ng in which the school was organized and conducted for several 
 /ears proved inadequate to the growing needs of the school, and in 
 
62 
 
 Education. 
 
 1885 the legislature made an appropriation for the erection of a 
 larger and more commodious building. 
 
 The school has been well supplied with suitable apparatus, and a 
 library of well selected standard books. The enrollment for 1892 
 was 107 and the number of graduates 7. The present Principal is 
 Rev. M. D. Helmick. 
 
 West Liberty Branch Normal School — Is located at West Lib- 
 erty, Ohio county, and was opened for instruction in 1870. The 
 building and grounds occupied by this school were formerly owned 
 and used by the West Liberty Academy, and were purchased by 
 the State in 1870. While this school has suffered some reverses and 
 interruption since its organization, it has on the whole been suc- 
 cessful and prosperous, especially is this true during the past seven 
 years. The town is admirably situated for the location of an edu- 
 cational institution. The legislature at its last session made an 
 appropriation for the erection of a new and better building for this 
 school. It is well equipped with suitable apparatus and a good li- 
 brary. 
 
 The enrollment for the year 1892, was 130, and the number of 
 graduates 11. The present Principal is Robert A. Armstrong. 
 
 The Concord Branch Normal School — Is located at Concord, 
 Mercer county, and was opened for instruction May, 1875. This 
 school has grown and prospered under greater ©bstacles than any 
 other normal school in the State. The building in which it was or- 
 ganized in 1875, was quite a primitive structure for a State Normal 
 school. In 1885, the legislature made an appropriation for a new 
 building, and in 1887 an appropriation for an addition to this 
 building, and again in 1891 an appropriation for the erection of a 
 boarding house for young ladies. The school in point of attendance 
 has grown to be the second school in the State. It has been well 
 supplied Avith apparatus and library. 
 
 The enrollnKHit for \H\)2 was 245, and the number of graduates, 7. 
 The present Principal is John I). Sweeney. 
 
Education. 
 
 G3 
 
 WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY. 
 
 The West Virginia University, located at Morgantown, Monon- 
 galia county, is the head of the State educational system. 
 
 This institution had its origin in the grant of lands made by the 
 United States in 1862 to most of the States for the establishment 
 of agricultural colleges. West Virginia received in this way land 
 scrip to the amount of $90,000, which was the proceeds of the 
 sale ol 150,000 acres of land. To this the State has since added 
 $20,000, making an endowment fund of $110,000, the income from 
 which alone being used to pay current expenses of the institution. 
 
 The act establishing these institutions provided that the interest 
 of this fund should be used for the support and maintenance of at 
 least one college, where the leading object shall be, without ex- 
 cluding other scientific and classical studies, and including military 
 tactics, to teach such branches of learning as are related to agri- 
 culture and the mechanic arts, in order to promote the liberal and 
 practical education of the industrial classes in the several pursuits 
 and professions of life. 
 
 By the union of State and National funds, it has been possible 
 to carry out the provisions of the act in a broad and liberal spirit. 
 Five splendid buildings for the purposes of the University have been 
 erected, as follows : Univer^ty Hall, Preparatory Building, Agri- 
 cultural Experiment Station, Commencement Hall and Gym- 
 nasium, and Mechanical Building. A building for the departments 
 of Physics, Chemistry, Civil Engineering and Geology is now being 
 erected. The cost of these buildings, including the scientific build- 
 ing now under construction, is about $175,000. 
 
 The revenues for the current support of the University are de- 
 rived from the interest on the Endowment Fund the appropria- 
 tions made by the legislature, and since 1890, by additional appro- 
 priations by the Congress of the United States. 
 
 The University is under the control and management of a board 
 of thirteen Regents, one from each Senatorial District, appointed by 
 the Governor. 
 
 The following departments, or schools, have been established : 
 the Collegiate, Military, Law, Preparatory and an Agricultural Ex- 
 periment Station. 
 
G4 
 
 Education. 
 
 The Collegiate Department embraces the following groups of 
 study : Agriculture, Ancient Languages, Biology, Chemistry and 
 Physics, Civil Engineering, English, Geology, History, Mathematics, 
 Mechanical Engineering, Mechanic Arts, Metaphysics, Modern Lan- 
 guages, and Political Science. 
 
 In the Collegiate Department the following degrees are conferred 
 upon graduates : Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor 
 of Science in Mechanical Engineering, Bachelor of Science in Civil 
 Engineering, and Bachelor of Agriculture. Post graduate courses 
 are also offered for the df^grees of Master of Arts and Master of 
 Sciences. 
 
 The course of study in the Law Department, covers the branches 
 of comfnon and statute law, constitutional and international law, 
 commercial and criminal law, maritime law, equity jurisprudence, 
 evidence, pleading and practice. Graduates of this department are 
 admitted to practice in any of the courts of the State without ex- 
 amination. Instruction in military science and tactics is given by 
 a graduate of West Point, detailed from the United States army 
 The United States also furnishes arms and equipments for this pur- 
 pose. The law provides for the appointment of eight cadets from 
 each Senatorial district, who receive tuition, books and stationery 
 free. 
 
 The Preparatory Department has been established for the purpose 
 of preparing young men for admission to the higher classes of the 
 University. 
 
 The Agricultural Experiment Station was organized in 1888, and 
 owes its existence to an act of Congress, approved March 2, 1887. 
 The work of the Station, according to the act, is chiefly devoted to 
 researches and experiments concerning agriculture and to the diffu- 
 sion of the results of such experiments among the people. Since 
 its organization the Station has been under the directorship of John 
 A. Myers, Ph. D. 
 
 Tuition is practically free to all students from West Virginia. 
 Young women are admitted to the classes of the Collegiate De- 
 partment. 
 
 The University possesses a library of several thousand volumes 
 of standard books and special libraries and an adequate equipment 
 of apparatus for the special use of the various departments. 
 
Education. 
 
 65 
 
 The present faculty consists of the President, K. M. Turner, 
 LL. D., and seventeen professors and one assistant professor. 
 
 There have been 3,776 students in attendance and 168 graduates 
 in the Collegiate Department and 97 in the law department since the 
 University was opened. 
 
 WEST VIRGINIA COLORED INSTITUTE. 
 
 This institution, located at Farm, Kanawha county, was estab- 
 lished by the State in 1 891 to carry out an act of Congress approved 
 August 30, 1890, entitled "an act to apply a portion of the proceeds 
 of the public lands to the more complete endowment and support of 
 the colleges for the benefit of agriculture and the mechanic arts, es- 
 tablished under the provisions of an act of Congress approved July 
 2nd, 1862." 
 
 The location is a most eligible one for the purposes of the school. 
 The grounds consist of thirty acres of Kanawha River bottom land, 
 and the building is a three-story brick structure. 
 
 The institution is under the management of a Board of Regents, 
 appointed by the Governor, one from each Congressional district. 
 
 The funds for its support are derived from Federal and State ap- 
 propriatio is. 
 
 The curriculum embraces the following courses of study : 
 
 1. A course in pure mathematic-^ ; arithmetic, algebra, geometry 
 and trigonometry. 
 
 2. A course in the English language. 
 
 3. ' A course in natural and applied science, philosophy and chem- 
 istry. 
 
 4. A course in practical agriculture. 
 
 5. A course in practical mechanics. 
 
 A normal department has been established for the normal educa- 
 tion and training of teachers. 
 
 The Agricultural and Mechanical Departments have been supplied 
 with all necessary apparatus, machinery and tools. Although not 
 yet a year since the insitution was opened to students, its growth 
 and progress has been very satisfactory. 
 
 This institution and Storer College afford ample and convenient 
 facilities for higher education to the colored people of the State. 
 The present principal is J. Edwin Campbell. 
 
GG 
 
 Education. 
 
 WEST VIRGINIA REFORM SCHOOL. 
 
 This institution, located at Pruntytown, Taylor' county, was es- 
 tablished under an act of the leo^islature passed in 1889. It was 
 opened July 21, 1890, for the reception of inmates. 
 
 It is exclusively devoted to the reformation and care of male 
 minors (under sixteen years of age), but white and colored inmates 
 are required to be kept separate. 
 
 The institution is und«r the control of a board of directors ap- 
 pointed by the Governor. Boys may be committed by all courts 
 of record for offenses against the law and for incorrigibility and va- 
 grancy. 
 
 While under the care of the school, boys are taught some useful 
 trade. At the present time, besides fanning, they are taught tailor- 
 ing, shoe-making and printing. About one hundred and twenty-five 
 boys have been enrolled since the institution was opened. The 
 present Principal is C. C. Sho waiter. 
 
 PRIVATE AND DENOMINATIONAL SCHOOLS. 
 
 Besides the foregoing educational institutions, established, con- 
 trolled and supported by the State, there are some sixteen private 
 and denominational institutions, ranging in grade from the academy 
 and seminary up to the well equipped college; the most prominent 
 among which are the following: 
 
 Bethany College — Located at Bethany, Brooke county, in the 
 western Panhandle, and under the control of the Christian Church, 
 was founded in 1840 by the renowned Rev. Dr. Alexander Campbell. 
 This is not a theological school, but a literary college of high grade, 
 and open to both sexes. The grounds are ample, and the college 
 building, over four hundred feet in length; is noted for its artistic 
 beauty. The institution possesses an extensive library and a fine 
 equipment of apparatus. 
 
 The matriculates of the college number about six thousand and 
 the graduates between seven and eight hundred, many of whom 
 have achieved distinction in this and other States. The present 
 President is the Rev. Hugh McDiarmid. 
 
 Broadus College —Located at Clarksburg, Harrison county, was 
 opened in 187G. At first young ladies only were admitted, but in 
 
Education. 
 
 67 
 
 1888 it was opener] to young nnen also. The institution is under 
 the general control of the Baptist Church. The curriculum 
 offers four courses of study, Primary, Preparatory, CoUpgiate and 
 Ornamental. ' 
 
 The number of students enrolled in 1892, was 120. 
 
 The main building is a three story brick structure 40 by 70 feet, 
 with boarding accommodations for young ladies. The present 
 President is Rev. R. R. Powell. 
 
 Normal a\d Classical Academy —Located at Backhannon, Up 
 shur county, was established in 1882, under the auspices of the 
 United Brethren Church. 
 
 The institution has an endowment fund of $15,000, but it is 
 mainly supported by tuition fees and voluntary contributions of 
 friends. 
 
 The building is a two-story brick structure of ten roonns. The 
 enrollment for the year 1892, was 176. Since the opening of the 
 school there have been 44 graduates in the Literary Department, 7 
 in the Musical and 33 in the Commercial. 
 
 The present Principal is W. 0. Mills. 
 
 West Virginia Conference Seminary— Located at Buckhannon, 
 was established in 1887 under the auspices of the West Virginia 
 Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and was opened in 
 September, 1890. The institution owns an extensive plat of forty- 
 three acres. The building is a beautiful three-story structure 80 by 
 106 feet. It has no endowment, but depends for its support upon 
 tuition fees and the contributions of friends. The property is val- 
 ued at about $60,000. The curriculum covers the usual Classical, 
 Scientific and Literary courses. 
 
 Departments in Music and Military Science have been added. 
 
 The number enrolled for 1892, was 246. The present President 
 is the Rev. Dr. B. W. Hutchinson 
 
 Salem College - Located at Salem, Harrison county, was estab- 
 lished in 1889 under the auspices of the Seventh-Day Baptist Edu- 
 cation Societ3^ The school is conducted, however, as an undenom- 
 inational institution. The support of the school is derived from 
 tuition fees and contributions. In addition to the regular classical 
 
 \ 
 
68 
 
 Education. 
 
 and scientific courses of study, there are Normal and Business De- 
 partments. The enrollment for 1892, was about 100. Rev. T. L 
 Gardner is the present President. 
 
 Shelton College — Located at St. Albans, Kanawha county, 
 was opened in 1872, under the auspices of the Baptist church. The 
 present college building, a large two-story brick, was completed in 
 1875. The course of study does not extend beyond academic or 
 preparatory work. The school is at present under the charge of 
 W. G. Miller. 
 
 Barboursville College — Located at Barboursville, Cabell 
 county, wa^ established in 1888, under the auspices of the Methodist 
 Episcopal Church, South. The school possesses ample and com- 
 modious buildings. In addition to the regular classical and scien- 
 tific courses, there are provided Normal and Business Departments. 
 It has no endowment, but is supported by tuition fees and contri- 
 butions. The enrollment for 1892 was 153. Prof. R. W. Douthat 
 is the present President of the college. 
 
 Linsley Institute — Located at Wheeling, was established in 
 1814, being named after its founder, Noah Linsley. The institu- 
 tion is a high-grade academy. Instruction in military tactics is 
 given, an officer for this purpose being detailed from the United 
 States Navy by the Government. 
 
 The institution is controlled and managed by a Board of Trustees. 
 The enrollment for 1892 was one hundred and twenty-five, and 
 the number of graduates eleven. The present Principal is John M. 
 Birch. 
 
 Greenbrier Seminary— Located at Aldeison, Greenbrier county, 
 was established by B. E. Goode in 1885. The curriculum of study 
 embraces two departments, a preparatory and collegiate. The 
 school is open to both sexes. This institution, although in opera- 
 tion but a short time, has made an auspicious beginning. 
 
 Lewisburg Female Institute — Located at Lewisburg, • Green- 
 brier county; established about the year 1810, and Stephenson 
 Female Seminary, located at Charlestown, Jefferson county, estab- 
 lished in 1882, may be noted as schools doing excellent work. 
 
Education. 
 
 West Virginia College— Located at Flemington, Taylor county, 
 was established in 1864. The institution is under the control of the 
 Freewill Baptist church. The work of the school is largely devoted 
 to preparatory and normal instruction. The present President is 
 Rev. Thomas E. Peden. 
 
 Sr. Joseph's Ac.ademy-- Located at Wheeling, was established in 
 1865 and is under the charge of the, Sisters of St. Joseph. The 
 school is open to young ladies only. For the year 1892 the enroll- 
 ment was one hundred and thirteen. 
 
 Mount De Cmantal — Located near Wheeling, was founded by Rt. 
 Rev. R. V. Whelan in 1848 In 1865 it was removed to its pres- 
 ent beautiful site, about two miles beyond the city limits. It is 
 in charge of the Sisters of the Visitation. 
 
 The grounds are extensive, the buildings ample, and provided 
 with all modern improvements. The library contains six thousand 
 volumes. The course of study is wide and thorough. 
 
 The institution has enjoyed the reputation for a number of years 
 as a superior school in the department of vocal and instrumental 
 music. 
 
 The annual enrollment for several years has averaged about one 
 hundred. 
 
 The parish schools of the Catholic Church, at Wheeling, Parkers- 
 burg, Grafton, Clarksburg, Benwood, Huntington, Coalburg, Charles- 
 ton and Coal Valley enrolled for the year 1892, about two 
 thousand pupils 
 
 Stoker College — Located at Harper's Ferry, Jefferson county, was 
 established in 1868, and named in honor of John Storer, .who gave 
 810,000 toward founding the institution. A farm of one hundred 
 and fifty acres on Bolivar Heights was purchased for the location of 
 the school. In 1868 the Congress of the United States donated to 
 the College four government buildings, formerly used as residences 
 by officers of the Armory at Harper's Ferry. The grounds donated 
 with these buildings together with the purchase of one hundred and 
 fifty acres, form the picturesque site of the institution. Three new 
 buildings have been erected since 1870. Anthony Hall, Lincoln 
 Hall and Myrtle Hall. Anthony Hall contains a chapel, lecture 
 
70 
 
 Education 
 
 room, recitation rooms arid quarters for the principal's family; 
 Lincoln Hall and Myrtle Hall are used for boarding halls for young 
 men and women. 
 
 Although chartered as a college as well as a normal school, 
 the institution has not yet attempted to establish a "college" 
 course. 'I'he departments thus I'ar put into operation comprise a pre- 
 paratory course, a normal course, and an academic course. Within 
 the last few years an industrial department has been established, 
 which is meeting with excellent success. In this department in- 
 struction is given in cooking and house keeping, carpentering and 
 typesetting. 
 
 The institution is under the control of a board of trustees. 
 Students are admitted "without distinction on account of race, color, 
 sex or religious preferences," but the school is attended only by 
 colored pupils. 
 
 The catalogue for 1892 shows an enrollment of 54 pupils in the 
 preparatory department; 186 in the normal and 58 in the academic. 
 
 The present principal is N." C. Brackett, who has been in charge 
 since the organization of the institution. 
 
 Commercial Schools — The Wheeling Business CoUege, at Wheel- 
 ing, under the management of J. M. Frasher, is the leading school 
 of its kind in the State. It is the outgrowth of the National Busi- 
 ness College, established in that city in 1872. 
 
 The school is thoroughly equipped with all modern conveniences 
 for giving young men and women a thorough business education 
 and training. The annual enrollment ior several years has num- 
 bered over two hundred. 
 
 The Mountain State Business College. — Located at Parkers- 
 burg, was opened in 1889. This school has been under the suc- 
 cessful management of A G. Sine. 
 
 Successful commercial schools have been opened also in Clarks- 
 burg and Charleston. 
 
Education. 
 
 71 
 
 EDUCATIONAL PUBLICATIONS AND THE WiLST VIRGINIA EDU- 
 CATIONAL ASSOCIATION. 
 
 The educational papers that have been pul)lished from time to 
 time have contributed in no small degree to the advancement .of 
 education, by the spread of sound ideas, the elevation of public 
 opinion, the presentation and illustration of new and improved 
 methods of teaching, and the criticism of all unwise educational 
 measures, or ill advised legislation. 
 
 There are at the present time two magazines devoted to the gen 
 eral educational interests of the State, the PFes^ Virghiia School 
 Jourfial and the Public School Mirro?^^ and a number of papers pub- 
 lished in the interests of the various educational institutions. 
 
 The West Virginia Educational Association was organized in 1865. 
 It holds annual meetings which are devoted to the discussion of 
 all questions connected with the advancement of education. A'mong 
 its membership are enrolled a large number of teachers and school 
 officers, and many prominent citizens. 
 
 This Association has been instrumental in creating and fostering 
 an organized interest among teachers and the friends of education, 
 and has done much to promote the advancement of sound educa- 
 tional policy. 
 
 Those desiring more detailed information than could be given in 
 the foregoing sketch, are referred to State Superintendent Morgan's 
 bi-ennial report for 1891 and 1892, in which will be found a com- 
 prehensive history of education in the State. 
 
72 
 
 Salt. 
 
 SALT. 
 
 When first the daring pioneers of old Virginia set foot on western 
 soil and crossed the Alleghanies to find and settle and subdue the 
 land that now composes West Virginia, they found the Indians on 
 the banks of the Great Kanawha making salt. In 1753 Mrs. Mary 
 Ingles, the first white woman who ever crossed the Alleghanies, 
 was captured by the Indians and taken across the mountains, down 
 the Kanawha and Ohio rivers to a point near where the city of Cin- 
 cinnati now is built. After several months spent among the In- 
 dians, she made her escape, retraced her steps and finally returned 
 to her friends and relatives east of the mountains/ While in the 
 service of the Indians Mrs. Ingles was forced to spend several days 
 at the salt wells, near the present site of Charleston, boiling salt, a 
 supply of which the Indians carried with them on their march. 
 This is the first account of salt being made from brine anywhere 
 M^est of the Alleghanies, and it is a noteworthy tact that the great 
 grand-son of this same Mrs. Ingles, Dr. John P. Hale, of Charleston, 
 was in after years one of the most extensive salt manufacturers in 
 the State, at a time when fully sixty furnaces were in operation 
 along the Great Kanawha valley. 
 
 Before the beginning of the nineteenth century the boiling of 
 salt had been begun and soon became a profitable industry, the pio- 
 neers for hundreds of miles around depending entirely on the salt 
 makers in the Kanawha valley for their supply. Primitive methods 
 sufficed for many years, but when the western country became 
 more thickly settled and markets were provided which had to be 
 supplied with all the necessaries of life, the demand became so great 
 that newer methods were adopted and the manufacture of salt on a 
 
Salt. 
 
 78 
 
 very extensive scale became the principal business of the Kanawha 
 valley. On the Great Kanawha the principal salt wells were at the 
 "Kanawha Salines," about five miles above the city of Charleston, 
 but for miles on either side more brine was found by boring, and 
 many furnaces throughout the valley built up an industry that 
 made the country thrive, and gave employment to many hundred 
 men. For many years the manufacture of salt was the principal 
 business of the Kanawha valley, and the region attained a notoriety 
 throughout almost the world, not only for the quantity of salt pro- 
 duced, but also for its quality. None other ever sold for higher 
 prit'es or was in more general demand than the Kanawha salt which 
 even now successfully competes in market with other salts which 
 are more cheaply made. For pork packing it is particularly in de- 
 mand, possessing qualities which cannot be dispensed w^ith in the 
 packing of pork, and cannot be found in any other salt. Hundreds 
 of thousands of barrels were annually shipped by river to the lower 
 markets, principally to Cincinnati, the great pork packing center, 
 before the industry began to decline. The discovery of salt in 
 Michigan with the cheap pine fuel close at hand by which the salt 
 could be made cheaper than it was being made here, caused the 
 business to grow less, and gradually decline until now in the entire 
 Kanawha Valley there is but a single furnace making salt. By the 
 use of natural gas found near the furnace the expenses are reduced 
 to a minimum, and for many years this furnace has been in opera- 
 tion making a vast amount of salt every year, much of which is 
 consumed at home, but the greater part of which is sent to Cincin- 
 nati. Along the Ohio river in Mason county were also many furn- 
 aces for the manufacture of salt. But there, as elsewhere in the 
 State, the profits have decreased until there are now but a few 
 furnaces in that vicinity where salt is ever made. But the industry 
 will not always remain prostrate. In Michigan where the principal 
 competition was located, the cost of fuel is advancing. The destruc- 
 tion of the forests leaves the boiling of salt a more expensive pro- 
 cess than it has hitherto been found, and ere long the West Vir- 
 ginia brine with cheap and limitless fuel close at hand, and unex- 
 celled shipping advantages will once again become the source of a 
 great revenue to the regions where it is found. In the Kanawha 
 valley the wells are bored about a thousand feet as an average 
 
74 
 
 Salt. 
 
 depth, and the brine is found in apparently inexhaustible quan- 
 tities. 
 
 From the products of the brine many chemicals are made, such as 
 soda-ash, bromine, bicarbonate of soda, and other chemicals of a 
 similar nature. Soda ash is largely used in the manufacture of 
 glass, soap, paper, and numerous other articles, and is an important 
 article of commerce. Nearly all the soda-ash used in this country is 
 made in England, over 140,000 tons being imported annually. The 
 cost of making it in England is 87 cents per hundred pounds; the 
 tariff and the transportation charges raise the cost of soda-ash laid 
 down in America to considerably over a dollar a hundred pounds. 
 After a full investigation the late Hon. Henry S. Walker and asso- 
 ciates found that in the Kanawha valley salt region with fuel cheap 
 and close at hand the same product can be made for about 80 cents 
 a hundred pounds, showing a large difference in favor of American 
 manufacture. 
 
 The supply of soda-ash has been for a long time short of the de- 
 mand in this country and many glass factories have been, at times, 
 forced to suspend on account of their inability' to get it. With a 
 manufactory in this country able to put out all that would be de- 
 manded of it, at a lower price than is now paid the foreign manu- 
 facturers, there should be no shutting down of glass works or any 
 other works depending on soda-ash for their raw material. 
 
 Some years ago a number of Baltimore importers of soda-ash 
 organized a company of English capitalists and had selected the 
 Kanawha valley as the most suitable field in America for the man- 
 ufacture of soda-ash. But their plans were never matured and the 
 company never went to work. Only a few years ago the late Hon. 
 Henry S. Walker spent several months in England investigating 
 the process of making soda-ash, and had organized another company 
 for its manufacture near Charleston when his sudden and untimely 
 death put an end to all his projects and nothing was ever done by 
 his company. But the fact remains that here in West Virginia is 
 one of the most favorable sites in the world for the manufacture of 
 soda-ash, an article which is largely used in the manufacture of 
 many of the articles of every day use throughout the world. With 
 the salt for the boring, the coal almost for the digging, cheap labor 
 and ample transportation facilities, the cost to make it here would 
 
Salt. 
 
 75 
 
 be much less than that in other countries and a large and profitable 
 business might readily be worked up in an article for which there 
 is almost constant demand, and on which a large profit could be 
 made. 
 
 The salt wells of the State, while not at present proving them- 
 selves so, are really among the most valuable of the State's resour- 
 ces, and the time will come, as in the past, when they will yield 
 from their abundant stores and cause a revival of an industry which 
 for many years was the principal one within the State. Their pro- 
 ducts will be used in making soda-ash and other chemicals, and 
 with glass sand, wood pulp, and other materials close at hand, the 
 various products in which the soda-ash is a principal part — such as 
 glass, paper, etc. — ^will be manufactured here. In her salt water 
 West Virginia has a true source of future greatness. 
 
 The Great Kanawha valley and the Ohio valley in Mason coun- 
 ty are not the only places in the State where salt is found, but these 
 are the places where it has been principally made. Many of the 
 ■other counties possess as strong salt water as that which has been 
 mentioned, but in other places little salt has ever been made. The 
 descriptions of the counties in pages following will give the places 
 in which salt is found. 
 
76 
 
 Oil and G as. 
 
 OIL AND GAS. 
 
 "In 1775 George W ashington visited the Kanawha valley in per- 
 son and located some very valuable lands for his military services. 
 About eight miles above Charleston he set apart and deeded to the 
 public forever an acre of land near the river, on which was a great 
 natural wonder, then little understood, called a 'burning spring.' 
 For many, many years afterward it was visited by every one who 
 came to or passed through Kanawha, as one of the curiosities of the 
 region. It was sitnply a hole in the ground which filled with water 
 when it rained, and up through which issued a jet of gas, giving 
 the water the appearance of boiling, and when lighted burned with 
 a bright flame till blown out by high wind." 
 
 Such is the brief description, given by Dr. John P. Hale, of the 
 first natural gas ev^r discovered in America. From the same vicinity 
 gas is still produced to-day and is piped to the furnace of John Q. 
 Dickinson, near Maiden, where salt is made by steam from natural 
 gas. At the time referred to the gas was not understood, its value 
 was not known, and it was allowed to escape as freely as it might. 
 
 In 1815 Capt. James Wilson, an old Kanawha citizen, and one of 
 the early salt makers of the valley, was boring for salt water. He 
 failed to reach the water at the depth expected, but being of a very 
 determined nature, declared he would reach salt water or bore into 
 hell. Soon after this his men struck gas. The tools were blown 
 out, the gas caught fire and poured its flames far upward from the 
 earth, which seemed to be emitting great volumes of fire. The 
 Captain concluded he had told the truth and had actually bored into 
 the lower regions, and had his workmen stop. 
 
 The first natural gas field developed and put to practical use was 
 
Oil and Gas. 
 
 77 
 
 that in the northern pan-handle near Wellsburg, where the gas is 
 still in use, though with much "^mailer pressure than at first. To-day 
 in perhaps half the counties of the State natural gas is known to 
 exist. It olten bubbles up through the water and sand along the 
 edge of a water, course, and on being lighted gives to the stream the 
 appearance of being on fire. In many parts of the State the gas is 
 utilized for lighting, heating and manufacturing purposes. Its 
 value is depreciated by its apparent uncertainty, in many places 
 the gas having given out after being used for some time. 
 
 "Before the war" oil was found in West Virginia in the Burning 
 Springs region in the Little Kanawha Valley, near Parkersburg. It 
 was found in shallow wel's, and at the prices charged in those days 
 for it, caused the rnost intense excitement, scarcely equalled by that 
 in California over the discovery of gold. Towns sprang up, der- 
 ricks were built and oil wells bored. Money was invested and in 
 many instances lost. In others great fortunes were made. Oil was 
 barreled, floated down the river in rnfts, and Parkersburg was made 
 the distributing point from which the oil was shipped by rail or 
 river in almost every direction. The war, with its terrible results, 
 broke up the oil excitement, destroyed the derricks and machinery 
 and for a time broke up the business. But later on it rallied, and 
 has been growing ever since. When, a few years ago, the deep wells 
 were first put down the excitement was for a time renewed. In 
 vicinities where the oil was found the old exciting times were again 
 renewed, and towns sprang up almost in a day. In other places 
 many ''wild cat" wells were bored in the vain attempt to find the 
 oil at random. The presence of oil in almost every county in the 
 State is suspected, and in very many of them it has been proven to 
 exist in small quantities, while in some it is found in enormous 
 quantities, making West Virginia the only rival for Pennsylvania as 
 an oil producing State. The Sistersville (W. Va.) field is today the 
 greatest producing oil field in the world. Though many counties 
 contribute to the aggregate oil production of the S ate, there are but 
 three large-producing fields in the State— the Sistersville field, the 
 Eureka-Belmont field, both along the Ohio river, and the Marion 
 county field in the northern part of the State. In these producing 
 fields, the derricks stand in every yard and street corner, and even 
 the property devoted to religious worship is not free from them. 
 
78 
 
 Oil and Gas. 
 
 One small struggling church i i an oil town leased its property for 
 an oil well, and now^ derives enough revenue from the well in its 
 back 3^ard to build a handsome house of worship and still to keep 
 the church treasury well replenished. From these centers pipe 
 lines are constructed to the oil markets and oil is constantly pumped 
 through these pipes, frequently hundreds of miles in length, in- 
 stead of being shipped by rail. 
 
 Prof. I. C. White, the foremost geologist of our State, who knows 
 more of the mineral resources of West Virginia than probably any 
 other man, and who has done more for the development of the oil 
 and other resources, at a banquet given in Charleston two years 
 ago to arouse interest in the then proposed World's Columbian Ex- 
 position, delivered the following address on the oil of West Vir- 
 ginia: 
 
 The desire to search out new and hidden things is universal. It 
 weds alike the astronomer to his telescope, the chemist to his cruci- 
 ble, the philosopher to thought. Led by this enchantment, men 
 explore the depths of the sea, delve into mountains, and seek to 
 penetrate the earth itself to unveil its hidden mysteries. This all- 
 prevailing impulse is the mainspring of human progress It led 
 Colonel Drake to drill the historic oil well in the valley of Oil creek, 
 below Titusville, w^hich gave to civilization a new illuminant and to 
 the business world a new industry. 
 
 The credit of originating the industries dependent upon oil and 
 natural gas is usually awarded to Pennsylvania. This is not really 
 true. West Virginia, and not Pennsylvania, is the true birth place 
 of both. Right here in this beautiful valley of the Kanawha was nat- 
 ural gas first utilized for manufacturing purposes, thirty years before 
 such use in Pennsylvania, while from the other Kanawha, at Burn- 
 ing Springs, oil was shipped in barrels and a regular traffic in it 
 built up many years before Pennsylvania's first well was drilled. 
 
 In fact it was right here in the county of Kanawha (which gen- 
 erally leads the procession in Imsiness as well as politics) that drill- 
 ing tools and the method of casing wells were both invented, with- 
 out which the oil and gas industry would have been impossible. All 
 honor to the memory of Col. Drake lor first conceiving and execut- 
 ing the plan of drilling into the earth to obtain oil. But in this 
 connection let us not forget the names of the RufFner Brothers, 
 
Oil and Gas. j() 
 
 whose busy brains invented "casing ; nor "Billy" Morris, who con- 
 structed the first pair of "jars," for without both of these discoveries 
 deep drilling would have been impracticable. 
 
 The question is frequently asked, why it is that, if West Virginia 
 really contains so much oil, it was not discovered and developed 
 along with that of her sister State. The answer is at hand. The 
 first wells to find oil in our State were on the Little Kanawha, 
 where a great arch in the rocks throws the oil sands much nearer to 
 the surface than elsewhere in the State, and hence it happened that 
 although wells were drilled in nearly every county west from the 
 Aileghanies, none of them, until recent years, penetrated the earth 
 far enough to reach, the oil bearing rock. 
 
 About eight years ago your speaker took up the serious study of 
 oil and gas problems in Pennsylvania. The following year I became 
 convinced that the great oil belt of that State would extend into 
 and across our own. Acting on this conviction I had a map pre- 
 pared almost exactly like the one you see here now. This I submit- 
 ted to a Pittsburgh firm, and the theory of a southern extension of 
 the Pennsylvania field appeared so plausible to them that they were 
 induced to undertake the oil development of West Virginia on a 
 -large scale. 
 
 Under my direction over four hundred thousand acres of West 
 Virginia lands were leased by my brother, H. S. White, who now 
 does business for the United States. The Pittsburgh syndicate 
 drilled two wells on this immense area, and erected about eight der- 
 ricks. The first was drilled for gas with which to supply Wheeling. 
 Some gas was found, but not as much as the company expected. 
 The second well was for oil, and located near Board Tree Tunnel at 
 the southwest corner of Pennsylvania. This found only a small 
 quantity of the golden fluid. The syndicate was discouraged. Its 
 President declared there was neither oil nor gas in West Virginia, 
 and bankruptcy would be the result of any further efiort to find 
 them. The "shut down" movement came on and a propertv which 
 would have made Rockefellers of its owners was permitted "to lapse 
 and the leases to become void. Within sight of the Board Tree ven- 
 ture a valuable oil well was completed by the Standard Oil Company 
 during the past year. 
 One of my locations, made in 1885, before Mr. Hukillhad drilled 
 
80 
 
 Oil and Gas. 
 
 his first well at Mt. Morris, was one 6n the Youst farm near Fair- 
 view, in Marion county. Here a derrick had been erected, and I 
 plead with Pittsburgh men to make this test before finally aban- 
 doning West Virginia. They were deaf to my appeal, and this old 
 derrick today stands in the midst of a dozen oil wells, gushing from 
 100 to 500 barrels each, and sending 2,000 barrels of the finest oil 
 in the world throbbing through the pipe line on its way to the sea. 
 The Mt. Morris, Doll's Run, Fairview, Mannington, oil and gas field 
 whose southern end no one has yet found, and which, in my opin- 
 ion will prove the largest and richest oil and gas belt the world has 
 , ever known, was largely covered by the leases which the Pittsburgh 
 syndicate held. 
 
 Until the year 1889 the oil magnates of the country paid no 
 serious attention to West Virginia. This date, however, is a "red 
 letter" one in our oil history, for it marks the opening of Doll's 
 Run, Mannington, and the rise of Eureka to prominence. These 
 three developments brought the Standard Oil Company to realize 
 that here in West Virginia was to be the great oil field of the future, 
 and that much berated monopoly has come into our State to take 
 possession of its oil business. How many hundred thousand acres 
 it has leased or purchased I do not know, but the territory it con- 
 trols is a vast one, and the million and a half dollars it has expended 
 in building a pipe line from Morgantown to the sea attest that it is 
 with us to stay. 
 
 It is my firm belief that this great oil belt, which has come down 
 to our State through a distance of 200 miles, will extend clear across 
 the same from Hancock to Logan. Only today I received a tele- 
 gram that a large flow of gas had stopped the drill at a well in Gil- 
 mer, while Major Eotchkiss, the eminent Virginian who has so elo- 
 quently depicted our rich mineral resources this evening, and who, 
 although a native of another State, has done more to develop ours 
 than any citizen in it, tells me that a well being dri.led by his com- 
 pany in Lincoln has had to shut down for the same cause. The 
 gas wells at Warfield, on the Big Sandy, and those at Burning 
 Springs, above this city, complete tne chain of evidence that the oil 
 belt will extend entirely across our area from the Pan-Handle to 
 Kentucky, for wherever the gas occurs the heavier fluid is not far 
 away. How much of luxury and comfort this underground wealth 
 
Oil and Gas. 
 
 81 
 
 will bring to the home!=^ of our State, no man can estimate, but our 
 future in this respect could not be brighter. 
 
 With the greatest coal field ia the world, giving us an ample sup- 
 ply of solid fuel for all time to come ; with this great stream of 
 liquid gold coursing through our rocks, only waiting to be tapped ; 
 with the largest fields of natural gas the world has ever seen, to 
 bring comfort and ease to our homes, where is the commonwealth 
 whose future is brighter than ours? All that we need do is to let 
 the world know what we have. This we must depend upon our 
 representatives now in session in this city to accomplish. Business 
 men pay very little attention to statements that do not bear official 
 sanction. Hence it is to be hoped that in providing for a proper 
 display of West Virginia's resources at the approaching World's 
 Fair you will adopt a broad and liberal policy. And now whatever 
 you may do be sure to make provision for the preparation of an ac- 
 curate map of the State. The miserable caricatures that we now 
 have that are called maps of West Virginia, although infinitely bet- 
 ter than none, are a disgrace to the State, so that if you do nothing 
 else, at least provide a splendid map upon which our wondrous re^ 
 sources in timber, in coal, in ore, in oil and gas can be exhibited. 
 
82 
 
 Fire Clay 
 
 FIRE CLAY. 
 
 One of the least developed and at the same time most wide-spread 
 of all the natural resources of the State is its clay. There's scarcely 
 a county in the State in which there are not found beds of valuable 
 clay, in few of which it ha? been utilized, though in nearly all it 
 has been tested and found to be of value. Building brick is made 
 at almost any place and some of them. are remarkably fine. In the 
 Kanawha valley the ordinary soft red brick are often so smooth and 
 clean in their appearance as to almost pass for pressed brick. They 
 are so hard that they are used for street paving and a test block put 
 down in Charleston twenty-one years ago on a much used street is 
 now as good as ever. A sandy, clayey soil is used for ordinary brick 
 and its presence is almost universal in the State. 
 
 But other clays, more valuable than these, are found in nearly 
 every county of the State The fire clay is a companion of the coal 
 measures and along with the beds of coal are nearly always found 
 beds of fire clay. Often they ma,y be mined together and some- 
 times, as is the case in Hancock county, a seam of either would be 
 too small to work alone, but by digging both from the same mine 
 both are made pi;ofitable. The uses to which fire clays may be put 
 are numerous and varied and the demand for the products of the 
 clay is rapidly increasing As showing the uses to which the clays 
 are put we quote from a report of the U. S. Geological Survey as 
 follows : 
 
 "The uses made of fire clay are best shown by a brief statement 
 of the wares manufactured from them in New Jersey, since this 
 
Fire Clay. 33 
 
 State probably produces three-fourths of the entire amount of such 
 manufactured articles. The largest use of the white clays of New 
 Jersey is in making fire brick and retorts for gas works and zinc 
 works. Refractory clay is also used for making sewer pipe and 
 chimney tops, and the poorer qualities are shipped in enormous 
 quantities to other States, to be used there for sewer and drain pipe. 
 Terra cotta is also made from the poorer grades. Porous brick and 
 terra cotta lumber are made in large quantities, and are used for 
 fire-proof partitions, doors, ceilings, roofs, etc., for safe and refrigera- 
 tor linings, and for other purposes where non-conducting and fire- 
 proof materials ara^required. Roofing tiles and hollow brick are 
 also made. These clays are largely used by paper manufacturers in 
 glazing and weighting paper. A considerable quantity is used in 
 the manufacture of alum." 
 
 In this State the fire-clay industry is growing, but paving brick 
 is the principal article manufactured from it. In 1867 there were 
 less than seven million fire brick made in the State. In 1892, in 
 Hancock county alone-the principal fire-clay county of the State 
 —some seventy million brick were made, besides sewer pipe tile 
 and pottery. In 1872 the first brick roadway ever paved was made 
 in Charleston. It was a West Virginia invention and a small 
 square was put down as an experiment. It proved to be a great 
 success, and now in many of the larger cities of the Union, as well 
 as in the smaller ones, the system of paving streets with brick is 
 the one most universally adopted. Within the last few years this 
 system has been coming more generally into practice, and with the 
 growing demand for paving comes the increased demand for paving 
 brick. In the experience of practiced engineers the fire brick, 
 made of the fire-clay which is found almost at any place in West 
 Virginia, is unsurpassed. The brick is hard and lasting, does not 
 crack or crumble or decay and lasts much longer than the soft- 
 burned brick with which the first street pavements were all laid 
 The growing popularity of the brick-paving system and the excel- 
 lence, for that purpose, of the clays of West Virginia, will give to 
 them an increased value and make more profitable even than in the 
 past the fire-clay beds which so abound. 
 
 Another use to which it may be put, which helps to give a value 
 to the clay, is the making of coke ovens. Already it has been 
 
84 
 
 Fire Clay. 
 
 shown that making coke is one of the principal and most rapidly 
 increasing industries in the State. Coke ovens must be built in 
 which to burn the coal in the process of coke-making, and here the 
 clay, which seems to follow up the seams of coal, comes into special 
 service. The manufacture of tile and sewer pipe and chimney 
 pots, etc., brings into great demand the best fire-clays, but the prin- 
 cipal use from which the chief value of the clay is to be derived, is 
 in the making of fire-brick for paving and for making coke ovens. 
 In making brick for both these purposes there is considerable profit. 
 Good fire-clay may be found in many places, plants for working it 
 are not expensive, and the past has proved that there is money in 
 it and that those who embark in the fire clay business receive a 
 rich reward for their investments. 
 
 The varied uses to which it may be put, the increasing demand 
 for the products of fire clay, the excellence of our clay and the 
 cheapness with which it may be worked, all go to indicate that in 
 this line a great industry will be built up among the people of our 
 State. Already, as shown above, the paving brick industry has in- 
 creased remarkably and, with the new demands for brick to pave 
 with, must continue to increase at least as fast as it has in the 
 past, and there are those who now most confidently predict that 
 West Virginia will ere long outstrip New Jersey in this line and 
 stand at the head of all the States in the manufacture of fire clay 
 products. 
 
 Prof. M. F. Maury, describing fire clay, says: "Fire clay is fre- 
 quently found in the coal measures, often underlying a seam of coal. 
 It results from the decomposition of siliceo-argillaceous shale, and 
 its plasticity and impervious nature, when collected in a bed, pre- 
 vents it from being carried away by infiltration." 
 
 C. E. Dwight, speaking of a Marion county clay, says : "The clay 
 is superior to the Mt. Savage (Pa ) clay, which has obtained such a 
 reputation here in Wheeling as to exclude all other clay for blast 
 iurnace use. The analysis of Mt. Savage clay shows 1.5 per cent, 
 of rotoxide of iron, while this clay has no trace of this greatest 
 enemy to the refractory nature of fire-clays " 
 
 Beds of fire-clay may be found in all parts of the State. In Han- 
 cock county the greatest development has been made, but in nearly 
 every other county clays of varying value may be found. The beds 
 
Fire Clay. 
 
 85 
 
 range from several inches to many feet in thickness, and are mostly 
 found beneath the level of tlie cartli. 
 
 Analyses of a few of the fire-clays found in the northern part of 
 the State are as follows : 
 
 Silica 
 
 Alumina 
 
 Oxide of Iron 
 
 Lime 
 
 M akinesia 
 
 Potash and Soda 
 
 Moistuft', hyyrroscopic 
 Moisture, cunibiued. . 
 
 Organic matter 
 
 Marion 
 
 Preston 
 
 Mononf^alia 
 
 County. 
 
 County. 
 
 County. 
 
 45.86 
 
 68.16 
 
 54. 27 
 
 44.23 
 
 a4. 11 
 
 33. 83 
 
 0.00 
 
 O.OI 
 
 0.01 
 
 0.24 
 
 trace. 
 
 trM.c". 
 
 0.36 
 
 tract'. 
 
 0.02 
 
 trace. 
 
 tract'. 
 
 trJice. 
 
 0.70 
 
 0. 85 
 
 1.00 
 
 
 6.66 
 
 10.86 
 
 8. 35 
 
 
 
 
 trace. 
 
 0.15 
 
 POTTER'S CLAY. 
 
 I 'This clay/' says Prof. Maury, "resu'ts from the decomposition of 
 granite and shales. That in West Virginia comes from the latter 
 source entirely, of which there is great abundance and variety, so 
 I that we may look for very many deposits of the material. When it 
 I is yellow or red it denotes the presence of oxide of iron, which 
 I tinges the manufactured articles red. When the clay is white there 
 ' is no iron present. Potter's clay has a peculiarly unctious feel and 
 has the valuable property of resisting heat without cracking." 
 
 Though not so plentiful as the fire clay there is still a great deal 
 1 of the potter's clay throughout the State, much of it being found 
 along with or near to the fire clay. The uses to which it may be 
 I put are not so varied as those which give its value to the fire c'ay 
 and yet the finer grades of work for which it is adapted give to the 
 i potter's clay more value than to the other. For making crocks and 
 jugs and jars and other pottery wares the finest kind of clays are 
 found in West Virginia. This is no theory but a fact amply demon- 
 strated by years of practical illustration. At many places in the 
 ,3tate the clay is now in use, and various kind^ of earthenware are 
 daily made. Some of the works have been in operation many 
 y'ears and always tound a market for their products. In fact the 
 borne demand has never been supplied with home production. The 
 3anning season never comes but with it come great quantities of 
 lars and earthenware from Pennsylvania or some other State besides 
 
86 
 
 Fire Clay. 
 
 our own. Every year immense amounts of earthenware in the 
 shape of jars and jugs and crocks come in from other States while in 
 our own lies hid beneath the surface of the earth the finest kind of 
 clay in quantities ample to supply not only this but many other 
 States with all they need. The kind most often found and used the 
 most extensively is a white clay which burns into a sort of blue. 
 In counties in almost every section of the State these clays are to be 
 found. From the northern extremity to the southern it may at in- 
 tervals be found and probably in nearly every county ol the State 
 it would be disclosed if properly sought. These potter's clays with 
 the fire clays previously mentioned will some day make of West 
 Virginia the greatest clay working State in the Union. 
 
 When improved processes are learned for making aluminum and 
 that metal which promises to attain such an important position 
 among the metals of the world comes into universal use, the clays 
 of West Virginia will play a most important part in its production. 
 From nearly every kind of clay now found in West Virginia 
 aluminum may be made. The material is here, the product is in 
 demand. A simpler process for its manufacture is all that is needed 
 to bring it into general use and give intrinsic value to the clays for 
 which our hills are famous. 
 
Stone. 
 
 87 
 
 STONE. 
 
 A straight line drawn from the southwest corner of the State of 
 Pennsylvania directly southward through the center of West Vir- 
 ginia would describe roughly the western border of the limestone 
 section of our State. In some of the counties west of this good 
 limestone may be found, but east of it are the principal limestone 
 counties of the State. In many of the best of these the limestone 
 soil is equal to the very best in the famous]limestone belt of Ken- 
 tucky. 
 
 In the "Resources of West Virginia," Prof. Maury, writing of the 
 common limestone, says : 
 
 "In great abundance and of great purity, this stone is found in 
 the region between the coal measures and the eastern border of the 
 State. In the counties in the coal formation in the northern half of 
 the State it is also very abundant, the Lower Barrens and the 
 superincumbent strata containing, in some districts, an aggregate 
 of 75 to 80 feet. 
 
 "In the southern counties of the coal field there is a striking 
 scarcity of this mineral, the seams being thin and usually of very 
 poor quality. 
 
 "The limestones of West Virginia are suitable to all the purposes 
 of the farmer, builder and blast furnace use. Where there is so 
 much land that would be most materially benefitted by the use of 
 lime, this material should attract the attention of the agriculturist 
 far more than it does. Indeed it is rather a matter of surprise that 
 the agriculture of this State has hitherto been suffered to reap so 
 little benefit from this source of improvement so easily within 
 reach. As yet, its application as a manure has been restricted to 
 particular neighborhoods, though there is no portion of the uplands, 
 
88 
 
 Stone. 
 
 especially of the limestone regions themselves, where it could not 
 be used advantageously. The impression that the soils of a lime- 
 stone country are already impregnated with calcareous matter, in 
 consequence of the proximity of the limestone,, which in many 
 places rises to the surface in the fields, seems more than any other 
 circumstance to have lead to the erroneous idea that lime could be 
 of no benefit to the soil. It may, therefore, alter the opinions of 
 many to state tha't in a great many cases the soils, even when in 
 contact with this class of rock of the best quality, contain little 
 or no available calcareous matter, for to have it the material must 
 be in the form of a soluble salt, and the ledges which crop out on 
 the surface are carbonate of lime, which may be said to be insoluble 
 for all practical purposes. When, however, it is burnt and applied 
 to the land as quick-lime, it imparts fertility partly by being dis- 
 solved in the surface waters, and so passing into the soil in such a 
 shape that the roots of plants can seize hold of it, but mainly by 
 tending to decompose vegetable matter and so form a fertilizing 
 humus." 
 
 The following are analyses from various portions of the State, and 
 will tend to show the great purity in which this mineral may be 
 found : 
 
 Locality. 
 
 Knobly Mountain... 
 
 Near Pet(M-sl)ur<i 
 
 Port Spriii;^- 
 
 On C. cV- O. R. R ... 
 hJlue Sulphnr Spring;' 
 Muddy Cr(?el< Mt ... 
 
 Near Llark.sburg 
 
 Harper's P'errv. . . 
 r2 miles S. W. H. F. . 
 4 •' W 
 
 t^rson's ' reelv . . 
 (j reii villc l^'urnarOe . . 
 lied Sulphur Spriii;4> 
 
 Ihiion 
 
 Duul.'ip's Cr.'ek 
 
 LitMc North Ml 
 
 Willow c;r,,v.' 
 
 .)(!iil<ins' fjiine-]\ iln. 
 Richar<l l''orcina n\s . 
 iJelow (JoaJ No. 2. . . 
 
 a 
 
 90.08 
 88.52 
 90.11 
 93.76 
 98.20 
 88.64 
 95. 52 
 81.16 
 58. 88 
 95.86 
 92. 44 
 88 . 32 
 90 , 92 
 95 . 92 
 86.52 
 78. 48 
 85.95 
 88. 16 
 91 .80 
 79.52 
 
 o ■ 
 
 
 Hi- 
 tter. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 0) 
 
 sS o 
 
 ^ S 
 
 a 
 
 
 a 
 
 O 01; 
 
 lumin 
 Oxide 
 
 3 3 
 
 og 
 
 .'ater 8 
 Loss. 
 
 Authoritx . 
 
 o 
 
 < 
 
 
 
 
 4.00 
 
 0.72 
 
 4.56 
 
 0.64 
 
 W. B. Rogers. 
 
 .3.24 
 
 1.52 
 
 6.00 
 
 0.72 
 
 2 49 
 
 2.02 
 
 5.04 
 
 0.34 
 
 .J. H. Uritton. 
 
 0.29 
 
 1.12 
 
 3. 92 
 
 o.y 
 
 <J. E. Dwi-ht 
 
 0.00 
 
 0.48 
 
 0.40 
 
 0.92 
 
 \V. U. Rogers. 
 
 9.60 
 
 0.12 
 
 1.20 
 
 0.44 
 
 
 1.88 
 
 0.96 
 
 0.92 
 
 0.72 
 
 
 10. SO 
 
 0.52 
 
 6. 68 
 
 0.84 
 
 
 43.40 
 
 0.48 
 
 1.68 
 
 0.56 
 
 
 1.46 
 
 trace. 
 
 1,83 
 
 0. 85 
 
 
 1.40 
 
 0.76 
 
 4.96 
 
 0.68 
 
 
 0.00 
 
 2.52 
 
 7.21 
 
 1.92 
 
 
 trace. 
 
 1.20 
 
 6.20 
 
 1.68 
 
 
 
 0.56 
 
 1.88 
 
 1.62 
 
 
 9.52 
 
 0.52 
 
 2.96 
 
 0.48 
 
 
 9. 20 
 
 1 .00 
 
 10 80 
 
 0.52 
 
 
 1.38 
 
 4.10 
 
 7.61 
 
 0.96 
 
 C. E Dwight. 
 
 2 . 32 
 
 1.16 
 
 5.80 
 
 2.. 56 
 
 W. B. Rogers. 
 
 5.72 
 
 0.40 
 
 1.36 
 
 1.72 
 
 2.80 
 
 3.12 
 
 13 80 
 
 0. 76 
 
 
Stone. 
 
 89 
 
 A tufa limestone is found in some of the eastern border counties 
 of the State. *'It is formed by the precipitation of calcareous mat- 
 ter from limestone water and may therefore be looked for in those 
 neighborhoods where the springs thus impregnated are of general 
 occurrence." In some of the counties thick deposits of this chalky 
 material are found. Prof. Maury says : 
 
 "Its utility in agriculture, added to the facility with which the 
 deposit may often be obtained (no quarrying being necessary to 
 separate it from the mass), renders it a very advantageous substi- 
 tute for the limestones of the same neighborhood. Moreover it 
 should be remembered that in its more friable and powdery state, 
 it may, as in Europe, be very beneficially applied as a marl without 
 being burnt Although it is of the same composition as limestone, 
 yet when it is spread on the ground in a pulverized state, it pre- 
 sents so large a surface to the action of the carbonic acid that exists 
 in the atmosphere, and is generated by the decay and decomposi- 
 tion of vegetable matter, that a portion of it is converted into a sol- 
 uble bi-carbonate of lime, which can then be taken up by the soil. 
 But as this chemical change is slow, a larger quantity has to be ap- 
 plied to the land, than if it was first burnt. If the ordinary pure 
 limestone was ground to powder, it would have the same effect, but 
 the expense forbids it being done, and besides, burning the hard 
 stone is cheaper, as well as produces a more active fertilizer. The 
 immense improvement that tide-water Virginia has derived from 
 calcareous marl must render any illustration of its beneficial effects 
 quite superfluous, when it is understood that its composition cannot 
 be distinguished from the better classes of pulverulent marls, inde- 
 pendent of which its value has been unequivocally tested in other 
 countries, where it has been found to have the most decided amel- 
 iorating effects upon land to which it is properly applied." 
 
 Hydraulic limestone is found in many portions of the State, par- 
 ticularly in the north-eastern part where much cement is made from 
 it. In Berkeley and Jefferson counties the burning of lime and 
 cement form an important industry and give employment to a 
 great many men. In a few other counties lime is made but not in 
 any quantity, though nearly all in the district named above have 
 stone from which excellent lime might be burned. 
 
 i 
 
 I 
 
90 
 
 Stone. 
 
 MARBLE. 
 
 True marbles are not found in great quantities, but there are in all 
 the eastern counties, along the Alleghany range carbonates of lime 
 which much resemble them and in places true marbles do exist. In 
 the descriptions following of the counties of Greenbrier, Hampshire, 
 Jefferson, Monroe, Pocahontas and others, some accounts will be 
 found of the marbles which exist in those counties. Nothing has 
 ever been done toward their development, principally for the reason 
 that they are found in the most mountainous and inaccessible por- 
 tions of the State, but as pretty specimens of black and white mar- 
 bles as were ever seen have been taken from the mountains of our 
 State, and once within the reach o-f railroads the opening of the 
 marble quarries is assured. 
 
 BUILDING STONE. 
 
 Most excellent building stone abounds throughout the State. The 
 hard and flinty limestone which is thickly scattered over a great 
 part of the State makes the most substantial and durable of build- 
 ing stones, and many buildings made of it have stood the wear and 
 tear of time for more than a century. 
 
 In Jefferson county a fine variety of building limestone is found. 
 It is quarried in large quantities and finds a ready market. Many 
 tons of it have been floated in barges down the Potomac where some 
 of the finest buildings in the national capital attest its beauty and 
 its value as a building stone. 
 
 At Weston the West Virginia Hospital for the Insane, a building 
 of from three to five stories in height and with a frontage of over 
 1 600 feet, is built entirely of a native blue sandstone. It is a splen- 
 did stone, does not crumble, is hard and durable and very pretty. 
 
 In the Great Kanawha valley is a white sandstone which has been 
 extensively used, in the construction of the State capitol, the hand- 
 some Kanawha county court house, the government locks of the 
 Great Kanawha improvement, bridge piers in the Kanawha and 
 Ohio rivers and for many other purposes. The stone is peculiarly 
 adapted to use beneath the water, resisting the action of the water 
 and lasting for years with no indication of decay. In the New river 
 valley near Hinton is a similar stone which has been used exclu- 
 
Stone. 
 
 91 
 
 sively by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway Company in the con- 
 struction of its piers on the seaboard, the stone being taken from 
 that place because of its peculiar fitness for the ocean use for which 
 it was intended. 
 
 Near Hinton also, in Summers, Greenbrier and Monroe counties 
 along the line of the Chesapeake and Ohio railway are ledges of red 
 and brown sandstone of considerable value. The brown stone is a 
 beautiful one, of unvarying color, fine grain, hard and durable. 
 Specimens of it are seen in some of the handsomest buildings not 
 only in this State but in eastern cities as well, where it has been 
 shipped in large quantities 
 
 GRINDSTONE GRITS. 
 
 In several places in the State good grits are found for making 
 grindstones, whetstones, etc. Near Parkersburg, on the Ohio side of 
 the river, the largest grindstone works in the United States are said 
 to be located, and the same ledge of stone is found on the West 
 Virginia side of the river. Good grits for millstones, whetstones, 
 etc., are found in many other counties of the State. 
 
 GLASS SAND. 
 
 In Morgan county, near the Berkeley Springs, is a ridge of sand- 
 stone, which when crushed yields a beautiful white sand of excep- 
 tional purity. It is about the best glass sand found in the United 
 States, and large quantities of it are shipped to points where glass 
 is made. Great quarries are scattered along the ridge where the 
 sand is gotten out and crushed and daily heavy shipments are made. 
 The supply of sand is almost inexhaustible and being of unusual 
 purity and easily secured affords a source of considerable wealth to 
 the county. 
 
 In Hampshire county is a similar ridge of glass sand, but from 
 this little has ever been shipped. It is a splendid sand, said by 
 some to even surpass the Morgan county sand. It is found in 
 great quantities and is of exceptional purity and whiteness. 
 
 In Marion county an excellent glass sand is also found and used 
 in the glass works at Fairmont. la Monongalia, Kanawha and other 
 counties good sand is found, but little used. 
 
92 
 
 Stone. 
 
 MANGANESE. 
 
 This important ingredient in the manufacture of steel, which is 
 largely used for other purposes as well, is found in more or less 
 purity in nearly all the eastern counties of the State along with the 
 iron ores. It is found as a black oxide of manganese, frequently 
 containing a large per cent, of manganese. Analyses of a few sam- 
 ples will be found in the table of analyses of iron ores on one of 
 the preceding pages. 
 
 Graphite is found in Hampshire county, and will be described 
 in the following pages, under the heading of Hampshire county. 
 
 Gypsum, or plaster paris, is found in one locality of Greenbrier 
 county and will be mentioned under that heading. 
 
 Ochre is found in several counties of the State — notably in Lewis, 
 Hardy, Pendleton, Wayne and Cabell, but no developments of it 
 have ever been made. Other mineral paints are found in places. 
 
 Saltpetre is found in some of the caves of the lime.- tone region 
 in the eastern portion of the State. 
 
 Gold and Silver ores are often found in the mountainous regions 
 of the AUeghanies, but they contain at best but slight traces of 
 these precious metals, and only serve to raise delusive hopes. There 
 is no gold or silver of value in the State despite the finding of these 
 ores. 
 
 Lead in small fragments is found in many of the counties of the 
 State, and in some of them enough was one time found to enable 
 the pioneer settlers to run their own bullets out of native lead. 
 Many stories are in circulation of hidden veins of lead from which 
 the Indians moulded ornaments and balls, but none of the veins 
 have ever yet been found. There is more lead than gold or silver in 
 the State, but not enough to be of any value, or to warrant the 
 mention of lead as one of the resources of the State. 
 
 Of Zinc, Tin and Copper much the same thing may be said, ex- 
 cept that the quantities in which they exist are even smaller than 
 the lead. A few scattering ores containing little of the metal are 
 found in some of the mountain counties, but zinc or tin or copper 
 never will amount to anything in West Virginia. 
 
Mineral Waters. 
 
 03 
 
 MINERAL WATERS. 
 
 Throughout the mineral region of the State are many mineral 
 springs, the waters of which, holding in solution various chemi- 
 cals gathered from the soil, are of great value as medicinal waters. 
 Following the Alleghany range which forms the eastern border of 
 the State, and about equally divided by the State boundary is the 
 mineral spring region of the two Virginias. Throughout this re- 
 gion springs abound, and for many yeais the numerous hotels that 
 have been built around them have been frequented by hundreds of 
 those from all parts of the country who go each year in search of 
 health or pleasure. 
 
 The eastern part is not the only one in which these springs are 
 found, but more of them are there than in any other portion. 
 There's hardly a county in the State but has some mineral spring 
 of value, and while in money value the springs of West Virginia 
 are not among her chief resources, if valued by their capability to 
 bring health and comfort to humanity, and restore the strength and 
 vigor so often lost, the springs are certainly among our best resources. 
 As health and the consequent happiness are more to be desired than 
 riches the springs of West Virginia are probably of more real ben- 
 efit to mankind than all the coal or iron or timber in the State. 
 
 A writer in "Resources of West Virginia," prepared under the 
 direction of the State Board of Centennial Managers in 1876, de- 
 scribes the springs of W^est Virginia as follows : 
 
 "The springs of this State present considerable variety of chem- 
 
94 
 
 Mineral Waters. 
 
 ical character, and therapeutic adaptation — comprising various and 
 differently compounded sulphur waters; the chalybeates, simple, and 
 compounded ; the acidulous, or carbonated ; the saline ; the alumi- 
 nated chalybeates; with thermal waters, not of very high tempera- 
 ture. 
 
 "Of these springs, the sulphur waters, so far as such springs have 
 yet been developed, are found in greatest abundance, and in great- 
 est strength, on the southern border of the State, and on the west- 
 ern and northern slopes of the Alleghany mountains. The simple 
 chalybeates are found in every great' section of the State, but in 
 greatest strength, so far as they have been tested, along the course 
 of the great Appalachian ranges, extending from the northeastern 
 to the southwestern extremities of the State. The acidulous car- 
 bonated waters, as well as the aluminated chalybeates, are found in 
 different parts of the State, but have been most developed on its 
 southern border. 
 
 "The most valuable mineral waters of the State, so far as they 
 have been tested in the treatment of diseases, are the sulphurous, — 
 the alum waters, as they are called commonly, and the compound 
 acidulated waters. The latter especially, are generally found adja- 
 cent to faults in the strata, or where the rocks give evidence of dis- 
 placement from their natural position, and near the juction of slates 
 with limestone. 
 
 "The alum waters, so far as I have ever known, are an infiltration 
 tbrough slate, which generally lies a few feet below the surface of 
 the earth, but often cropping out considerably above it. I have ex- 
 amined numerous specimens of these waters, obtained from different 
 sections, and found them all to possess the leading chemical charac- 
 teristic of the springs of this class, which have been brought into 
 popular use. 
 
 "My observations are to the effect that the mineral waters of the 
 State generally, and certainly those within the ranges of the disturb- 
 ances of the rocks so common in the southern section of the State, 
 are slightly thermal, compared with the temperature of the common 
 springsin their vicinity, or of the earth through which they flow. The 
 decided thermal waters, some of them running up as high as 107°, 
 are found immediately on the eastern slopes of the Alleghany in 
 
Mineral Waters. 95 
 
 Virginia, and within a few miles of the southern border of West 
 Virginia." 
 
 The Berkeley Springs at the town of that name, the county 
 seat of Morgan county, are among the leading and longest known 
 mineral springs in West Virginia. They aie owned by the State, 
 and are in the care of a board of trustees appointed by the Governor, 
 by and with the consent of the Senate. The waters are very valua- 
 ble in cases of rheumatism and kindred diseases. Bath houses, 
 swimming pools, etc., are provided by the State. The water comes 
 from very bold springs which flow enough to create constantly a 
 good sized stream of fast flowing water. The temperature remains 
 always at 74 degrees Fahrenheit, never varying in summer or win- 
 ter. In the Colonial days before the Revolutionary war. General 
 George Washington and other makers of history were among the 
 visitors at the Berkeley Springs, and the reputation of the water 
 given to it more than a century ago, has always been retained. In 
 cases of nervous disorders, rheumatism, debility, etc, they have 
 effected many cures. 
 
 The White Sulphur Springs, in Greenbrier county, are among 
 the most noted of the fashionable summer resorts of the country 
 and are visited annually by thousands of people, particularly from 
 the south. Hotel capacity at ''the White" is ample to accommo- 
 date from 1,-500 to 2,000 people and in the season there are nearly 
 always visitors enough to tax accommodations to the utmost. The 
 water contains sulphates of lime, magnesia and soda and other in- 
 gredients and flows at a uniform temperature of 62 degrees at the 
 rate of over 30 gallons a minute. The use of the water is very 
 benefical in many cases, its influence on the system h^ixig cathartic, 
 diuretic, sudorific and alterative. Bath houses are supplied for exter- 
 nal as well as internal application of the waters. The spring is at 
 an altitude of 2,000 feet above sea level and the fresh air and beauti- 
 ful mountain scenery combine to make the springs a pleasant place 
 ito visit. 
 
 The Salt Sulphur Springs, in Monroe county, are another popu- 
 lar resort. The water contains much the same ingredients as that 
 of the White Sulphur Springs, though in different proportions. It 
 IS a very popular resort for health and pleasure. 
 
 The Red Sulphur Springs, also in Monroe county, have had for 
 
96 
 
 Mineral Waters. 
 
 years a high reputation for their effect in the treatment of lung dis- 
 eases. 
 
 The Old Sweet Springs, in Monroe county, are among the oldest 
 resorts in the Virginias, which have constantly been kept up and 
 maintained their reputation. The waters contain much the same 
 ingredients as those of the White and Salt Sulphur Springs. 
 
 Capon Springs, in Hampshire county, are unlike any of the other 
 springs of the State, containing silicic acid, soda, magnesia, bromine, 
 iodine and carbonic acid. The water is beneficial both as a bath 
 and a beverage. 
 
 Pence's Spring, in Summers county, has recently acquired a con- 
 siderable reputation and while the accommodations for visitors are 
 few, many are using the water and all with beneficial results. 
 
 The Webster Springs, at Addison, in Webster county, have for 
 many years afforded relief to many persons suffering with stomach 
 troubles. The springs are 1430 feet above sea level and surrounded 
 by mountains as much as 1400 feet higher. The s^prings contain 
 sulphur and salt and after a short time the water becomes very pal- 
 atable. 
 
 In all the counties along the eastern border springs are 
 numerous, and space forbids the mention of them all. In almost 
 every county waters of more or less medicinal virtue have been 
 found and have attained a local reputation. 
 
AGRfCULTURir. 
 
 97 
 
 AGRICULTURE. 
 
 Except in some of the older portions of the State where experi- 
 ence has taught the value of the soil, the proper attention is not 
 paid in this State to agriculture. While much of the State is moun- 
 tainous and rocky, there are on the other hand some lands as fine 
 for agricultural purposes as ever the sun shone upon, and there is 
 scarcely in the State a square mile of earth that is not fitted for 
 some kind of agriculture. The rough character of much of the 
 land, the thinness of our population, the difficulty of reaching a 
 market with the products of the farm, have all combined to preve'^nt 
 the tilhng of the soil, and hardly grain and garden stuff enough are 
 raised to supply the demands of the population of the State while 
 much should be exported. "The way in which the State was set- 
 tled," says Professor Fontaine, ''and the consequent habits of her 
 inhabitants, have been unfavorable to the existence of extensive or 
 skilled farming, and have directed the industry of the people into 
 almost every other channel. The original settlers were to a large 
 extent men without means, who, on entering this country, then cut 
 off Irom all exit to market, were content to clear small patches of 
 ground, whose generous response to even poor cultivation, yielded 
 returns sufficient to supply their limited wants. His little 'clear- 
 ing,' selected in the most convenient spot, was cultivated by the 
 pioneer year after year, in corn, and vegetables, which served to 
 support his family, along with a hog or two, and possibly a hor^e 
 and a cow, and with fowls, and the abundant game in the forests 
 around, there was abundance of meat and bread Even now in 
 many parts of the State thin is the mode of life. 
 
98 
 
 Agriculture. 
 
 "When the original clearing was exhausted by long tillage, an 
 addition was made by felling more timber. Thus the cleared lands 
 gradually grew around the cabins, until extensive openings were 
 made, but still without causing attempts at establishing communi- 
 cation with the outside world. This independent mode of life im- 
 pressed upon the people habits of thought and action, which, though 
 calculated to foster industry, frugality and hardiness, were not most 
 favorable for the promotion of undertakings which require commu- 
 nication with, and dependence upon, other countries 
 
 "We see at the present day the influence of this training. Until 
 of late West Virginians have paid bnt small attention to the raising 
 of agricultural products for exportation. They are usually content 
 with the production of a sufficiency for home consumption. But 
 rarely is an improved system of farming employed, and the culti- 
 vation is of the rudest kind. The tendency is to look to other 
 sources than the farm for products of exchange. As an example, 
 this spirit has led our people along all the streams which can float 
 a raft, to denude the forests of the magnificent timber which they 
 afford, often sacrificing it in the most prodigal manner. So, too, 
 they turn their attention, when the finer timber has been removed, 
 to the getting of tan-bark, hoop-poles, etc., which business oc- 
 cupies a very important position among our industries. All of 
 these causes have led to a neglect of agriculture, and stock farming, 
 industries for which, especially the latter, our State is peculiarly 
 fitted." 
 
 Of course this is not true of all the State. In some sections the 
 tilling of the soil is the principal industry, new and improved 
 methods are employed and farming on a large scale is conducted. 
 But as a rule the methods are primitive and the business carried on 
 in but a small way. Too much attention has been paid to cutting 
 timber and not enough to the cultivation of the soil after its re- 
 moval. Because our State is small and rather rough with many 
 mountains breaking the surface and giving grandeur to the scenery, 
 because it is young and has not long had rank with other States, 
 new settlers often shun it and seek the poorer soil of western 
 States. Some think that coal is all we have, and do not know that 
 West Virginia can produce more and better blue grass than the 
 world famed Kentucky. We are too often passed by through igno- 
 
AORICULTUIIE. 
 
 9<J 
 
 ranee. The words of Prof. Fontaine are as true today as they were 
 when in 187C he-penned the following: 
 
 "For the general and thorough worljing of our lands, we greatly 
 ne<'d an immigration of industrious settlers. Thousands pass yearly 
 through our State to the far west, not knowing that here they can 
 find an abundance of untouched virgin land, at nominal prices and 
 with a fertility not surpassed by any which they can hope to gain 
 in the remote west. But suppose that lands were higher, and poorer 
 here, our climate and proximity to the great markets, must ever 
 give, us a great advantage over farmers who, when they make a good 
 crop, find it destroyed at one blow, by the ravages of insects, by 
 tornadoes, or floods of rain ; and who, if successful in escaping their 
 numerous enemies, find all profits swallowed up in charges for 
 transportation to markets which lie at our doors." 
 
 In the same line of thought, as to the need of industrious settlers 
 Governor Wm. A. MacCorkle in his inaugural address, delivered 
 March 4, 1893, gave utterance to the following language- 
 
 "We welcome into our State the immigrant who comes to us with 
 the Idea of home seeking and home building with all its profits to 
 the State, with its family ties, with its clearing- of the forests its 
 building ot church and school house, its expenditure of all that is 
 made in our State and its exercise of citizenship. . i do not 
 
 m any way wish to be understood as decrying incoming wealth or 
 offering obstruction to its advent in our midst, but believe that 
 West Virginia, the south and south-west, should take steps to bring 
 into their borders the small immigrant or home builder, and thus 
 by the actual settlers' efforts, our lands will be developed by those 
 living upon them and spending in our State the fruits of our mines 
 forests and fields. The effort should be made by us to bring the' 
 small settler as well as the large land owner, but not one to the ex- 
 clusion of the other. At this time, the reflex tide of immigration 
 IS again directed to the south and south-west and away from the 
 north-west Whilst we welcome the incoming of the wealthy land- 
 owner, still, in my opinion, he should not be welcome alone but 
 every intelligent effort should be made by the State to induce the 
 small land owner and actual settler to come amongst us I believe 
 that this IS the best corrective of the influence of large non-resident 
 awnership of lands in this State, the burden of which we shall in a 
 
100 
 
 Agriculture. 
 
 short time feel. I shall offer any assistance in my power to legis- 
 lative or other action, looking to the inducement of actual settlers 
 to come to our State. The great area and richness of our coal and 
 hard wood timber, in both of which we are first in this great coun- 
 try, the great production of coke in which we are second and soon 
 will be first, the great development of railroads, in which last year 
 we were first in the United States, our splendid soil, equitable cli- 
 mate and good school system, all offer unparalleled inducements 
 to the incoming citizen and actual settler." 
 
 With altitudes varying from 500 to 4,000 feet, producing a cli- 
 matic range of 14 degrees of temperature, with every variety of 
 land and soil within the confines of the State, its crops are nat- 
 urally produced in great variety. The greater part of the State is 
 fine agricultural land. The upheaval of the mountains left many 
 of their sides too steep and rocky for cultivation and- yet the land 
 that is not fit for cultivation is but a small part of the State. Upon 
 the very tops of some of the highest mountains in the State are 
 cultivated farjxis which, while not as rich ,and productive as the 
 fertile valleys, still yield good crops. Few mountain sides are found 
 too steep for the hardy mountain farmer, and much of the corn of 
 the mountain districts is raised on steep hillsides on which, to one 
 who had not seen it grow, it would seem impossible to raise a crop 
 at all. 
 
 CORN. 
 
 « 
 
 Corn is^the principal crop of the State. There are several reasons 
 for it, principal of which is the better adaptability of the soil to 
 raising corn. Rough lands on which wheat and other crops could 
 not be grown at all yield well in corn. From early years the in- 
 habitants of the State have been accustomed to making corn their 
 principal crop as well as their principal article of food. In one form 
 or another it enters fnto nearly all the articles of food that find their 
 way into the mountain cabin and could not be dispensed with. 
 For animals, as well, it forms the principal article of food, and be- 
 ing thus the chief supply for man and beast, it is most largely 
 raised. A good, rich soil is needed to produce good corn, and 
 newly cleared lands possess this requisite so that following the clear- 
 ing of the land th^ first crop raised is nearly always corn. Taking 
 
Agriculture, 
 
 101 
 
 the State as a whole, good land and bad, the average yield of corn . 
 may be tak^n as about 35 bushels to the acre. Some lands fall as 
 low as 25 bushels to the acre, while some would not bring corn at 
 all. Twenty-five bushels is about the minimum on unfertilised 
 land, while in the best river bottoms the yield runs frequently up 
 to a hundred bushels, and in Hardy county one yield of 166 bushels 
 to the acre is actually on record. 
 
 WHEAT. 
 
 Next to corn the most important crop is wheat. Unlike the 
 corn this cannot be raised to good advantage on newly cleared land. 
 Comparatively level land, well cleaned of roots and stumps, is neces- 
 sary, and only in the older portions of the State is wheat much 
 grown. The Ohio river bottoms afford an instance of the best 
 wheat country. Rich and level, easy to cultivate, they produce 
 large crops and with good shipping facilities the markets are readily 
 reached. The yield varies from ten to twenty bushels to the acre. 
 Much of the wheat raised in the State is ground at home, compara- 
 tively little being shipped, and even then the home supply is not 
 equal to the demand, and wheat and flour are both imported from 
 other States. 
 
 OATS. 
 
 In the grain production of the State oats rank third. They are 
 raised principally for feed for stock, and often the grain and stalk 
 are fed together, making excellent feed for animals. They grow 
 well on almost any soil, and as a rule yield well. About 30 bushels 
 to the acre is an average yield. 
 
 BUCKWHEAT. 
 
 This is a crop to which the mountain lands are well adapted, the 
 high cold portions being particularly well suited to its growth The 
 wet, cold glade regions seem to possess the necessary qualifications 
 for its growth, and there buckwheat does well. In the high and 
 mountainous county of Preston, most of the buckwheat of the State 
 is produced, though in many other counties it forms quite a crop. 
 The average yield is about twenty bushels to the acre. It grows 
 with little attention, ripens rapidly, and tends to drive out weeds. 
 
102 
 
 Agrk^ulture. 
 
 SUGAR CANE. 
 
 In man}^ of the counties of the State the Chinese sugar cane is 
 largely grown. No sugar is made from it, but its use is exclusively 
 for the manufacture of sorghum molasses. The JViice is extracted 
 from the cane by pressure and boiled into a thick molasses which is 
 very generally used throughout the country. A good yield is irom 
 200 to 300 gallons to the acre. 
 
 TOBACCO, 
 
 Another crop most excellently adapted to the mountain soil of 
 West Virginia is tobacco. The rich new earth of hill or valley, 
 after the timber which has long stood over and enriched it is re- 
 moved, is just the soil required by tobacco. The rich valleys of the 
 streams which water all the State are also suitable for its s^rowth, 
 and a good deal of it is grown. In certain portions of the State it 
 is the principal crop, and very fine tobaccos are sent to mar- 
 ket where they command the highest price. In Lincoln, Fayette, 
 Raleigh and other southern counties a splendid grade of tobacco is 
 grown, which always brings a high price in the market. The high 
 hiil lands of nio4 of the State are suited to the growth of tobacco, 
 and in almost any part of the State good crops might be raised. 
 High prices may always be secured, and more attention to tobacco 
 would bring annually much money to the farmers of the State. 
 
 GARDEN STUFF. 
 
 The nearness of much of the best agricultural land of the State to 
 large and growing cities, and the easy access that may be had to 
 them, has brought about a great demand for garden products The 
 bottom lands particularly make the finest of gardens, and when 
 properly managed yield much larger profits as such than when 
 put to any other use. The miners, who form a large part of 
 the population of the State, as a rule make no pretense of raising 
 their own vegetables, and gardening for them as well as for the 
 towns and cities is quite a profitable industry All kinds of vege- 
 tables suited to this climate grow in West Virginia, and the wide 
 climatic range, before referred to, gives within the State long seasons 
 for all the vegetables that are grown. Wild berries may be had for 
 
Agriculture. 
 
 103 
 
 nearly six months in the year by following them from the warmer 
 parts through cooler ones and up the mountains, where they ripen 
 many months later than in the lower p^rts. A great deal of atten- 
 tion is paid to the coarser vegetables, such as cabbage, potatoes, tur- 
 nips and the like, much of which is shipped to city markets, while 
 tomatoes, corn and fruits are sent to canning or preserving works. 
 Some fruit and catsup works purchase in advance the entire crop of 
 all the tomato farms they can secure. 
 
 FRUITS. 
 
 The cool, high hill-tops w^here late frosts hold back the buds and 
 prevent too early maturit}^, thus avoiding danger of being killed 
 by late frosts, are admirably suited for all kinds of fruits. Apples, 
 particularly, are suited to the State and in some counties form al- 
 most the principal crop. The cool, fresh air of the higher lands 
 gives a flavor to the fruit not to be obtained elsewhere and makes 
 for the crops a constant demand. The summer fruit, which readily 
 decays and must be used at home, is often too abundant to be used 
 and much of it goes to decay unless made into vinegar, but in the 
 fall the fruits that ripen are mostly good, sound winter fruits that 
 keep all winter, and for these there is always a splendid market. 
 Hancock county alone last fall shipped 50,000 barrels of apples. In 
 other counties not so much is grown, though in all, the conditions are 
 favorable and usually the demand is good. 
 
 Peaches do well in most of the counties and a good many are 
 raised. But still the markets are usually supplied from other States, 
 and frequently the expensive prices prevent their sale, while if 
 grown at home a handsome profit might be made and the fruit still 
 sold at reasonable prices. The northeastern part of the State has 
 many peaches and very delicious ones. 
 
 Pears, plums, cherries and other small fruits all do well in every 
 county of the State. Berries of all kinds yield well, and in places 
 are grown in considerable quantities. 
 
 For grapes most sections of the State are peculiarly adapted. 
 *'The vine clad hills of sunny France" are not :nore favorably sit- 
 uated for grape culture than are the hills of West Virginia. On 
 this subject J. H, Diss Debar says: "On a surface so diversified 
 as that of our State, it would be difiicult to survey off" a one- 
 
104 
 
 Agriculture. 
 
 hundred-acre tract anywhere without including at least one suitable 
 exposure for a vineyard of from five to twenty acres, either in the 
 val'eys or on the slopes, of from five to twenty-five degrees.. Ger- 
 man wine growers, who prefer steeper grades, will find the rock 
 necessary for walling up a few feet below the surface everywhere." 
 Few grapes are grown, those which are being raised chiefly in small 
 vineyards and principally for local use In only a few places are 
 vineyards of any size cultivated, though there is scarcely a section 
 of the State where they would not be profitable. 
 
 Too much of West Virginia land has been tilled merely for sub- 
 sistence, the owner only caring to raise enough to live on. In the 
 country where hog and hominy are the staples the hogs are turned 
 loose to earn a livelihood, and the farmer raises a little corn to keep 
 himself, his family and his stock until the next year's crop is ripe. 
 Properly cultivated the soil of West Virginia would yield good crops 
 and not only supply the farmers with what they need to eat, but 
 give them a large surplus. Except in comparatively few places farm- 
 ing for profit, or for anything else except as a means of subsistence 
 has seldom been engaged in, but the soil and climate are here pre- 
 senting excellent opportunities to farmers, who as a rule heretofore 
 have been induced to give up farming for the more promising work 
 of cutting timber, ties or poles, and so the land has been neglected. 
 ^ More good steady farmers are needed in. West Virginia to help those 
 we now have to make the farms of the Mountain State bring forth 
 abundantly and feed the people already engaged in getting out our 
 hidden treasures or in other profitable pursuits. 
 
 GRAZING AND LIVE STOCK. 
 
 In many of the counties of the State the blue grass is indigenous 
 to the soil. It springs up, as soon as the forests overhead are taken 
 ofl", and covers hill and valley with a most luxuriant growth. This 
 finest of all grasses, which has given Kentucky its fame, exists in 
 even greater quantities in West Virginia than in Kentucky. Ex- 
 Governor A. B. Fleming, in a speech two years ago, made use of the 
 following language : 
 
 "Kentucky is called 'the blue grass State,' and it is generally be- 
 lieved that blue grass nowhere else abounds as in Kentucky. I 
 would not detract from our neighbor or seek to diminish the just 
 
Agriculture. 
 
 105 
 
 pride every Kentuckian feels in that which has made his State 
 famous; but I assert upon information and belief that there are 
 more acres of blue grass sod in West Virginia than there are in 
 Kentucky. It is the predominant grass though not our chief re- 
 liance. Clover flourishes everywhere, timothy grows in rank luxu- 
 riance on our limestone and other soils, while to the possessors of 
 light lands orchard and mixed grasses come almost as a special gift 
 from Providence, affording an excellent hay and abundant pastur- 
 age. Thus the entire State is particularly adapted to stock raising, 
 which affords a most delightful and usually a most profitable pur- 
 suit to our land owners. West Virginia's live stock, horses, cattle 
 and sheep, command the highest prices ; her wool is at the top of 
 the market, and her dairy products are sought after by those of the 
 most epicurean tastes." 
 
 The limestone region of West Virginia, as previously mentioned, 
 covers about half of the entire State, and throughout all this por- 
 tion blue grass grows in great profusion. In many of the other 
 counties it grows as well, but its principal home is in the limestone 
 soil. When once it gets a start it makes a splendid sod, and has a 
 vigorous growth. No soil is too poor for it, and on the mountain 
 side it climbs and reaches to the very tops. Thus hills that are not 
 fit for cultivation produce the best of pasture, and soil which other- 
 wise would be washed off the steep hillsides is held in place by the 
 sod, and barren land is thus reclaimed. 
 
 The larger part of the State is splendidly watered, great streams 
 of purest water flowing down from among the mountains through 
 nearly all the counties, and these assist in keeping fresh and green 
 the pasture lands. The excellent grass, the pure fresh air and 
 sparkling water that are found in nearly all parts of the State are 
 conditions unexcelled for raising stock, and West Virginia should 
 become one of the greatest stock raising States in the Union. Al- 
 ready a good deal of attention is paid to stock, and cattle particu- 
 larly are raised in great numbers. In Harrison, Greenbrier, Monroe, 
 Gilmer and the South Branch counties cattle are raised in large 
 numbers. In the valley of the South Branch, in Hampshire, Hardy, 
 Grant and Pendleton counties, export cattle are raised almost exclu- 
 sively. For the foreign markets cattle of unusual size are required 
 and in the counties mentioned the largest, finest cattle are raised. 
 
106 
 
 Aghiculture. 
 
 which in the markets of Baltimore and other places command the 
 topmost prices. Statistics are not to be had but in all the counties 
 mentioned, and in many more beside, the raising of cattle is an im- 
 portant branch of agriculture and is conducted with much profit. 
 
 Another branch, to which by no means so much attention is 
 given as should be, is dairyingl The State possesses all the requi- 
 sites for a good dairy State. The pasture, nearly always green, the 
 fresh, pure water and the nearness to market make the dairy busi- 
 ness profitable. In some sections of the State a few creameries have 
 been erected and with the uniform result of proving very profitable. 
 From Greenbrier county, where a large creamery is loca,ted, butter is 
 sent to the principal city markets, while in the summer butter, 
 cream and buttermilk are all supplied to the hotels at the springs in 
 the neighborhood. Last year the company paid a floating debt of 
 several thousand dollars and paid a dividend of ten per cent be- 
 sides. At Morgantown the creamery at the Agricultural Experi- 
 ment Station has proven very profitable and shown without a doubt 
 that West Virginia farmers, if the proper attention were given to 
 dairying, could build up a large and paying business. 
 
 Dr. John A. Myers, Director of the Agricultural Experiment Sta- 
 tion, in an article on the live stock interests of the State has this 
 to say : 
 
 "West Virginia is emphatically a stock-growing State, and farm- 
 ers who contemplate settling in this State should shape their plans 
 with reference to the development of this industry as their chief 
 source of profit upon the farm. At the same time, butter and cheese 
 may be manufactured in this State of as excellent quality and in as 
 large amounts and with as great ease and as little care as it can be 
 produced in the dairy regions of the north, so that the farmer by 
 combining the diversity of crops that will grow in this section with 
 the live stock industry, either sheep, cattle or horses, with the poul- 
 try and dairy interests and the raising of fruits, has an opportunity 
 the whole year round of having something to sell, and of making 
 money in this State that is offered by few, if any other, of the 
 States of the Union. We are most emphatically of the opinion 
 that the freedom from malaria, the rich soil, the pure air, the salu- 
 brious climate, fresh spring water, the general freedom from diseases 
 and insect pests, the ready accessibility to the markets, the cheap- 
 
Agriculture. 
 
 107 
 
 ness of our lands, and the constantly increasing demand for our 
 products, ofter inducements to persons wishing to engage in farm- 
 ing in West Virginia superior to most States in the Union." 
 
 There is one thing for which the lands of West Virginia are pecu- 
 liarly adapted, and that is raising sheep. The splendid sod that 
 covers our hills makes the finest pasture, the hills afford a shelter to 
 the sheep from the cold winds of winter, and the land is high and 
 dry which wards off disease and keeps the sheep in excellent condi- 
 tion. There is something in the atmosphere, the water or the grass 
 that tends to produce fine wool and has given the West Virginia 
 sheep a reputation equal to the best in any market. The northern 
 panhandle counties produce the finest wool, which stands at the top 
 of the wool produced anywhere in the United States. In every partof 
 the State where sheep are raised they have always proved profitable. 
 They are easily raised, require but slight attention, and most of the 
 time require no feed except the grass they pick up for themselves. 
 Turned out upon a bare hillside they never fail to find enough grass 
 growing here and there to keep them well supplied with food, and 
 it is a well known fact that land upon which sheep are kept is con- 
 stantly improving. Bare hillsides that would hardly produce a 
 l)lade of grass become rich and productive after sheep have been al- 
 lowed to run upon them. For the farmer who takes proper care and 
 gives the right attention to his sheep there is no more profitable 
 branch of farming. The experience of those who have raised 
 sheep shows this, and with the abundance of grass and the peculiar 
 fitness of the State for raising sheep it is certainly destined to be- 
 come a great sheep State. The wonder is that more are not now 
 raised. 
 
 H( )rses, though not bred in such numbers as are cattle and sheep, 
 are still i^ised in goodly numbers in the State. In some of the 
 , counties, where much attention is given them, some splendid horses 
 j are seen. Long years of breeding have given to horses of other 
 i States more speed than those of West Virginia, and still our horses 
 are by no means unlcnown on the race course. Draught horses are 
 bred in many counties of the State and find a ready market. The 
 abundant grass which fits the State for grazing tends to make horse 
 breeding a profitable business, and the scores of farmers who make 
 this part of their business indicate that there is profit in it. 
 
108 Agriculture. 
 
 Hogs are one of the staple products of the farm. With plenty of 
 unused land on which to turn them out they are easily raised, and 
 there is always a good demand for pork and lard and all pork pro- 
 ducts. 
 
 Poultry, raised in a small way, is one of the paying items of every 
 well conducted farm. The chickens, turkeys, geese and ducks, 
 which provide for themselves and need hut little care, amply repay 
 all that is bestowed on them. The chickens and eggs that daily go 
 from West Virginia to the larger markets, form no small part of the 
 income of our farmers. 
 
Transportation. 
 
 109 
 
 TRANSPORTATION, 
 
 High and mountainous, the State gives rise to many water courses 
 the eastern shed in the vicinity of Pocahontas and Pendleton coun- 
 ties sending waters into every direction. Rising in the higher por- 
 tions of the State but few of them attain much size within its 
 bounds, so that, while excellently watered with large streams, but 
 few sections of the State are traversed by navigable waters. 
 
 The Ohio river along the western boundary of the State, is the 
 chief water course, affording, except in seasons of low water, trans- 
 portation facilities for all the country tributary to it. Between 
 Cincinnati and Pittsburg there are daily steamers carrying passen- 
 gers and freight, while tow-boats push immense fleets of coal barges 
 from the mines above us, along the whole western border of the 
 greatest coal State in the Union and take it to the markets below, 
 where it is sold in competition with the West Virginia coal. The 
 Ohio river affords trans])ortation at the minimum price and is easily 
 reached by at lea^t one-half the State. 
 
 The Great Kanawha river is the next in size, and on account of 
 the valuable territory through which it flows the United States gov- 
 ernment has undertaken the improvement of the river by a system 
 I of locks and dams. 
 
 I In 1873 the improvement was begun and in 1880 the first two 
 docks and dams were completed and put in operation. Since that 
 time five more have been completed and the remaining three which 
 will complete the system and carry slackwater from the mouth of the 
 
110 
 
 Transportation, 
 
 river to within 5 miles of Kanawha Falls, have been contracted for. 
 The works are planned to make an available depth of 6 J feet, or full 
 shipping water for coal, at all seasons. The chambers of the locks 
 below Charleston are 342 feet long and 55 feet wide (those above 
 Charleston are 300 by 50 feet) sufficient to admit four large size 
 coal barges The cost of these locks and dams has been as follows : 
 Up to June 30, 1892, there had been appropriated for the first seven 
 of them $2,579,500. On July 13, 1892, a bill was passed by Con- 
 gress authorizing the remaining three to be put under contract and 
 appropriating $225,000 for work on them. It is estimated that the 
 additional appropriations necessary to complete the system will be 
 about $1,080,700, making the entire cost of the system $3,885,200. 
 
 Addison M. Scott, U. S. Resident Engineer, in charge of the im- 
 provement, shows in a pamphlet, from which we quote, that the 
 Kanawha river furnishes the cheapest transportation in the world. We 
 take the following from his pamphlet on the Coal, Commerce and 
 Development of the Great Kanawha Valley: 
 
 The first "movable" dams in America in connection with slack 
 water improvement were built on the Great Kanawha; Nos. 4 and 
 and 5, as stated above, being completed and put in operation in 
 1880. The usefulness and adaptability of movable dams are thor- 
 oughly established, and all on the river below No. 3 are to be of this 
 type. 
 
 Movable dams are kept up during low stages and down in high 
 water. Their advantages over the ordinary fixed dams for a com- 
 merce and river like the Great Kanawha are decided, furnishing the 
 benefits of the usual slack water without its most serious inconven- 
 iences and drawbacks With fixed dams everything must pass 
 through the locks. With them navigation is entirely suspended 
 too when the river is near or above the top of the lock walls The 
 difference between the fixed and movable dams in the scour and 
 wash of the banks about the works, is also greatly in favor of the 
 modern type. 
 
 With movable dams the locks are used only when the water in 
 the river is so low as to make them necessary. At all other times 
 the dams are down flat, practically on the river bottom, out of the 
 way, affording unobstructed, open navigation. This is a great ad- 
 vantage to all classes of commerce, and is particularly so with coal, 
 
Transportation. 
 
 Ill 
 
 transported as it is (and empty barges returned), in "fleets" of large 
 barges. More barges can of course be taken by a tow boat and 
 much better time made in "open river," where there is water enough 
 for such navigation, than when the stage or discharge of the river 
 compels the use of the locks. 
 
 The gauge record of the Great Kanawha, kept at the U. S. En- 
 gineer Office at Charleston, for the last 16 years, shows there are on 
 an average 196 days in the year when there is 5 feet or more of 
 water for "open navigation" from Charleston down ; the average for 
 16 years shows 142 days of 6 feet or more. From this it appears 
 that coal can be shipped by open river on about 6 months of the 
 year, during which time the movable dams will be down. The rest 
 of the time, or in other words, when the river falls below a coal boat 
 stage, the dams will be kept up, and make an available slack water 
 depth of 6 feet. 
 
 The manner pursued in shipping coal on the Great Kanawha and 
 Ohio rivers is generally understood and need not be particularly de- 
 scribed. It makes remarkably cheap transportation, probably with- 
 out exception, particularly when length of routes are compared, the 
 lowest inland freight rates in the world. 
 
 'J'he coal barges themselves, considering their capacity and service, 
 are cheap carriers; they cost from $800 to $1,200 and last about ten 
 years. The barges are generally 130 feet long, 25 feet wide and 7^ 
 deep. A barge carries from 10,000 to 14,000 bushels, or from 400 to 
 560 tons; 480 tons, or 12,000 bushels per barge, is a fair average, 
 equal it will be remembered to a train of 24 cars of 20 tons each. 
 
 A small tow of 4 barges, easily handled by a small tug or tow 
 boat, and parsed through the locks when the dams are up at one 
 lockage, will have nearly or quite 50,000 bushels or 2,000 tons, 
 enough to fill lOO freight cars of 20 tons each. 
 
 In open navigation a tow boat handles from 4 to 14 loaded barges 
 in the Kanawha, depending on the stage of the river and the size of 
 the tow boat. In the Ohio river, or from Point Pleasant down, the 
 jreat Kanawha tow boats take from 14 to 84 barges. A fl^et of 30 
 Darges has about 375,000 bushels or 15,000 tons ; this amount o coal 
 oaded into 20 ton cars would make 30 trains of 2^ cars each, or a con- 
 tinuous line of cars nearly five-and-a-half miles long. 
 
 The general rate at present from the Charleston pool to Cincin- 
 
112 
 
 Transportation. 
 
 nati is one cent per bushel, or 25 cents per ton. Operators who hire 
 barges pay half a cent a bushel barge rent, m.aking the cost to Cin- 
 cinnati, to operators who hire both barges and towing, IJ cents per 
 bushel or 37J cents per ton. This includes the return of the 
 empty barge to the mine. This rate to Cincinnati (distance from 
 Charleston 263 miles,) is 1.42 mills (or about one-seventh of a cent), 
 per ton per mile. For longer distances, or to points on the Ohio and 
 Mississippi below Cincinnati, the rates per mile are much less. The 
 usual rates from Cincinnati to the mouth of the Kentuckj'- river, 
 Louisville and points between, amount to about 10^ cents per ton, 
 making the cost from the Charleston pool to Louisville, including 
 towing and rent and return of barge, 48 cents per ton. The distance 
 from Charleston to Louisville being 394 miles, makes the rate 1 21 
 mills per ton-mile. 
 
 The above rates, it will be noticed are both for comparatively 
 short distances. 
 
 A considerable quantity of the Great Kanawha coal is towed to 
 different points on the lower Mississippi, as far down as New Or- 
 leans. 
 
 The rate for these long distances is exceedingly low. Take it to 
 New Orleans, for instance; the cost to the Kanawha operator any- 
 where below Lock 3, who hires both barge and towing, is 5 cents per 
 bushel or $1.25 per ton. The distance from Charleston to New Or- 
 leans, 1776 miles, makes the rate .7 mill, or about one-fourteenth of a 
 cent per ton per mile. 
 
 The next lowest inland rates are undoubtedly those of the Great 
 Lakes of the Northwest, where enormous quantities of heavy freight, 
 such as iron ore, lumber, grain and coal, are carried, mainly by a sys- 
 tem of towing in large barges. The average rate on the Lakes in 1888, 
 determined from records kept at the St. Mary's Falls Lock, under 
 direction of Gem 0. M. Poe, Corps of Engineers, was \\ mills per 
 ton per mile. The average length of route was 806.9 miles. In 
 1887 the rate was 2.3 mills per ton per mile for an average route of 
 811.4 milps. See report of Chief of Engineers for iSSg^ page 2,220^ &c. 
 
 The average railroad rate last year on freight from Chicago to New 
 York (distance 913 milesj was close to $4.50 per ton or 5 mills per 
 ton per mile ; the lowest rate on grain was about $4.00 per ton or 
 4.38 mills per ton per mile. 
 
Transportation. 
 
 113 
 
 The rate on all the freight carried by the railroads in the United 
 States in 1889, according to the Inter-State Commerce Commission, 
 averaged 9.22 mills per ton per mile. 
 
 Mr. Scott then goes on to show the advantages to be deriv^ed from 
 the completion of the system of locks and dams in the Kanawha 
 valley, and concludes that "the continuation of the locks and dams 
 to the mouth of the river will not only nearly or quite double the 
 time for shipping coal, but will, in effect, put the Great Kanawha 
 coal fields about 300 miles nearer to the markets of the lower Ohio 
 and Mississippi valleys." 
 
 The Little Kanawha river is navigable for small steamboats from 
 its mouth at Parkersburg to Creston in Wirt county, a distance of 
 52 miles by river. The river is improved with locks and dams 
 owned and operated by the Little Kanawha Navigation Co 
 
 The Big Sandy river on the south-western border of the State is 
 navigable up as far as Logan county in certain seasons of the year. 
 
 The Monongahela river which is improved by locks and dams is 
 navigable from Pittsburgh up through Pennsylvania as far as Mor- 
 gantown in Monongalia county. 
 
 Other rivers in the State are navigable for flat boats, "push boats" 
 and canoes but are not fit for steam navigation. In times of fresh- 
 ets, though, there is scarcely a stream of any size within the State 
 which does not bring out a large supply of logs and ties. With 
 transportation of this kind every county in the State is well sup- 
 plied. 
 
 RAILROADS. 
 
 Twenty years ago there were scarcely a dozen counties in the 
 State which were penetrated by a railroad. Today, of the 54 cou n- 
 ties there are but 11 which have no railroad, and in the direction of 
 every one of these new roads are now projected, so that within the 
 next few years probably every county in the State will be upon the 
 line of at least one railroad. For many years after theB. & O. first 
 pushed westward through the State but little more Avas done in rail- 
 road building, but twenty years have made a wonderful change. 
 The wealth of the hidden treasures of the State has been made 
 known, the possibilities of the State have been realized, the de- 
 mands for transportation been perceived and the construction of 
 
114 
 
 Transportation. 
 
 railroads in the State has so increased that last year in no other 
 State in the Union were there as many miles of railroads built as 
 here in West Virginia. Wjs led the entire United States in railroad 
 construction. This fact alone will show the estimation in which the 
 resources of West Virginia are held by capitalists who have most 
 thoroughly investigated before investing. Millions of dollars are 
 not poured blindly into any scheme, and the fact that many mil- 
 lions have been spent by the best financiers in the world in build- 
 ing West Virginia railroads shows beyond a doubt the value of our 
 resources and the future there must be in store for the State. 
 
 The oldest and the longest line of railroad in the State is the 
 Baltimore and Ohio, which after more than a quarter of a century 
 of experience in the State is so well satisfied with its investment 
 and the prospects for the future that it is now engaged in buying up 
 all the small railroads which connect with it and extending them 
 on further into the undeveloped portions of the State. The main 
 line of the great Baltimore and Ohio system, coming west from 
 Baltimore, enters West Virginia at Harper's Ferry, on the extreme 
 east of the State, follows up the Potomac river, sometimes in this 
 State, sometimes in Maryland, through the counties of Jefferson, 
 Berkeley, Morgan, Hampshire and Mineral, then passing into Mary- 
 land comes back to West Virginia in Preston county, thence through 
 Taylor, Marion, Wetzel, Marshall and Ohio, into Wheeling, and on 
 beyond to Chicago and the west. From Grafton, in Taylor county, 
 a branch of the same road runs west to Parkersburg and thence to 
 Cincinnati. At Harper's Ferry the Valley branch of the road runs 
 up the Valley of Virginia to Staunton and Lexington, Va. A short 
 branch connects the Berkeley Springs with the main line in Mor- 
 gan county ; another connects with Romney, in Hampshire county. 
 King wood, the county seat of Preston is on a narrow gauge road, 
 connecting with the B. & 0., and so is Ritchie C. H. A few other 
 short lines connect with the B. & 0., while at Grafton a branch runs 
 south, up the Tygart's Valley to Belington, to a connection with the 
 West Virginia Central and Pittsburg. Another branch runs down 
 from Fairmont to Morgantown and is being extended on down the 
 river to a Pittsburg connection. From Clarksburg, the W. Va. & P., 
 built with bonds guaranteed by the B. & 0., extends on southward 
 through Lewis, Upshur, Braxton and Webster counties, into per- 
 
Transportation. 
 
 115 
 
 haps the finest timber region in the State. The Monongahcla River 
 railroad connects Fairmont and Clarksburg and the Pittsburg branch 
 of the B. & 0. leaves Wheeling eastward through Ohio county to- 
 wards Pittsburg. The Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis 
 connects Wheeling and the Panhandle counties with Pittsburg and 
 the west. 
 
 The West Virginia Central and Pittsburg follows the Potomac 
 river from Cumberland Md., to its source and thence through Ran- 
 dolph county into Barbour to a connection with the B. & 0. 
 
 The Cumberland Valley railroad connecting Harrisburg, Pa., with 
 Winchester, Va. , passes through Berkeley county and Martinsburg. 
 
 The Ohio River Railroad is the only line connecting the east and 
 west lines of the State. It runs from Wheeling to Kenova along the 
 Ohio river all the way. It has branches to Spencer and to Jackson 
 Court House. 
 
 The Chesapeake & Ohio is the next great east and west line, enter- 
 ing the State at the southwest corner and passing through Wayne, 
 Cabell, Putnam, Kanawha, Payette, Summers, Greenbrier and Mon- 
 roe, connecting Cincinnati and Chicago with the seaboard at New- 
 port News, Va., and with Washington and New York. A half a 
 dozen short line railroads connect with this along the line, princi- 
 pally coal roads from the mines to the C & 0. 
 
 The Kanawha & Michigan, a portion of the Ohio Central system, 
 enters the State at Point Pleasant and follows the Kanawha river, 
 up by Charleston to the mouth of the Gauley river, where it con- 
 nects with the C. & O. Another line is thus afforded from Toledo 
 and northern Ohio to the East. 
 
 From Charleston up Elk river runs the Charleston, Clendennin 
 & Sutton railroad, built by Charleston local capital, for twenty 
 miles, and soon to be completed on to Sutton, there to connect with 
 the W. Va and P., and make another north and south line through 
 the State. 
 
 The Norfolk & Western, the great developer of southern West 
 Virginia, enters at Kenova from Columbus and Chicago, passes 
 through Wayne, Logan, Wyoming, Mercer and McDowell counties 
 and on through old Virginia to tidewater at Norfolk. Another 
 branch following down the Shenandoah valley passes north and 
 south through Jefferson county. 
 
116 
 
 Transportation. 
 
 Numerous short line roads are in the State, but all are local roads 
 and will be referred to in the description of the counties where they 
 are located. 
 
 OPENINGS FOR RAILROADS. 
 
 With all the roads the State now has, there is ample room for 
 many more. Freight facilities aie scarcely yet sufficient and the 
 opening of new regions by new railroads always builds up business 
 along the line. In many portions of the State new roads might be 
 built to advantage, but some regions are especially in need of rail- 
 roads, a few of which we mention. 
 
 One of the richest sections of the State, the valley of the South 
 Branch of the Potomac, is entirely without a railroad. Along the 
 northern border of Hampshire county and up the valley 16 miles 
 to Romney runs the Baltimore and Ohio, but the rest of the dis- 
 tance through the counties of Hampshire, Hardy, Grant and Pen- 
 dleton is one of the richest agricultural regions in the State, with 
 mountains on the borders full of iron ores, and covered with tim- 
 ber, while fresh pure water and mineral springs pour out from be- 
 neath the rocks. The descent of the river is gradual and the grad- 
 ing of a railroad up the valley could be done at very little cost. 
 There is now a project for a road from Cumberland, Md., up Patter- 
 son's creek to Franklin, and through the Petersburg gap to Moore- 
 field. It is said that there is enough tanbark alone in Pendleton 
 county to pay the entire cost of a railroad to the county. 
 
 Pocahontas county is another very rich in all the resources of the 
 State except coal, and it is now without a railroad. With splendid 
 farming land, the finest timber and valuable mineral resources a 
 railroad would develop the county wonderfully and build up for 
 itself a splendid business. Extensions of the West Virginia and 
 , Pittsburg and of the C. & 0. are contemplated. The road that 
 would develop Pocahontas should also pass through Greenbrier, one 
 of the finest counties in the State. 
 
 A short line from Hinton up the New River to connect the C. & 
 0. and N. & W. would undoubtedly pay. 
 
 The road already started up Elk river from Charleston to connect 
 with the W. Va. & P. and B. & 0. AviJl be a much used road. 
 
Transportation. 
 
 117 
 
 Already the first 20 miles are paying well, though in use but little 
 more than a month. 
 
 Coal river drains the finest coal basin in the State and the railroad 
 that first gets into that field will reap a fortune. From Boone to 
 Wyoming counties a railroad could be built beneath a mountain, 
 through a coal vein, the coal from which would pay the entire cost 
 of making the tunnel. Such a road could be made to connect with 
 the C. & 0. at one end, the N. & W. at the other and would be a 
 profitable road. Steps are now being taken to build a road up the 
 river from its mouth near Charleston. 
 
 The Guyandotte river, flowing through Wyoming, Logan, Lin- 
 coln and Cabell drains mucn the same kind of a country and several 
 roads have been projected from Huntington up. The country 
 along its banks is filled with va'uable coal and covered with timber. 
 A road up it would certainly pay well. 
 
 The Little Kanawha valley, from Parkersburg up through Wood, 
 Wirt, Calhoun and Gilmer, is a rich agricultural country, and the 
 splendid coal veins of Gilmer would be tapped by a road up this 
 valley. It is a road that should be built, and doubtless will be 
 soon. 
 
 These are by no means all the roads that should be built, but 
 with them completed nearly all the counties would be well supplied 
 with transportation, and the others could follow later. Railroad 
 building is by no means ended in this State, and those that have 
 been built but show what may be done. Other roads are needed, 
 and there is no more money to be made in any way than by pur- 
 chasing cheap wild lands in West Virginia and developing them by 
 building railroads into them. 
 
118 
 
 Barbour County. 
 
 THE STATE IN DETAIL. 
 
 BARBOUR COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Situated slightly to the northeast of 
 the center of the State, Barbour county lies at the base of the Lau- 
 rel mountains, the westernmost of the numerous ranges of the Ap- 
 palachian system which parallel the main Alleghany range. Through 
 the center of the county from south to north flows the Tygart's 
 Valley river, along the east bank of which a railroad extends from 
 one end of the county to the other. Philippi, the county seat, situ- 
 ated near the center of the county, is distant by rail from Wheeling 
 124 miles, Parkersburg 128, Martinsburg 204, Baltimore 318, Pitts- 
 burg 195, Cincinnati 323, Chicago 590. The county is in the main 
 hilly with narrow valleys, but the hills are neither high nor steep. 
 Timber, coal, iron, manganese and fire clays are the principal pro- 
 ductions of the county, and aside from the farming interests com- 
 prise the chief sources of wealth. 
 
 Timber. — As yet but a small part of the county has been cleared, 
 fully one-half of it remaining covered with timber. Oak and pop- 
 lar are the principal woods, hickory and maple are abundant and 
 the usual other woods found in the forests with these are found. 
 The poplar timber is especially fine and some magnificent specimens 
 are found. Lands from which the largest poplars were long since 
 taken off* are still considered fine timber lands, trees which were at 
 first rejected being now equal to 'the best found in many other sec- 
 tions. The Buckhannon and Middle Fork rivers and numerous 
 
Barbour County. 
 
 119 
 
 smaller streams empty into the Tygart's Valley river which, flowing 
 through the entire length of the county, alibrds cheap and easy 
 transportation of timber to suitable sawing and shipping points. 
 The West Virginia Central and Pittsburg railroad in the southern 
 part of the county, and the Baltimore and Ohio railroad through 
 the center afford ample means of railroad transportation and much 
 timber is sawed along these lines. The estimated amount of tim- 
 ber standing in Barbour county at $10 per acre would be worth 
 $1,280,000. 
 
 CoalI — Though not generally known Barbour county is abund- 
 antly supplied with coal. There is not a section of the county 
 without it, and though none has ever yet been mined, save for do- 
 mestic consumption, nearly every property owner in the county has 
 his own coal bank. What is known as the Roaring Creek coal un- 
 derlies the entire county. At Roaring Creek, in the western part of 
 Randolph county, near the Barbour line, this coal is in veins piled 
 one above the other until the coal reaches a thickness of from 16 to 
 30 feet. West of this these veins separate, the distances between 
 them increasing to as much as 30 feet or more. But though in veins 
 of only 5 to 12 feet and widely separated the aggregate thickness 
 is still retained. In many places the coal is found cropping out of 
 the mountain side, in others, especially in the northwest, toward 
 which the coal dips, the veins are under ground, the top one 
 30 feet or more below the surface. In this northwest portion of the 
 county, where the strata dip low, another vein — the Pittsburg coal — 
 is found in a vein about 7 feet thick and above the other. Both are 
 good coking coals and could be easily mined. 
 
 Iron. — In a comparatively small area in the northeastern part of 
 the county iron ores are found. A 24-foot vein of spathose ore has 
 been found over about 8,000 acres of land. Spathose ore is never 
 very rich in iron and while this contains about as large a percentage 
 of iron as this kind of ore ever does — 40 per cent — it is very low in 
 phosphorus and sulphur, containing but .04 of one per cent, of the 
 former and but a trace of the latter. 
 
 A hydrated brown oxide of iron is found in a four foot ledge over 
 some 1,200 acres in the same portion of the county. This contains 
 59.86 per cent, of iron and but .12 of one per cent, of phosphorus. 
 This is a very close, fine grained ore, so fine that it takes a polish 
 
120 
 
 Barbour County. 
 
 like marble. It makes a very close grained, tenacious metal and 
 was manufactured before the war to a considerable extent. In some 
 of the homes of the county kitchen utensils are still in use which 
 were made in a Barbour county iron furnace over thirty years ago. 
 
 There are also a 7-foot vein of black band iron ore and a 6J-foot 
 vein of argillaceous ore that have never been analyzed but exist in 
 considerable quantities. 
 
 Manganese, Clay and Oil. — In the same vicinity in which the 
 iron is found there is a 5-foot vein of manganese ore which analyzes 
 35 per cent, manganese, 24 per cent, iron, .09 of one per cent, phos- 
 phorus and shows merely a trace of sulphur. 
 
 A bed of fire clay has been found which is very fine grained and 
 hard and makes excellent bricks and tiling. It extends over a dis- 
 tance of several miles and has been opened to a depth of 7 feet. 
 How much thicker it is, is not known. 
 
 An oil well has recently been put down near the county seat and 
 oil was found, though to what extent can not be ascertained from 
 the company. 
 
 Agricultural. — The best farming land is in that portion of the 
 county west of the Tygart's Valley river. The soil is rich, the 
 mountains are not steep, and while the valleys are tew and narrow 
 the hills are fertile and make good grass sod. Some of them are 
 farmed and when tilled yield well, but little attention is paid to 
 farming, not enough grain being raised for home consumption. 
 Most of the cleared lands a,re in grass which springs up naturally, 
 grows thick and tall and makes good hay. Cattle raising is the 
 principal agricultural pursuit, fine large cattle are raised in great 
 numbers and vast herds are shipped out of the county every year. 
 A few horses are raised and some attention is paid to sheep, though 
 not so much as might be profitably. 
 
 BERKELEY COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — In the extreme eastern part of West 
 Virginia, almost separated from the rest of the State by Virginia 
 and Maryland which nearly surround them are three counties, the 
 last to dissolve their relations with old Virginia and to be admitted 
 as part of the new State. The central one of these is Berkeley. It 
 lies at the northern end of the famous Valley of Virginia, which is 
 
Berkeley County. 
 
 121 
 
 among the finest agricultural regions in either of the Virginias. 
 The county is about 25 miles long with Maryland on the north and 
 Virginia on the south. The Baltimore and Ohio railroad connects 
 the county with the east and west, the Cumberland Valley railroad 
 with the north and south, and the Chesapeake and Ohio canal with 
 all points between Cumberland, Md. , and Washington, D. C The 
 distance from Martinsburg, the county-seat, to Washington is 74 
 miles, to Baltimore 100, to Parkersburg 284, to Wheeling 280, to 
 Cincinnati 479, to Chicago 746 miles. 
 
 The county embraces almost every variety of land to be found in 
 the Sta*e. The Sleepy Creek mountain is on the west and the Po- 
 tomac river on the north and east and between them is every variety 
 of soil from the alluvium and loam of the river bottom, through 
 c'ays, sand and limestones to the shales and conglomerates of the 
 mountains, underlaid in many places with marl and phosphates of 
 much value though undeveloped. Though Berkeley county is in 
 the earliest settled portion of what is now West Virginia, and con- 
 tains the fourth city in the State in population, still it is undevel- 
 oped as to its natural resources and in parts so nearly uninhabited 
 that there is one strip of 16 miles between two mountain ranges in 
 the western part of the county in which there is but one house. 
 The climate is mild and wholesome, the mountains on the west pro- 
 tecting the county from the severity of winter and the intensity of 
 the summer heat. 
 
 Coal. — It has long been known that there was a little anthracite 
 coal in Berkeley county, but recently further investigations have 
 proven that it exists along one mountain range in Berkeley and 
 Morgan counties for a distance of some 25 miles at least. At inter- 
 vals along this mountain as many as 35 openings have been made 
 and each one disclosed the same vein of coal. It is a very good 
 quality of anthracite coal and when developed will be the means of 
 bringing a good deal of money into the county. There is no bitu- 
 minous coal in the county. 
 
 Iron. — In many portions of the county iron ore is found in con- 
 siderable quantities and a good deal is taken from the county to 
 other places to mix with the ores found and used in the furnaces 
 there. In the northern and western portions of the county the ore 
 
122 
 
 Berkei.ey County. 
 
 is principally brown hematite. Some specular iron ore is found, 
 and near Martinsburg a fine quality of pipe ore has been rained. 
 
 Other Minerals.- Some manganese has been found though the 
 extent of the deposit is not known. 
 
 Indications of some other minerals have been found such as gold, 
 silver, copper and lead, but they are not found in paying quantities 
 and no faith is placed in the value of ihe deposits. 
 
 Limestone and Clay. — Limestone of a very excellent quality is 
 abundant throughout the county and is largely manufactured into 
 lime. Berkeley county lime stands high, commands a good price 
 and finds a ready market. There are several large lime kilns in the 
 county and plenty of stone to supply numerous others. 
 
 There is an abundance of building stone throughout the county, 
 a semi-marble limestone which is found making a very fine stone 
 for building purposes 
 
 Fire clay is found along with the anthracite coal and a very fine 
 quality of aioapstone, but they have never been developed. 
 
 There is a fine quality of potter's clay in the county which has 
 been manufactured into pottery for many years at Martinsburg. 
 
 Timber. — The county having been settled so many years the tim- 
 ber is pretty well cut off. What is left, which covers not more than 
 a third of the county, is principally hard wood. Some pine is 
 found and considerable very fine poplar. Oak is still found in large 
 quantities and is in good demand for the export trade, being near 
 tidewater, and of excellent quality. A great deal of second growth 
 hickory is found, suitable for spokes, handles, etc., and its manufac- 
 ture would be a profitable business. 
 
 Agricultural — Except in the mountains the soil of the county 
 is admirably adapted to agriculture Half a dozen streams flow 
 through the county, watering it well in every portion. The hill 
 lands are sowed in grass, and horses, cattle and sheep are raised, par- 
 ticularly the latter, which are more profitable. The county is an 
 excellent one for sheep raising, and more attention will undoubtedly 
 be paid to it in the future 
 
 A portion of the fertile Valley of Virginia, the county is unsur- 
 passed for farming. Wheat and all the other cereals yield well and 
 farming forms the principal occupation of the people. 
 
 Much of the county seems especially adapted for fruit culture, 
 
Boone County. 
 
 123 
 
 and thousands of peach and apple trees are already yielding an- 
 nually large returns to the orchard owners. 
 
 The fertility of the soil, the absence of steep mountains and the 
 nearness to markets make this county a desirable one for farming, 
 and there is plenty of good land that may be secured, ranging in 
 price from $8 to $100 per acre for improved land, or averaging about 
 $30. Wild lands range from $2 to $10 per acre, averaging about $5. 
 
 Martinsburg, the county seat, is shown by the last census to be 
 the fourth city in the State, with a population of 7,226, an increase 
 of 14.06 per cent, in the last ten years. It is the center of a rich 
 agricultural section and is assuming large proportions as a manu- 
 facturing city. The large distillery alone pays out in taxes, wages, 
 etc., some $2,000 a day. Knitting factories, wood working establish- 
 ments, grain elevators and flour mills are the principal industrial 
 establishments. The city has macadamized streets, street railway, 
 electric light, gas, water works and sewerage. 
 
 BOONE COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Boone county lies in the south-west- 
 ern portion of the State. The Kanawha river on the north, the 
 Guyandotte and Big Sandy on the south flow almost parallel to 
 each other, while Big and Little Coal flow through the entire length 
 of Boone county in the same general direction until they unite just 
 beyond the county line and flow north into the Kanawha 12 miles 
 below Charleston. On either side of each of these streams are divid- 
 ing ridges, so that the surface of Boone is principally mountain- 
 ous, the ridges almost parallel. The fall in the rivers is very slight 
 and the valleys, though narrow, aflbrd ample room for a railroad 
 which could be built along these water courses with easy grades 
 from one end of the county to the other. At present the county is 
 without a railroad and the nearest railroad point is Brownstown, 30 
 miles distant from Boone Court House. From Brownstown to 
 Charleston by rail is 10 miles, to Huntington 60, to Richmond 359, 
 to Cincinnati 221, to Chicago 526. 
 
 Before the war, that blobdy period from which so many events in 
 the south are dated, Boone county was undergoing a rapid develop- 
 ment which has never been equalled since. Big Coal river from its 
 mouth to Peytona, some 30 miles, was locked and dammed, making 
 
124 
 
 Boone County. 
 
 it navigable for boats and barges. A railroad several miles in length 
 connected rich cannel coal mines with Pey tona and the river and great 
 quantities of coal were mined and shipped. Then came the war, 
 property was destroyed, the dams were broken, the railroad went to 
 decay and Boone county is now in as primitive a state as it ever 
 was. But it is not destined to remain so. So richly endowed with 
 natural resources as it is, Boone county can not long remain back- 
 ward and it will be but a short time till it is the scene of as much 
 activity as any other county in the State. 
 
 Coal. — Boone county is undoubtedly one of the richest counties 
 in the State in coal. The chief of a geological corps, after spending 
 six or eight weeks investigating Boone county coal, exclaimed that 
 it seemed as if the Almighty after sprinkling his coal around in the 
 rest of West Virginia had set his basket down in Boone county. 
 Splint, cannel, bituminous and coking coals are all found in Boone, 
 in inexhaustible quantities in thick and numerous veins. 
 
 Prof. W. M. Fontaine, of the University of Virginia, says that 
 "apparently the Kanawha coals reach their maximum in thickness 
 and good qualities in the Coal River district. The Kanawha coals 
 here meant are those that display themselves between Kanawha 
 Falls and Charleston. They are highly bituminous and contain 
 both splini and cannel. In the Coal River district I believe the 
 cream of these exist. They dip gently to the northwest, are undis- 
 turbed, and lie mostly in hills and mountains formed by erosion. 
 As they are pretty high above the streams, they are favorably situ- 
 ated for working by gravity, at the same time they have sufficient 
 coping to give safe roofs. 
 
 "Beneath the level oi the streams the New River coking coals are 
 to be found, and can be reached by shalting." 
 
 Prof. I. C. White, of the West Virginia University, says: "In 
 Wayne, Lincoln and Boone the Upper Freeport coal forms one of 
 the largest areas of pure cannel known in any country of the world." 
 
 Oae mountain on the Pond fork of Big Coal river, 1350 feet high, 
 contains no less than eleven veins of coal ranging from 2 feet 7 
 inches to 20 teet in thickness, and aggregating 58 feet 11 inches of 
 coal from top to bottom. One vein is pure cannel coal 42 inches 
 thick; another vein has 34 inches of pure cannel coal overlaid with 
 splint coal ; one vein is 20 feet thick with 2 feet of parting 7 feet 
 
J3ooNE County. 
 
 125 
 
 from the floor; one vein four feet thick is supposed to be the 
 "Eagle" vein, from which coke is made at Eagle in the Kanawha 
 Valley. 
 
 Another mountain in the same county was examined by an en- 
 gineer who reported as follows: 
 
 "Beginning at the base of the mountain is seam No. 1, 2 feet 7 
 inches of gas and coking coal, and 30 feet above this is my No. 2 of 
 the same quality, 3 feet 8 inches ot coal, and on above is 3 feet 4 
 inches of g£.s coal No. 3. Then comes No. 4, 3 feet 10 inches fine 
 splint. No. 5 is 2 feet 7 inches fine coal; No 6 is 10 feet 6 inches, 
 but with only 9 feet available; No. 7 is 5 feet, including 1 foot can- 
 nel ; No. 8 is 5 feet coal ; No. 9 is 9 feet coal ; No. 10 is 22 feet high, 
 to-wit: 13 feet coal, 2 feet slate and 7 feet coal. I also found 10 or 
 12 small veins which seem to have been split from the others." 
 
 These ten or eleven seams of coal extend over the entire county, 
 and beneath them all, be it remembered, are the New River coals. 
 
 The cannel coal of Boone county is of two kinds — the smooth 
 black and the "bird's eye," and is in veins from 3 to 6 feet thick. The 
 bituminous coal equals the best found in Pennsylvania, while the 
 splint coal for fuel or shipping purposes is unsurpassed. The value 
 of the cannel coal in this and adjoining counties can hardly be 
 estimated though some idea may be gained when it is known that 
 the only other cannel coal vein in the southern . part of the State 
 yields the owner a royalty of 2 cents a bushel or about $2,000 per 
 acre. 
 
 Timber. — An enormous amount of timber has been taken out of 
 Big and Little Coal and their tributaries annually for many years 
 and yet is estimated that fully one half the poplar timber of the 
 county remains untouched and three fourths of all the other kinds. 
 As -rapidly as it is being taken out, the timber will last for many 
 years to come.' One man has a contract for clearing a single tract 
 which it is estimated will require ten years for its completion. The 
 principal forest trees are poplar, walnut, oaks, ash, hickory, maple, 
 beech, birch, lynn, pine, hemlock, cherry, chestnut and locust. Pop- 
 lar and walnut timber is especially fine in Boone and trees of enor- 
 mous size are reported quite often. 
 
 A poplar tree was cut in 1889 on the waters of Big Coal river in 
 Boone county, the dimensions of which are given by Maj. Thos. L. 
 
126 
 
 Boone County. 
 
 Broun, of Charleston, as follows: The tree measured eight feet and 
 nine inches in diameter at the base, and the distance from the 
 ground to the first limb was seventy-one feet. From the tree were 
 cut six logs, each twelve feet in length, the diameters of which at the 
 small ends were respectively seven feet, four inches ; seven feet; six 
 feet, eight inches; six feet, one inch; five feet, nine inches and five 
 feet, six inches. The market value of the lumber cut from the one 
 tree was $186. 
 
 Wm. C. Reynolds, civil engineer, says : "I found on the West 
 fork near the head and over one thousand feet above the foot of the 
 mountain, a walnut tree eight feet in diameter and tall enough to 
 furnish half a dozen average length logs " 
 
 By means of splash dams logs may be gotten from the remotest 
 parts of the county into the rivers and then readily floated to 
 market. 
 
 Iron and Clay. — Iron ore may be found in considerable quantities, 
 principally black band, gray and red hematite ores. The value and 
 extent of these ores is not known, no investigations having ever 
 been made. 
 
 Excellent fire clay is found in abundance and has, until recently, 
 been made into vessels at two potteries, but want of transportation 
 facilities shut them up. 
 
 Good building stone is found throughout the county. 
 
 Agricultural. — The entire county has fewer people than either 
 one of the largest five cities in the State, and less than a fourth of 
 the county has ever been cleared, so that it may readily be seen 
 that little farming has ever been done. But there are great oppor- 
 tunities. Lands that produce such fine poplar and walnut timber 
 as Boone lands do, are more than usually fertile. Corn is the prin- 
 cipal crop now, though the soil is well adapted to tobacco and grass. 
 No better country could be found for cattle or sheep raising than in 
 Boone county. The soil and climate also make it an excellent 
 county for fruit culture. 
 
 BRAXTON COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Braxton is the central county of the 
 State, from which fact a station on the new railroad takes its name — 
 
Braxton County. 
 
 127 
 
 Centralia. Sutton, the county seat, is 100 miles by river from 
 Charleston, from which place until recently all the Braxton supplies 
 were taken in push boats. Now the West Virginia and Pittsburg 
 railroad reaches Sutton, and the Gauley branch, completed within a 
 few months, extends through the eastern part of the county into 
 Webster and on to Gauley river, whence an eastern connection will 
 undoubtedly soon be made. Sutton is now distant by rail from 
 Parkersburg 151 miles, from Martinsburg 272, from Baltimore 38G, 
 from Wheeling 192, from Pittsburg 263, from Cincinnati 346 and 
 from Chicago 658 miles. 
 
 The entire county is high, portions of it hilly and even moun- 
 tainous, but a large part is merely* a high plateau through which 
 the streams flow deep down below the level of the lands. Five 
 rivers have their courses through this county — Elk, Little Kanawha, 
 Big and Little Birch and Holly — by means of which and their trib- 
 utary .streams the entire county is well watered, and excellent water 
 power aff'orded for manufacturing purposes. 
 
 Hitherto unfavorably situated for development, Braxton's ad- 
 vantages have not received the attention they deserved, but with 
 the completion of the railroad through the county and the pros- 
 pects of the building of a railroad from Charleston, which is already 
 completed a portion of the way, with Sutton as its destination, de- 
 velopment must follow, and the resources of the county will soon 
 command their share of public attention. Some counties may have 
 better coal than Braxton, others better iron or better farming lands, 
 but as an all round county Braxton is not surpassed by any other 
 in the State. The gifts of nature have been bestowed with a lavish 
 hand and Braxton will stand high in the list of counties from any 
 stand point. 
 
 Coal. — The entire county is underlaid with valuable coal in great 
 abundance. The Lower, Barren and Upper coal measures are all 
 found in Braxton and are very prolific. In the western portion of the 
 county in the Upper coal measures the Pittsburg or Connellsville 
 seam of coking coal is found along with several others ranging from 
 2^ to 16 feet in thickness. These coals have been tested and are re- 
 ported to be as fine for coking purposes as any in the State. In the 
 eastern part are the Lower coal measures where the Thomas and 
 Davis seams, which are mined along the West Virginia Central rail- 
 
128 
 
 Braxton County. 
 
 road, and which make excellent coke, appear again in 5 and 6 
 foot veins. Splint, peacock and cannel coals are also found, giving 
 to Braxton as great a variety and as good coal as any county in the 
 State. 
 
 Iron. — In the southern part of the county iron is found and has 
 been manufactured. At the mouth of Strange creek, on Elk river, 
 25 miles from Sutton, the old charcoal blast furnace is still standing 
 where ten years ago pig iron was made. It was floated down Elk to 
 Charleston and shipped from there to Cincinnati where it was used 
 for the manufacture of car wheels, and the iron found to be of good 
 quality. But the cost of shipping down Elk, which is navigable lor 
 small bateaux only, was too great and prevented its further manu- 
 facture. The ores found are black band, kidney, red and gray hem- 
 atite. There is plenty of excellent coking coal and good limestone 
 in close proximity to the iron which should render the making of 
 iron cheap and profitable when cheap transportation is secured. 
 
 Timber. — Probably one-half of Braxton county is still clothed in 
 the original forests among which some of the most magnificent tim- 
 ber in the State is to be found. A great deal of the very finest qual- 
 ity has been cut out, but only the most accessible, and large tracts 
 in all parts of the county remain untouched. All the varieties 
 common to the altitude and latitude of the county are found. Pop- 
 lar and the various kinds of oak are the most plentiful, though 
 there is an abundance of hickor}^ ash, maple and some walnut. 
 The latter, however, is pretty well exhausted. The poplar of this 
 county is remarkably fine, the rich soil having produced a very large 
 growth and the trees reach enormous proportions. The oak timber 
 is also very fine and in much demand. There are a number of saw 
 mills within the county which cut daily hundreds of thousands of 
 feet of lumber, but the larger part of the timber now used is floated 
 down the Elk and sawed up at points nearer to the lumber markets. 
 The water courses above mentioned furnish ample means of getting 
 the timber from every portion of the county cheaply to market. 
 
 Agricultural. — This is one of the best agricultural counties in 
 the State. With a small part of the county cleared of timber 
 there has as yet been but little opportunity for Braxton to gain 
 much of a reputation as a farming county, but the soil is good and 
 what farming has been done shows conclusively what may be done 
 
Brooke County. 
 
 129 
 
 and that Braxton some day become one of the principal agri- 
 cultural counties of the State. The soil is fertile, the climate good. 
 Wheat, corn and all the other cereals yield well, and a magnificent 
 growth of blue grass clothes the hills as soon as the timberis taken 
 off. Farming of all kinds is profitable and largely engaged in, but 
 grazing and stock raising pay better than the cultivation of the soil. 
 The soil is black loam and red clay enriched through most of the 
 county with a light stratum of limestone, and well adapted for the 
 production of fine grasses. Timothy and clover are sowed, but the 
 blue grass soon drives them out and forms an excellent sod. Pas- 
 turage is plentiful from early in the spring until midwinter. Four 
 months feeding out of the year is all that is ever required for cattle, 
 and frequently, in favorable seasons, cattle run at large all winter. 
 Considerable attention is paid to sheep which yield fine wool and 
 prove quite profitable. The lands are high and rich and conse- 
 quently Braxton is in a fine fruit growing region. 
 
 BROOKE COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Brooke, the smallest county in the 
 State, lies in that narrow strip of West Virginia known as the north- 
 ern panhandle. But one county of the State is north of it, on the 
 east is Pennsylvania, on the west Ohio. The average width of the 
 county is about 7 miles, its length about a d ozen. Along the west 
 ern border for the entire length of the county flows the Ohio river- 
 along the banks of which runs the Pittsburg, Cincinnati, Chicago 
 and St. Louis railroad, which follows along the northern boundary 
 of the county and goes east into Pittsburg. Wellsburg, the county 
 seat is 16 miles from Wheeling, 50 from Pittsburg, 279 from Cin- 
 cinnati and 473 from Chicago. Close to the railroad centres, Pitts- 
 burg and Wheeling, and upon ihe Ohio river, the county enjoys 
 cheap transportation rates for its people and products in all direc- 
 tions. The Ohio river bottoms are wide and level, the country 
 back from the river is rolling, but no part of it so high or steep as to 
 be unfitted for cultivation. Several creeks cross the county, and 
 flow into the Ohio, watering the lan<1s w^ell and giving good water 
 power. 
 
 Coal. — Brooke is abundantly supplied with coal which is found 
 over the entire county, but has been little developed. A 4J foot 
 
130 
 
 Brooke County. 
 
 vein of the Pittsburg seam is mined, but principally for home con- 
 sumption. The report of the Mine Inspector shows that for the 
 year ending June 30, 1891, 52 employes dug from two mines 
 33,999 tons of coal. This vein is found in the hills above the sur- 
 face of the earth. Two other veins are found beneath the surface, 
 a 5 foot vein at 200 feet and a 6 foot vein at 600 feet. Boring for 
 gas at Wellsburg showed a 6 foot vein at 145 feet, but at other places 
 it is not reported and is probably valueless. Little has been done 
 hitherto to develop the coal, but recently a large purchase of coal 
 lands has been made by a company which proposes to develop it 
 extensively. 
 
 Clays and Stone. — The fire clays which are so extensively used 
 in the adjoining county of Hancock are deep under ground in 
 Brooke, but could easily be gotten out by shafting. Three veins of 
 clay have been found and tested and are equal in all respects to 
 those worked north of Brooke. The first vein, 22 feet thick, is 
 found about 115 feet below the surface; the second, 40 feet in thick- 
 ness, 150 feet below, the third at 200 feet is 17 feet thick. 
 
 Limestone is plentiful throughout the county and lime is made. 
 
 The Ohio river bed furnishes an abundant supply of building 
 sand, and building stone of excellent .quality is quarried in various 
 parts of the county. 
 
 Timber. — The marketable timber of the county is about exhaust- 
 ed. There is some oak left, but scarcely more than enough for 
 fencing and other farming purposes. There is still some walnut 
 timber left, though in the past year or two much of that has been 
 removed. But aside from this there is little timber left — none of 
 any consequence. 
 
 Agricultural. — Brooke is one of the best agricultural counties in 
 the State. A large part of it is Ohio river bottom land, the rest almost 
 as good and the entire county is in a very complete state of cultiva- 
 tion. Wheat and corn and garden stuffs are raised and excellent 
 fruits. These all yield well, the garden stuffs and fruits finding 
 read}^ market in the cities close at hand. Sheep raising and grazing 
 are the principal agricultural pursuits. The county is a limestone 
 one and the blue grass is almost as fine as that of Kentucky. The 
 panhandle is widely known for its sheep and wool, the quality of 
 the wool being particularly fine, and Brooke county is about the 
 
Cabell County. 
 
 131 
 
 best of the panhandle counties in this respect. A great many sheep 
 are raised, the annual wool clip in the county being about 200,000 
 pounds, all of which brings prices equal to the best wool in the 
 market. Cattle and horses are raised to some extent and the stock 
 of all kinds is being very much improved. 
 
 Wellsbdrg, the county seat, is a manufacturing town where 
 glass, straw paper, paper sacks, cigars and other articles are made, 
 has foundries, machine shops, etc. The streets are paved with brick, 
 and are well lighted. This city had when the census of 1890 was 
 taken, 2,325 population, an increase of 23.14 per cent in ten years 
 
 CABELL COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character.— Wayne is the westernmost county of 
 the State and Cabell adjoins it on the north and east. For thirty- 
 five or forty miles the county is bounded on the north-west by the 
 Ohio river From the south-east through the county flows the 
 Guyandotte river, its mouth at Guyandotte on the Ohio river. It 
 is not sufficiently large to admit of steamboat-navigation but on its 
 waters ply the push boats that form such an important part of the 
 smaller river navigation in this State. These are small flat bottom 
 boats of light draught which carry large loads of provisions and are 
 pushed along the river by men with poles. Canoes are also used on the 
 river and log rafts bring out on every rise innumerable logs. The 
 Guyandotte river for its entire length flows through most excellent 
 timber forests and though, for years, the timber has been coming 
 out, as yet but little has been done to denude the hills and valleys 
 of the timber that so richly clothes them, and every rise now brings 
 out immense rafts of logs and ties and timber. A sudden rise a 
 year ago brought out all the logs for miles above the river's mouth 
 and piled them up aojainst a gorge which formed just at the mouth. 
 As far as one could see the river was one solid mass of logs, jammed 
 so tight together that it took a month after the gorge was broken to get 
 the logs apart, using a steam engine to pull them out with. It was 
 estimated that there were 75,000 logs in the river at one time. And 
 this is how the Guyandotte principally benefits Cabell county. The 
 Mud river and other smaller streams flow into the Guyandotte and 
 help to water the county. From east to west through the center of the 
 county runs the Chesapeake and Ohio railroad. From the Great Ka- 
 
132 
 
 Cabell County. 
 
 nawha to Huntington the C. & 0. follows a low valley which is sup- 
 posed at onetime to have been the bed of the Kanawha river which 
 then emptied into the Ohio at Huntington some 40 miles below its 
 present mouth. The main line of the C. & 0. connects the county 
 directly with Cincinnati, Richmond and Washington; a branch of 
 the same connects with Lexington and Louisville, Ky. ; the Ohio 
 River Railroad connects with Wheeling and the northern part of 
 the State, while the Huntington and Big Sandy, a short line road, 
 connects Huntington with the Norfolk & Western at Kenova. 
 Huntington, the county seat, is 50 miles from Charleston, 121 from 
 Parkersburg, 215 from Wheeling, 41^ from Richmond, 161 from 
 Cincinnati and 466 from Chicago. 
 
 The county is principally rolling. The Ohio river bottoms, broad 
 and fertile, along the western part of the county are bordered by a 
 row of hills, back of which the county is undulating and good for 
 farming. 
 
 Coal. — Little coal is found in Cabell and less has ever been dug. 
 Bordering along the splendid coal fields of Lincoln, Wayne and the 
 counties east of them, some coal extends into Cabell, but it is of no 
 great value and the veins are small. Beneath the surface the coals 
 that underlie many of the counties of the State would probably be 
 found. The county is sufficiently close to the coal fields of the 
 State to be amply and cheaply supplied with all it needs. 
 
 Stone. — Building stone is found in the county, very desirable in 
 quality and appearance. Its use is frequent in the buildings being 
 erected in the city of Huntington and elsewhere. Sand and other 
 building material are abundant. 
 
 Clay. — Good fire and brick clay is found in abundance in the 
 county, and many brick are made. At -Huntington a paving brick 
 company is making brick for paving, while in various parts of the 
 county splendid bricks are made and in large numbers. Fire clay 
 is not now used though there is much of it 
 
 Ochre has been found in small deposits in the county, but not in 
 available quantities. 
 
 Timber. — Much of the best timber of the county has been re- 
 moved, but still perhaps a third of the county is yet in woodlands. 
 Along the streams and in the more thickly settled portions of the 
 
Cabell County. 
 
 133 
 
 county the timber is about all gone. Oak is the principal wood 
 remaining. 
 
 Agricoltural. — Cabell is a splendid farming county. The broad 
 Ohio river bottoms extending along the entire western portion of 
 the county are unsurpassed for all kinds of farming. Magnificent 
 wheat crops are grown upon them and other crops, corn, grass, vege- 
 tables, etc., grow well. The hills produce good grass and are not 
 high or steep, making most excellent grazing lands, and consider- 
 able attention is given to stock. Outside of Huntington, the prin- 
 cipal city, the chief interests of the county are in agriculture. 
 
 Huntington, the second city in the State in population, had, by 
 the census of 1890, 10,108 people, a gain of 218.46 per cent in ten 
 years. Its growth has been phenomenal. But twenty-one years of 
 age the city now has fully 15,000 people, while the town of Guyan- 
 dotte on one side "of it and Central City on the other, will add at 
 least two thousand more. The city is chiefly a manufacturing one, 
 employing in the different industrial plants no less than 2,500 men. 
 Car building and repairing shops, wood and stone working houses, 
 glass factories, a large brewery, flouring mills, foundries and other 
 enterprises make up the list of industrial plants. The city has 
 broad and well paved streets, sewerage, electric light and power, gas, 
 water works, a good fire department, electric and horse cars, many 
 handsome buildings and plenty of room to grow. 
 
 CALHOUN COUNTY. 
 
 LOCATION AND CHARACTER. — The southem end of Calhoun touches 
 the western side of Braxton, the central county of the State. 
 Through the northern portion of it flows the Little Kanawha river, 
 navigable from its mouth to Creston, a few miles within the Cal- 
 houn county line, and sonietiujes farther up. Through the entire 
 southern and western parts of the county flows the West Fork, 
 reaching the Little Kanawha just below the edge of Calhoun county. 
 The county is hilly, almost mountainous in some portions, but the 
 hills are not steep, and there are few that are not suitable for pasture, 
 if not for farming. Grantsville, the county seat, is about 70 miles 
 by river from Parkersburg, its most available railroad point, mak- 
 ing Grantsville 164 miles from Wheeling, 468 from Baltimore, 265 
 from Cincinnati, and 570 from Chicago. Numerous railroads have 
 
134 
 
 Calhoun County. 
 
 been projected at various times to follow the Little Kanawha valley 
 and thus pass through Calhoun, but none has yet been built. 
 
 Coal. — In the southern portion a little coal is found in the hill- 
 sides above the water level, but in most of the county none is to be 
 found above the surface of the earth. The entire county is under- 
 laid with coal sjme 60 feet or more below the ground. At Grants- 
 ville a 7 foot vein of coal was found 70 feet under ground, but none 
 has ever been mined either for domestic use or for shipment. The 
 coal is good, and a 70 foot shaft might easily be constructed, so that, 
 were transportation facilities afforded, the Calhoun coal fields might 
 be profitably operated. 
 
 Iron. — Sarface specimens of iron ove may be found in almost any 
 part of the county, but the extent or value of the ore has never been 
 ascertained. A gentleman who has investigated the entire Little 
 Kanawha valley, says: "Just at the county line on the left bank 
 of the Little Kanawha, is a mountain, or rather a high hill, which 
 is underlaid with iron. So powerful is the magnetic attraction that 
 no storm accompanied with lightning passes over this mountain 
 without balls of fire shattering the trees. This has been constantly 
 noticed. The needle of the compass will not settle when near it, 
 and fine specimens of iron ore have been found on these lands." 
 
 Oil. — It is thought that oil may be found in Calhoun. Signs of 
 it have already been seen, and this, with the fact that it is found in 
 such quantities in Wirt county on the west, Ritchie on the north, 
 and that some has been foand in Gilmer on the east, gives rise to 
 the opinion. 
 
 Timber. — Fully one half the county is still covered with the 
 original forests. The county is splendidly drained with numerous 
 streams which aflford cheap transportation for timber of all kinds, and 
 along the banks of which most of the poplar timber has been cut. 
 For as much as two miles back from the streams the poplar timber 
 has been cut, but oak is never hauled more than a mile, and the 
 timber in the greater portion of the county has been scarcely 
 touched. In the eastern part is some white pine, but the principal 
 woods are poplar, the oaks, chestnut, beech, maple, walnut and 
 other hard woods. There is some magnificent timber in Calhoun. 
 . Logs 60 feet long may be seen floating in the Little Kanawha almost 
 any time. Tramways, frequently 10 miles long, are built along 
 
Calhoun County. 
 
 135 
 
 some of the smaller streams and convey the logs to water deep 
 enough to float them. In this county the writer saw a country 
 home, full 60 miles from a railroad, with an interior as handsomely 
 •finished in quartered chestnut as could be found in any city home. 
 It was cut, sawed and dressed by the owner of the house who owned 
 a small saw-mill. Some of the lands are owned in large tracts, but 
 those of 1,000 acres or more are the exception, and most of the land 
 in the county is owned in small tracts. The price per acre for tim- 
 ber lands is from $4.00 to $10.00 — less than the value of the 
 timber upon it. 
 
 Agricultural. — Had more attention been paid to agriculture 
 and less to timbering, which has pretty, well monopolized the peo- 
 ple of Calhoun, lar better results might be seen upon the farms. 
 The county is well adapted for all kinds of agricultural pursuits. 
 The hills are neither high nor steep, but rather elevated plateaus. 
 The soil is fertile with plenty of limestone, blue grass grows well 
 and the county is particularly suited to sheep and stock raising. 
 Cattle turned out upon the hills find splendid pasture nearly all the 
 year and the rich lands that are not in grass yield abundantly of 
 the grains that are necessary to feed them for the few remaining 
 months. Some sheep are raised and more should be. A crop well 
 suited to the soil of Calhoun and which yields well is tobacco. Very 
 fine tobacco is grown in some parts of the county and it might be 
 made one of the important crops. Excellent advantages are offer- 
 ed here to the agriculturist— rich soil, land lying well, fine grass 
 springing up spontaneously and cheap property, improved lands sell- 
 ing at from $8 to $25 per acre. 
 
 CLAY COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character.— Clay county lies ne5r the center of 
 the State, slightly to the southwest. Elk river, navigable for push- 
 boats but not for steamboats, flows through the county and empties 
 into the Kanawha, a navigable stream, at Charleston, 50 miles from 
 Clay Court House. Up this stream in canoes or push boats all the 
 Clay county supplies are taken. No railroad penetrates the county, 
 though the Charleston, Clendennin and Sutton railroad has been 
 built, within a few months, from Charleston to the Clay county line, 
 and will eventually pass through the county and extend to Sutton, 
 
136 
 
 Clay County. 
 
 50 miles above Clay C. H. The distance from the county-seat to 
 Charleston is 50 miles, to Huntington 100, to Cincinnati 261, to 
 Chicago 566, to Richmond 419 miles. The county is very hilly, 
 the hills high and steep with narrow tops, scarcely wide enough in 
 places for a road along the top of the ridge. The valleys are nar- 
 row with scarcely any "bottoms" along the creeks. Seven-eighths 
 of the county is owned by non-residents and held for speculation. 
 This fact, the rugged character of the county and the want of 
 transportation facilities have caused Clay to remain among the 
 most backward counties in the State. It is also the least popu- 
 lous, save one. The county has, however, a wealth of natural r.e- 
 sources which will make it when once developed one of the princi- 
 pal ones of the State. 
 
 Coal. — The county is remarkably favored with coal, but as yet 
 none has ever been mined save for domestic consumption, and a 
 very small quantity has supplied this demand. In a few places 
 coal veins are now being opened up, with a view to their develop- 
 ment upon the completion of the railroad through the county. The 
 entire county is underlaid with coal in veins as high as eleven ieet 
 in thickness Soft bituminous, splint and cannel coals are all found 
 and all in large veins. Much of it is the famous Pittsburg vein of 
 excellent coking coal, and the Elk river field will, when once opened 
 up, undoubtedly become as fjimous for its coke production as the 
 New and Monongahela river fields now^ are. The Clay county coals 
 are all found above water level and may be easily mined. 
 
 Ir »n.— "In Clay county," said Prof M. F. Maury, "at the mouth 
 of Standing Rock run, 246 feet (barometric measurement) above 
 Elk river, is a fine deposit of nodular brown oxide of iron, the re- 
 sult of decomposition from the carbonate. The nodules are very 
 thickly embedded in a soit, gray clay, and will yield from 35 to 40 
 per cent of metallic iron, and being soft and cellular work well in 
 the furnace." The thickness of this bed is from 6 to 7 feet and it 
 is known to extend for many miles along the banks of Elk river. 
 This bed of ore was worked :along with some from Braxton county 
 at the charcoal cold blast furnace mentioned under "Braxton Coun- 
 ty," a few pages back. Several other beds of iron ore of various 
 thicknesses have been found in Clay, but little is known of them 
 more than that they exist in pa3dng quantities. 
 
Clay County. 
 
 137 
 
 Clays, etc. —There is a good quality of fire clay in this county, 
 but like so much else it has lain unknown or unnoticed for want of 
 facilities for development. 
 
 There is limestone and sandstone of very excellent quality for 
 building purposes and an abundance of building sand 
 
 Timber. — Though Clay is a finely timbered county; no better 
 timber being anywhere found, scarcely an eighth of the timber of 
 the county has been removed. The lands, owned principally in 
 large tracts, are held by persons who have not cared to sell their 
 timber at the Ioav prices that have hitherto prevailed. But with the 
 approach of the railroad lands will go up, better markets will be af- 
 forded, and the timber will soon be cut out. Considerable black 
 spruce may be found in the county, some of it very fine. Oaks, 
 poplar, walnut and other hard woods are the principal kinds of tim- 
 ber. A good deal of curly walnut is found, but it is so rare and 
 commands so high a price in the markets that it is quickly 
 bought up and will not last long. Possessing most excellent timber 
 the county is also advantageously situated for getting it out. Be- 
 tween the steep hills are streams in which by means of splash dams 
 timber may be floated from any hillside to the river and there 
 drifted down to market. The Elk river is under the charge of the 
 national government and more or less money is spent every year in 
 clearing the channel of rocks and other obstructions for the benefit 
 of the timber men. 
 
 Agricultural. — With scarcely more than 40 square miles out of 
 the original forest it may readily be seen that little farming has ever 
 been done in Clay. The soil is fertile having a depth of from 4 to 
 6 inches on the hills and a foot or more in the level lands. The 
 steepness of the hills is all that keeps Clay from being an excellent 
 farming county, and this does not interfere with stock raising. The 
 hillsides are rich and bring good grass. They are excellent for pas- 
 turage and stock, and sheep raising would be as profitable here as in 
 any of the surrounding counties. The county is also well adapted 
 for fruit growing. 
 
 DODDRIDGE COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Doddridge county lies north of the 
 center of the State, about equi-distant between this center and the 
 
138 
 
 Doddridge County. 
 
 southern end of the panhandle. Through the center of the county 
 from east to west the Baltimore and Ohio road extends, by way of 
 which West Union, the county seat, is distant from Parkersburg 55 
 miles, from Wheeling 150 miles, from Martinsburg 225, from Balti- 
 more 339, from Cincinnati 250, from Chicago 555 miles Rising in 
 the south eastern portion of the county and flowing toward the north 
 west, Middle Island creek divides the county about in halves. The 
 northern half is watered by McElroy creek, the southern by Hughes 
 river. The surface of the county is rolling and hilly, not moun- 
 tainous nor steep. The valleys are numerous with broad and fertile 
 bottoms along the many creeks. A rich and productive soil covers 
 the entire county, hills and all, making Doddridge one of the best 
 agricultural counties in the State. 
 
 Coal. — Through nearly all the county coal is found in the hill 
 sides but in veins not over 3 feet thick. None is mined except for 
 local use and very little for that. The same veins that are worked 
 in Harrison county are found in Doddridge from 80 to 100 feet be- 
 neath the earth. They are about 7 and 11 feet thick respectively. 
 Options were recently secured by Eastern parties on several thous- 
 and acres of land in the county their intention being to shaft and 
 mine these underground coal veins, but financial difficulty prevent- 
 ed the carrying out of the enterprise. 
 
 Timber. — Fully half the county is still in timber, a good deal of 
 which has been culled, leaving from a fourth to a third in untouch- 
 ed timber. What has been taken out has gone down the water 
 courses wh ch liberally supply the county with transportation for 
 timber, or has been hauled to the railroad over tramroads which are 
 numerous and of considerable length, one of them being 20 miles 
 in length and. over which vast quantities of timber have been 
 hauled. In most places where the timber has been removed it has 
 been all taken, staves, ties, telegraph poles, hoop poles and tan hark 
 all going along with the saw timber and leaving the land cleared 
 and ready for farming. The timber that is left embraces oak, ash, 
 hickory, poplar and a little walnut. Others are numerous but 
 these are the principal kinds. The rich soil, which produces good 
 crops of all kinds, has also produced a good timber crop and the 
 trees are large and fine, making excellent timber and a great deal of 
 it. With good timber and accessibility to market the forests of 
 
DoDDRH'GE County. 
 
 139 
 
 Doddridge are very valuable. Wild lands can be ])ought for from 
 $8 to $10 per acre. 
 
 Oil and G-as. — Little is known of the Doddridge county oil field 
 except by the producers. Oil is found in nearly every part of the 
 county north of the railroad, but little is known of the value of the 
 field save that oil is found, and that, whatever the quantities, there 
 is enough to make the business profitable, the operating companies 
 keeping to themselves all they know. Nearly all of the county is 
 taken up in oil leases, though some tracts are not yet leased. A 
 new field has recently been opened up near the center of the county 
 and one of the wells there produces at the rate of 50 barrels per 
 day. Little is known of the others, but pipe lines and tanks are 
 being constructed, indicating plenty of oil. South of the railroad 
 and near the Harrison county line one of the strongest gas wells 
 known has been bored, and pipes are now laid, piping the gas to 
 Clarksburg to light and heat that town. 
 
 Agricultural. - Of the 160,000 acres in the county about one 
 half is in farms. The entire county is well adapted to farming, well 
 w^atered, fertile, gently rolling, the hills productive as well as the 
 low lands, with an excellent climate for farming and stock raising. 
 Wheat, corn and the other cereals yield well, and all the products 
 of the farm consumed in the county are raised at home, but not 
 much more. More attention has been given to timbering and oil 
 than to farming, but the latter is now receiving more attention than 
 formerly, and is a growing industr3^ Farm lands are cheap, selling 
 at from $8 to S20 per acre, and as good a farm as there is in the 
 county can be bought for $15 per acre. The county is particularly 
 adapted to sheep, and a good deal of attention is given them, and 
 indeed all kinds of stock. The county has a limestone soil and 
 produces magnificent blue grass, equalling that grown in any por- 
 tion of the State Cattle are raised in large numbers and shipped 
 to eastern markets, principally to Baltimore. The excellent grass 
 and the abundance of water make Doddridge a fine stock county. 
 Horses are raised and recently the stock has been much improved. 
 The same is true of sheep, and last summer Doddridge county 
 spring lambs brought in eastern markets a higher price than any 
 others on the market. 
 
140 
 
 Fayette County. 
 
 FAYETTE COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. --About midway between the center 
 of the State and the southern border is Fayette county, in size the 
 fifth one in the State. It is high and mountainous, the surface 
 badly broken. Taking a general north-western course the New 
 river flows through the county, joining with the Gauley river to 
 form the Great Kanawha which flows some 13 miles within this 
 county. The entire course of these rivers through the county is 
 marked by canyons, precipices and bluffs. They cut deep down 
 below the level of the greater part of the county and wash and 
 tumble over and among the great rocks that fill their beds, between 
 steep walls of rock several hundred feet in height. The grand 
 canyon of the New river which delights the eye of every passen- 
 ger on the C. & 0. R'y is seven or more hundred feet above the bed 
 of the river while back on either side the surface of the county, 
 somewhat broken, but principally rolling table land, is far above 
 the level of the river. In the northern part the county is very high, 
 some of the mountains reaching a considerable height. About three 
 miles below the junction of the New and Gauley rivers are the falls 
 of the Great Kanawha, 14 feet in height. Numerous streams flow 
 into these three rivers in the county, but none are navigable save 
 the Kanawha beginning several miles below the falls. The other 
 streams are rough and rocky and scarcely suitable for floating tim- 
 ber even. Fayette, particularly along the railroad, is thickly set- 
 tled, its people being principally engaged in mining and coke mak- 
 ing. Following the banks of the New river the Chesapeake & Ohio 
 railway passes through the county. Most of the distance it is built 
 on both sides of the river, the banks on either side being too nar- 
 row to Ldmit ot double tracking. Several short coal roads connect 
 the mines located up the creeks with the C & 0. R'y, and recently 
 the Kanawha & Michigan railway has been extended up from 
 Charleston to the mouth of Gauley river where a connection with 
 the C. & 0. is made. Fayetteville, the county seat, is lour miles 
 from Fayette station on the C. & 0., situated on the high land 
 above the river. From Fayetteville to Charleston is 54 miles, to 
 Huntington 104, to Wheeling 282, to Richmond 323, to Cincinnati 
 265, to Chicago 570. 
 
Fayette' County. 
 
 141 
 
 Coal, —Fayette stands far above all the other counties in the 
 State in coal and coke production. For filty miles along the C. & 
 O. is almost an unbroken line of coal mines and coke ovens, there 
 being 42 coal mines in operation in the county. la the year end- 
 ing June 30, 1891, Fayette employed 3/356 men at her 42 mines and 
 1,158 coke ovens. The coal production was 1,737,017 tons, the coke 
 326,984. In 1892 the number of employes had grown to 4,o01, of 
 coke ovens to 1,334, with 32 more building The coal production 
 was 1,564,579 tons, the coke 680.216. The coal found in the county 
 is all magnificent coking coal, analyses of which may be seen in 
 preceding pages of this work. The coke is higher in fixed carbon 
 and lower in sulphur than most of the other cokes made in America, 
 and is coming into general use. The increase in the coke produc- 
 tion of Fayette county in the last year will be seen by the above 
 figures to be over 100 per cent, and still the industry is growing. 
 New railroad lines are projected in all directions, new mines are 
 being opened, and the coal and coke industry in Fayette county has 
 just begun to grow to great proportions. The workable seams of 
 coal within the county are given as follows': Quinnimont, 3 to 6 
 feet thick; Fire Creek, 3^ to 4^ feet; Nuttaliburg, 3| to 4 feet; 
 Clarion, 5 feet; Lower Kittanning, 7 feet; Upper Kittanning, 5 feet; 
 Lower Freeport, 5 feet; Upper Freeport, 7 feet. In many places 
 several seams are found, one above the other. 
 
 Iron. — Good iron ores are found in Fayette, and have been suc- 
 cessfully worked. But little attention has ever been given to them 
 because of the greater importance and prevalence of the coal. 
 
 Fire Clay. — In a county where so much fire brick is used in the 
 construction of coke ovens as in Fayette, deposits of fire clay must 
 be of great value. In Fayette beds are found of varying thick- 
 nesses ranging up to eighteen feet. Hitherto it has not been put to 
 use to any great extent, though why it should not be is hard to see. 
 The clay is equal to that found anywhere, and is close to the mines 
 where it is used. It is also on a line of railroad which would offer 
 cheap freight rates for fire and paving brick for which there is al- 
 ways good demand. 
 
 Timber. — Fayette is filled with the finest timber. Along the 
 rivers and the railroads about all has been cut out, and in the better 
 upland farming regions much has been removed, but still perhaps 
 
142 
 
 Gilmer County. 
 
 one half the county is now in timber. Oak is the principal wood, 
 though many other kinds abound and fill the forests. Timber op- 
 erations are largely carried on, and several large saw mills are run- 
 ning in the county, cutting up the products of the forests. 
 
 Agricultural. — While parts of the county are rough and rugged 
 the greater portion is well suited to certain kinds of agriculture. The 
 high, rich lands of the greater part of the county are admirably 
 adapted to the raising of tobacco and none raised in the State will 
 excel in quality that which comes from Fayette county. Last year 
 in Lynchburg and Richmond markets Fayette tobacco brought very 
 near the highest price brought by any tobacco raised in the United 
 States. Corn is grown to some extent but tobacco and grass take 
 the place, to a large extent, of the cereals. The land produces ex- 
 cellent grass and pasturage, and sheep and cattle thrive. But not 
 much attention is given to farming, the chief industries of the 
 county being the mining of coal and making of coke. 
 
 GILMER COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character — Gilmer lies slightly to the northwest 
 of the centre of the State. The county, like those about it, is not 
 mountainous, but rolling and hilly. Through the centre of the 
 county winds the Little Kanawha river, which is in times of high 
 water navigable as far up as Glenville for steamboats, and at all 
 seasons furnishes means of transportation for logs and light mer- 
 chandise. The waters of the Little Kanawha are well distributed 
 over the entire county. The soil is clay and loam enriched with 
 limestone and very productive, and no part of it is valueless. Glen- 
 ville, the county seat, is 96 miles by river from Parkersburg. The 
 closest railroad point is Weston, 28 miles from Glenville, which is 
 by this route 175 miles from Wheeling, 369 from Baltimore, 330 
 from Cincinnati and 631 from Chicago. Upon the completion of 
 the Charleston, Clendennin and Sutton railroad the distance from 
 Glenville to Charleston by Weston and railroad will be 172 miles. 
 The Ravenswood, Spencer and Glenville railroad is now completed 
 to Spencer and its extension to Glenville is contemplated within 
 the near future. The construction of a railroad up the Little Kan- 
 awha valley from Parkersburg to a connection with the West Vir- 
 ginia and Pittsburg railroad is contemplated and will undoubtedly 
 
Gilmer County. 
 
 143 
 
 be built within a short time, giving to all the Little Kanawha coun- 
 ties railroad connection both oast and west. The roads of Gilmer 
 county are very good and well kept up. 
 
 Coal. — Going up the little Kanawha valley the first coal above 
 the water level is found in the hills near Glenville, where a 5 foot 
 vein, 75 feet above the river, supplies the town. In the western 
 portion of the county coal is found but it is under the ground. 
 The entire county is full of very fine coal, the veins ranging from 
 2^ to 16 feet in thickness. The 16 foot vein is found in the south- 
 ern part of county. For want of shipping facilities none of the 
 Gilmer coal has ever been mined save for the local needs of the 
 people of the county, but with a view to inducing railroad construc- 
 tion the coal has been opened and tested and it is found to be equal 
 to the very best W^st Virginia coking coal. The county is abund- 
 antly supplied with the finest of coals and only a railroad is needed 
 to develop it and bring Gilmer up to a high rank among the coal 
 producing counties of the State. 
 
 Oil. — Recently some oil has been found in the county. A test 
 well at Glenville was put down some months ago and some oA was 
 found, but the company had difficulty in boring and while indica- 
 tions of a good well were found, the boring stopped before oil was 
 reached in any quantities. 
 
 Timber — Over half the county is still covered with magnificent 
 timber, principa ly oak. Poplar timber is pretty well removed from 
 Gilmer county, but the very finest kind of oaks remain, all kinds 
 of which abound. Some white pine is found in the western por- 
 tion of the county, but the principal kinds of timber are the hard 
 woods, linn and poplar. A few saw mills are at work in the county, 
 but the most of the timber is floated down the Little Kanawha to 
 lower markets, transportation being afforded in this way at all sea- 
 sons of the year. In some portions of the county the timber re- 
 mains as yet untouched, and offers an inviting field to lumbermen. 
 Tanbark is found in abundance. 
 
 Iron, Clay, etc. — Some iron ore is found in the county, but it 
 has nevcT been developed at all, and the value or extent of it is not 
 known. Limestone is found though not in large quantities. There 
 is a very fine quality of fire clay, which is found in abundance, but 
 it has never been utilized. 
 
144 
 
 Grant County. 
 
 Agricultural. — Stripped of its timber the land in Gilmer is very 
 fine for agricultural purposes. It is in West Virginia's fine blue 
 grass belt and this, the finest of all grasses for stock, springs up 
 spontaneously and forms an excellent sod. The hills are produc- 
 tive to their tops, and excellent hillside pasturage is afforded in every 
 portion of the county. Cattle and sheep are now raised in consid- 
 erable numbers, but the fact that over half the county is still in 
 forests in which the blue grass grows as soon as the timber is taken 
 off, shows the opportunities still offered to cattle and sheep raisers. 
 The climate is mild and the feeding period short. But not alone 
 for grazing is the county suited. The soil is fertile and very produc- 
 tive, and crops of all kinds yield well. Farming lands will range in 
 value from $5 to $15 per acre, with $10 a fair average. Unimproved 
 lands will average about $3 per acre. 
 
 GRANT COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — The Potomac river which forms the 
 northern boundary of the entire eastern portion of the State, has 
 its source at the corner of Grant and Tucker counties, from which 
 point the State boundary line passes directly north to Pennsylvania. 
 From this point the Potomac runs along the northwestern border of 
 Grant in its course to the sea. Through the center of the county 
 passes the main Alleghany range of mountains, and through the 
 southern portion of the county flows the South Branch of the Po- 
 tomac river. The entire county is very mountainous, though with 
 fertile valleys between the ranges, many of them broad and all pro- 
 ductive. The mountains are all high and most of them steep, 
 though in most places suited for pasturage, and lie in ranges between 
 which the surface is level. These valleys compose a portion of the 
 finest farming lands in the State. The roads between the moun- 
 tains are very good, those across the mountains rough. Through 
 the entire length of the county, from the Potomac to the South 
 Branch of the same, a railroad has been surveyed and a large sub- 
 scription has been voted by the county for its construction. Along 
 the Western border the West Virginia Central and Pittsburg rail- 
 road has been constructed, giving connections north and south. The 
 most accessible railroad point for Petersburg, the county seat, is 
 Romney, 38 miles away, on a branch, or Keyser, 42 miles away, on 
 
Grant County, ^45 
 
 the main line, of the B. & 0. By Romney the distance to Martins- 
 burg is 1 18 miles, to Baltimore 232. By Keyser it is 221 miles to 
 Wheeling, 225 to Parkersburg, 421 to Cincinnati and 689 to Chicago 
 The completion of the W. Va. C. & P. to a connection with the 
 Chesapeake and Ohio, which is contemplated, would put Grant* 
 much closer to Charleston and the southern part of the State. 
 
 Coal.— The Pittsburg or Connellsville coking coal covers about 
 one half of Grant county, extending as far east over the county as 
 the eastern front of the Alleghanies. Until recently no coal had 
 ever been mined in this county, but the construction of a railroad 
 through the county gave coal mining an impetus and some mines 
 were opened along the line of the railroad. But while coal abounds 
 in fully half the county, few if any developments have been made 
 save immediately along the railroad. The coal is the fine coking 
 coal which has made Connellsville famous, and is now being worked 
 in several counties in West Virginia. The "Big Vein," 14 feet thick 
 is found in Grant and worked a little. Other veins are found of vary- 
 ing thickness, but though they are workable, none of them have ever 
 been opened or mined. A railroad through the county, one which 
 would do more than skirt along the edge, would do much toward 
 developing the coal of Grant county. 
 
 Iron.— The mountains of Grant county are liberally stored with 
 red and brown hematite and red fossiliferous hematite iron ore^. 
 The latter ore is that worked in the prosperous iron regions of 
 Pennsylvania, and at Birmingham, Ala, But there seems to be a 
 thickening of the veins in West Virginia, and while only a few 
 inches m thickness both north and south ot West Virginia it here 
 reaches a considerable thickness. In Grant county five parallel 
 strata or seams of the red fossiliferous hematite ore are found, of the 
 following thicknesses : 8 feet, 18 feet, 13 feet, 1 1 feet and 7 feet mak- 
 ing a total thickness of 57 feet of valuable iron ore containing from 
 50 to 60 per cent, pure iron. This ore is richer and in thicker beds 
 than that of Pennsylvania and Alabama, is within a few miles of 
 the finest kinds of coking coals, and among inexhaustible quantities 
 ot imestone, and only transportation is wanting to make this one 
 ot the great iron producing sections of the country. Above the 
 red fossiliferous ores are vast quantities of brown hematite ores of 
 great value. From these ores iron was made before the war, and 
 
146 
 
 Grant County. 
 
 there are now in use a number of stoves which were cast of pig iron 
 made from native ores within the county. 
 
 LiMKSTONE, Clay, etc. — Limestone is found in inexhaustible 
 quantities, and of several different varieties in all parts of the 
 county. A hydraulic limestone is also found, and excellent lime, 
 both common and hydraulic, is made. The lime is of the finest 
 kind, equal to the Berkeley county lime, which is in good demand. 
 
 A very fine quality of fire clay is found, but it has never been 
 utilized, and the extent of it is not known. 
 
 A soft sandstone, very valuable for building purposes, is found in 
 several places in the mountains ot this county. When quarried 
 the stone is very soft and may be sawed or cut into any shape de- 
 sired, but after exposure to the air it becomes almost as hard as 
 flint. It makes an excellent building stone. 
 
 Timber. — In over half the county the timber is still standing. 
 A good deal of farm land has been cleared, and since the construc- 
 tion of the railroad in the western part of the county, considerable 
 timber has been taken out, some of the larpjest lumber plants in 
 the State being along that line, but there are from 150,000 to 200,- 
 000 acres of the county still covered with magnificent timber of 
 every kind. The high mountain regions are covered with white 
 and other pines, and black spruce, much of which has been dead- 
 ened by the pine destroying insect, and most of which is now being 
 cut to save it. The most of the remainder of the timber is white 
 or chestnut oak, though cherry, ash, poplar, beech and maples are 
 abundant. But the distance from market and the difficulty in 
 reaching it have offered little incentive to timber men to cut this 
 timber, except along the railroad where a great deal of timber is 
 now being cut. There is an enormous quantity of tanbark in the 
 county, the oaks being the most abundant timber, with their wealth 
 of tanbark, and there are a few tanneries in the county, one quite 
 large one. Getting out tanbark will long be one of the principal 
 industries of the county. 
 
 Agricultural. — Farming is at present the principal occupation 
 of the people of the county, and some of the most valuable farms 
 in the State are found in the valleys of Grant and the other South 
 Branch counties. The price of farming lands in the county runs 
 up to $50 and $100 per acre, and will average about $25. The soil 
 
Grant County. 
 
 in the valleys is like that of Hardy and the other South Branch 
 counties, almost inexhaustible. One man in Grant county has a 
 river bottom farm on which corn has been raised without alterna- 
 tion year after year since the oldest resident of the county can recol- 
 lect, certainly for 80 or 90 years, perhaps for 100, and the yield is 
 just as good today as it ever was. The soil seems never to wear out 
 and produces magnificent crops. Yields of 100 bushels of corn per 
 acre, or even more, are not rare All kinds of farnjing is 
 conducted, but the raising of cattle and corn are the principal 
 industries of the county. The river bottoms are princi- 
 pally used for cultivation, the hills for pasturage. Very fine cattle 
 are grown, principally for the export trade, for which those over 
 1400 pounds in weight are chiefly used. Large numbers of cattle 
 are raised and shipped annually. Not so much attention is paid to 
 sheep raising as to cattle, though a great many are sold every year 
 Cleared of its timber this county would afi"ord pasturage and grains 
 for several times as many cattle and sheep as are now grown 
 
 Mineral, Watehs.- There are a great many sulphur and chalyb- 
 eate springs in this county, some of the waters of which possess 
 very valuable medicinal properties. 
 
 GREENBRIER COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. - Greenbrier, next to the largest county 
 in the State, borders on the Virginia line, south of the center of 
 West Virginia. The eastern border is along the top of the main 
 Alleghany range of mountains, and the entire eastern portion of the 
 county is very high and mountainous. In the western portion are 
 also many mountains, while the central portion-about one-half the 
 county-is an elevated plateau, undulating but not hilly very fer- 
 tile and productive. East of the center of the county, dividing the 
 plateau region from the mountains, the Greenbrier river flows from 
 north to south through the entire county, turning in the southern 
 portion toward the west, and uniting in the next county on the 
 west with the New river. The Greenbrier river flows almost the 
 entire length of the county through a deep gorge, the mountains on 
 one side, the level plateau far above the river on the other The 
 central portion of the county is of limestone lormation and caverns 
 underlie it, so that streams of water frequentlv disappear beneath 
 
148 
 
 Greenbrier County. 
 
 the earth never, so far as known, to re-appear again At other places 
 great streams of pure spring water gush out of the sides of hills and 
 make excellent power for water mills, many of which are built to 
 utilize this power. In the north and west of the county are Cherry 
 and Meadow rivers, both tributaries of the Gauley, which water 
 well that portion of the county, and afford means of transportation 
 for the timber. Good turnpike roads penetrate nearly every portion 
 of the county and center at the county seat. Through the southern 
 portion of the county, from east to west passes the Chesapeake and 
 Ohio railroad. Lewisburg, the county seat, is 4 miles from this rail- 
 road, by way of which the distance to Charleston is 135 miles, to 
 Richmond 242, to Cincinnati 346 and to Chicago 651 miles. Green- 
 brier is perhaps the most highly favored with natural resources of 
 all the counties in the State. 
 
 Coal. — The Flat Top or New River coking coal field, so exten- 
 sively worked in those districts, and from which the finest coke in 
 the State is made, extends into Greenbrier county from the west, 
 covering about one- third of the county, or some 200,000 acres. 
 Throughout all this section of the county three workable seams of 
 coal are found, besides several smaller ones. The three that may be 
 profitably worked are the Quinnimont seam, about 3 feet 4 inches 
 thick, the Fire Creek seam, just above, 4 feet 2 inches thick, and 
 above this the Sewell or Nuttall seam, ranging in places from 5J- to 
 7 feet thick. These thicknesses will vary some, but a recent 
 opening which gave them as 3 feet 8 inches, 4 feet 2 inches and 6 
 feet 11 inches respectively showed about the average thickness. 
 These veins are all above the level of the earth, and are found in 
 the hill sides. No coal has ever been mined in the county, there 
 being no means of getting it to market, and no developments have 
 been made, but throughout all that territory watered by Clear creek. 
 Meadow river, Hominy and Cherry and expending into Fayette 
 and Nicholas counties the coal is known to exist. This is the very 
 best coal for making coke and its proximity to the iron of the 
 county makes it the more valuable. The same veins are all worked 
 on New river, in Fayette county, and successfully coked. New River 
 coke being unsurpassed by any. 
 
 Iron. — This county lies in the heart of the richest iron region in 
 the State. Following the Alleghany mountains for almost their 
 
Greenbrier Countv. 
 
 149 
 
 entire length deposits of iron ore are found, and though the ores 
 have never been developed in West Virginia, some investigation of 
 them has been made and something is now known of their value and 
 extent The iron of Greenbrier is found in the mountains in the east- 
 ern portion of the count}^ in great abundance and of fine quality. 
 Brown hematite is the principal ore, and analyses of the ores found 
 in the mountains of Greenbrier and similar ores in counties ad- 
 joining, where investigations have been carried further, show that 
 the amount of iron in the ores ranges from 45.92 to 58 83 per cent. 
 The value of the ore is considerably enhanced by reason of the 
 proximity of limestone and coking coal, necessary for making iron 
 from the ores. Placed by direct railroad communication within 
 easy reach of the ore beds there is nothing to prevent this region, 
 which includes the neighboring counties of Pocahontas, Greenbrier 
 and Monroe, from becoming one of the greatest iron producing re- 
 gions in the United States. Greenbrier is the central one of these 
 three, and has already railroad communication, and the opening of 
 the iron mines will mark a new and prosperous era for the county. 
 
 Timber. — Every variety of valuable timber found in the State 
 grows in Greenbrier county. And although the county has a mer- 
 ited reputation as an agricultural county and for the extent of its 
 agricultural interests, there are still from one-half to two-thirds of 
 the county covered with the natural forests. In the highest alti- 
 tudes in the northern portion of the county are found large forests 
 of the black spruce or "yew pine." This black spruce, together 
 with cherry, birch and sugar, grows principally along the waters of 
 Cherry river. In the northeastern part of the county is a very 
 large tract of fine white pine, which has until recently been un- 
 touched. The ravages of the pine destroying insect have threatened 
 the destruction of the white pine forests, and as a means of protec- 
 tion a portion of the timber is being cut. There was at one time 
 an abundance of the finest walnut timber, but it was destroyed and 
 wasted, and today fences may be seen in the county built of black 
 walnut rails. Spruce, pine and poplar are the principal soft woods, 
 w^hile the hard woods, which are found both in the eastern and west- 
 ern portions of the county, are principally oaks, cherry, chestnut, 
 maple, birch, hickory, ash and locusts. The Greenbrier, Meadow 
 and Cherry rivers and their tributaries make the timber of the 
 
150 
 
 Greenbrier County, 
 
 county accessible to market. The mountains in the eastern portion 
 of the county are covered with magnificent oaks of several varieties, 
 and the value of the tanbark in the oak forests is almost incalcula- 
 ble. With plenty of hides and tanbark in abundance there would 
 seem to be inviting openings for the establishment of tanneries. 
 
 Marble, Stone, Clay, etc. — In the northea-tern part of the county 
 among the Beaver Lick mountains a carboniferous limestone or 
 marble is found, very fine grained and soft, susceptible of a high 
 polish and very prett}'. It is exactly the same as the famous Ten- 
 nessee marble, and can be traced along the mountains all the way 
 from Tennessee. In the southwestern portion of the county near 
 the mouth of Muddy creek, in the hills above the Greenbrier river, 
 a ledge of very pretty gray marble has been found, but it has never 
 been developed. 
 
 In the western part of the county appears the brown sandstone, 
 which is found on both sides of Greenbrier and New rivers, in 
 Greenbrier, Monroe and Summers counties. This is a beautiful 
 brown stone, and the quarries which have but recently been opened 
 are in constant receipt of more orders than they can conveniently 
 fill. Quite a large area of this sandstone lies in Greenbrier county. 
 Other building stones are abundant, both sand and lime stones. 
 Under the central portion of the county there are some 800 feet of 
 limestone, but this runs out just a little to the v/est of Greenbrier 
 river, and east of the river some very fine fire and potter's clays are 
 found. Little is known of their extent or indeed of anything more 
 than their existence. 
 
 At the mouth of Second creek, in the southwestern corner of the 
 count}^, gypsum or plaster paris is found, but it has never been 
 utilized. 
 
 A(3Ri(jULTUEE. — Under this heading Greenbrier county would 
 stand close to, if not at, the top of the list of counties in West Vir- 
 ginia. The most magnificent blue grass springs up in every portion 
 of the county as soon as the forests are removed and no part of 
 Kentucky c<i,n excel the plateau region of Greenbrier county in the 
 production of fine blue grass sod The luxuriance with which this 
 blue grass grows and the excellent pasturage it affords for almost 
 the entire year have caused this to become a famous stock raising 
 county. Nearly 4,000 head of cattle alone are exported from Green- 
 
Greenbrier County. 
 
 151 
 
 brier annually. Many of them go to the eastern markets, though 
 the best market for the larger stock is in Liverpool, and many of 
 them weighing 1400 pounds and over are sent every year direct to 
 Liverpool where they bring a better price than at home. Greenbrier 
 .cattle are eagerly sought in the Baltimore and New York markets 
 also. A great many horses are raised and none but good ones. The 
 horses of the county are nearly all of blooded stock and some of 
 them have made records on the race course. The roads are kept in 
 good shape and the horses used a great deal and there is encourage- 
 ment to breed none but good stock. Sheep raising is a prominent 
 industry in the county and a profitable one. With little attention 
 the sheep flourish and yield a handsome profit. Spring lambs at 
 six months will average about 75 pounds in weight and the average 
 weiglit of a sheep's wool in the county is about 6 pounds. Cattle 
 and sheep raising are the principal occupations of the people, though 
 other branches of farming receive attention. The soil of the coun- 
 ty is fertile and produces well, whatever the crop. Even the lands 
 now in forests are lich and very productive and need only to be 
 cleared to make fine farnis. Cereals of all kinds yield well. Wheat 
 and corn are raised and fruits do well, a good deal being produced 
 every year. With pasture unsurpassed, the county is naturally a 
 good one for dairy products, and Greenbrier creamery butter is 
 favorably known in many places. During the summer months a 
 great deal of cream, milk and buttermilk is sent to neighboring 
 summer resorts while in the winter the entire product is made into 
 butter. The county is excellently watered and the grass is green 
 almost the entire year. 
 
 Mineral Waters. — Greenbrier has as fine limestone springs as 
 can be found in any place. The entire county is supplied with 
 clear, pure, spring water, almost ice cold the year round. Besides 
 these there are numerous sulphur and other mineral springs. Several 
 kinds of sulphur water pour forth from the interior of the earth 
 emitting odors suggestive of the place commonly supposed to occupy 
 the center of the earth, and fashionable pleasure and health resorts 
 are kept at the springs. At one hotel, at least, in the county, the 
 guests are numbered among the thousands every summer. Many 
 of these waters are remarkable in their health giving properties. 
 
152 
 
 Hampshire County. 
 
 HAMPSHIRE COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — The first county West of the three 
 which compose the eastern "panhandle" is Hampshire. On the 
 north it is separated from Maryland by the Potomac river. The 
 eastern boundary separates the two Virginias. Through the west- 
 ern portion of the county from south to north flows the South Branch 
 of the Potomac river, uniting with the main Potomac river in this 
 county. In the eastern portion of the county, almost parallel to 
 the South Branch, flows the Capon river. The Baltimore and Ohio 
 lailroad follows the Potomac river along the northern boundary, 
 while a branch of the same road extends 16 miles from the main 
 line to Romney, the count}' seat, which thus has direct railroad con- 
 nection with the world. The distance to Martinsburg by rail is 80 
 miles, to Baltimore 191, to Wheeling 282, to Parkersburg 236, to 
 Cincinnati 431, and to Chicago 699 miles. Parallel to the B. & 0. 
 railroad on the opposite side of the Potomac river, flows the Chesa- 
 peake and Ohio canal, affording cheap transportation from Cumber- 
 land, Maryland, to Washington, D. C. The county is principally 
 mountainous or hilly, not over a fifth of the county being level 
 ,land, but what is level, and even the hilly portion is very rich and 
 productive. The valleys between the mountain ranges are broad 
 and parts of them rolling or hilly, the hilly portion being about 
 equal in extent to the mountainous. Hampshire is one of the most 
 favored counties in the State, possessing perhaps a greater variety 
 of resources than any other county, though not in such abundance 
 as some others. 
 
 Coal — Though not claiming much in the way of coal, Hamp- 
 shire county is not without that valuable commodity Near the 
 top of one of the highest mountains in the county a 7-foot vein 
 of bituminous coal has been found. The extent of the vein is not 
 large, being over a comparatively small portion of the county. It 
 has been found in but one place as yet, but there is another moun- 
 tain near by which shows identically the same geological formation 
 and reaches the same or a greater height on which it is supposed 
 t'je same coal may be found. There arc traces also of anthracite 
 coal which is ibund in the adjoining- county of Morgan and in 
 lierkeley, but sufficient explorations have not been made to prove 
 
Hampshire County. 
 
 153 
 
 its existence in Hampshire. A kind of shale is found at about the 
 level of the river which does not burn like coal, but when mixed 
 with coal or wood and kept burning with them, enj^its a much more 
 intense heat than either one. It is thought that underlying this 
 shale anthracite coal may' be found. 
 
 Iron — There are vast deposits of brown hematite iron ore of the 
 finest quality throughout Hampshire county, samples of which 
 show upon analysis 51 and 52 per cent, of metallic iron. This ore 
 exists in enormous quantities in the greater part of the county, it 
 being believed that one entire mountain is composed mainly of it. 
 Eighty years ago three charcoal iron furnaces were established in the 
 county and considerable iron was produced, but competition with 
 furnaces on railroads run with cheap coal was too strong for them 
 and they were abandoned, the last of ihem some ten years since. 
 There are also found fine samples of red hematite, magnetic, man- 
 ganetic and specular iron ores, but their extent is not known, no 
 one ever having prospected for them very much. The red hem- 
 atite in particular seems to be very abundant. Samples of these 
 ores are found in various parts of the county and especially near 
 gaps in mountain ranges where the mountains have been broken 
 off and at the ends of ranges which have been broken, indicating 
 that the ores underlie the mountains and if proper efforts were made 
 to discover the deposits of these ores there is little doubt but they 
 would be found in abundance, for traces of them are innumerable. 
 But the people of the county have never thought th( y had the 
 money to expand in properly searching for these ores, and very lit- 
 tle work of this kind has ever been done. The abundance of the 
 evidence, though, makes it almost certain that, the ores are to be 
 found in great quantities. 
 
 Manganese.— The same reasons that have prevented the thorough 
 investigation of the iron ore deposits have prevented the discovery 
 of the lull extent of the manganese deposits; but manganese is 
 known to exist in considerable quantities, several veins of it having 
 been already discovered. 
 
 Plumbago. Plumbago or graphite is found in several places in 
 veins 2 and 8 inches thick Its discovery has been purely acci- 
 dental, no search has ever been made for it and its extent is un- 
 known, but it is hardly probable that the veins so far discovered 
 
154 Hampshire Counts. 
 
 are all there are, and proper research would undoubtedly reveal 
 more. 
 
 Other Minerals. — Besides those already mentioned traces of 
 other minerals are found, such as gold, silver, lead, copper and tin. 
 Specimens of ores have been found in Hampshire county bearing 
 each of these metals, but most of them show but slight traces. 
 Pieces of copper ore are found in a great many places, and the late 
 Prof. Baird, of the Smithsonian Institution at Washington, gave it 
 as his opinion that by going deep under the mountains copper 
 might be found. Lead is more abundant, and although the vein 
 has not yet been discovered, great pieces of almost pure galena are 
 frequently found, and it is known that in the early days the settlers 
 ran l)ullets from native lead, but the location was lost and search 
 has never been made for it. 
 
 Marble. — Among the limestone formations of the county are 
 found some beautiful black and white marbles. The black is known 
 to be found in abundance; the white is found in smaller quantities, 
 but it is supposed there is more of it hidden away in the earth's re- 
 cesses, awaiting only the looking for to reward the discoverer and 
 reward him richly. 
 
 Stone — Limestone is found throughout the county, which is 
 valuable for building stone and from which lime is burned. There 
 is also a building sand stone that is found in the mountains. When 
 quarried it is soft and may be easily cut or sawed. Exposed to the 
 air it hardens and becomes as hard and durable as limestone. 
 
 Glass Sand. — Glass sand of remarkable whiteness and purity is 
 found in the mountains along the South Branch valley in large 
 quantities. 
 
 Clays. — Fire clays are abundant throughout the county in all 
 shades from almost a scarlet to blue and white. A potter's ,clay is 
 also found which but for a slight discoloration due to the presence 
 of iron, would make porcelain ware. 
 
 Timber. — About half the county is still well covered with timber. 
 The valleys have been cleared for years but the mountains are all 
 well timbered with oak, hickory, ash and other hard woods, some 
 pine and poplar. The pine has mostly fallen a victim to the ravages 
 of the pine destroying insect. The South Branch and Capon rivers 
 flow through the entire length of the county and afford the means 
 
Hampshire County. 
 
 155 
 
 of timber transportation at all seasons of the year. Chestnut oak 
 is abundant and tanbark is a source of considerable wealth to the 
 county. Several tanneries are located in the county, utilizing most 
 of the bark that is now produced. 
 
 Agricultural. — There are some very fiae farms in Hampshire 
 county. The river bottoms are well adapted to agriculture, the hill 
 and mountain lands to grazing. With this combination stock 
 growing is the natural consequence and Hampshire cattle are well 
 and favorably known in cattle markets. The level lands produce 
 good crops, being specially suited for corn, v^hich is used for fatten- 
 ing the cattle which graze the greater portion of the year upon the 
 hills. Blue grass grows luxuriantly and Hampshire shares the rep- 
 utation of the entire South Branch valley as a most excellent agri- 
 cultural region. Sheep thrive with little care and are very profit- 
 able. Fruit does well upon the high lands and a good deal is pro- 
 duced. 
 
 Mineral Springs. — There are a number of sulphur, iron and 
 chalybeate springs in the county, one sulphur spring in particular 
 being remarkably fine water, equal in all respects to the White Sul- 
 phur water of Greenbrier county. The Capon springs have been for 
 many years a favorite resort for persons in search of health. 
 
 Less than 20 miles from Romney is a remarkable natural curiosi- 
 ty, the wonderful "Ice Mountain/' where ice stored by nature is 
 kept packed away in the loose rock that composes the mountain 
 and may be found all through the hottest summer. 
 
 HANCOCK COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — In the extreme north of the State, 
 the last county in that narrow strip of West Virginia which sepa- 
 rates Ohio from Pennsylvania, is Hancock county, the smallest but 
 one in the State. The Ohio river separates it on the north and w^est 
 from the State of Ohio, and on the east lies Pennsylvania. A 
 branch of the P. C. C. &.St. L. railroad extends from tlie main line 
 in Brooke county to New.- Cumberland, the county seat of Hancock, 
 a distance of some 10 miles. The county, it will thus be seen, is 
 admirably situated, having communication with the world by both 
 river and rail. The distance by river from New Cumberland to 
 Pittsburg is 60 miles, to Cincinnati 445. By rail the distance to 
 
156 
 
 Hancock County. 
 
 Pittsburg is 49 miles, to Wheeling 37, to Huntington 252, to Balti- 
 timore 430, to Chicago 528. The county is in the main hilly, the 
 valleys narrow. But hills and valleys are both fertile and none of 
 the land too steep for pasture. The county is well developed, and 
 has several very profitable resources. There is practically no tim- 
 ber in the county, merely enough being left for use on the farms. 
 But other resources fully make up for the want of timber. 
 
 Coal — Three workable veins of good coal underlie the entire 
 county. These veins are high in the eastern part of the county, but 
 dip toward the west uniil they pass beneath the bed of the Ohio 
 river, being found some 25 feet beneath the water level on the Ohio 
 shore. The coal is a good soft luel coal, not suited for coking, but 
 burns well. The upper vein is about 4 feet, the second 3J feet, the 
 lower one about 3 feet in thickness. Immediately below the lowest 
 vein is a ten-foot bed of fire clay, which is extensively mined. 
 When once the clay is taken from beneath the coal the latter is 
 readily mintd. The coal is cut along the sides, a wedge is driven in 
 above and the entire thickness of the vein is brought down at once. 
 The cost of mining coal in this way is not over one cent a bushel. 
 The coal is used in the. brick kilns and potteries, but the thickness 
 ot the vein is not in proportion to the thickness of the clay bed, 
 and not enough is mined for use in the county, and a part of the 
 coal used in Hancock is brought in from Pennsylvania. 
 
 Fire Clay. — An inexhaustible supply of fire clay, extends over 
 the entire county, and forms the basis for what has grown to be the 
 largest fire and paving brick industry in* the United States. For 
 several miles along the river in this county brick, tile and pottery 
 works follow each other in as close proximity as possible. Most 
 excellent clay, cheap fuel and good shipping facilities make the 
 business profitable, and New Cumberland, a flourishing town of 
 nearly 3,000 people, has been built up by this one industry alone. 
 There has been a constant growth in this business, and as the paving 
 of roadways with brick conies more into use the business will in- 
 crease the more. In 1867 there were 6,800,000 fire brick made in 
 Hancock county. In 1«78 there were a million more. In 1892 the 
 estimated production of the county was 70,000,000 brick. These sell 
 for from eight to ten dollars per thousand at the kiln, so that the; 
 value to the count}' of the brick business is now something like- 
 
Hancock County. 
 
 157 
 
 two-tliirds of a million dolla:rs a year. Besides the brick business 
 the tile and pottery industry consumes a great deal of clay and is 
 worth a good many thousand dollars a year to the county. Clay 
 products from Hancock county are sent to all parts of the world, 
 the demand is increasing and the supply of clay is practically in- 
 exhaustible. 
 
 Stone. — Limestone is found in abundance, there are large quan- 
 tities of sandstone suitable for building purposes, and a flagstone is 
 found in a portion of the county that is very desirable for paving 
 and always finds ready sale in the Pittsburg market. 
 
 Oil. — Hancock county was in about the first oil and gas field de- 
 veloped in the country. Gas was found there several years ago in 
 great quantities, and was used in the kilns and potteries at a great 
 saving in fuel, but the flow has ceased. Following the gas develop- 
 ment oil was sought in Hancock county and not in vain. The yield 
 was large and though diminished some the field is still productive. 
 The depression in the price of oil has removed the inducements for 
 large production and the quantity of oil produced annually is now 
 smaller than it was some years ago. The present output is esti- 
 mated at 100,000 barrels a year, on which the farmers receive as 
 royalty something like $5,000, without so much as turning a hand. 
 
 Agriculture — The soil of Hancock county is rich and produc- 
 tive. It is a remarkably fine grazing county, and its fruit interests 
 are perhaps the largest in the State. All the Ohio river counties 
 have a good soil, and this is no exception. Corn, wheat and all 
 kinds of grains do well. Vegetables of all kinds are raised to a con- 
 siderable extent, the cities in close proximity creating a market for 
 all that is grown. 
 
 This county shares the reputation which all the panhandle coun- 
 ties have for sheep raising . Very fine sheep are raised, and the 
 wool is of the best quality bringing, along with that from neighbor- 
 ing counties, the top of the market price. Somewhat discouraged 
 by prices the farmers do not raise so many sheep as a few years ago, 
 but the number is beginning to increase and will eventually be very 
 considerable. 
 
 Fruit raising is a very important industry ot this county, apples 
 receiving the principal attention. Though there was not over half 
 a crop last year the yield in Hancock county was something like 
 
158 
 
 Hardy County. 
 
 50,000 barrels, a great many of which were shipped direct to Liver- 
 pool, competing in P]ngland with the markets of the world, and 
 bringing in return to the county of Hancock about $100,000 for 
 apples alone. 
 
 New Cumberland, which in 1890 had 2,305 population, an in- 
 crease in ten years of 89.24 per cent, is the site of most of the brick 
 making plants. Thirteen large clay working plants are in operation 
 in the city. It is an enterprising place with wide, paved streets, 
 well lighted, handsome public buildings and some nice homes. 
 
 HARDY COUNTY. 
 
 LocAiiON AND Character. — The second county south of the east- 
 ern panhandle, and along the Virginia border, is Hardy. It is im- 
 mediately south of Hampshire county to which it is similar in 
 every respect, the same rivers, the same mountains passing through 
 both in the same direction. The division between the two counties 
 is purely an artificial one. In the western part of the county are 
 the South Branch river and the South Pork of the same. In the 
 eastern part is the Lost river, which disappears under a mountain 
 near the county line, to reappear in Hampshire as Cacapon river, 
 the Indian word for "found again." The county has the same high 
 mountains, the same broad and fertile valleys, the same general 
 character as Hampshire county, the valleys perhaps more fertile. 
 Moorefield, the county seat, is at the confluence of the South Branch 
 and the South Fork rivers, 27 miles above Romney, the closest rail- 
 railroad point, by way of which tlie distance from Moorefield to 
 Martinsburg is 107 miles, to Baltimore 221, to Parkersburg 263, to 
 Wheeling 259, to Cincinnati 458, to Chicago 726 miles. 
 
 Up to the present time no coal has ever been found in Hardy, and 
 it is probably one of three counties in the State without coal. 
 
 laoN. — The real extent of the iron ores of this county is hardly 
 known, though enough is known to make it certain that the depos- 
 its of iron in Hardy county are among the richest in the State. 
 Three veins of red fossiliferous hematite iron ore are found, their 
 thicknesses 8 inches, 1 foot 6 inches and 3 feet 3 inches respectively, 
 containing about 60 per cent, of iron. Above this bed three other 
 beds are found, 25 feet of red hematite, 30 feet of brown hematite, 
 and 14 feet of brown hematite, containing from 45 to 62 per cent. 
 
Hardy Countv. 
 
 159 
 
 of iron The thickness of another bed of brown hematite, which 
 was worked years ago, is unknown, having been dug into for 70 feet 
 without finding the bottom. There is every reason to believe that 
 the mountains in every portion of the county are filled with valua- 
 ble iron ores. Three charcoal furnaces were formerly operated in 
 this county but were abandoned because of competition with fur- 
 naces on railroads. Some of the ores found are almost pure iron. 
 A horseshoe made before the war in a Hardy county blacksmith 
 shop, direct from the ore, now hangs in the office of the Secretary 
 of State at Richn)ond. Several others have been made since. 
 
 Stone. — There is an abundance of limestone in every part of the 
 county in close proximity to the iron ores and valuable for use in 
 making pig iron. Lime is also burned from it of as excellent qual- 
 ity as that produced in any portion of the country. The supply of 
 limestone is inexhaustible and extends to every portion of the 
 county. There is good building limestone and sandstone in abun- 
 dance. 
 
 Clays. -An excellent quality of fire clay is found in the county 
 in considerable quantities, while pipe and potter's clays are also 
 found. The latter has been worked to some extent and only its 
 unfavorable location prevents its becoming an important industry 
 in the county. 
 
 Mineral Waters. — Near Moorefield is a very fine white sulphur 
 spring and others are found in various parts of the county, all of 
 which are regarded as equal in value to the white sulphur springs 
 of Greenbrier county, which are so famous and to which they are 
 so very similar. Alum and chalybeate waters are found in many 
 places but none of the springs have ever been used save locally and 
 their properties are unknown beyond the limits of the county. 
 
 Timber. — The timber of Hardy county, is not, as a rule, fine, 
 though there are some good tracts. About a fourth of the county 
 is in good timber, but nearly three times as much is wooded. The 
 pine has nearly all been killed by the insect which has been so des- 
 tructive to all the pine forests of the State. The principal timber 
 of the county consists of white, chestnut and other varieties of oak, 
 which are found in great numbers in all the mountain regions of 
 the county. There is also some hickory and walnut. There is 
 very little poplar and the walnut is fast disappearing. As in the 
 
160 
 
 Hardy County. 
 
 other counties of the South Branch valley, there are enormous 
 quantities of tanbark, which together with the fact that there 
 are a great many cattle raised causes tanneries to flourish. 
 There are several large ones in this county and a good deal of 
 bark is sent out besides. There are vast quantities of timber suited 
 for ties and telegraph poles standing in the woods. 
 
 Agricultural. — Hardy is chiefly an agricultural county and 
 possesses some magnificent farms. There are three parallel valleys 
 in the county extending north and south — the South Branch, the 
 South Fork and the Lost River valleys. All are very fine with 
 broad bottoms and rich productive soil. This soil has been culti- 
 vated in places for over 100 years and is still as good as ever. No 
 fertilizers are needed. The soil is from 12 to 14 feet thick and if it 
 ever gets worn out needs only to be sown in clover for a while to 
 liven it up again and make it as good as ever. Corn is the principal 
 crop of the county and a magnificent corn country it is, too. The 
 average yield is over 50 bushels to the acre and not unfrequently a 
 good field will run up to from 65 to 90 bushels an acre and there is 
 one field the yield from which is said to have actually reached the 
 enormous amount of 166 bushels per acre. Wheat yields well 
 though it is not raised much. The soil is so strong the wheat grows 
 rank, producing too much straw and not enough grain. Hardy is 
 one of the best stock-raising counties in West Virginia. Blue grass 
 grows spontaneously and covers the county with excellent pastur- 
 age wherever the trees are cleared away. Stock raising proves profit- 
 able and is largely engaged in. Hardy cattle are favorably known 
 in the cattle markets and are shipped in large numbers. Most of 
 them are export cattle, which must be unusually large and fine, and 
 are shipped direct to Liverpool or London. Sheep are not raised in 
 great numbers, the stock men believing cattle more profitable. 
 Some very fine horses are bred in Hardy county and all the horses 
 used in the county for farming or other purposes are well bred and 
 of good stock, 
 
 HARRISON COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Ciiaractkr. — The county of Harrison lies in the 
 northern part of the State about midway between the State of JNJary- 
 land on the east and that of Ohio on the west. Dividing the county 
 
Harrison County. 
 
 161 
 
 almost into equal parts the West Fork river, a tributary of the Mon- 
 ongahela, flows toward the north. The river in this county is not 
 navigable, but with its numerous tributaries abundantly waters the 
 country through which it passes. From Clari^pburg, the county 
 seat, southward runs the West Virginia and Pittsburg railroad, pen- 
 etrating the heart of West Virginia and reaching the richest coal 
 and timber lands in the State. A continuation of this line, under 
 the name of the Monongahela RiverRailroad connects Clarksburg with 
 Fairmont in the next county north and the Parkersburg branch of 
 the Baltimore and Ohio railroad runs through the county east and 
 west. The distance by rail from, Clarksburg to Wheeling is 122 
 miles, to Parkersburg 82, to Martinsburg 202, to Charleston 216, to 
 Baltimore 316, to Cincinnati 277, to Chicago 582. The surface of the 
 county is rolling with low hills, mostly flat on top and all suitable 
 for grazing and cattle raising. In the western part of the county 
 the hills rise to a somewhat greater height than in the rest of the 
 county, but nowhere are they high or rugged. The county is almost all 
 available for farming or grazing purposes. It is one of the oldest 
 counties in the State, and consequently has been more thickly settled 
 and more generally cleared than many of the others. The early build- 
 ing of the B. & 0. railroad through the county gave it an impetus 
 that has pushed the county forward in advance of many others. 
 The later construction of the other roads mentioned has added 
 greatly to the prosperity of the county. 
 
 Coal. — Harrison county lies in one of the best parts of the great 
 Pittsburg coal field, and for a great many years the develop- 
 ment of this coal has been going on. The principal vein in Harri- 
 son county averages from nine to ten feet in thickness, and pro- 
 duces an average of about 16,000 tons to the acre. The coal is 
 found above water level and is easily mined It is the finest kind 
 of bituminous coal, suitable for coking, steam and gas. It is ship- 
 ped to Chicago, Cleveland and the west generally as well as to the 
 east. In the New York markets last year the Harrison cotinty coal 
 commanded 25 cents more on the ton than any other gas coal on 
 the market. Thirty feet above this principal vein is another smaller 
 one, and 70 feet above is still another from two to three feet in 
 thickness, but these are both too small to pay to work, and the only 
 operations in the county so far have been confined to the one vein. 
 
1G2 
 
 Harrison County. 
 
 Beneath the surface of the earth, some 480 feet below the Pittsburg 
 vein of coal, is a bed of the Upper Freeport coal from 4 to 5 feet 
 thick. This too is a good coking coal and will doubtless some day- 
 be mined and sold- The reports of the State Mine Inspectors show 
 that for the year ending June 30, 1891, the six mines in Harrison 
 county produced 113,268 tons of coal and that 6,214 tons of coke 
 were made'in the county. For the year ending June 30, 1892, the 
 production of coal was 142,960 tons and of coke 5,590 tons. 
 
 Iron. — Fifty years ago the iron industry in this county was a 
 thriving one. Iron abounds in all parts of the county and at that 
 time it was largely manufactured and products, such as nails and 
 various kinds of hollow ware, were floated down the Monongahela 
 river in great quantities and taken to the present great iron market 
 of Pittsburg. Bat the industry has died out in this county. The 
 ore is still found in great quantities but not so rich as is found in 
 other places and the facilities for its manufacture and shipment are 
 not so good, so that now there is no iron made in the county. 
 
 Cla^s. — Fire and brick clays are found in considerable quanti- 
 ties but their real extent is yet unknown. Excellent ordinary red 
 brick are made, as good as are made anywhere, and are shipped in 
 large quantities, but no tests of the fire clays have ever been made. 
 They exist though, and it is thought that they a^-e widely distrib- 
 uied and of excellent quality. Fine potter's clays are found and 
 these are worked at Shinnston and Bridgeport where crockery and 
 hollow ware are made in considerable quantities. The clay is found 
 with the coal. 
 
 St.»ne. — Limestone abounds throughout the county, and some 
 very fine specimens of it are found. Besides the limestone there is 
 a very fine quality of building sandstone that is found in various 
 places. It is a pretty stone and is a valuable one for building pur- 
 poses. 
 
 Oil and Gas. — Twelve miles wf^st of Clarksburg in the Dunkard 
 sand a Ifttle oil has been found, but it is just being developed and 
 whether it will be found in large quantities or not remains to be 
 seen. The people of Harrison county think there is oil in their 
 county though, and one of them, Prof. Jackson, is preparing to sink 
 a test well ten miles west of Clarksburg, that will be bored clear 
 into tlie lowest sand with a view to testing fully the county for oil. 
 
Harrison County. ;I(53 
 
 The county is in the midst of one of the largest gas fields in the 
 world, and the city of Clarksburg is heated by gas from a well 
 which if not the largest is one of the largest in the world, which 
 pours forth its tremendous volumes of gas with the highest pressure 
 known in any gas well in the country. With an abundance of gas 
 and oil surrounding the county, it is reasonable to suppose that oil 
 will some time be found there. 
 
 ^ Timber.- Being one of the oldest settled counties in the State, the 
 timber has long since disappeared to give way for the cultivation of 
 the rich soil the county possesses. Much of it has been cut and used 
 upon the farms of the county ; much was in the earlier days floated 
 down the West Fork river, and now not over a tenth part of the 
 county is still in timber. What there is, is principally the oaks. 
 There is a good deal of wooded land, covered with trees suitable for 
 rails and other rough timber, but there is practically no saw tim.ber 
 left. 
 
 Agricultural. -Agriculturally the county of Harrison is one of 
 the best in the State. Its soil is a rich limestone soil that produces 
 the finest kind of blue grass sod, and also brings good farm crops. 
 Among the counties of the State Harrison stands first in the pro- 
 duction of horses, cattle, milch cows and dairy products. Grazing 
 is the principal occupation of most of the citizens of the county, and 
 the splendid lands, rich, productive and well watered, are made to 
 do their best in the production of fine stock. Immense quantities 
 of cattle and sheep and other animals are shipped every yea-r from 
 this county. It is also especially well adapted to the culture of 
 fruits— apples, pears, grapes and other fruits producing abundantly 
 and of splendid quality. A few mineral springs are found in vari- 
 ous parts of the county, red and white sulphur waters being the 
 principal ones found. 
 
 Clarksburg is seventh of the West Virginia towns in population 
 haying m 1890, 3,008 people, a gain of 30. 89 per cent, in ten years. 
 It is a railroad center and commercial town with some manufactur- 
 ing, and is in the midst of a splendid agricultural country. There 
 are handsome public buildings and homes and much wealth in the 
 town. 
 
164 
 
 Jackson County. 
 
 JACKSON COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character.- Jackson county lies along the western 
 border, immediately west of the center of the State. It includes 
 within its borders the larger part of the great Pomeroy bend in the 
 Ohio river, and just beyond is the State of Ohio. Its river front- 
 age is over 25 miles, while through the county flow Mill creek and 
 Sandy creek, which with their tributaries water the entire county 
 well. Along the bank of the Ohio river runs the Ohio River rail- 
 road. The Ravenswood, Spencer & Glenville railroad leaves the 
 Ohio river at Ravenswood, passes through the county eastward and 
 on to Spencer, in Roane county. The Ripley & Mill Creek Valley 
 railroad leaves the Ohio River road at Ripley Landing, and follows 
 up the Mill Creek valley to Ripley, the county seat. Ripley is 12 
 miles from the river, 56 from Parkersburg, 150 from Wheeling, 89 
 from Huntington, 250 from Cincinnati and 555 from Chicago. The 
 county is rolling and hilly, with some high plateaus and well 
 watered valleys In the southern part of the county some small 
 mountains appear, but most of the county is not mountainous. 
 
 Coal. —There is no surface coal in this county, but plenty may- 
 be found deep in the earth. The coal dips low under Jackson 
 county, reappeaiing above the sur%ce in Mason county and at Pom- 
 eroy, but in boring for oil in Jackson county the first coal was found 
 at 120 feet below the surface. This vein is from 7 to 10 feet thick, 
 and is an excellent fuel coal, but not suitable for coking. 
 
 Iron. — There are some scattering iron ores in Jackson county, 
 but there is not known to be any valuable deposit of iron in the 
 county. Some years ago a purchase of iron property was made by 
 an iron company in the Mill Creek valley, but it was never devel- 
 oped, the iron probably not being in workable quantities or of suffi- 
 cient value. 
 
 Timber — The county was at one time well timbered, but the 
 value of the timber and its accessibility to market have caused the 
 destruction of most of the forests so that now not over a fifth of the 
 county is covered with valuable timber. The poplar is almost gone 
 and the walnut entirely so, but there is still much good oak left. 
 In the southern end of the county, along the waters of Poca river, 
 which flows through Kanawha and Putnam counties into the Ka- 
 
JacksuxN County. 
 
 165 
 
 nawha river, there is still a great deal of very fine timber, but the 
 rest of the county is so well watered with streams suitable for float- 
 ing logs, and so close to places where the timber is exhausted that 
 the best has all gone out. A few years ago the stave business was a 
 tremendous one. In Ravenswood, the principal town of the county, 
 acre after acre was covered with staves a few years ago, and from 50 
 to 60 wagon loads were brought in daily from the country. Even 
 now there is a good deal done in the stave trade, though not so 
 much as formerly. Railroad ties are one of the principal products 
 of the Jackson timber lands, and many of them are left where saw 
 timber is all taken out. 
 
 Agricultural, — This is pre-eminently an agricultural county, and 
 is an example of the coming condition of many of the counties in 
 the State after their timber is exhausted, and before their minerals 
 are developed. There is some very excellent farming land in the 
 county. Some of the finest farms in the Ohio valley are located in 
 Jackson county, and there is none of the county but what is suited 
 for grazing. Sleek, fat cattle are raised in great numbers, and sheep 
 are very profitable. A portion of the county has a limestone soil 
 and produces an excellent blue grass sod. The land, though not 
 mountainous, is high and dry, and sheep and cattle thrive exceed- 
 ingly well. The farm lands produce abundant crops of grain, wheat 
 and corn being chiefly raised. The experience of farmers in this 
 county is that sheep are very little care and very profitable. Lands 
 are cheap, pasture good, and with little trouble a nice profit may be 
 made on sheep. 
 
 JEFFERSON COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character — JefTerson is the easternmost county 
 in the State, the last one in the eastern panhandle. It lies in the 
 magnificent Valley of Virginia, between the Alleghan}^ mountains 
 on the west and the Blue Ridge on the east, one of the finest agri- 
 cultural regions in either of the Virginias. Along the northeast 
 border of the county flows the Potomac river. At the base of the 
 Blue Ridge, which forms the southeastern, border of the county, 
 flows the Shenandoah in a northeast direction, empt3ang into the 
 Potomac at Harper's Ferry, where Maryland and the Virginias meet. 
 The main line of the Baltimore and Ohio connecting Baltimore 
 
166 Jefferson County. 
 
 with Chicago and the west, passes through the county. The 
 Virginia Valley division of the same road, connecting the main line 
 with Staunton and Lexington, also passes through the county. The 
 Valley division of the Norfolk and Western also runs the entire 
 length of the county, north and south, crossing the B. & O. at 
 Charles Town, the county seat. Any part of the county is easily 
 accessible from railroad points. Charles Town is 65 miles by rail 
 from Washington, 105 from Baltimore, 313 from Parkersburg, 309 
 from Wheeling, 508 from Cincinnati, and 776 from Chicago. By 
 way of the valley Charles Town is 116 miles Irom Staunton, Va., 
 252 from Richmond and 349 from Charleston, W. Va. On the 
 Maryland shore of the Potomac river is the Chesapeake and Ohio 
 canal, affordinsj cheap transportation to Washington and the bay. 
 The county was among the earliest settled portion of the State and 
 contains an old established population. The county is rolling 
 throughout its entire extent, save in the southeast where the Blue 
 Ridge mountains rise to a considerable height. Jefferson is one of 
 the three counties of West Virginia in which coal has not been 
 found, but its close proximity to rich coal fields affords plenty of 
 cheap fuel for local use. 
 
 TiMBKR. — Though the county is almost without timber, with cer- 
 tainly not over one-tenth of the original amount still standing, 
 there is still enough left for all farm purposes, and a little to spare. 
 There are no large tracts, but small pieces are reserved, and what 
 any farmer needs is close at hand. There is besides the oak, hick- 
 ory and poplar left, a little walnut which has not been taken out, 
 but very little. Some tanbark is gotten out also, but not in great 
 quantities. Timber is cut to a considerable extent to supply several 
 pulp mills which are in operation in Jefferson county. The soft 
 woods that have hitherto been thought valueless are now being 
 utilized by the pulp mills for making wood pulp for paper 
 
 Iron. — Iron ores may be found in almost inexhaustible quanti- 
 ties, a single mine having yielded ore for over a hundred years, and 
 still producing liberally. The same deposit is mined today, and 
 many tons are taken out daily to furnaces outside the State. The 
 output is gauged only by the demand and the will of the owner. 
 This ore which is a rich quality of brown hematite, extends over 
 about the entire portion of the county, and has been mined in sev- 
 
Jefferson Couinty. 
 
 167 
 
 eral ]>laceK, always making good iron. It contains from 50 to GO 
 per cent, of metallic iron. The cellular, honey-combed Und pipe 
 varieties of the brown hematite are found. There have been fur- 
 naces in Jefferson county, but the ores now mined are taken outside 
 the county. 
 
 Limestone. This may be found in every portion of the county 
 except the small part east of the Shenandoah river, which is of 
 sandstone and slate formation. Lime of excellent quality is made 
 at numerous places in the county from the abundant stone, and 
 commands a good price in the markets. 
 
 A hydraulic limestone is also found in portions of the county, 
 from which a superior quality of cement is made. These cement 
 works have been in operation for some time, and Jefferson county 
 cement is well known to the trade. 
 
 A very handsome limestone for building purposes is abundant, 
 and is in great demand in the city of Washington. All the stone 
 for the building of the British Legation and other handsome struc- 
 tures in the national capital, was quarried in Jefferson county and 
 taken down the canal on flat boats. This stone is very plentiful 
 throughout the county. 
 
 Marble. — Some of the limestone approaches and even becomes 
 marble, and in several places in the county a beautiful marble is 
 found of good color and taking a high polish, but no development 
 of these deposits has ever been made. 
 
 Agricultural. — It is principally as an agricultural county that 
 Jefferson is known. Lying as it does in the best part of the Valley 
 of Virginia, its soil is remarkably productive. It was settled among 
 the first of all the counties now comprised in West Virginia, and its 
 value as farming property has been known ever since, so that almost 
 the entire county has been long since devoted to farming. Little of 
 the county is rough, and most of it is beautiful, level or rolling, 
 rich farming land. The average yield of wheat through the county 
 is from 20 to 23 bushels to the acre, of corn 50 bushels. The soil 
 is a limestone one, and brings magnificent blue grass. Cattle are 
 raised and many sold every year, principally to the export trade. 
 Some sheep are also raised, but not so many as might , be. The 
 proximity to market, added to the productiveness of the soil, makes 
 Jefferson doubly valuable as a farming county. Farm products of 
 
168 
 
 Jefferson County. 
 
 all kinds may be put into the markets of Washington and Balti- 
 more in a few hours from almost any part of the county. Fruit 
 culture offers vast possibilities in this county, though not so much at- 
 tention is paid to fruit as could be done profitably. The most mag- 
 nificent peaches are grown in the county, as most persons who have 
 passed through the county by rail have discovered, for boys with 
 baskets board every train, with this luscious fruit for sale. Cream- 
 eries and canning works would undoubtedly prove profitable in 
 Jefferson county. 
 
 Charles Town, the business and banking point for a large and 
 prosperous agricultural community, had in 1890 a population of 
 2,287, a gain of 13.44 per cent, in ten years. There is some manu- 
 facturing done in the town but it is principally as the center of the 
 rich farming country tlia^, it has attained its present position. It 
 has a delightful climate and many prominent people live there. 
 
 KANAWHA COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Ciiauacter,— Kanawha, the third county in the 
 8tate in size, the first in population, lies on both sides of the Great 
 Kanawha and Elk rivers, southwest of the center of the State. Its 
 surface is varied, mountainous in the east and south, hilly in the 
 other parts with broad bottom lands along the Kanawha valley. 
 There art: a good many smaller water courses in the county and all 
 have fertile level lands in their valleys. Much of the county, 
 though neither rough nor broken, is high, but there are few moun- 
 tains in the county unfit for cultivation. The Great Kanawha river 
 flows for nearly 50 miles through the county, navigable all the way, 
 by means of which cheap transportation is given the enormous quan- 
 tities of coal and timber that go annually out of the county. The 
 Elk river, which empties into the Kanawha at Charleston, flows for 
 some 20 miles through the county before it reaches che Kanawha, 
 and is navigable in favorable seasons for small steamboats to the 
 county line. Coal river, Pocataligo river and other smaller streams 
 are large enough to bring out a great deal of timber whenever there 
 is a rise. What these rivers are to the county may be seen* from 
 the report of A. M. Scott, Resident U. S. Engineer at Charleston, in 
 charge of the rivers. His report for 1892 shows the tonnage of the 
 Groat Kanawha river as recorded at Lock Six, four miles from 
 
Kanawha County. 
 
 169 
 
 Charleston, for the year ending June 30, 1892, to be as follows : 
 Coal, 26,787,788 bushels or 1,071,511 tons; timber, 39,585,000 feet 
 B. M. or 65,975 tons; tanbark 590 cords, 590 tons; railroad ties 
 924,650 or 138,697 tons; hoop-poles 980,000 or 2,450 tons; shingles 
 2,750,000 or 4,125 tons; brick 150,000 or 337 tons; merchandise and 
 produce by steamboat 74,800 tons; total tonnage 1,360,750. The 
 report also shows that 44,400,000 feet (B. M.) of logs and lumber, 
 380,000 railroad ties, 1,405,000 oak staves and 240 cords of oak tan- 
 bark came out of Elk river in the year ending June 30, 1892, a total 
 of 139,800 tons. From the report we quote: "The 44,400,000 feet 
 of lumber is divided in kind about as follows: Poplar 33,000,000 ; 
 white oak 8,000,000; hemlock 1,500,000; the rest being mainly wal- 
 nut and ash. The amount of general merchandise and produce 
 carried on the river is estimated at 10,000 tons, making the total for 
 the year with the timber product as above 149,800 tons." 
 
 In addition to the river transportation the county is well sup- 
 plied with railroads. For its entire length through the county the 
 Kanawha river has a railroad on either side, the Chesapeake and 
 Ohio on the south connecting Cincinnati with Richmond and 
 Washington, the Kanawha and Michigan' on the north, connecting 
 the C. & 0. in Fayette county with Toledo and Columbus, Ohio By 
 way of these railroads Charleston, the county seat, is 50 miles from 
 Huntington, 228 from Wheeling, 387 from Washington, 369 from 
 Richmond, 191 from Columbus, 310 from Toledo, 212 from Cincin- 
 nati and 517 from Chicago. By river Charleston is 261 miles from 
 Cincinnati. The Charleston, Clendennin & Sutton railroad, design- 
 ed to be a connecting north and south line through the center of 
 the State, is already completed 20 miles up Elk river, and is soon 
 to be extended. Several short line roads in the southern part of 
 the county connect large coal mines with the C. & 0. R'y. The 
 most populous and one of the largest, Kanawha is also one of the 
 richest and most varied in its natural resources of any of the coun- 
 ties in the State. 
 
 Coal.— All the soft coals found in the State are found in Kana- 
 n ha county. The splint, steam, gas, luel, coking, cannel and semi- 
 nnel are all found in the county and there is no part of the coun- 
 I ty in which coal is not found. Along the Chesapeake & Ohio rail- 
 I road and the river it is extensively mined, but elsewhere little has 
 
 I 
 
170 
 
 Kanawija Gouni y. 
 
 been dug. In the eastern and southwestern portioras of the county 
 cannel coal is found and has been mined at Caimelton, on Mill 
 Creek of Elk river and a ong Big Coal river. North of Charleston 
 and along Elk river some little coal is mined for local use and 
 splendid coal it is. The reports of the Slate Mine Inspector show 
 that in ihe year ending June 30, 1891, there were 48 mines in the 
 county, employing 2,710 men and producing 1,209,386 tons of coal, 
 and 12 coke ovens producing 5,037 tons of coke. For the year end- 
 ing June 30, 1892, the production of coal was 1,175,371 tons and of 
 coke 2,311 tons. The completion of the railroad up Elk river from 
 Charleston, and of the Kanawha & Michigan railroad up the Kana- 
 wha from Charleston will open up a large number of new mines 
 :uid materially increase the output oi Kanawha coal. 
 
 Iron. — Scattered through nearly every part of the county are iron 
 ores of greater or less value. In the southern nart of the county a 
 few years ago, a black band iron ore was found in considerable 
 quantities, and an iron furnace was operated at Spring Hill, six 
 miles west of Charleston, in which this ore was used, but deposits of 
 black band are variable, and the ore in this one soon became too 
 thin to be profitably worked. Veins of ore from fifteen inches to a 
 few feet in thickness have been found throughout the county, both 
 hematites and gray carbonates. In the hills at Charleston is a small 
 seam which was opened up some years ago, and in 1872 the erection 
 of a furnace to use this ore was begun, but financial difficulties pre- 
 vented the completion of the furnace and no iron was ever made. 
 
 Salt. — Five miles from Charleston, on the Kanawha river, the 
 first salt ever made by white people west of the Alleghanies was 
 made, and since that time hundreds of thousands of barrels of it 
 have been made and sent to maiket. At one time there was scarcely 
 a distance of a mile along the river for 20 miles where there were 
 not one or more salt furnaces in operation. The brine is found at a 
 depth of 1,000 feet or more, is pumped into vate and evaporated, 
 leaving the crystallized product. The Kanawha salt is especially in 
 demand by pork packers, possessing peculiar qualities necessary for 
 that use. At present a single furnace is in operation in the county, 
 making salt with natural gas for fuel. Bromine is also made from 
 the salt, and other chemicals might be. Soda-ash, so largely used 
 
KANAWfiA County. 
 
 171 
 
 throughout tlie country, and all imported, might be as cheaply 
 made here as anywhere, and ought to be. 
 
 Mineral Waters. — Besides the salt water other mineral waters 
 are found. Sulphur, alum, chalybeate and lithia waters are found 
 in the county, all possessing more or less medicinal virtue They 
 are only used locally. 
 
 Oil and G-as — In the days when George Washington was carry- 
 ing the chain and compass across the Alleghany mountains, before 
 the war of the revolution, natural gas had been discovered in what 
 is now Kanawha county, and since that time it has been put to 
 })ractical use in the making of salt. There is undoubtedly much 
 of it though all the wells as yet bored for it have brought but a 
 small floAV of gas. Proper search will doubtless reveal large quan- 
 tities of gas, and yet, with coal so close and cheap, gas is not needed 
 by our people Oil has been bored for and in portions of the 
 county has been found in small quantities, but no investigations 
 have yet proved its existence in paying quantities, though there is 
 every indication that the great oil belt of Pennsylvania which has 
 been followed into West Virginia, extends on through the southern 
 part of the State, and througli this county. 
 
 Clats. — Excellent brick clays are found in abundance in the 
 county, and millions of brick have been made. The clay makes a 
 beautiful smooth red brick, ver}^ desirable for building purpos3S, and 
 so hard that several miles of Charleston streets have been paved 
 with them. Fire clays are also found in large deposits, but none 
 have yet been worked. The demand for tire brick, sewer pipe, etc , 
 will doubtless cause the development of fire clay before long. 
 , Stone. — No finer building stone is found anywhere than that 
 which fills the hills of Kanawha county. A hard, clean, lasting 
 sandstone, it is of great value for building and extensively used. 
 The capitol, court house, several churches and building blocks in 
 Charleston show to good advantage the beauty of the stone. It is 
 particularly adapted for use under water, resisting the action of the 
 waves for years, and for this purpose it has been extensively used. 
 The government locks of the Kanawha river have all been built of 
 it, and bridge piers in the Ohio river have been constructed of stone 
 from quarries in Kanawha county. 
 
 Glass Sand. — Though none has ever been used here the glass 
 
172 
 
 Kanawha County. 
 
 sand of Kanawha has been tested, and found to be well suited for 
 making glass. There is much of it awaiting development. 
 
 Timber. — Though Kanawha has been cleared and settled until it 
 now contains more people than any other county in the State, there 
 is perhaps a half the county still in the original forest. The valleys 
 of the rivers and the streams have all been cleared, but back from 
 the water courses where timber would have to be hauled several 
 miles little or none has ever been cut. Statistics given above give 
 some idea of the size of the timber business in the county. Some 
 of the timber mentioned is cut in other counties, but Coal and Po- 
 cataligo rivers both bring down great quantities of timber, neither of 
 which figure in the statistics given. The saw mills of Cl:)arleston 
 also cut enormous quantities of timber that is not included in the 
 figures given. Oak, poplar, chestnut, hickory and some walnut are 
 the principal woods left in the county. 
 
 Agricultural. — The Kanawha valley farms equal in fertility of 
 soil and productiveness the broad bottoms of the Ohio river, and 
 form the principal part of the county that is farmed. Corn, wheat, 
 oats, tobacco and garden crops are principally raised. The hill 
 lands grow good grass and make splendid pasture, but cattle are not 
 extensively raised. In some parts of the county tobacco is the 
 principal crop, and just as good tobacco is grown as in the neigh- 
 boring counties where it forms the chief crop. Fruits are largely 
 grown and are productive. Most luscious peaches grow in portions 
 of the county, while apples, pears and grapes, and all kinds of 
 small fruits yield abundantly. The raising of crops for the towns 
 of the valley and the miners, who depend principally on the scores 
 for their garden products, is an important branch of the farming in- 
 dustry. 
 
 Charleston, the capital of the State, is a flourishing commercial 
 city, the banking and business center for all the mining country in 
 the New and Kanawha river valleys. Its population was given in 
 1890 as 6,742, an increase of 60.83 per cent in ten years. Elk City, 
 immediately adjoining, but under separate city government, with 
 the growth since 1890, give the place at least 10,000 i)eople now. 
 The city has some 20 wholesale houses which supply the entire 
 southern end of the State with goods, five banks all doing a splen- 
 did business, wood working and other factories employing over a 
 
Lewis County. 
 
 173 
 
 thousand men, has paved streets, electric light and gas, water works, 
 good seweraj^e, electric street railway, bridges across both rivers, 
 handsome city, county, State and United States buildings, and is a 
 rapidly growing prosperous city. 
 
 LEWIS COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Lewis is situated near the center of 
 the State, a little to the north of it. It is in the high, hilly part of 
 the State, west of the mountainous portion, and is rather rolling 
 than rough. In a few places the hills rise to a considerable height, 
 but are nowhere mountainous or broken. Rising in the southern 
 part of the county and flowing northward through the center is the 
 West Fork of the Monongahela river. In this county it is not nav- 
 igable for vessels of any kind, but waters the country well, its trib- 
 utaries reaching every section of the county. North and south 
 through the county runs the West Virginia and Pittsburg railroad, 
 connecting the center of the State with the Baltim.ore and Ohio 
 railroad. From Weston a branch of the same road runs into Upshur 
 county, opening another almost entirely undeveloped country. 
 Lewis is one of the older counties of the State and has been pretty 
 thickly settled. Good roads connect all parts of the county and 
 there are several small towns throughout the county. From Wes- 
 ton, the county seat, the distance to Parkersburg is 107 miles, to 
 Martinsburg 227, to Charleston 240, to Wheeling 147, to Baltimore 
 341, to Cincinnati 302 and to Chicago 614. 
 
 C«»al, — Throughout the county veins of valuable coal are found, 
 from 5 to 6 feet in thickness, and in places the veins reach as much 
 as l4 feet. The coal belongs to the Pittsburg bed and having been 
 tested is found to be valuable coking coal. For local use the coal 
 has been mined, but not tor any other purpose. None has ever been 
 shipped although it might easily b6 mined, and the quality is as 
 good as any to be found in the State, and it is believed that the 
 new railroads recently constructed in the county will tend to de- 
 velope it. 
 
 Gas. — Natural gas has been found in several places in the county 
 and there is reason to believe that oil may be found also when 
 properly sought for. 
 
 Clays. — There is an abundance of valuable clay in the county, 
 
174 
 
 Lewis County. 
 
 the ordinar}^ brick clay, fire clay, and potter's clay all being found 
 in large quantities. From these clays considerable brick, tiling, 
 sewer pipe, etc., is made and there is enough of the material in the 
 county to warrant a large increase of the business. 
 
 Near Weston there is a deposit of fine yellow ochre, about 3 feet 
 thick, of a rich orange color, which when burned yields a pure, rich 
 red. It is very valuable as a mineral paint. 
 
 Stone. — There is a good deal of limestone in the county, though 
 it is principally in thin veins. There is also a good yellow sand 
 stone, though neither is as wide spread as the blue sand stone that 
 is found in nearly every part ot the county. The latter is a fine 
 building stone, hard and durable and Irom it is built the large hos- 
 pital for the insane at Weston. It is a bluish gray in color, retains 
 its color well and is free from sulphur and iron. 
 
 A good quality of glass sand is also found in the county, but is 
 not in general use. 
 
 Timber. — The county was settled about the first of the present 
 century and was formed into a county in 1816, and since then the 
 valuable timber has practically all disappeared. There are still a 
 good many small tracts that are kept in timber to supply the wants 
 of the larmers, and a few tracts of timbered land. Possibly half 
 the county is still wooded but of this part a good deal of the best 
 timber has been taken off". Still there are large areas of fine white 
 and chestnut oak and other hard woods. 
 
 'Agricultural — Lewis is essentially a grazing county. Of the 
 counties in West Virginia Harrison probably stands first in the 
 production of cattle and as a grazing county, with Lewis second. 
 The county is principally rolling with low and gently sloping hills 
 ( 11 which blue grass grows naturally to the very tops. The lands 
 when cleared of their timber produce naturally a luxurious growth 
 of fine blue grass and the county has come' to be a great grazing 
 one. Cattle are grown in great quantities and of the very finest 
 kind, sheep are raised in larger numbers than formerly and horses 
 are also raised. Some of the finest blooded horses to -be found in 
 the State are raised on the Lewis county stock farms. The soil 
 of the county is all rich and productive and some other 
 crops are raised besides grass. Wheat and corn yieM well, tobacco 
 is raised to a limited extent and fine fruits are raised. Apples and 
 grapes do particularly well. 
 
Lincoln County. 
 
 175 
 
 LINCOLN COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Lincoln county lies slightly to the 
 east of the most western point in the State. It is almost equally 
 distant from the Ohio, Kanawha and Big Sandy rivers. In the 
 south-western part of the county are the Guyandotte mountains, the 
 only ones within its borders, though the entire county is rough and 
 hilly. Through the southern and western parts of the county flows 
 the Guyandotte river, navigable for push-boats through the entire 
 length of the county and into Logan. The waters of Mud river, a 
 tributary of the Guyandotte, water the central portion of the county, 
 while for a short distance in the north-eastern part of the county 
 flows the Little Coal river, uniting with Big Coal to form the north- 
 eastern boundary betw^een Lincoln and Kanawha. The prospective 
 railroads up the Guyandotte and Mud rivers have not yet been 
 commenced, but will undoubtedly some day be built. At present 
 the nearest railroad is the Chesapeake and Ohio, from which Ham- 
 lin, the county seat, is distant 18 miles over a good road, and some 
 parts of the county are much closer. This puts Hamlin but 36 
 miles from Huntington, 50 from Charleston, 251 from Wheeling, 
 419 from Richmond, 197 from Cincinnati, and 502 from Chicago, all 
 by rail save 18 miles. 
 
 Coal. — Lincoln is underlaid with magnificent coal deposits, which 
 only await transportation to be developed. The magnificent deposits 
 of coals found in Boone and Logan counties, which are in the richest 
 region in the State, extend into Lincoln, which contains a portion 
 of what Prof. White, of the West Virginia University, terms "one of 
 the largest areas of pure cannel coal known in any country of the 
 world." Lincoln coals are similar in character and thickness to the 
 coals of Boone and Logan, but the area of the thickest veins is not 
 so large in Lincoln as in some of the neighboring counties. There 
 is coal in every part of the county, but in the northern part the 
 veins are smaller, being not much over three feet in thickness, 
 while in the southern part of the county rich deposits of the very 
 finest coal are found in abundance. One vein of coal in the south- 
 ern portion of the county has a thickness of 11 feet. CanneJ, splint 
 and bituminous coals are all found in Lincoln county. 
 
 TiMHER.— Considerable poplar timber has been cut out of Lincoln 
 
176 
 
 Lincoln County. 
 
 county for the last twenty years, and all the walnut there ever was, ♦ 
 but theie still remain magnificent tracts of tens of thousands of 
 acres of timber which have never been touched by the woodman's 
 axe. Fully one-half the county is yet covered with magnificent 
 oak forests, and the greater portion of this with poplar also. There 
 is also much ash and beech, some chestnut, a little pine, and some 
 other timber, all of which jnay be easily gotten to market by means 
 of the Guyandotte, Coal and Mud rivers and their tributaries. 
 Little timber has ever been sawed at home, it being cheaper to float " 
 the logs out and saw them closer to market. Even staves are taken 
 out in this way, not being sawed or split till they have reached a 
 railroad point. The northern part of the county has been cleared 
 and settled to a greater extent than the southern, where the greater 
 part of the timber that is still standing is to be found. 
 
 Agricultural. — The eastern portion of the county is a famous 
 tobacco region. Some of the finest tobacco in the country is raised 
 in Lincoln county, and commands as high prices as that grown any- 
 where in the United States. ' Heavy hurleys are raised all over the 
 county, but the fine light colored leaf is grown principally in the 
 eastern portion and has an excellent reputation in the tobacco 
 markets of Richmond. The rich lands of the county, as soon as the 
 timber is taken off, prove to be excellent soil for the culture of to- 
 bacco. It is raised principally by Old Virginia farmers who know 
 how. The soil of Lincoln is all fertile and yields good grain crops 
 when cultivated, but aside from the tobacco culture little farming is 
 done. Some corn is grown, but not more than is consumed in the 
 county. Grass grows well, and the county is well covered with 
 good grass sod. Cattle are raised to a considerable extent and do 
 well. Some attention is paid to sheep raising, and they too thrive 
 and prove profitable. The county is well adapted for stock growing 
 and fruit culture, though little fruit is now to be found in the 
 county. 
 
 LOGAN COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Logan is one of the border counties 
 of the State, lying along the southwestern boundary, adjoining the 
 State of Kentucky, and at its southern corner, touching the corner 
 of the State of Virginia The Tug Fork of Big Sandy river, the 
 
Logan County, 
 
 177 
 
 western bank of which forms the dividing line between the States 
 of West Virginia and Kentucky, follows along the edge of Logan 
 county. This rivQr is navigable in favorable seasons for steamboats, 
 which have at times come well up into Logan county, and is at all 
 times navigable for push boats. Flowing almost due north through 
 the entire county, is the Guyandotte river, which is aJso navigable 
 for push- boats and was at one time locked and dammed about half 
 way from the mouth to Logan Court House. But the war broke up 
 the company which owned the dams and they were cut out to 
 make a channel for the logs which are taken out. Until the con- 
 struction of the railroad in the last few months most of the mer- 
 chandise used in Logan county was taken there in push boats up 
 the Guyandotte river, some 80 miles from the mouth, or were hauled 
 in wagons from the railroad near Charleston, some 55 miles. The 
 Norfolk & Western railroad has recently been completed 
 through the county, following closely along the southern border, 
 and this road will have a wonderful effect in developing the resour- 
 ces of the county. Logan Court House is 65 miles fro*m Charleston, 
 all but 10 miles of which is over country roads, is 12 miles from 
 the Norfolk & Western, by way of which it is 93 miles from Hunt- 
 ington, 515 from Norfolk, 238 from Cincinnati and 543 from 
 Chicago. Most of the county is mountainous or hilly, the valleys 
 not attaining any considerable width, but hills and valleys are 
 alike fertile and productive. The waters of the Guyandotte and 
 Big Sandy rivers water well the county and afford means of getting 
 out timber. The Guyandotte valley and some of the smaller ones 
 are very rich in natural resources and have been pretty thickly 
 settled, but the greater part of the county has been held in large 
 tracts for speculative purposes and has never been developed to any 
 extent. The construction of the railroad, however, has had a re- 
 markable efiect on the value of lands, those which might a few 
 years ago have been bought for 50 cents an acre now commanding 
 an average of about $10 an acre, and even at that most of them are 
 cheap. 
 
 Coal.— Every known kind of coal except anthracite is found in 
 Logan county and there is not a portion of the county that is not 
 well supplied with it. Developments in many p'aces show about 
 ten veins of coal over 2 feet in thickness, and it is thought this 
 
178 
 
 Lo(jAN County. 
 
 number will be found over the greater portion of the county, the 
 same being found in Boone county. Besides this enormous amount 
 of coal which may be found in the hill sides, the New River veins 
 are supposed to underlie the entire county, though no investigations 
 have ever been made below the surface of the earth. The veins so 
 far discovered range from 2 to 13 leet in thickness and are piled one 
 above the other to almost incredible heights. Between the Guyan- 
 dotte and Big Sandy rivers one mountain has been developed and 
 the ten veins of coal from top to bottom, all over 2 feet in thickness, 
 aggregated 52 feet of coal. Another mountain but partly developed 
 shows two veins of 4 feet, one of 5 and one of 7 feet. Investiga- 
 tions were carried no further. But even if there were no more 
 coal in the mountain, which there probably is, there are known to 
 be 20 feet of good coal in four workable veins. One coal vein is 13 
 feet thick with two partings which aggregate about a foot, leaving 
 12 feet of solid coal. In this vein there are three different kinds of 
 coal separated by tlie partings — a fine burning, soft bituminous 
 coal, splint and peacock coal. Some of the finest cannel coal known 
 is found in the region of which Logan county is a part, and this is 
 said to be the largest field of pure cannel known in the world. In 
 Logan cannel coal is found in veins as large as 4 feet thick. Almost 
 anywhere a pick is struck into the earth coal may be found. Many 
 of the streams flow over beds of solid coal, from the tops of which 
 the earth has been washed away, and coal may be dug right out of 
 the bed of the creeks. In other places where the base of a moun- 
 tain has been cut slightly into, to make room for a road, the coal 
 crops out, and it is no uncommon thing in Logan county to drive 
 along a road that is walled in on one side with several feet of coal, 
 while the stream on the other side flows over a broad bed of the 
 same material. Every family in the county may have its own coal 
 bank and many of them do. And yet, with all this abundance of 
 coal on every hand, not a bushel has ever been mined for market. 
 There have been no means of reaching a market with it. The coal 
 still lies where it has lain for countless ages, scarce hidden from the 
 eyes of man, and waits the time when human enterprise shall 
 penetrate the forest fastness and reap a rich reward from treasures 
 buried there. 
 
 Timber. — But coal is by no means Logan's only wealth. While 
 
Logan Counts. 
 
 179 
 
 all or nearly all the county is covered with coa), three fourths of it 
 is also covered with untouched timber. Magnificent forests of oak, 
 poplar, ash, lynn, maples, beech, birch, pines, hickory and other 
 varieties still cover the greater part of the county in their primitive 
 state. For thirty years timber men have been at work, destroying 
 the forests and still in all this time not over a fourth of the timber 
 has been removed. The rest still stands, exceeding in value, in 
 most cases, the price at which the land on which it grows is held. 
 Some of the finest timber in the State is found in Logan county. 
 The soil is rich and strong and has produced tremendous growths 
 among the forest trees. One poplar tree in Logan county measures 
 30 feet in circumference at the base, while others are said to be as 
 large and many are found from 7 to 8 feet in diameter. All the 
 other varieties of timber grow to proportionate size. The oaks in 
 particular reach prodigious sizes. No county in the State is more 
 favorably situated for getting out the timber than is Logan, The 
 Guyandotte and Big Sandy rivers afford giheap and easy means of 
 floating timber to markets or shipping points, while their tributary 
 streams, which are quite numerous, may be utilized in times of 
 rain for floating the logs to the rivers. Splash dams are ut-ed a good 
 deal to get logs out of the smaller streams. As an estimate of the 
 value of the timber still standing in Logan county, three million 
 dollars will not be far amiss. And like the coal, this awaits the 
 man who will take it out to make him rich. 
 
 Iron — Iron ores are found in most of the county, though the ex- 
 tent and value of them are unknown. No one has ever had the 
 iron interests of the county looked into, and its possibilities in this 
 respect are unknown. As Logan is but a continuation of Wayne 
 county and in all respects so similar to it, it is not at all improb- 
 able that all the ores which are found in Wayne county may also be 
 discovered in Logan. But this is speculative. That there is some 
 iron ore in the county is certain. 
 
 Lead — A little lead is found in small quantities in some portions 
 of the county and in the olden time the pioneers used to run their 
 own bullets out of native lead. But whether there is any lead of 
 commercial value in the county is not known. 
 
 Oil and Gas — While no oil has ever been found in the county, 
 there are indications which encourage the people to hope that some 
 
180 
 
 Logan County. 
 
 day it may be found. In Kentucky, not far from the county line, 
 oil has been lound. Near the line, recently, on the Logan side, a 
 test well was put down. While no oil was reached there was a 
 tremendous flow of natural gas, which usually goes hand in hand 
 with oil. All over the county natural gas bubbles up through the 
 surfMce of the earth and it is thought by many that underlying the 
 vast coal field of this and adjoining counties is a great sea of oil. 
 
 Clav, etc. — An excellent quality of fire clay is found and is sup- 
 posed to exist in great abundance. Building stone is plentiful. In 
 connection with the coal a good roofing slate is found. But none 
 of these materials which will some day manifest their value, have 
 as yet been more than found to exist. 
 
 Agricultural — The hills of Logan have principally a black, 
 gravelly soil, that is very fertile. But as a rule they are most too 
 steep for cultivation. The valleys are well tilled. The hills where 
 not too steep are excellent land for corn, which yields in the county 
 Irom 40 to 60 bushels ar^acre. Other grains are not raised much. 
 The old Virginia settlers raise very fine tobacco. The new rich 
 soil is just what it requires and they know all about its culture. 
 This is an excellent cattle county and especially adapted to sheep. 
 The latter do well, seldom suffer irom disease on the wide range 
 they have and for their wool as much is paid in eastern markets as 
 for that from any section of the country. In this, as in many 
 other counties, sheep raising will follow up the clearing of the hills 
 and will some day become one of the principal industries of the 
 State. 
 
 MARION COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character — In the northern part of the State, 
 separated by a single county from Pennsylvania on the north, from 
 Maryland on the east and from Ohio on the west, is Marion county. 
 The Tygart's Valley and the West Fork rivers both flow into the 
 county, uniting near Fairmont to form the Monongahela river. Fol- 
 lowing the Vallt^y river from Grafton down to Fairmont is the main 
 line ol the Baltimore & Ohio railroad which connects Chicago by 
 way of Wheeling and West Virginia with Baltimore and the east. 
 From Clarksburg down the West Fork river to Fairmont runs the 
 Monongahela River railroad, while from Fairmont on down the Mo- 
 
Marion Couni y. 
 
 181 
 
 nong.ahela river to Morp^antown runs the Fairmont, Morgantown 
 nd Pittsburg branch of the i^. & 0. road, the intention being to 
 extend the road on down to Pittsbur-*-. Fairmont, the county seat 
 is 78 miles Irom Wheeling, 126 from Parkersburg, 202 froni Mar- 
 tinsburg, 316 from Baltimore, 260 from Charleston, 321 from Cincin- 
 nati, and 545 from Chicago. The county is high and rolling or hilly, 
 with no mountains and few steep hills, and besides possessing val- 
 uable mineral resources is nearly all excellently adapted to agricul- 
 tuie. The county is in the older portion of the State, is thickly 
 settled, prosperous and growing. 
 
 Coal— The county is abundantly supplied with splendid coal in 
 veins from 18 inches to 10 feet in thickness. The splendid Pitts- 
 burg vein of coking coal underlies the county throughout its entire 
 area and along the railroads is larj^ely mined and coked. Indeed, 
 Marion has become the center of the coal and coke industry of the 
 northern part of the State and is far ahead of any other county in 
 that part of the State in coal and coke production. The reports of 
 the mine inspectors show that in the year ending June 30, 1891, 
 the coal production was 245,899 tons, the coke 52,852 tons. For 
 the year ending June 30, 1892, the coal production was 904,896 
 tons, the coke 227,291. The coal is good and finds a ready market 
 while the coke sells easily in competition with the. coke of Connells- 
 ville and other Pennsylvania districts. The excellence and preva- 
 lence of the coal, the splendid shipping facilities and the easy ac- 
 cess to markets make the coals of Marion county assume a great im- 
 portance. While recently the business has rapidly increased, it 
 really has but just begun to grow, and the immense coal fields of 
 the county will some day be the basis of an industry that will give 
 employment to many times the number of men at present engaged 
 in digging coal or making coke. 
 . Oil— In Marion county is one of the largest oil fields in the State 
 ■ —the Mannington field. Pushing south from Pennsylvania the oil 
 was followed into Monongalia county and thence doAvn through the 
 western end of Marion where a splendid field was found. At the 
 time of its discovery it was the best field in the State and though 
 it has been partly drained the flow of oil continues to be large and 
 the fortunes already made by those who were fortunately situated 
 in the right part of the county are still increasing. The wells are 
 
182 
 
 Marion County. 
 
 all good producers, a single well when first opened yielding at the 
 rate of 700 barrels of oil a day. This flow, of course, diminished, 
 but the yield of the field is large. Gas is found in abundance and 
 used for lighting and for fuel. 
 
 Clay — For many years most excellent fire clay has been worked 
 in Marion county. Fire and furnace brick, sewer pipe, tile, etc., are 
 made from it and the clay is valued -highly. The brick has been 
 used in Fairmont for street paving, as well as for other purposes aud 
 sustains its reputation well. There are almost inexhaustible quanti- 
 ties of clay in the county and the growing demand for products of 
 fire clay will cause its further development and build up the indus- 
 try in the county. 
 
 Stone. — Building stone, both lime and sand, is found in the 
 county in abundance. Glass sand is also found and worked at 
 Fairmont in the manufacture of glass bottles. It is a clear white 
 sand and makes a splendid article of glass. 
 
 Timber. - The county is perhaps a third covered with timber. 
 Much of it has been cut both for commercial use and to make room 
 forjlfarming, yet there is much remaining. Oaks, poplar, chestnut, 
 maple and hickory are the most abundant though other timbers 
 usually found in the forests of this latitude and altitude are found. 
 The numerous streams and railroads which pass through the county 
 offer cheap and easy means of getting timber out and several saw 
 mills are in operation in the county. Staves and poles and rail- 
 road ties and all the other products of the forests are also taken out. 
 The coal and oil operations in the county have afforded a home 
 market for much timber in addition to what is sent away. 
 
 AGuictrLTURAL. — Posscssiug principally a limestone soil, rich, 
 deep and productive, the county is an excellent one for agriculture. 
 Corn, wheat and other grains grow well, both on the hills and in 
 the valleys, and in the higher parts buckwheat is raised to some ex- 
 tent. Blue grass grows in all parts of the county and grazing is a 
 principal feature of the work upon the farms. Dairying and stock 
 raising ar(^ carried on largely and many cattle are annually shi})ped 
 from Marlon county. For fruits the county is well suited and 
 many kinds are raised, all yielding well. 
 
 Fairmont is a manufacturing and commercial city, the banking 
 and business center of the entire coal and coking region of the 
 
Marshall County. 
 
 183 
 
 county. It had by the census of 1S90 a population of 1,023 which 
 has largely increased since. It is now a growing flourishing busi- 
 ness place of about 3,000 people, upon which a large territory of 
 surrounding country is dependent. Several manufacturing plants 
 are located at Fairmont, many public improvements have recently 
 been made and it is one of the most prosperous of the smaller cities 
 of the State. 
 
 MARSHALL COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character.- Of the four counties comprising the 
 northern "panhandle" Marshall is the most southern. On the east 
 is Pennsylvania, on the w^est Ohio. Following along the western 
 border the entire length of the county is the Ohio river, which af- 
 fords the cheapest transportation, and whose valleys are always fer- 
 tile. The Ohio River railroad follows the Ohio river along the 
 western border of the county, connecting all the east and west rail- 
 roads that pass through the State, while the Baltimore & Ohio rail- 
 road parallels it about half the length of the county and then turns 
 eastward in its course toward the seaboard. The river distance from 
 Moundsville, the county seat, to Pittsburg is 109 miles, to Cincin- 
 nati 371 miles. The shortest distances by rail from Moundsville 
 are: to Wheeling 11 miles, to Pittsburg 82, to Parkersburg 83, to 
 Martinsburg 268, to Baltimore 382, to Huntington 204, to Charles- 
 ton 218, to Cincinnati 278, to Chicago 478 miles. The county is 
 principally rolling in character, with wide bottom lands along the 
 Ohio river and the several streams that pass through the county and 
 flow into the Ohio. 
 
 Coal. — Marshall has no surface coal, but the entire county is 
 underlaid with two veins of the Pittsburg coal. The first is about 4 
 feet thick and is found at a depth of from 80 to 100 feet below the 
 surface. The other, at a depth of 150 feet, is about 6 feet thick. 
 This is a good fuel coal and coke is sometimes made of it, but is not 
 really a good coking coal. It is considered very good for fuel and is 
 mined cheaply. Two mines are operated in the county, by means 
 of shafts. The report of the State Mine Inspector for the first dis- 
 trict shows that for the year ending June 30, 1891, the production 
 of coal in Marshall county was 118,242 tons, and for the year end- 
 ing -lune 30, 1892, the production was 166,893 tons. 
 
184 
 
 Marshall County. 
 
 Timber.— Perhaps a fourth of Marshall county is still covered 
 Avith good timber, though a great deal has been g:oing out constantly 
 for many years. What is left is principally oak, though there is 
 also a good deal of very fine poplar, particularly in the southeastern 
 part of the county. There is some walnut left but not in large 
 quantities. The accessibility of the timber of Marshall county is 
 not to be overlooked. The hills are not steep and the land is well 
 ■watered with streams that may be used to lloat timber. The county 
 is also well supplied with railroad transportation, and is close to 
 the markets of Wheeling and Pittsburg. There is also in the 
 county a great deal of hickory timber suitable for use in wagon mak- 
 ing and for other purposes. It is easy of access and is being used 
 to a considerable extent. There is a great deal of tanbark in tlie 
 county, which might be profitably gotten out. 
 
 Clays. — Clays of several kinds are found in this county, suitable 
 for making the ordinary red brick, fire brick, sewer pipe, tiling and 
 other materials made from clays. The growing favor with which 
 brick pavements for roadways are regarded, and the abundance of 
 suitable clay for their manufacture in Marshall county seem to in- 
 dicate that this will some day become a great brick making region. 
 
 Stone. — Building stone of excellent quality and in the greatest 
 quantity is found throughout the county. It is in tremendous 
 ledges and may be quarried at a trifling cost. Limestone is abund- 
 ant in portions of the county and may be used for building, fluxing 
 or agricultural purposes. There is also found in the county a bank 
 of cement rock, from which a good quality of cement may be made. 
 Furnace sand for foundry and rolling mill purposes is found in 
 abundance and is already shipped to some extent to furnaces in 
 the neighboring cities where it is considered excellent for the pur- 
 poses required. 
 
 Oil. — Some natural gas and oil have been discovered in this 
 county, though they have never been found in large or profitable 
 quantities. But the county is in such close proximity to the pay- 
 ing oil regions of Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia that it is 
 probable that oil will one day be found here. 
 
 Salt water has been found in great abundance, but has never been 
 utilized. 
 
 Agrkjuj/iukal. — Marshall is one of the best agricultural counties 
 
Marshall County. 
 
 185 
 
 in the State. A large proportion of the county is river bottom 
 land or creek bottoms, and very productive, while no part of the 
 county is so high or hilly that it is unfitted for farming. Crops of 
 all kinds as well as fruits yield well and are raised largely. The 
 soil is principally a rich loam and the nearness of the county to the 
 city markets makes it well adapted to market gardening. Grass 
 grows luxuriously and makes the county a suitable one for stock 
 raising. More attention has been given of late to the stock and 
 much improvement has been noted in stock of all kinds. Sheep are 
 principally raised, and like all the wool from the ''panhandle" coun- 
 ties, that from Marshall county sheep commands a high price in the 
 markets. Agricultural pursuits are the principal sources of wealth 
 in Marshall county and much suitable property for farming or 
 grazing purposes may be secured. 
 
 Benwood, with a population of 2,934 is a manufacturing suburb 
 of Wheeling, which has sprung up in the last ten years. Large 
 nail and glass works and other factories are located in the town, 
 which is in reality a part of Wheeling. 
 
 MouNDSViLLE, where the State penitentiary is located, is a pros- 
 perous and growing town, with brick paved streets and other evi- 
 dences of enterprise. It is becoming a manufacturing town. The 
 population in 1890 was 2,688, an increase of 51.52 per cent, in ten 
 years. 
 
 MASON COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character.— Mason is one of the Ohio valley coun- 
 ties, lying along the western border of the State, directly west of 
 the center. The Ohio river, which marks the western boundary of 
 the county, bends in such a way that about a fourth of the county 
 is surrounded on three sides by it. In a northwesterly direction, 
 dividing the county almost equall}^ flows the Great Kanawha 
 river, pouring its waters into those of the Ohio at Point Pleas- 
 ant. With a river frontage of 56 miles on the Ohio and 18 miles 
 on either side of the Kanawha, with an average river bottom 
 width of a mile, it is seen that about a fourth of the county is river 
 bottom, and that consequently this is an exceedingly fine agricul- 
 tural county. The greater portion of the county is not rough, 
 though there are some high lands. The latter are in a measure 
 
186 
 
 Mason CouNTy. 
 
 level, forming what are known locally as "the flats." But some 
 parts of the county are quite rough and hilly. Situated, as it is, 
 upon two navigable rivers, the county is afforded the advantage of 
 the che£.pest transportation in the world in three directions. The 
 rivers are seldom so low that no boats can run and for the greater 
 part of every year both are navigable for the larger steamers. Along 
 the shore of the Ohio river runs the Ohio River railroad the entire 
 length of the county, while along the north bank of the Kanawha 
 passes the Kanawha and Michigan railroad, connecting the capitals 
 of Ohio and West Virginia. From Point Pleasant, the county seat, 
 to Wheeling is 172 miles, to Huntington 43, to Charleston 56, to 
 Cincinnati 204, to Richmond 425, and to Chicago 497 miles. The 
 distance by river to Pittsburg is 277 miles, to Cincinnati 203, to 
 Charleston 60: 
 
 Coal. — The entire county is underlaid with coal. The Pittsburg 
 seam, which in the neighboring counties is below the ground, here 
 appears above the earth and is mined at nine places in this county. 
 There are two veins of 3 and 6 feet respectively. South of the Ka- 
 nawha river the coal is not found, but on the north of the river 
 these veins are found. The coal is that excellent kind always seen 
 in the Pittsburg seam, which is good fuel, gas and coking coal, all in 
 one. The reports pf the State Mine Inspector for the second dis- 
 trict, show that for the year ending June 30, 1891, the coal output 
 of Mason county was 116,598 tons, while for the year ending June 
 30, 1892,nt was 123,323 ton?. The number of employes about the 
 mines increased from 264 in 1891 to 305 in 1892. The coal from 
 Mason county is used in all the towns near the mines and is in great 
 demand in other places. A great deal is shipped, principally by 
 rail. 
 
 Salt. — For many years salt has been made in Mason county. 
 Many of the furnaces that were at one time operated have gone to 
 decay, and their ruins may be seen in passing through on the train. 
 But there are five salt furnaces now in operation, making an aver- 
 age of about 720 barrels of salt a day, each containing 7 bushels— in 
 other words, about 5,000 bushels a day are produced in Mason county. 
 The brine is found at a depth of about 1,000 or 1,200 feet and is 
 pumped into the vats in the furnaces, where it is boiled and the 
 water evaporated, leaving the crystallized salt in the vats. The salt 
 
Mason County. 
 
 187 
 
 is made cheaply and the cheap Ohio river transportation enables the 
 makers to compete with all other salt and still make a reasonable 
 profit. West Virginia salt has always had an excellent reputation, 
 and still maintains it. Salt may be found at almost any point along 
 the Ohio river in Mason county. 
 
 Stone and Clay. — A handsome grey sandstone, suitable for build- 
 ing and paving purposes, is found in great abundance. It is val- 
 uable for masonry of all kinds and many quarries are operated in 
 the county. Bridge piers in the Ohio and Kanawha rivers are made 
 from this stone and do not seem to be affected by the action of the 
 water. 
 
 An excellent article of fire clay is found in considerable quanti- 
 ties at and near Mason City, a town in Mason county, on the Ohio 
 river, where cheap transportation would be afforded should the clay 
 be worked. 
 
 Timber. — All that part of the timber which was most easily ac- 
 cessible has beeii taken out and the land converted into farms. And 
 yet a fourth of the county is still covered with timber. The greater 
 part of the timber is oak and poplar, though there is some very fine 
 walnut that has been preserved from the destruction that is 
 going on among most of the walnut timber of the State There is 
 also considerable hickory timber in the county. There are numer- 
 ous streams in the county, emptying into the two rivers, on which 
 timber may be taken to market with little difficulty. There are 
 several saw and stave mills and one large furniture factory that are 
 all working native timber. Railroad ties are gotten out in consid- 
 erable quantities. Cheap fuel and cheap raw material offer induce- 
 ments to wood working establishments of all kinds. 
 
 Agricultural. — From the days when the Indians lived in the 
 valleys which meet in Mason, and fought with the whites for the 
 possession of the soil, many evidences of which still remain, the 
 lands of this county have been farmed. And the broad river bot- 
 toms are most inviting still. Wheat yields from 25 to 30 bushels 
 an acre, and is the principal crop in the valleys. Corn is also a 
 staple and the yield is large. Some are on record of from 100 to 
 125 bushels an acre. Blue grass is indigenous to the soil and Mason 
 is one of the i)rincipal grazing counties of the State. Blooded 
 horses, cattle and sheep are raised and some very fine animals are 
 
188 
 
 Mercer County. 
 
 bred. Race horses are numerous and some world's records are held 
 by Mason county horses. Cattle are bred, both for milk and beef. 
 Very fine beef cattle are raised and large numbers of them are 
 shipped. Sheep are receiving special attention and many more are 
 now raised than have been heretofore. The blue grass grows beau- 
 tifully, and some magnificent pasturage is afforded, unexcelled by 
 that in any part of the country. All kinds of farming prove profit- 
 able and very few of the farmers are not prosperous. The county 
 is a good one for fruit, and a good deal of it is grown. Quite a rep- 
 utation is being secured by Mason as a melon raising county Last 
 year 1,400 acres in this county were planted in melons, and one 
 man shipped 20,000 crates of "nutmeg"- muskmelons, the kind so 
 much used for pickling. 
 
 MERCER COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Next to McDowell the southernmost 
 county in the State and slightly to the east of it is Mercer county. 
 The East River mountains separate the county from the State ot Vir- 
 ginia, while the Flat Top and other mountains are within the lim- 
 its of the county. New river touches the eastern corner of the 
 county in its northward course and through the western part of the 
 county flows the Bluestone, a tributary of the New river. Though 
 high, the county is not very mountainous, the principal part being 
 a high rolling plateau, with some mountains, but not enough to cut 
 the county up much. It is not as rough and broken as the adjoin- 
 ing counties and contains some good farming country. The eleva- 
 tion of the county gives it an excellent atmosphere and healthful 
 climate. Along the entire southern border of the county runs the 
 Norfolk & Western railroad, several short branches of which pen- 
 etrate the county in various directions for the opening of coalmines. 
 Another railroad down the New river to Hinton, connecting the 
 Norfolk & Western and theChesapeake & Ohio railroads, is projected 
 but has not yet been begun. At present the Norfolk & Western 
 railroad is the only means of transportation afforded the people of 
 the county, the distance by way of which from Bluefield, is 365 
 miles to Norfolk, oli-l to Cincinnati, 219 to Huntington, 269 to 
 Charleston, 434 to Wheeling and 524 to Chicago. Princeton, the 
 county seat, is off the railroad about 10 miles from Bluefield. 
 
Mercer County. 
 
 189 
 
 Coal. — Mercer is partially in the Flat Top coal field. West of 
 the Bluestone river over a territory about 3 by 14 mi es the coal is 
 found. Its thickness in Mercer county is not as great as in the ad- 
 joining county of McDowell, being but about 7 feet on the average, 
 while in McDowell it averages about 10 feet. There is but one vein 
 in Mercer county, but it contains some of the finest coal in the 
 country. The field is pretty well opened up but there is still an 
 abundance of coal untouched in the county. As in McDowell, the 
 coal lands are held principally by a i'ew large corporations which 
 lease to operators on favorable terms. The coal is of the same vein, 
 and exactly the same in character as that found in McDowell 
 county. The reports of the State Mine Inspectors show that for the 
 year ending June 30, 1891, there were 13 coal mines and 714 coke 
 ovens in Mercer county, employing 2,104 men, producing 1,210,723 
 tons of coal and 254,780 tons of coke. For the year ending June 
 30, 1892, the number of coal mines was 17, coke ovens 734 with 12 
 under construction, number of employes 1,962, coal production 
 1,175,141 torn?, coke production 88,297 tons. 
 
 Iron. — The county is one of those eastern border counties of the 
 State all of which contain more or less of iron ores, and in Mercer 
 are found large deposits of brown hematite ore. No developments 
 have ever been made of this ore but its quality is known to be 
 good and the mountain ranges along the eastern border are filled 
 with it. Being in the iron region of the two Virginias, with plenty 
 of good limestone at hand and in ths heart of the finest coking coal 
 field, Mercer county will some day probably become a large iron 
 producing county. While not existing in as large quantities as in 
 some of the adjoining counties, there is still a large amount of it and 
 in paying quantities in Mercer county. 
 
 Marble and Stone- The county contains an abundance of lime- 
 stone, suitable for building and agricultural purposes and for flux- 
 ing. It is in large quantities, easy of access and easily quarried. 
 There is in the mountains alon^ the border of the county a fine 
 variegated marble which has not been developed, but specimens 
 of which show it to be a beautiful marble and of excellent quality. 
 There is also a good millstone grit in a portion of the mountains 
 of the county. 
 
 Clays— Fire and potter's clays are found in the county in large 
 
190 
 
 Mercer County. 
 
 deposits and the potter's clay has been worked, all kinds of pottery 
 being made in the county. The clays are also useful in making 
 brick for the construction of coke ovens, a great many of which are 
 required, and for general building purposes. There is great de- 
 mand for brick in the county which is growing up very fast and re- 
 quires a large amount of building material. 
 
 Timber — A good deal of the timber has been removed from the 
 county, but perhaps a half of it is still standing. The timber is 
 principally the hard woods, with some poplar and a little pine in 
 the higher parts of the county. Mercer never was a specially fine 
 timber county and does not now rank well up among the best tim- 
 ber counties of the State, but, for all that, there is still some very 
 good timber in the county. Much of it is being used at home and 
 some shipped over the Norfolk & Western, though the principal 
 item transported over that road is Coal or its product, coke. 
 
 Agricul'iure — The county is well adapted to some kinds of agri- 
 culture. Corn grows very well and tobacco on the new, high 
 ground, produces excellent crops. The county, though, is especially 
 adapted to grazing. Grass grows luxuriantly over all the land, 
 most of which is high limestone land, and makes excellent pastur- 
 age. Cattle and sheep do well, though few are raised as yet, most 
 of the country being given up to mining. Fruits do well but are not 
 much cultivated. 
 
 Bluefield is a town of almost magic growth, being but a few 
 years old and claiming now 5,000 people. It is dependent on the 
 coal and coke industries of Mercer and McDowell counties. It is 
 an enterprising place and growing rapidly. 
 
 MINERAL COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Mineral county is in the north-eastern 
 part of the State, the second county west of the eastern "pan- 
 handle." It is one of the border counties, being bounded on the 
 west, north and for a short distance on the east by the State of 
 Maryland. Forming the boundary of at least one half the county 
 is the Potomac river, the dividing line between the two States. Fol- 
 lowing this river, sometimes on one bank, sometimes on the other, 
 are the Baltimore & Ohio and the West Virginia Central & Pitts- 
 burg railroads, which have parallel lines for half the length of the 
 
Mineral County. 
 
 191 
 
 county. Leaving the W. Va. C. & P. at Cumberland, Md., the B. 
 & 0. continues eastward, while from Piedmont, where thf^y again 
 separate, the W. Va C. & P. extends southward to the interior of 
 Randolph county. The Cumberland & Pennsylvania railroad runs 
 from Piedmont through Maryland to Cumberland, touching 
 Mineral county at each end. From Cumberland eastward, on the 
 Maryland shore, runs the Chesapeake & Ohio canal. From Keyser, 
 the county seat, it is 102 miles to Martinsburg, 202 to Baltimore 
 183 to Parkersburg, 179 to Wheeling, and 646 to Chicago. Through 
 the count}^ run several parallel mountain ranges, at the base of each 
 of which is a broad valley. This alternation of mountains and 
 broad valleys makes up the entire county. The mountains are 
 not the "hog-back" ridges, such as are found in some parts of the 
 State, too steep and sharp to farm, but are flat on top and most of 
 the county is thus level and suitable for farming. Through the 
 county flow several streams, watering the county well and aflbrd- 
 ing means for floating out logs. 
 
 Coal. — Only in the extreme western part of Mineral county is 
 coal found, but there are in that part of the county no less than five 
 veins of very fine coal, aggregating over 30 feet. One of these is 
 the celebrated "14 foot vein." One is 7 feet, one 6, one 4 and one 
 from 1-^ to 3 feet thick. The coals are bituminous and ^emi-bitu- 
 minous, the latter including the "peacock" coal. The 14 foot vein is 
 the Pittsburg vein, and is very valuable for steam and smithing pur- 
 poses. Coke has not been made yet in this county, though the coal 
 is suitable for coking. The "big vein," which is the only one work- 
 ed in this county, vaiies a little in thickness, running up in places 
 to 16 feet and down to 13 in others, but 14 feet is the 
 average thickness. This is solid coal, too, without any slate or part- 
 ing in the vein. East of Piedmont no coal is found. The reports 
 of the State Mine Inspector show that for the year ending June 30, 
 1891, there were produced from the eight mines operated in Miner- 
 al county 623,067 tons of coal. In each of these mines the vein is 
 14 feet thick except in one where it is but 13. The number of 
 miners and employes was 666. For the year ending June 30, 1892, 
 the number of employes was 608, the number of mines worked 5, 
 and the output 473,862 tons of coal. 
 
 Iron. — In Abram's Ridge, just east of the New Creek mountains, 
 
192 
 
 Mineral County. 
 
 which extend from north to south through the centre of the county, 
 iron ore is found in great quantities. The deposit of ore is said to be 
 from 60 to 70 feet thick, but has never been developed. "Billions of 
 tons" is the expression used to denote the quantity of the iron ore 
 by one who knows more about it than any other person, and its 
 extent is over the entire length of the mountains in the county. 
 The ore is not so rich as that found in some of the adjacent coun- 
 ties, but is in large quantities and of paying quality. It is a brown 
 hematite ore, containing from 30 to 40 per cent, metallic iron. 
 This ore is easily accessible and in close proximity to the 
 splendid coals and limestones to be found within the bound- 
 aries of the same county and within a few miles of the iron ores 
 It would seem to offer an inviting field to the iron producer and 
 capitalist. 
 
 Stone. — A portion of the county is of limestone formation and 
 a portion sandstone. Of both kinds there is an abundance of good 
 building stone,which can be quarried cheaply. Some of the limestone 
 is very pure and an exceedingly fine quality of lime is burned. The 
 lime from West Virginia limestone stands high in the markets and 
 more might be profitably made in Mineral county. 
 
 Clay. — Fire clay is found in great quantities in many parts of 
 the county and brick are made to a limited extent. Clay suitable 
 for the manufacture of fire brick and tile is found in abundance and 
 some potter's clay, though the latter has never been developed. 
 
 Timber. — Good timber, principally oak, poplar, chestnut, ash, 
 lynn and similar woods, covers still more than half the county. On 
 lands that have been cleared there still remains sufficient timber for 
 farming and fencing purposes, but the timber that is valuable for 
 sawing is in large tracts on the mountains, principally in the 
 western part of the county. Until recently the south-western part 
 of the county has been inaccessible and little of the timber had ever 
 been taken out until the construction of the W. Va. C. & P. rail- 
 road along the border of the county opened the territory along the 
 upper Potomac and afforded the means of transporting the timber. 
 Since that time large forces of men have been at work and the tim- 
 ber is being rapidly removed. Still there is a great deal left of ex- 
 cellent quality. 
 
 Agricultural. — The county is similar in many respects to all of 
 
Mineral County. 293 
 
 the counties of the South Branch valley, and the soil is just as fer- 
 tile. The long parallel valleys between the mountain 'ranges are 
 broad and contain as fine farming lands as can be found in any part 
 of the State. The soil is principally a sandy loam and reaches an 
 average depth of many feet. That on the hills is not so deep, but is 
 very fertile. Grains of all kinds in the bottom lands and high plateaus 
 grow well and yield about as well as in any county in the State. 
 Part of the county is limestone in character and blue grass grows 
 and makes an excellent sod. Cattle and sheep are both raised and 
 with considerable profit. The county is especially adapted to grains, 
 cattle and sheep raising and fruit culture. 
 
 Keyser, an important railroad town, has shops and yards of the 
 B. & 0., and is reached also by the W. Va. C. & P. It is a beauti- 
 ful town and does considerable business as the center of an agricul- 
 tural region. Its population in 1890 was 2,165, an increase of 41 36 
 per cent over 1880. 
 
 Piedmont is a thriving town on the banks of the Potomac. It 
 has railroad shops and yards, large pulp and paper mills and other 
 factories and important commercial interests. 
 
 MONONGALIA COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. -Along the northern border of the 
 State, separated from the State of Pennsylvania by only an imagi- 
 nary line, and about as far west of the Maryland line as it is east of 
 the Ohio, IS the county of Monongalia. The county like all those 
 in this section of the State, is rolling and hilly and only in the ex- 
 treme east of the county do the hills rise into mountains, the Laurel 
 ridge reaching a considerable height there. Through the eastern part 
 of the county the Monongahela river flows northward, and east of 
 that IS the Cheat river, also flowing northward and uniting its 
 waters with those of the Monongahela just below the Pennsylvania 
 line. The Cheat is not navigable at any part, but the Monon- 
 gahela, improved with several dams, affords slack water navi- 
 gation as far above Pittsburg as Morgantown, the county seat of 
 Monongalia county. A branch of the Baltimore and Ohio railroad ex- 
 tends from Fairmont down the east bank of the Monongahela river to 
 Morgantown, is being extended into Pennsylvania where a connec- 
 tion will be made with the B. & 0. system in that State, and an- 
 
194 
 
 Monongalia County. 
 
 other road is under construction along the west bank of the same 
 river, which will also give connection with roads in Pennsylvania. 
 Morgantown, the county seat, is 104 miles from Wheeling, 152 from 
 Parkersburg, 228 from Martinsburg, 263 from Charleston, 347 from 
 Cincinnati and 571 from Chicago. 
 
 Coal. — Six veins of coal, varying from four to eleven feet, are 
 found in Monongalia county, in some places one above the other, 
 so that in parts of the county there are from 20 to 30 feet of mer- 
 chantable coal, all of which can be mined without shafting. Two 
 measures cover the county — the Lower and the Upper coal meas- 
 ures. In the former are two veins of excellent coking coal, aver- 
 aging about 5 or 6 feet each. In the other are four veins, averaging 
 from 4 to 9 feet each One of these is the great Pittsburg vein, one 
 of the most important veins in the State, and as good a coking coal 
 as can be found. The Monongalia coals stand high in the market, 
 make excellent coke, are free from ash, sulphur and slate partings. 
 Reports of the State Mine Inspectors show that for the year ending 
 June 30, 1891, there was but one mine reported in the county, and 
 
 10 coke ovens, the production being 46,100 tons of coal and 4,900 
 tons of coke. For the year ending June 30, 1892, there were two 
 mines reported^ and 57 coke ovens in blast. The production was 
 70,062 tons of coal and 13,517 tons of coke. The completion of the 
 railroad recently finished and the one now projected will give an 
 impetus to the development of the mining industry, and a great 
 mining region willdoubtless.be made of the Monongahela valley. 
 
 Iron. — In years past, before the completion of railroads into 
 richer territory, there were as many as half a dozen iron furnaces in 
 Monongalia county, but today none of them are operated, and the 
 ores still remain stored away in the hills of the county. As many 
 as nine seams of ore have been reported, ranging in thickness from 
 18 to 30 inches. The ores are carbonates of iron containing from 
 27 to 49 per cent metallic iron. The ores are found principally in 
 the eastern part of the county. 
 
 Oil. — Monongalia county was one of the first in which the recent 
 
 011 deyelopments were made, and since the days ot the shallow wells 
 in the Little Kanawha valley, was among the first to produce oil. 
 There have been and still are good producing wells in this county. 
 The western part of the county is where the oil is found and there 
 
Monongalia County. 295 
 
 are numerous wells there. Natural gas is found in profusion and is 
 used for heating and lighting purposes at Morgantown and other 
 places in the county. 
 
 SiONE.— A good building limestone is fouad in the county and 
 there are blue and gray sandstones throughout the county which 
 are valuable for building purposes. They are pretty, hard and 
 durable stones, which are valuable for building purposes. There is 
 found a good glass sand in the eastern part of the county, which 
 has been used for making glass. ' 
 
 Clays.— Several kinds of clays are found in the county, suitable 
 for the manufacture of paving and fire brick, sewer pipe, tiling, terra 
 cotta work, etc. In various parts of the county these clays are to 
 be found and in some places they are worked. Most ot them are 
 on the east side of the river where they could be worked to Id- 
 vantage, and are near the railroad where shipping facilities would 
 be good. 
 
 TiMBER.-Fully a third of the county is still in timber. A great 
 deal of the timber of the county has already gone down the Monon- 
 gahela and much of the better land for farming has been cleared 
 but there is still standing in the county a great deal of fine timber' 
 consisting of the oaks and other hard woods, some poplar, but prin- 
 cipally white oak, which is very fine. The eastern part of the 
 county is almost untouched, much of the original forest remaining 
 on the mountains. The facilities for getting out timber and the 
 means of getting it to market would seem to offer inducements to 
 persons in that line of business. 
 
 AoRicuLTUKAL.-Monongalia is a splendid agricultural county 
 The surface is but slightly broken, the only mountains in the 
 county being m the eastern portion and the rest of the county being 
 undulating or hilly, fertile and free from rocks. Grains, including 
 buckwheat, do well in the county and a good deal of them is raised 
 West of the river the best land in the county is to be found and 
 most oi this possesses a rich and productive soil. Grass grows spon- 
 taneously in nearly every part of the county. The soil is for the 
 most part a blue grass one and well watered, producing fine crops 
 of grass. Cattle raising and the raising of all kinds of stock is there- 
 fore much engaged in and proves a profitable business. Fruits of 
 all , kinds grow well in fhe county. 
 
196 
 
 Monroe County. 
 
 MONROE COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character.— Monroe is one of the southern bor- 
 der counties of the State, lying a little to the east of the most south- 
 ern portion, and directly south of the center. To the south and 
 east is the State of Virginia, from which it is separated by Peters 
 and Potts mountains, portions of the main Alleghany range. The 
 Greenbrier river flows around the northern portion of the county, 
 forming its boundary for a short distance, while the New river 
 which comes froai the south and unites with the Greenbrier m the 
 adjoining county, barely touches the southwestern corner of Mon- 
 roe. The Avaters which flow into these rivers are well distributed 
 through the county, which is thus well watered. In the eastern 
 part, just west of the Potts mountain, is Potts creek, which flows 
 northward and empties into Jackson's river at Covington, Va. The 
 southern portion of the county is but a very short distance from 
 the Norfolk & Western railroad, while the Chesapeake & Ohio rail- 
 road passes throu^'h the northwestern corner of it. Union, the 
 county seat, is 12 miles off the Chesapeake & Ohio railroad, by way 
 of which it is 137 miles from Charleston, 256 from Richmond, 402 
 from Wheeling, 348 from Cincinnati and 653 from Chicago. The 
 county is mostly mountainous, and all high. A large part of it is 
 rolling table land, interspersed with mountains, those along the 
 eastern border being quite high — from 3,000 to 3,600 feet. The cli- 
 mate is delightful and healthful, and the county is much sought in 
 the summer by persons in search of health. Monroe is one of the 
 three counties in the State in which coal is not found. A kind of 
 shale, resembling coal has bcf^n found, and some people have called 
 it coal, but it is not. When placed with other fuel in a fire it will 
 get red hot and emit a powerful heat, but does not burn and re- 
 quires other fuel to make it hot. Even this is found in small quan- 
 tities only. 
 
 Iron. — The mountains which mark the eastern boundary of the 
 county contain enormous deposits of iron ores, and form a part of 
 what is probably the richest iron field in the Virginias Through 
 the entire eastern extent of the county continuous beds of ore are 
 found both in Oriskany and Clinton formations. The ore is brown 
 hematite, containing from 4G to 58 percent, of metallic iron, avcrag- 
 
Mom ROE County. 
 
 197 
 
 ing about 52 percent. It is all above water level and easily mined 
 by simple open • cut work. The Oriskany bed, which covers the 
 eastern part of this county and extends on down the valley into 
 Virginia, where it is mined and used in numerous furnaces, is found 
 to be in various places from 5 to 15 feet thick, oftener' the latter. 
 It is a neutral ^ore, out of which a high grade of iron can be made 
 without a mixture of ores. Above the Oriskany beds is found 
 the Clinton ore. This, in extent, is equal to the Oriskany, but not 
 quite so thick, ranging from 8 to 10 feet. Judges Holt and Snyder, 
 of the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia, in a paper on 
 the iron ores of this State and Virginia, reach the conclusion that: 
 ''It would be within the just limits of the facts heretofore given to 
 estimate that in the Potts' valley, along the Potts' and Peters' 
 mountains, their foot-hills and ridges, there are one hundred miles 
 of outcrop of brown Oriskany ore (Rogers VII), to say nothing of 
 the large quantity of Clinton ore (Rogers V), of an average thick- 
 ness of ten feet, that can be stripped and mined six hundred feet 
 above water level, which, allowing two and one-fourth tons to the 
 cubic 5-ard of ore, would yield 233,000,000 tons of ore, and taking 
 three hundred days as a year, this would run one 100-ton furnace 
 4,000 years or forty 100-ton furnaces for one hundred years." There 
 was, some years ago, a small furnace in the eastern part of the 
 county, where an attempt was made to make pig iron. The force 
 of men went to sleep on the first attempt, the big cupola burst and 
 no further effort w^as made to operate it. It has recently been pur- 
 chased by eastern men who propose to operate it as soon as railroad 
 communication can be secured. The dozen or more furnaces now 
 being operated in the western part of Virginia, within a short dis- 
 tance of the Monroe county iron, are all using the same ore that is 
 found here and are being w^orked successfully. 
 
 Manganese. — Some little manganese is found in the mountains 
 ^along with the iron ores, but little is known as to its extent or 
 value. There is probably a good deal of it stored away in the 
 mountains. 
 
 Stone AND Marble.— The county is in the midst of a limestone 
 outcrop and the limestone is so prevalent in places that there is 
 scarce room for any soil. There is the greatest abundance of it for 
 building, road making, agricult-iral and fluxing purposes and for 
 
MawROE County. 
 
 burning lime. Sandstone is found in places, but there is very little 
 of it, compared with the vast quantities of limestone that exist. 
 Some of the limestone is very fine and at times becomes marble. 
 Several quarries of fine black and grey marble are found and it is 
 claimed by* some that there is a lithographic stone in one part of 
 the county. The marbles and lithographic stone are little known, 
 few investigations ever having been made as to their value or ex- 
 tent. 
 
 Mineral Waters. — Monroe has perhaps a greater variety and 
 abundance of mineral waters than any other county in the State 
 There have been since long before the war numerous fashionable sum- 
 mer resorts in the county, where people go to escape the heat of other 
 places and to drink the health -giving waters of Monroe. The waters 
 have various properties and are beneficial in a great many of the 
 ills that flesh is heir to. 
 
 Ti.viBER —Monroe was never a well timbered county. There was an 
 abundance of small growth, but little good saw timber, and probably 
 not over a tenth of the area of the county is now covered with val- 
 uable timber. What is le(t is principally oak, cherry, chestnut 
 and maple, with a little pine in small tracts. Sugar maples are left 
 in places for the sap, but are not of much account for timber. There 
 is considerable small timber suitable for railroad ties, telegraph 
 poles, hickory for wagon material and a good deal of tanbark but as 
 a timber producing county Monroe does not rank well. 
 
 Agricultural. — The limestone soil of this county produces a 
 most excellent blue grass sod and, along with Greenbrier, the adjoin- 
 ing county and quite similar in most respects, Monroe bears an ex- 
 cellent reputation as a cattle raising county. The ground, where 
 cultivated, produces well and all kinds of grain are raised. Corn, 
 oats, wheat and buckwheat are the principal crops. In the western 
 part of the county very fine tol)acco is raised The soil there seems 
 to be especially adapted to the culture of tobacco and there is a great 
 deal of it grown. The people are principally from old Virginia and* 
 they all understand the culture of tobacco Grazing is the prin- 
 cipal industry of the county and fat cattle in great numbers are sent 
 out of the county every year. All kinds of stock are raised — fine 
 horses, hogs and sheep as well as cattle Sheep are very profitable. 
 In much of the land the limestone crops out so thick that it is im- 
 
Morgan County. 
 
 199 
 
 possible to plow it and on this land where there would seem to be 
 hardly room for the sheep to step without standing on rock, they 
 pick up a splendid living and thrive. It is good for nothing else 
 and the blue grass grows spontaneously, and sheep raising is the only 
 way to get any yield at all out of the land. This rocky land is not 
 prevalent in the-county and there is much very fine pasturage. The 
 people find stock raising profitable and there are many opportuni- 
 ties to purchase good farms cheap. The high, rich lands of this 
 coilnty are admirably adapted to fruit culture and principally im- 
 proved varieties are cultivated. Fruits of all kinds are very fine 
 and yield well. 
 
 MORGAN COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character, — Morgan is one of the three counties 
 in the eastern "panhandle" almost separated from the rest of the 
 State, being connected by a narrow strip only at the northeastern 
 corner of Hampshire county. To the north is the State of Mary- 
 land, and the southern corner borders for some distance along the 
 State of Virginia. The northern boundary is the Potomac river, on 
 the West Virginia side of which is the Baltimore and Ohio railroad, 
 and on the other the Chesapeake and Ohio canal. The Great Caca- 
 pon river flows northward through the western part of the county 
 into the Potomac river, and Sleepy creek waters the eastern part of 
 the county. Berkeley Springs, the county seat, is reached by a 
 branch line from the Baltimore and Ohio railroad, 5 miles long. 
 The distance from here to Martinsburg is 28 miles, to Baltimore 128, 
 to Parkersburg 262, to Wheeling 258, to Chicago 725 miles. The 
 county is principally mountainous and rocky, though the valleys of 
 the streams are fertile and of good width. 
 
 Coal. — Morgan is one of the two counties in West Virginia, in 
 which anthracite coal has been found. From six to ten thousand 
 acres are embraced in the field, lying in the counties of Berkeley 
 and Morgan. The first anthracite coal found in the State was in 
 Morgan county. It was a 6 loot vein. The shaft which had been 
 dug was unprotected, soon fiUod with water and was abandoned. 
 This field being the same as that in Berkeley county the description 
 under the head of that county will answer for this also. Further 
 information may also be had in the chapter on coal, in this vol- 
 ume. There is no bituminous coal in Morgan county. 
 
200 
 
 Morgan County. 
 
 Iron — Iron ores in abundance have been found in Morgan county, 
 principally brown hematite, and are shipped in considerable quan- 
 tities to furnaces in Pennsylvania, where they are made into pig 
 iron. The ores are found principally in the Sandy ridge, which 
 passes north and south through the center of the county. Some 
 other iron ores are found, but they are of little importance. 
 
 Limestone. — This section of the State seems to contain about the 
 purest limestone found in any part of it. The lime burned from 
 the stone found in tnis and adjacent counties is of excellent char- 
 acter and sells well. Burning lime is quite an industry in this 
 county and a good deal is made. 
 
 Glass Sand — The Sandy ridge, in the center of the county, is 
 almost entirely composed of a white sandstone which is nearly pure 
 silex and said to be the finest glass sand in the world. There are 
 several quarries where the stone is gotten out and crushed. The 
 sand thus obtained is shipped to glass factories all over the coun- 
 try and its preparation forms one of the principal industries of 
 the county. The sand is also used by the railroad company on its 
 locomotives where sand must be carried to keep the wheels from 
 slipping. But it is too valuable to be used in this way long, and 
 while the county is full of it, more pains will be taken in the future 
 to preserve it for the purpose to which it is so well adapted. 
 
 Clay. — A good potter's clay has been found in small quantities 
 in the county and was at one time worked, but it has lain untouched 
 now for many years. 
 
 Tjmber — Perhaps one half the county is still uncleared, but not 
 all of this is in timber that is valuable for lumber. Still there is a 
 large amount of good timber standing. It is principally white, 
 red and chestnut oak, some of these varieties growing to immense 
 size, hickory, poplar, ash, walnut and cherry. Not much is gotten 
 out for saw timber, but the amount of ties, staves, hoop poles and 
 tanbark produced is large. 
 
 Agricultural. — The valleys of the various streams of the county 
 are broad and fertile, and make fine farms. Much of the mountain 
 land is not suited to farming, but makes excellent pasturage. The 
 county is full of limestone and blue grass grows luxuriantly. Stock 
 raising has come to be one of the principal industries of the county 
 and all kinds of stock are raised. Horses and cattle do well but 
 
McDowell County. 
 
 201 
 
 particular attention is given to sheep, which are raised in consider- 
 able numbers and the probabilities are that sheep culture will be 
 largely increased in the future, owing to the natural adaptation of 
 the county to them. The county is also well adapted to the cul- 
 ture of grapes and other fruits, though little fruit of any kind is 
 now raised. All that is grown, though, does well. 
 
 Mcdowell county. 
 
 Location and Ciiar/cter, — The southernmost county in the 
 State is McDowell. Three sides of the county are almost sur- 
 rounded by the State of Virginia and the county is bounded by 
 mountain ranges. Rising in the eastern part of the county and 
 flowing w^estward is the Tug fork of Big Sandy river, into which 
 flow several tributaries of small size. Along this river, through the 
 northern part of the county runs the new extension of the Norfolk & 
 Western railroad, the first to penetrate the mountain fastnesses of the 
 county and to bring to the reach of the world the abundant mineral 
 wealth that is hidden away in jts mountains. Practically a wilder- 
 ness a few years ago with only a scattering popvilation among the 
 mountains and scarcely any degree of civilization, the county is 
 now rapidly becoming one of the foremost in the State in a busi- 
 ness way and the development of its coal is rapidly bringing the 
 county into prominence. The Norfolk & Western railroad gives 
 direct connection in all directions, by way of which Welch, the 
 county seat, is 400 miles from Norfolk, 329 from Cincinnati, 234 
 from Charleston, 184 from Huntington and 399 from Wheeling. The 
 county is principall}^ rough and mountainous. Except along the 
 railroad it is still in a very primitive state and even there the fact 
 is evident that the country is a newly opened one. The topography 
 of the county is similar to that of the neighboring counties except 
 perhaps that here it is rougher and more broken. 
 
 Coal. — McDowell county is in the midst of one of the finest 
 coal regions in the United States, the Flat Top field. An area about 
 twenty by forty miles, is underlaid by the finest coking coal known. 
 The Fiat Top coal has achieved a national reputation and the rapid 
 development of the coal and the ready sale with which it meets at- 
 test the value of both the coal andjthe coke made from it. In Mercer 
 
202 
 
 McDowell County. 
 
 county there is but one vein of the coal, but in McDowell the vein 
 separates and forms two veins about 60 feet apart, respectively 4 and 
 6 feet thick on an average. These thicknesses vary a little but the 
 average of the two is about ten feet. The coal is a most excellent 
 grade of the finest coking coal known in the countr3^ It is a supe- 
 rior grate and steam coal, giving an exceedingly bright, hot fire. It 
 is low in volatile matter and ash and high in fixed carbon. The 
 coal property of the county is principally owned by two corpora- 
 tions who lease it out to mining companies on liberal terms. The 
 reports of the State Mine Inspectors show that for the year ending 
 June 30, 1891, the 20 mines of McDowell county and the 966 coke 
 ovens, employed 1,497 men, produced 336,259 tons of coke and 704,- 
 871 tons of coal. For the year ending June 30, 1892, there were 25 
 mines, 1,992 coke ovens completed and 626 under construction, em- 
 ploying 1,655 men and producing 194,390 tons of coke and 1,100,- 
 882 tons of coal. 
 
 Timber. — But little of the timber ot the county has ever been taken 
 out and fully two thirds of the county is still in untouched forests, 
 embracing all the finer kinds of the hard wood timbers of the State. 
 Oaks of the finest quality and size are abundant and poplar is found 
 in large quantities. The waters of the Sandy river afford an easy 
 outlet for the timber of the county and the railroad, now opening 
 up the country, also affords a means of reaching the market. The 
 timber is being worked up now quite rapidly but there is still an 
 enormous quantity of it standing in the county. 
 
 Agricultural. —The county is too rough and broken to afford 
 much of an opportunity for successful farming. Corn in places 
 grows well and there are some bottom lands and levels in various 
 parts of the county which yield good crops. Grass grows well on 
 most of the hills when once the timber is removed and the clearing 
 of the forests will be followed by a greater cultivation of the soil 
 and grazing is sure to become one of the principal forms of agricul- 
 ture in the county. There is a good market for all kinds of farm 
 products among the mines and towns that are springing up along 
 the line of the new road. 
 
Mmn i^r 
 
Map of West Virginia, 1.S03. 
 
Nicholas County. 
 
 203 
 
 NICHOLAS COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Nicholas county lies immediately 
 south of the center of the State. Through the center of the county 
 in a southwesterly direction flows the Gauley river, into which 
 within the boundaries of this county flow the Cranberry, Cherry, 
 Hominy and Meadow rivers and several smaller streams. The 
 county is full of springs of the purest water and the streams are well 
 supplied with water at all seasons of the year and the waters are sel- 
 dom muddy. Gauley river is navigable at times for small push 
 boats but the principal means of bringing goods into the county has 
 been by hauling them from the Chesapeake & Ohio railroad. The 
 completion of the West Virginia & Pittsburg railroad to the Gauley 
 river in Webster county has given to the northern part of the 
 county closer railroad connection than by the C. & 0. Summers- 
 ville, the county seat, is 30 mile^ from the C. & O., by way of 
 which it is 68 miles from Charleston, 279 from Cincinnati, 361 from 
 Richmond and 584 from Chicago. From the W. Va. & P. Summers- 
 ville is about 15 miles, and by this way the distance is 241 miles to 
 Wheeling, 299 to Baltimore. The county is largely mountainous 
 and all elevated. Much of the county is an elevated and rolling; 
 plateau. The Gauley river for most of its course in this county, is 
 cut down deep below the level of this plateau and its banks are 
 high and steep. The mountains in some parts become quite high, 
 but are not steep and may be cultivated to the tops. The roads in 
 the county are mostly turnpikes and are all kept in good condition, 
 A branch of the Chesapeake & Ohio railroad is under construction 
 from the mouth of Gauley river up to the Nicholas county line 
 from which point it will probably be extended up Twenty Mile 
 creek into the western part of the county. TheC. & 0. Ry. Co. also 
 contemplates the construction of a branch up the Meadow river 
 through the southern part of Nicholas county, connecting with the 
 main line of the C & O. east of the new river canyons. 
 
 Coal. — The conglomerate or New River coal measures cover the 
 eastern portion of the county and some splendid beds of this fa- 
 mous coking coal, termed by Prof. White the "purest of coals," are 
 found. The veins here do not reach the same thickness that they 
 do further south but the coals are just as good and in workable 
 
204 
 
 Nicholas County. 
 
 veins and it is to reach this field of fine coking coal that the Mead- 
 ow river branch of the C. & O. is to be constructed. In the west- 
 ern part of the county the €oal belongs to the Lower coal measures 
 and several varieties are found. Splint and cannel coals are found 
 in thin veins, which thicken as they go southward. The cannel 
 coal of Nicholas county is most too thin to be of any value, but 
 some good splint coal is found. A good coking coal is also found 
 in large veins and over considerable area. Nine-loot veins are being 
 opened up in the valley of Twenty Mile creek, toward which the C. 
 & 0. is pushing. To summarize : Workable beds of coal may be 
 found over the entire county from 3 to 9 leet in thickness, including 
 the best varieties of the New River and Kanawha coals. Coking, 
 fuel, splint and cannel are found, the latter seldom in workable 
 veins. Not a bushel of coal has ever been mined in the county ex- 
 cept for local use and this immense territory of valuable and un- 
 touched coal is awaiting merely a developing hand to prove un- 
 questionably its enormous value. 
 
 Iron — Little is known of the iron ores of this county save that 
 there are rich veins of valuable black band ore. The ore crops out 
 along Little Elk creek and in some other places but no efforts have 
 been made to discover the value or extent of the ores. 
 
 Stone and Clay. — There is an abundance of fine building sand- 
 stone throughout the county and in some places good millstone and 
 grindstone grits have been found. 
 
 Fire and potter's clays are found in abundance and a small pot- 
 tery has been successfully operated in the county. 
 
 Timber. — Some of the finest timber in the State is found in 
 Nicholas county and the best of it all remains untouched. From 
 not over a fourth of the county has the timber been removed and 
 some magnificent forests yet remain. Along the eastern border 
 and extending into Greenbrier, Pocahontas and Webster counties is 
 what is called "The Wilderness," where a space 25 miles square is 
 said to be without a human habitation. Unbroken forests cover 
 this entire region, deer paths being the only openings. A large part 
 of this is in the "yew pine region" and there is a great deal of 
 black spruce as well as other kinds of timber. Most of the spruce, 
 though, is in that portion which is in the other counties and poplar 
 and the hard woods are the most prevalent ones in Nicholas. Much 
 
Nicholas County. 
 
 205 
 
 of the land has been owned in large tracts and the timber has been 
 saved, although a great deal of very fine quality has been taken 
 down Gauley river. Poplar has been cut more than any other 
 kind and still covers the greater part of the county. The roads pa^s 
 through these forests in many places and the traveler passes along 
 through the midst of thousands of acres of splendid poplars, from 
 four to eight feet thick and 50 feet or more to the first limb. Oaks 
 of enormous size grow also in abundance. Besides the oaks and 
 poplar the principal timber trees of Nicholas county are hickory, 
 chestnut, cherry, ash, lynn, walnut, maple, beech, birch, locust and 
 holly. There has been a good deal of fine walnut in the county 
 but it is being rapidly removed. There is enough of the other 
 kinds still standing, though, to last the largest mills for years to 
 come. A few mills are located in the county and some logs are ta- 
 ken out the Gauley to be sawed at other places but the timber sup- 
 ply is being almost imperceptibly reduced by this. 
 
 Agricultural. — Though blessed with magnificent timber forests 
 anS rich deposits of minerals, Nicholas is still essentially a farming 
 county. The soil is rich and much of the land lies well. The 
 broad open area of the plateau land that forms a considerable por- 
 tion of the county, makes excellent farming land and it is utilized 
 for that purpose. Grains grow well and so does grass. Corn is the 
 principal crop though wheat and the other cereals all yield well. 
 The county is a splendid one for grass and blue grass flourishes. 
 The farmers all raise cattle though the stock has not the reputation 
 of that from some of the surrounding counties. Sheep are raised 
 to some extent and it is an excellent county for them, adapted by 
 soil, character and climate. The rich uplands are particularly 
 suited to fruit culture and all kinds of fruits grow well. Apples, 
 peaches and grapes are grown equal to the best the markets afford 
 anywhere in this part of the country. 
 
 OHIO COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — About the centre of the northern 
 panhandle, that narrow strip wedged in between Ohio and Penn- 
 sylvania in the extreme north of the State, is Ohio county. Brooke 
 and Hancock are the only counties north of it, also the only ones in 
 the State of smaller area. Though one of the smallest counties in 
 
206 
 
 Ohio County. 
 
 the State in size, it is second in population and contains the largest 
 city in the State. The county in similar in topography and char- 
 acter to the other panhandle counties. None of it is very high, 
 though the greater part of the county is hilly. Some of the hills 
 are rough and steep but few of them too steep to be of value for 
 farming, grazing or some other purpose. The Ohio river forms the 
 western boundary of the entire county, by way of which Wheeling, 
 the county seat, is 96 miles from Pittsburg, 384 from Cincinnati. 
 By rail Wheeling is 71 miles from Pittsburg, 280 from Martinsburg, 
 94 from Parkersburg, 228 from Charleston, 215 from Huntington 
 and 467 from Chicago. Several railroads pass through Ohio county, 
 the Baltimore & Ohio and Pennsylvania systems being the largest. 
 The Ohio River railroad connects all the western counties of the 
 State while numerous other roads from Ohio cross the river into 
 Wheeling, making this a splendid shipping point and placing the 
 county in direct communication with all parts of the country. The 
 county is well supplied with splendid roads. The National road 
 and all the rest are carefully looked after and well kept up Sev- 
 eral streams flow through the county and empty into the Ohio river, 
 but all are small. The county is the most thickly settled in the 
 State. 
 
 Coal. — The Pittsburg seam of coal is found in Ohio county and is 
 worked in half a dozen places in the county. The vein averages 5^ 
 feet in thickness and the coal is of an excellent quality, being used 
 exclusively in many of the large iron working mills of Wheeling. 
 The principal vein is found at Wheeling about a hundred feet above 
 the water level and this it was which formed the basis of Wheeling's 
 early prosperity and caused its growth to its present large propor- 
 tions. The reports of the State Mine Inspectors show that for the 
 year ending June 30, 1891, the coal production of the county was 
 80,738 tons. For the following year it had increased to 82,534 
 tons. The coal is all mined exclusively for local use, little, if any, 
 being shipped outside the county. 
 
 Stone. — Good building stone may be found in any part of the 
 county both sand and limestones being abundant, and much of it 
 has been used in the many handsome buildings which are to be seen 
 in Wheeling. 
 
 Clay.— In Ohio county several kinds of clays are found in 
 
Ohio County. 
 
 207 
 
 abundance. Brick clay, fire clay, potter's clay and a cement clay, 
 from which cement is made, are all found in large quantities. They 
 form the foundation on which are built some of the most substan- 
 tial industries of Wheeling. Potteries, brick and fire brick works 
 are numerous and employ a large number of men. 
 
 Timber. — So thickly populated as the county is and has been for 
 years, with all the land made valuable by its proximity to the city, 
 but little timber has been allowed to stand, and to-day the entire 
 county is practically stripped of all its timber. 
 
 Agricultural.— The soil of the county is uniformly good and 
 most of it is worked. A dark loam, rich and productive, it is 
 adapted to nearly all kinds of crops and produces splendid yields. 
 Wheat and corn are grown to some extent, garden products in great 
 quantities, while all the land, on the hills as well as in the valleys, 
 produces most excellent grass. There is a good deal of limestone in 
 the county and the blue grass grows magnificently, the county shar- 
 ing with the others of the panhandle the excellent reputation which 
 they have as grazing counties. Sheep, cattle and horses are largely 
 raised, particularly the former, which yield a wool of most excel- 
 lent quality, commanding a high price in all the markets. In 
 grazing or in farming about all the land in the county outside of 
 the city is under cultivation and ready markets are found at home. 
 Many tomatoes, cucumbers, etc., are grown lor the catsup, canning, 
 pickling and preserving works of Wheeling. 
 
 Wheeling, the largest city in the State, claims 40,000 people. 
 The census of J 890 gave the city 34,522, an increase in ten years of 
 12.31 per cent. This, however, does not represent the real popula- 
 tion of the city. The numerous suburbs, in all except in name a part 
 of Wheeling, would nearly double the population of the city as given 
 above. It owes its prosperity almost exclusively to its manufac- 
 turing interests. Millions ot dollars are represented in the capital 
 employed in manufacturing in the city. At one time Wheeling 
 was the greatest nail producing city in the Union and was given 
 the name of "the Nail City." But other manufacturing has taken 
 its place since then and nails are but a small part of the product of 
 the city's factories. The principal factories now in operation are 
 the iron and steel works, wood working establishments, glass facto- 
 ries, potteries, breweries, tobacco houses, canning, pickling and pre- 
 
208 
 
 Ohio County. 
 
 serving works. As showing the volume of the manufacturing 
 business in Wheeling the following figures of the exports from 
 Wheeling for 1890 will be of interest. The tons sent out of Wheel- 
 ing in that year were as follows: Pig iron, 380,000; steel, 328,000; 
 muck bar, 68,000; nailplate, 140,000; nails, 132,000; bar, sheet and 
 p^ate iron and steel, including galvanized and corrugated iron, roof- 
 ing, etc., 115,000; steel pipe, 30,000; glass, 18,000; merchandise, 
 100,000 ; miscellaneous manufactures, including pottery, 140,000 ; 
 wool, 1,200; total, 1,452,200 
 
 The following is but a partial list of the more important indus- 
 tries or manufactures of the city of Wheeling: Bessemer foundry 
 and pig iron ; bessemer steel ingots, billets and nail plate; steel nails 
 and spikes; steel, iron and sheet steel; bar iron, bar steel and rails; 
 plate iron and steel plates; galvanized and corrugated iron and 
 steel; cold rolled iron and steel; iron roofing and car roofing iron ; 
 iron cornices and shaped iron for builders; iron and steel axles; 
 stoves and grates; hollow ware; engines arid boilers; nail machines; 
 steamboat machinery; iron vats and tanks; iron chimneys and 
 stacks; machinery and castings of all kinds; tacks, hob nails and 
 wire nails; general iron castings and forgings; iron and metal ceil- 
 ing; wire signs, netting and wire work; flint and lead glass table 
 ware; cut glass; glass chandeliers; lanterns and lantern globes; bot- 
 tles, flasks, jars and cruets, crystal and colored ; table queensware; 
 porcelain china; decorated ware; pottery of all kinds; wagons and 
 carriages; sashes, doors, and shutters; barrels, kegs, staves and 
 bungs ; sawed and planed lumber; furniture; pork packing; flour 
 and meal; roasted coffee; baking powder; ground spices; mustard 
 for fine fancy trade, and in bulk ; mince meat, canned goods, pre- 
 serves and jellies ; catsup; pickles; horse radish ; soap and candles; 
 illuminating and lubricating oil; calico; stockings; gloves and sus- 
 penders; leather; sails, awnings and tents; brass and bronze cast- 
 ing; copper kettles ; electro plating; galvanizing ; cigars and smok- 
 ing tobacco; beer, wme and ale; bricks, lime and cement ; chemicals; 
 artificial ice ; glue ; saddles and harness; trunks and valises; monu- 
 ments and headstones; patent medicines. 
 
 Not only as a manufacturing city is Wheeling known, but it is a 
 city of great and growing commercial importance. Business inter- 
 Cvsts are very large. Wholesale houses do a tremendous busincirS 
 
Ohio County. 
 
 209 
 
 throughout this State and others The city has exc'ellent 
 rapid transit using hoth steam and electric power, plenty of bridges, 
 excellently paved streets and all that goes to show progress and en- 
 terprise in a growing city. The Wheeling Intelligencer, in a recent 
 issue, said : "From her infancy Wheeling has enjoyed a prestige in 
 the surrounding country for her culture. Her churches, her schools, 
 public and private; her literary and social circles, her press, all have 
 always compared with the best anywhere. Her streets and her 
 business houses, her homes and public buildings are modern and 
 tasteful. Her physicians are skilled, her lawyers shrewd and 
 learned, her people progressive and public spirited. The city im- 
 presses the visitor not as a town of 40,000 people, but as one of the 
 leading metropolises of the country. Indeed, her population, 
 while nominally not 40,000, should be, as large cities count, several 
 times that. North and south of her, on both sides of the river, is a 
 population equal to her own, tributary to Jier — a homogeneous pop- 
 ulation of 75,000. They are in all but nominal extent of the city 
 limits a part of the population of Wheeling. Easy access to the 
 business establishments, the theatres and the other facilities of the 
 larger city have made Bellaire, Bridgeport, Martin's Ferry, Benwood 
 and other near-by towns, ail of considerable size, substantially parts 
 of the greater W^heeling, and inured to the material advantage of 
 them and her alike. Creditable as her position among the commu- 
 nities of America has always been, Wheeling is but entering upon 
 the career which she is destined to have. An era of enterprise, of 
 progress, of metropolitan energy and vigor is opening. On all sides 
 signs of it are seen ; and as West Virginia moves forward in the line 
 of her destiny, her metropolitan city will always be found abreast of 
 the vanguard — possibly still a little in the lead." 
 
 PENDLETON COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character — Along the eastern border, directly 
 east of the center of the State, is Pendleton county. On the east 
 and south of it is the State of Virginia. In the southern part of 
 the county, near the headwaters of the South Branch river, is Pan- 
 ther Knob, the highest point in the State, the altitude of which is 
 shown by the aneroid barometer to be 4,800 feet above sea level. 
 The entire county is high, but rises gradually from the northern to 
 
210 
 
 Pendleton County. 
 
 the southern end, which is the dividing ridge between the waters 
 flowing north and those flowing south. Near the southern border 
 of the county is a barn, from the roof of which the water runs in 
 opposite directions. Tiiat from one side of the barn flows north 
 into the Potomac river, from the other south into the Jackson and 
 James rivers and the waters of the two unite' again in the Chesa- 
 peake bay. The South Branch of the Potomac and the North and 
 South Forks of the South Branch all rise near the southern end of 
 Pendleton county and flow almost parallel northward, uniting in 
 the counties below. Though rising in a high altitude, their fall is 
 slight and gradual so that their course might easily be followed by 
 a railroad with very little necessity for cuts or fills. Between and 
 on either side of these streams are parallel ridges of high mountains, 
 extending on into Grant, Hardy, Hampshire and Mineral counties, 
 which are very similar in most respects to Pendleton couiity except 
 that the valleys in Pendleton are neither quite so wide nor so fertile as 
 in the lower counties. The air and water are pure and fresh, the 
 scenery beautiful, the climate delightful. Only better connection 
 with the outside world is needed to make this one of the most de- 
 sirable residence portions of the State. The nearest railroad point 
 to Franklin, the county seat, is Plarrisonburg, Va., which is 40 
 miles distant across rough mountain roads and several ridges. It is 
 70 miles down the South Branch valley to Keyser and the B. & 0. 
 railroad. By Harrisonburg the distance to Charleston is 299 miles, 
 to Richmond 202, to Baltimore 195, to Cincinnati 510. By the B. 
 & 0. the distance to Wheeling is 250 miles, to Chicago 7^.7. 
 
 Coal. — A small quantity of coal has been found in the north 
 western part of the county — merely enough to say that there is coal 
 in the county and no more. It is bituminous coal and is found 
 near the tops of the mountains, from which it dips westward and 
 passes into the counties beyond. 
 
 Iron. — The principal natural resource of Pendleton county is its 
 iron, which is widely distributed and very valuable. Years ago, 
 before the war, some iron was made here and a number of stoves, 
 moulded at that time, are still in use in the county. The varieties 
 of ore found are red fossiliferous, red shale, brown hematite and 
 shaly brown hematite. The red fossiliferous, the most important 
 of these ores, is found in five veins, one 52, one 30, one 27 inches in 
 
Pendleton County. 211 
 
 thickness, the other two smaller. One of these veins, the larger one, 
 has been followed for 45 miles, the entire length of the county, from' 
 Hardy until it dips under the Highland, Va., county line. The two 
 other large veins were followed, the one for 8, the other for 3 miles, 
 and both went under the limestone within sight of the Virginia 
 line. This red fossiliferous ore, which analyzes about 55 per cent 
 metallic iron, is found in Pennsylvania in very small veins and is 
 what has made that State so great a producer of iron. It is seen 
 again here in West Virginia^ and then disappears to crop out again 
 at Birmingham, Ala., where the same kind of ore that is found here 
 has made that city the most famous iron producing center in the 
 south. The Alabama ore is not nearly so rich in iron as this, nor is 
 that in Pennsylvania so thick. Properly developed, this iron should 
 make Pendleton county as prosperous and prominent in iron circles 
 as is either of the regions mentioned. Besides the red fossiliferous 
 ores, a brown hematite, just as rich in metallic iron, is found be- 
 tween the North Fork and the South Fork mountains for the entire 
 length of the county. The average thickness of the vein is 16 feet. 
 In addition to these two very valuable deposits of ore, there are also 
 some other ores found in various parts of the countv which are of 
 less value and not so wide spread in extent. 
 
 Manganese.— For a distance of about ten miles along the same 
 valley in which the iron ores are found, there is a verv rich vein of 
 manganese, very low in phosphorus. It is easily worked, and the 
 deposit should prove to be of great value. 
 
 Stone, Sand and Clay. -Very fine limestone is scattered in great 
 abundance throughout the county and for fluxing ores might be 
 obtained from the same property from which the ore was obtained. 
 Only the coal or coke would have to be brought into the county to 
 produce iron from the native ores. Limestone for building purposes is 
 also plentiful. There is also found a considerable amount of crys- 
 tallized limestone, from which a superior quality of lime may be 
 burned. 
 
 Glass sandstone, from which a pure, white glass sand is crushed, 
 IS found in the county in several places and to a considerable ex- 
 tent. It is about the same as that found in Morgan county. 
 
 Some fire and potter's clay have been found in the county and 
 
212 
 
 Pendleton County. 
 
 small samples of them have been successfully worked. There are 
 thought to be great quantities of them in the county. 
 
 Timber. — Aside from what has been removed to make a little land 
 available for farming purposes, the timber is practically all stand- 
 ing yet. Probably four-fifths of the county is still in timber, which 
 is very fine and embraces many different varieties. The principal 
 wood is oak, the different varieties of which compose the larger 
 part of the forests. Other kinds are chestnut, maple, hickory, some 
 walnut and a little pine. There is but a comparatively small por- 
 tion of the county that is covered with pine, and that has been 
 pretty well killed by the pine destroying insect, but the other kinds 
 of timber mentioned abound in every part of the county. The 
 South Branch and its forks are not navigable, but in times of high 
 water they may be used for drifting logs to market and afford the 
 only means of transportation at present available for getting them 
 out. There is an almost inexhaustible quantity of tanbark in the 
 county. Thousands of acres are covered with tanbark-producing 
 oak trees and there is enough tanbark alone standing in the forests 
 of Pendleton county to pay the entire cost of constructing a rail- 
 road from one end of the county to the other. 
 
 Agricultural. — With so great a part of the county still covered 
 with forests there has been but little opportunity for farming to 
 any extent in Pendleton county. But when the county ip once 
 opened up and the immense quantity of timber that covers its hills 
 and valleys is taken out, this county will certainly come to be a 
 great grazing and stock raising one. Already a good many cattle 
 are raised, and this is the chief line on which farming is carried on 
 in the county. Some grain is grown but hardly more than is con- 
 sumed at home, principally in fattening the cattle. The valleys of 
 the streams that flow through the county are fertile and in some 
 places broad. Here farming is successfully carried on. But a great 
 part of the county is unfitted for cultivation On every part of it, 
 however, grass will grow well and naturally, and stock raising will 
 come to be more and more the principal line of farming. Sheep are 
 raised to a considerable extent and are profitable. So are horses 
 and hogs. In short, all kinds of live stock do well, the county 
 being specially suited to them. It is is also a fir e country for fruit. 
 
Pocahontas County. 
 
 213 
 
 POCAHONTAS COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Pocahontas is an eastern border 
 county, the top of the Alleghanies being the dividing line between 
 Pocahontas and the State of Virginia. It lies about southeast of 
 the center of the State. The northern portion of the county is a 
 part of that high region in which the waters of nearly every river 
 of the two Virginias find their starting points. The entire county 
 has a great elevation, some of the highest points in the State being 
 within the county lines. Three knobs ranging from 3,300 to 3,800 
 leet are in Pocahontas county or partially so. Rising in the high 
 lands in the northern part of the county and flowing through the 
 central portion of it the entire length is the Greenbrier river. In 
 the western part of the county is the Williams river, which emp- 
 ties into the Gauley in Webster county. In general character Poca- 
 hontas is very similar to Grreenbrier county, which joins it on the 
 south. The east is mountainous, well timbered and full of iron ; 
 the center is limestone land, well cleared, with plenty of grass and 
 nearly all cultivated or in grass ; in the west are more mountains, 
 much timber and some coal. The western portion, along with that 
 of Greenbrier, is in the "Wilderness" region, which, as its name in- 
 dicates, is an unbroken wilderness. The level parts of the county, 
 smaller in extent than those of Greenbrier, are elevated plateaus 
 from 2,000 to 2,500 feet above the sea, above which on all sides rise 
 mountains, at least two ranges of which may nearly always be seen, 
 one beyond the other, and the rivers are in deep gorges cut down 
 far below the level of the plateaus. Throughout the county there 
 is an abundance of pure, fresh water, some of which comes from 
 the earth, even in the mid^t of summer, at a temperature little 
 above that of ice water. T^he entire county seems to be underlaid 
 with water and from the earth and mountain sides flow great 
 springs, large enough to run a water mill. At one place the 
 town is called Mill Point on account of the number of flour mills 
 there, each run by its own particular spring of never ceasing water. 
 Great streams which start thus from a hillside frequently disappear 
 entirely, only to suddeifly appear again from some unexpected open- 
 ing in the earth. In some parts of the county wild game is plen- 
 teous. The county affords the most beautiful mountain scenery 
 
214 
 
 Pocahontas County. 
 
 imaginable, has pure air and water and for the summer months par- 
 ticularly no more delightful place could be found to live in. Mar- 
 linton, the county seat, is 45 miles over an excellent turpike from 
 the Chesapeake and Ohio railroad. It is some closer to the West Vir- 
 ginia & Pittsburg, but the latter is not so accessible. The exten- 
 sion of it through the county is contemplated but has never gone 
 further than the survey. By the C. & 0. Marlinton is 176 miles 
 from Charleston, 387 from Cincinnati, 283 from Richmond, 441 
 from Wheeling and 692 from Chicago. 
 
 Coal. — Little is known of the coals of Pocahontas, no develop- 
 ments ever having been made. Some investigations have been 
 made but no coal has ever been mined for use either at home 
 or abroad. A large area in the western part of the county is under- 
 laid with the New River seam of coking coals, in veins of 2 feet and 
 upwards, reaching in one instance, it is said, a thickness of 18 feet. 
 The coal has been tested and proven equal to the best New river coking 
 coal, which has given to the New river region in Fayette county and 
 the Mercer and McDowell fields further south their fame as coke 
 producing regions. This coal is about the closest coking coal known 
 to the iron producing region of Virginia and West Virginia, and 
 railroad transportation and the development of the coal is all that is 
 needed to create a great demand for it. 
 
 Iron. — The entire portion of the county lying east of the Green- 
 brier river is full of iron ores, from one end of the county to the 
 other. The ores found are principally the brown hematite and red 
 fossiliferous, the latter not being found in very thick veins or over 
 a great extent. Of the brown hematites, though, there is an almost 
 inexhaustible supply. They are found in large veins, over great 
 areas and of excellent quality. The ores are of the same character 
 as those from Monroe and Greenbrier counties, and are found in 
 continuations of the same veins that they are found in. 
 
 Marble and Limestone. — For building purposes there are some 
 beautiful specimens of blue, grey and fossil limestone in this county, 
 the latter, in particular, very pretty. There is also a beautiful grey 
 sandstone, valuable for building purposes. Limestone for burning 
 and fluxing is found in abundance and close to the iron deposits. 
 In the southeastern part of the county, near the Greenbrier line 
 some very pretty black marble is found, and in the same mountains 
 
Pocahontas County. 
 
 215 
 
 a large ledge of the most beautiful white marble has been discov- 
 ered. While only in a few places has marble been found, it is be- 
 lieved that the mountains contain a great deal of it and that the 
 samples so far seen are but specimens of what v*^ill later be discov- 
 ered. The black and white marbles so far found are beautiful spee- 
 imens and very valuable. 
 
 Timber. — From a half to two-thirds of Pocahontas county is still 
 covered with timber, and no greater variety or finer timber grows in 
 any county in the State. In the eastern portion of the county, in 
 the high altitudes of the Alleghany mountains, grows one of the 
 largest areas of white pine in the State. The amount of white pine 
 in Pocahontas and Greenbrier counties has been estimated at 
 600,000,000 feet, and of this the greater part is in Pocahontas. Large 
 inroads have been made in this timber in the last few years, but 
 there is yet an enormous quantity standing. The logs are hauled 
 to the Greenbrier river where they are rafted and taken out on the 
 spring rises in rafts of thousands of logs at a time. Lumber camps 
 where hundreds of men are housed and fed are scattered through 
 the mountains in the east of the county, but there is an abundance 
 of timber left. In the high altitudes of the western part of the 
 county grow' great forests of the "yew pine" or black spruce and 
 cheny. These forests are principally in the "wilderness" country 
 and have never been touched. Besides these valuable kinds of tim- 
 ber, which are not found in many of the counties of the State, and 
 not in very great quantities in any, there is also an abundance of 
 timber of the commoner kinds. The oaks are found in greater 
 quantities than any other kind, followed by poplar, chestnut and 
 the common forest trees in great abundance. The value of the 
 standing timber of all kinds in Pocahontas is estimated at over 
 $2,000,000. 
 
 Agricultural. — East of the Greenbrier river the soil is not so 
 well adapted to farming as it is west of the river, where its fertility 
 is seldom surpassed. Even to the tops of the mountains in the 
 western portion the soil is good and grains, fruits and grasses all 
 grow w^ell. Many of the mountain sides are not too steep to culti- 
 vate and on these are grown good crops and fine pastures. All the 
 cereals produce large yields and wheat and corn are raised in abun- 
 dance. Many mills are required in the county to grind the pro- 
 
216 
 
 Pocahontas County. 
 
 ducts of the farms for home consumption. The soil and climate 
 are well suited for tobacco culture and for fruits. The former is not 
 cultivated to any considerable extent but there is a great deal of 
 fine fruit raised. In the limestone soil blue grass grows spontane- 
 ously and over a large part of the county may be found blue grass 
 sods of as luxuriant growth as can be found in the sown fields of 
 Kentucky. "Timothy, clover and numerous other choice varieties 
 contest the right of the blue grass to the field ; so we find them 
 growing together, each trying to choke out the others and to climb 
 high enough to hide all the rest." This blue-grass-producing soil 
 is in the greater part of the county and there is but a small part of 
 the county where grasses do not flourish. Consequently a great 
 many cattle and sheep are raised. Pocahontas cattle are as fine and 
 as marketable as those raised in any part of the State. Sheep are 
 raised in large numbers and command as high prices as any on 
 the market. Buyers from other States come to this county after 
 them and do not wait for them to be sent to market. Splendid 
 blooded horses are raised and few counties can show finer live stock 
 of any kind than can and does Pocahontas. When the remaining 
 half or more of the county is cleared the opportunities for farming 
 and stock raising will be greatly enlarged and Pocahontas will then 
 rank well up with any part of the country in that line. 
 
 PRESTON COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character — Preston county is in the northern 
 part of the State, about midway between the two panhandles. On 
 its north is the State of Pennsylvania and its eastern boundary is 
 the western boundary of the State of Maryland. From the south to 
 the north and northwest, dividing the county into two almost 
 equal parts, flows the Cheat river which empties into the Mononga- 
 hel^ just below the Pennsylvania line. It is not navigable. The 
 Baltimore & Ohio railroad passes through the county from east to 
 west slightly south of the centre, and from Tunnelton, a station on 
 this road, the Tunnelton, King wood & Fairchance narrow gauge 
 railroad runs to Kin'gwood, the count}^ seat, a distance of 11 miles. 
 The distance from Kingwood to Martinsburg is 171 miles, to Balti- 
 more 285, to Wheeling 131, to Parkersburg 135, to Charleston 269, 
 to Cincinnati 330, to Chicago 598 miles. Through the county the 
 
Preston County. 
 
 217 
 
 Briery mountains extend from south-west to north-east and at 
 Rowlesburg the Cheat river breaks through them, forming some of 
 the grandest and most picturesque scenery to be found in the State. 
 Principally mountainous, the county is all high, the elevations of 
 the B. & 0. railroad from west to east in this county ranging from 
 1,157 to 2,550 feet above sea level. Above these elevations rise the 
 mountain ranges. This high country is not much broken, being 
 hilly and level over a large part of the county. Some of the 
 mountain portions of the county are too rough for agricultural 
 purposes but the greater part of it is well suited f6r grazing and 
 farming. The climate is delightful, the air in summer being cool 
 and fresh, by reason of the altitude, and attracting every summer 
 hundreds of visitors. 
 
 Coal. — Every part of Preston county is supplied with coal, the 
 part west of the river in more abundance than the rest. The work- 
 able veins are five in number ranging from 3 to 12 feet in thickness. 
 Veins of coal are worked in every part of the county for local use 
 and in five places for market. The principal coals found belong to 
 the Upper Freeport and Lower Kittanning measures and are of ex- 
 cellent quality. All the coal is good gas, steam and coking coal 
 and at every mine in the county coke is made. The coke from 
 tliese ovens has become quite well known in the markets and holds 
 an excellent reputation. There are large fields of the same kind 
 of coals from which this is produced, in all parts of the county, 
 awaiting development. The coal is all in workable veins above 
 water level and may be easily mined. There is also some cannel 
 coal in the county, but it has never been worked. It is said to 
 reach a thickness of several feet. From the leports of the State 
 Mine Inspectors it is seen that the coal output of Preston county 
 for the year ending June 30, 1891, was 134,467 tons, and of coke 
 60,541 tons. There were 255 ovens in blast and 50 more building. 
 For the year ending June 30, 1892, the output of coal was 82,089 
 tons, of coke 19,773 tons. The number of coke ovens in blast was 139. 
 
 Iron. — Iron ore in paying quantities is found in every part of the 
 county, and numerous furnaces have at different times been in op- 
 eration, but most of them, for want of transportation facilities have 
 had to be abandoned. One located near the B. &. 0. railroad, and 
 connected with it by a short standard gauge road, has done well, 
 
218 
 
 Preston County. 
 
 and though shutdown for sonie time, the news has recently come 
 that work is to he coniuienced again in the spring. The veins of 
 ore which have heen opened in every portion of the county range 
 in thickness from a few inches up to 10 feet, most of them heing 
 between 3 and 10 feet. The ore yields from 35 to 50 per cent, of 
 metallic iron and some of the ores are of limestone character so that 
 other ores more siliceous may he worked with them without the 
 addition of limestone. For the ores that require fluxing the lime- 
 stone is found upon the same property that produces the ore and 
 coal. The ore, coal and limestone are found and the coke made 
 upon the furnace property, without going away from it for anything 
 required to make iron. Ores have also been mined and ship})ed to 
 furnaces outside the State, where they have been successfully 
 worked. There are numerous places in the county where the iron 
 has never been touched and which will undoubtedly yield well 
 when developed 
 
 Limestone. — Near Rowlesburg, along the railroad, a vein of re- 
 markbly pure limestone has been found, which is about as fine a 
 quality as is ever seen: The vein is about 2 feet thick and has been 
 traced for 10 miles. How much farther it goes is not known. The 
 stone is 99.8 per cent, calcium and when burned to make lime leaves 
 almost no waste at all. It makes a superior quality of hydraulic 
 cement and the only reason it has not been utilized for this pur- 
 pose is that no company has yet been willing to pay the salary de- 
 manded by the few men in this country who understand the manu- 
 facture of hydraulic cement. It has been tested, though, and makes 
 a very superior article of cement. There is also an abundance of 
 fine limestone for building purposes, in ledges as high as a hundred 
 feet thick, in nearly every part of the county. Some sandstone of 
 excellent color and (juality for building purposes is found. 
 
 Glass Sand — A sandstone that is very white and pure is found 
 in large quantities, suitable for glass sand but has never been (quar- 
 ried to any extent It might profitably be crushed and shipped, or 
 glass works operated here would doubtless prove profitable. 
 
 Fire Ci- ay.— Shafts and railroad cuts have demonstrated the 
 great extent of the fire clays of Preston county and actual tests 
 have proven their value. At one place in the county a shaft sunk 
 into the earth passed through 44 feet of good fire clay. At other 
 
Pkeston County. 219 
 
 places veins of several feet in thickness have ])een cut into by railroads 
 or in other digging. These clays are equal to the well known Mt. 
 Savage clays. None of them have ever been worked but being 
 of good quality and existing in large and accessible beds the man- 
 ufacture of brick and tiling might be made a profitable business. 
 Potter's clay is also found in considerable (luantities. 
 
 Oil and G-as.- Some years ago some borings were made for oil 
 but no great depth was reached and no oil was found Since then 
 there have been no more borings, but there is a constant issue of 
 natural gas from a creek in the western part of the county and the 
 supposition is that there is both gas and oil in the County in good 
 quantities. 
 
 Timber.— Probably three-fifths of Preston county is still covered 
 with timber, of which the principal kinds are the different varieties 
 of oak. The oak of Preston county is particularly fine and many ^ 
 English buyers come direct to Preston county to buy oak on ac- 
 count of the superior quality of the timber It is very close grained 
 and hard and commands the highest market price. There are some 
 tracts of hemlock and spruce but the principal woods beside the 
 oaks are poplar, chestnut, hickory, ash, walnut, cherry, linden and 
 other varieties. The Cheat and its tributaries afford ample means 
 of getting timber out and there is plenty of fuel for wood manu- 
 facturing enterprises. Tfiere are thousands of dollars represented 
 in the standing forests of Preston county which await the cutting 
 to reward the men who cut them. 
 
 Agricultural.— Only a small part of the county is unfit for 
 farming purposes. Most of the mountain tops are level and many 
 of them are not so steep that they may not be cultivated entirely to 
 the tops. The soil of the county varies considerablv but most of 
 it is rich and several inches deep. The principal crop raised is 
 buckwheat. Corn, oats and some other grains are raised, but Pres- 
 ton pays more attention to buckwheat than to any other crop and 
 the yield is greater than that of any other. The soil and climate 
 are well suited to tobacco and considerable of that is grown. But 
 it is chiefly as a grazing county that Preston is known. Cattle and 
 all kinds of live stock are raised to a great extent. The soil pro- 
 duces splendid crops of timothy and clover and pasturage affords 
 all the feeding that is required for cattle and sheep. The abund- 
 
220 
 
 Putnam County. 
 
 ance of good pasture, pure water and good air causes the production 
 of the best of beef and mutton. Good horses are also bred. The 
 sheep raising industry is carried on to such an extent that woolen 
 mills have been constructed to manufacture the wool at home. The 
 wool is of very good quality. Fruit raising is an important branch 
 of agriculture and no better fruit country can be found anywhere. 
 Apples, grapes, pears and all kinds of small fruits of excellent qual- 
 ity are produced. 
 
 PUTNAM COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Putnam county lies slightly to the 
 northeast of the westernmost point in the State, not far from the 
 Ohio river. Flowing in a northwesterly direction and dividing the 
 county into almost equal parts is the Great Kanawha river, naviga- 
 ble for large steamers for a hundred miles from its mouth. In the 
 eastern part of the county for a short distance is the Pocataligo 
 river, which empties into the Kanawha. Other smaller streams 
 water the county, those in the northern portion flowing into the 
 Kanawha, in the southern into the Guyandotte. The county is 
 principally hilly with broad bottom lands and much rolling land 
 back from the rivers. In the northern part of the county the hills 
 have become mountainous but are nowhere much broken. The 
 Kanawha river, iniproved by the United States with locks and dams, 
 affords slack water navigation and when the works now under con- 
 tract are completed steamboat navigation will be afforded every day 
 in the year regardless of the stage of water. Following the Kana- 
 wha river for its entire length is the Kanawha & Michigan railway 
 connecting the Kanawha valley with Columbus, 0., and the great 
 lakes at Toledo. Through the southern part of the county from 
 east to west is the Chesapeake & Ohio railroad, connecting Louis- 
 ville and Cincinnati with the seaboard. From Winfield, the county 
 seat, to Charleston is 25 miles, to Toledo 284, to Parkersburg 110, 
 to Wheeling 204, to Richmond 395, to Cincinnati 210, to Chicago 
 515 miles. 
 
 Coal. — The Pittsburg vein of coal, known locally as the Ray- 
 mond City vein, underlies the entire county and has been mined 
 for many years along the banks of the Kanawha. The coal is a 
 hard splint, unexcelled for shipping, gas, steam and fuel. In the 
 entire north-eastern part of the county this coal is found above 
 
Putnam County. 
 
 221 
 
 water level in a vein averaging 6 feet in thickness. The coal is a 
 very valuable one and holds a very high position in the markets of 
 Cincinnati, Chicago and the west generally. South of the Kana- 
 wha the same coal is lower and has been found in boring for oil five 
 miles from the river at a depth of 180 feet. This is near the 
 southern limit of this Pittsburg coal, the last being found in Wayne, 
 where it runs out just before reaching the Kentucky line. There 
 is above this vein another one, several unsuccessful attempts to de- 
 velope which have been made and its value is not yet determined. 
 The Raymond coal is mined to a considerable extent and shipped 
 by river and rail. The reports of the State Mine Inspectors show 
 that for the year ending June 30, 1891, there were four mines 
 operated in Putnam county, employing in all 424 men and produc- 
 ing annually 156,856 tons of coal. For the year ending June 30, 
 1892, the same mines employing 503 men produced 154,692 tons of 
 coal. 
 
 Oil. — Oil has been bored for on several different occasions in Put- 
 nam county and none has been found, still the territory has never 
 been properly developed. In Jackson county near the Putnam 
 county line a well was bored which flowed several barrels a day but 
 it was cased off to bore to a deeper sand when the well was aban- 
 doned unfinished. In Putnam indications of oil have been found 
 but none of the wells hitherto bored have been carried down to the 
 best oil sand. They have been abandoned before reaching the best 
 sand. It is very probable that further development will be carried 
 on this year and it will be ascertained definitely whether there is 
 any oil in Putnam or not. Natural gas has been found in several 
 places in the county. 
 
 Fire Clay — Good fire clay in large deposits has been found in 
 Putnam. A thick bed of clay near the county seat was opened and 
 the samples sent for analysis and practical tests of its usefulness 
 showed it to be equal to the best found in the State. Beneath the 
 coal vein is a smaller vein of good fire clay. No developments of 
 the clay have ever been made. 
 
 Timber.— Easily accessible by river and rail Putnam has been 
 stripped of most of its timber. Magnificent oak timber grew here 
 in great plenty and there is some left yet, as fine as is often seen, 
 but the greater part is gone, not over an eighth of the county re- 
 
222 
 
 Putnam County. 
 
 maining in good timlx^r. A considerably larger part of the county 
 is covered with woods, some of which are suitable for staves and 
 other small timber but not for saw tiiaber. Tanbark may be found 
 in abundance and there is a great deal of good hickory, some poplar, 
 a little pine and other kinds of timber. South of the Kanawha 
 more of the timber has been removed than north of it where 
 there is a good deal left but this has begun to be cut. 
 
 Agricultural. — Farming is the principal occupation of the peo- 
 ple of Putnam. The hills, when cleared of their timber, make ex- 
 cellent pasture lands, the grass grows well and cattle flourish. The 
 broad Kanawha river bottoms make splendid farms. Broad, level, 
 rich and productive they make the finest kind of farms and produce 
 magnificent crops. Corn and wheat are the chief crops now raised. 
 The land is well adapted to garden stuffs, and the railroads and 
 rivers put them in easy reach of markets. The hill lands are well 
 adapted to tobacco, and some very fine light leaves are raised. Put- 
 nam stands along with Lincoln as a tobacco growing county, pro- 
 ducing, perhaps not so much, but just as fine a quality of tobacco 
 as does Lincoln. Across the county from the Kanawha to tjie 
 waters of Mud and Guyandotte rivers is the fertile Teays' valley, 
 through which the C. & 0. railroad takes its course, and which is 
 supposed at one time to have been the course of the Kanawha 
 river, which then would have joined the Ohio at what is now Hunt- 
 ington. This valley is low and level. It is fertile throughout and 
 enclosed between rich, rolling lands or hills. This and the Ka- 
 nawha bottom lands are the best in the county for farms. 
 
 RALEIGH COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Midway oftheState from east to west 
 and but little north of the most southern point is Raleigh county. 
 The county is principally mountainous, the Guyandotte mountains 
 on the south being among the highest 'mountains in the State. 
 Their height is estimated at 4,000 feet. Several mountain ranges 
 pass through or outline the county. But most of them are the Flat 
 Top mountains and while the elevation of the county is high it is 
 not broken and the surface is principally level or rolling, with only 
 occasional ranges rising above the general level. The streams are 
 cut deep down in the earth and the most broken parts of the county 
 
Kaleigh County. 
 
 223 
 
 are their steep sides which broaden out at the top into great pla- 
 teaus. Along the northeastern boundary for a short distance flows 
 the New river, separating this county from Fayette and Summers. 
 In the eastern portion the streams flow northward and empty into 
 New river. Piney and Glade creeks are the principal waters in this 
 l>art of the county. In the western part rising near the center of 
 the county ai:^d flowing in a northwest direction is Big Coal river, 
 small of course in this county. Along this river are the "Coal 
 River Marshes," a section of high, level, marshy country, similar to 
 the "glades" of Webster county. Along Glade creek some of the 
 same kind of land is seen. The glades are too wet to be of value 
 for agricultural purposes. Drainage and cultivation might make 
 splendid land of them but at present they are not considered valu- 
 able. Along the northern bank of New river, just outsid^ the 
 county, for over 20 miles, runs the Chesapeake & Ohio railroad. 
 From Raleigh Court House to the nearest railroad point is 12 miles, 
 to Charleston 86, to Richmond 307, to Wheeling 351, to Cincinnati 
 297, to Chicago 602. The county is in a primitive condition, the 
 greater part of it at least, and awaits development. It will some 
 day be one of the best counties in many respects in the State. 
 
 Coal. — The county is practically covered with coal. It is the 
 Flat Top coking coal and the measures are about 1,800 feet thick. 
 There are several veins in the measures but only three are workable. 
 One is 6, one 5 and one 4 feet thick and the others are smaller. 
 Tests have been made over some eighty square miles and show 
 every where the same veins. Along the line of Summers and 
 Mercer counties they disappear over the mountain tops, while in 
 the western part of the county they disappear under the Fayette 
 county line and a new series, the Kanawha coals, come in. But 
 little of the Raleigh coal has ever been mined for market but there 
 is a tremendous amount stowed away in the earth in workable 
 veins, which will be mined and marketed in time. Opposite Prince 
 station on the C. & 0. railroad one mine, the only one in Raleigh 
 county, is operated. Coal mined far up the mountain side and on 
 the opposite side of the river frori^ the railroad is swung across to 
 the cars in buckets, holding half a ton apiece, which are carried 
 over on an endless rope and the coal is lifted and swung from the 
 mine down the hill and across the river and there dumped into t.\e 
 
224 
 
 Ealeigh County. 
 
 railroad car all at one operation. Thirty-two buckets are used with 
 a carrying capacity of about 400 tons a day. The coals of this 
 county are all good coking coals as well as suitable for gas and 
 steam. 
 
 Timber. — As much as seven eighths of the county is still in origi- 
 nal forests. Not until within a few years has any timbering been 
 done and never has there been but little. The products of the 
 farms do not quite support the people and the difference is made up 
 by dealing in timber. Poplar and oak are the principal woods in 
 the forests of Raleigh county. The county is in the finest timber 
 country in the State and some of it is very good. The high, rich 
 lands have produced splendid trees which make beautiful logs and 
 abundant timber. The poplars are large and the oaks are too. 
 Difficulty of access is all that has kept this timber from being util- 
 ized before. Along Piney creek and between that and Glade 
 creek are some thirty or forty thousand acres of white pine, in all 
 perhaps a hundred million feet. This is being cut a little but 
 nearly all of it still remains. 
 
 Agricultural.— The high, level sections of the county which 
 compose the greater part of it are good for farming and grazing pur- 
 poses, particularly the latter. Very little farming has ever been 
 done in the county but those who have farmed are prosperous and 
 their farms produce well. Corn is the principal product aside from 
 grass, which is abundant. Tobacco grows well in some parts and 
 the whole county is well adapted to its culture. For fruits the 
 county is unexcelled, and some fine varieties are grown. Grass 
 grows well and the county is an excellent one for cattle and sheep. 
 
 RANDOLPH COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — The largest county in the State, lies 
 between the eastern boundary of the State and the center. With a 
 territory larger than that of several of the States of the Union, and 
 almost every variety of soil and climate and natural productions, 
 Randolph ofifers a wide field for the person seeking a location or 
 place of investment. The county is just to the west of the main 
 Alleghany range of mountains and lies principally among the nu- 
 merous smaller ranges that lie immediately to the west of and par- 
 allel to the Alleghanies. The region is the highest in the State, all 
 
Randolph County. 
 
 225 
 
 the rivers in the State having their sources in or near the county. 
 Half a dozen mountain ranges run parallel through the county, and 
 between them are as many streams, uniting below to form the Cheat 
 and Valley rivers which flow into the Monongahela and help to 
 form the great Ohio river. The eastern or mountainous portion of 
 the county has an average elevation of about 3,000 feet, while the 
 western part, though high, is much lower. Through the center of 
 the county passes the valley drained by the Tygart's Valley river. 
 This is the best part of the county agriculturally and the least rugged. 
 The valley is some 40 miles in length and averages a mile in width. 
 The soil is fertile, the land level, surrounded by mountains, the cli- 
 mate good and the scenery beautiful. None of the streams that 
 pass through the county are large enough to be navigable for boats 
 of any kind, are besides too swift and have too much fall to make 
 them useful, except for taking out timber, for which purpose they 
 afford splendid facilities. The county, though settled back in the 
 latter part of the last century, has remained so inaccessible that few 
 people have settled within its borders. The families of the earliest 
 settlers still remain in some parts of the county, property first taken 
 up by them having descended from father to son for many years. 
 The difficulty of making good roads over the many mountain 
 ranges, and the distance of the county from railroad connections 
 have kept it in a wild and unsettled condition except for the Tygart's 
 Valley region, which has been pretty well settled and is prosperous. 
 Recently the West Virginia Central and Pittsburg railroad has been 
 built into the county and has been the means of improving and 
 building it up a good deal already. The road comes from 
 the northern part of the State where it has connection with the 
 Baltimore and Ohio railroad and the roads in Maryland, passes 
 southward about half way through the county and then turning 
 west connects with a branch of the B. & O. in Barbour county. A 
 branch also extends from Elkins, where the road turns west, to Bev- 
 erly, the county seat, 7 miles south of Elkins. By this road the 
 distance from Beverley to Martinsburg is 207 miles, to Baltimore 
 307, to Wheeling 167, to Parkersburg 171, to Charleston 306, to Cin- 
 cinnati 360 and to Chicago 627 miles. 
 
 Coal.— The western portion of the county is full ol good coal, 
 belonging to the "Lower" measures. The same coal that is found 
 
226 
 
 Randolph County. 
 
 in Grant and Tucker counties, along the lower part of the West 
 Virginia Central^road, are also found in this county. The coal is 
 an excellent coking coal and the coke made along the line of this 
 road is equal to the best made in the State. The eastern part of the 
 county, among the mountains, possesses no coal, but in the western 
 part is the "Roaring Creek" vein, which is known to be 22 feet in 
 thickness and is said by some to be even thicker. No developments 
 have ever been made of the coal in this county. The value of it is 
 known and the fact that there is a great deal of it in veins of tre- 
 mendous size, but the inaccessibility has hitherto prevented the 
 mining of the coal, but since the railroads have been built into the 
 vicinity of the coal lands, plans are on foot for the development of 
 the property, and soon a good deal of coal will be carried out of 
 Randolph county over the W. Va. C. & P. railroad. The coal is an 
 excellent coking coal, good also for steam, gas and fuel and the tre- 
 mendous quantities of the coal make the lands on which it is to be 
 lound extremely valuable. 
 
 Clay.— Good fire clay is found in the county in considerable 
 quantities, but none of it has ever been worked. Some ochre has 
 been found but this has never been developed either, and its ex- 
 tent is not known, nor its value. 
 
 Timber. — Probably the largest area of timber in any one county of 
 the State is standing in the county of Randolph. On account of the 
 excellent quality of the timber, the vast quantities of it and the ease 
 with which it may be gotten to market, there has been a great deal 
 of it taken out, but there is still standing over hundreds of square 
 miles of the county the finest of timber untouched by the woods- 
 man. In the higher parts of the county the pines, hemlock and 
 cherry grow in great quantities. The oaks and maple, beech, ash, 
 poplar and other varieties of valuable timber are found throughout 
 the county. Large forces of men are at work in the mountains of 
 Randolph, clearing the forests of their timber, but with the im- 
 mense territory in the county which is still covered with timber, 
 the amount taken out is scarcely missed, so much more is left. 
 Though settled for over a hundred years, fully half the county is 
 still in the original forest. Many rare varieties of timber are found 
 in Randolph county, but the kinds mentioned above are the princi- 
 pal ones in the county. 
 
Randolph County. 
 
 227 
 
 Agricultural. — Broken as is the eastern part of the county with 
 mountain ranges, it is scarcely suited for larming purposes. The 
 timber taken off, though, the hills afford good pasture land and 
 grass grows in profusion. In the western part of the county, par- 
 ticularly in the valley of the Tygarts Valley river, there is some of 
 the finest farming land in the State. The bottoms are broad and 
 fertile and produce enormous yields of corn and .other crops. 
 Many of the hills of the county are not so steep but that they may 
 easily be cultivated and on them such crops as require a high eleva- 
 tion and cool climate grow well. At the head of Valley river, is a 
 particularly fine portion of the county, known as the Mingo Flats. 
 The land in this vicinity is very fertile, the surroundings and climate 
 all that could be desired to make a pleasant dwelling place and some 
 of the best people of the county reside there. 
 
 Game. — The great portion of the county which is still in the 
 original state is filled with game of all kinds and in the mountains, 
 far from the railroad or settlements of any kind, a sportsman's 
 club has built a handsome club house. A large game preserve has 
 been purchased and members of the club who care to spend a por- 
 tion of every year in the mountains seeking rest and recreation 
 come here and hunt and fish to their hearts' content. Game of all 
 kinds, deer, bear and the smaller animals are plentiful and trout are 
 caught by the hundred. 
 
 RITCHIE COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Ritchie county is north-west of the 
 center of the State, slightly east of the western boundary. Through 
 the county flow both the North and the South Fork of Hughes' 
 river, a tributary of the Little Kanawha. These streams, with the 
 waters that flow into them, water the county well. The county is 
 hilly, some of them quite high, but not steep, and the general char- 
 acter is that of a rolling county, with gently sloping hills, suitable 
 for cultivation to their tops. Through the county from east to 
 west, a distance of some forty miles, runs the Baltimore and Ohio 
 railroad. Harrisville, the county seat, is nine miles off this rail- 
 road, with which it is connected by the Pennsboro & Harrisville 
 narrow gauge railroad. The distance from Harrisville to Parkers- 
 burg is 51 miles, to Martinsburg 251, to Baltimore 365, to Charleston 
 
228 
 
 Ritchie County. 
 
 185, to Wheeling 145, to Cincinnati 246, to Chicago 612. The 
 county is traversed by numerous good roads and the Cairo and Lit- 
 tle Kanawha Valley narrow gauge railroad extends from Cairo, on 
 the B. & 0., for a distance of 16 miles toward the Little Kanawha 
 valley, which is the point it expects to reach some day. 
 
 Coal. — In nearly every part of the county coal is found, but only 
 in small veins, very few of which are large enough to be worked. 
 The thickest of them are about three feet in thickness, and no coal 
 has ever been mined in the county save for local use. These are 
 the surface coals. Underneath the surface there is an abundance of 
 good coal. In boring for oil a 7 foot vein of good soft coal was 
 found at a depth of 150 feet, and an 1 1 foot vein at a depth of 200 
 feet. These are the Pittsburg coals, good for steam, gas and coking, 
 and their existence under the entire county in such thicknesses 
 means an enormous amount of coal in the county, available with 
 little difficulty. In England coal shafts are made a thousand feet 
 deep and other shafts are made hundreds of feet in depth, so that a 
 shaft of from 150 to 200 feet would be a small matter when from 15 
 to 20 leet of the best kind of coal is to be secured. An enormous 
 amount of coal will certainly be produced in Ritchie county. 
 
 Oil and Gas. — At different times more than a thousand wells 
 have been bored for oil in Ritchie county, and never more than a 
 very few — a dozen at most—- have been entirely dry. During the 
 early oil excitement, back in the sixties and seventies, there was a 
 great deal of oil produced. At that time the shallow wells were 
 productive. Later, wells have been sunk as far as the "Big Injun" 
 sand, and considerable oil has been produced from this. But no 
 wells have been sunk as deep as the Gordon sand, the most produc- 
 tive sand yet struck. About a half of the rich and productive oil 
 field lying along the Wood and Ritchie county line, known as the 
 Volcano field, is in Ritchie, though usually credited to Wood be- 
 cause Volcano, the town from which it is named, is in Wood county. 
 Natural gas is abundant, the county seat is lighted and heated with 
 it and it may be obtained in enormous quantities. 
 
 Fire Clay. — A vein of excellent fire clay, about 18 inches thick, 
 is found over a large area near the county seat. Samples of it have 
 been tested, and it is proven to be of good quality for making brick, 
 tiling, etc. There is probably clay in other parts of the county. 
 
Ritchie County. 
 
 229 
 
 Marble. — A fine vein of marble, about 5 feet thick has been 
 found, which seems to be of superior quality. It is brown, colored 
 with gray, dark and bright colors of many shades. The vein has 
 never been found except in one small locality. It is fine grained 
 and takes an excellent polish. 
 
 Timber. — Probably a third of the timber of the county is still 
 standing. The poplar is more nearly exhausted than any other 
 kind of timber and not much over an eighth of the poplar is left. 
 The other timbers are principally oaks, with some walnut, ash, 
 chestnut, maple, birch, beech and a little pine. This timber is all 
 of excellent quality and is being rapidly removed. In the south- 
 eastern part of the county is where the greater part now stands. 
 
 Agricultural. — The soil of Ritchie county is very rich and well 
 suited to all agricultural purposes. Red clay soils predominate on 
 the hills, a rich black loam in the bottoms. The entire county is well 
 watered by the numerous streams that flow through it. Grains and 
 grasses grow in great quantities. Grains are raised in the lower 
 lands and yield well. Corn is the principal crop. Some wheat is 
 raised and fruit is abundant. The hills and higher ground are ad- 
 mirably adapted to fruits and much fruit is raised. On the hills, 
 and in the valleys too, grass grows luxuriantly. Much attention is 
 given to stock raising. Cattle, sheep and horses are raised. The 
 pasture of this county is unsurpassed and lasts the greater part of 
 the year, and stock of all kinds does well. Numbers of cattle and 
 sheep are grown and special attention is being paid to horse breed- 
 ing. Clydesdale and Norman draft horses and some racers are bred. 
 The grazing interests are the principal ones of the county. 
 
 ROANE COUNTY. 
 
 Location AND Character. —Roane county lies midway between 
 the center of the State and its western boundary. Its surface is 
 hilly and rolling, not mountainous nor high, save in the southern 
 portion, where the hills attain some height, and is undiversified in 
 character. It has no mountains and no streams of any size. In 
 the northern part of the county the waters flow northward, and into 
 the Little Kanawha river. In the south they flow southward to- 
 ward the Elk and Great Kanawha rivers. In the southern part the 
 headwaters of Poca river are large enough to float out logs on when 
 
230 
 
 Roane County. 
 
 there is a rise. From the northwest the Ravenswood, Spencer and 
 Glenville railroad extends into the county as far as Spencer, the 
 county seat, connecting that town with the Ohio river and the Ohio 
 River railroad at Ravenswood. This distance is 33 miles, and makes 
 the distance from Spencer to Parkersburg 68 miles, to Huntington 
 119, to Charleston 135, to Wheelin^c 162, to Baltimore 466, to Cin- 
 cinnati 280, to Chicago 585. 
 
 Coal. — No coal has ever been mined in Roane county, except for 
 local use, though it is found over all the county above water level. 
 In most of the county the veins are small, not exceeding 2 or 3 feet, 
 but in the southeastern part of the county they run up to 8 or 10 
 feet in thickness. These veins are of the Pittsburg coking coals, 
 which extend into the county from the Clay county field. The 
 coal makes excellent coke, is easily mined and might, with proper 
 means of transportation, become a source of great revenue to the 
 county. 
 
 Timber. — About half the county is still well covered with timber. 
 A large part of the poplar timber has been removed, but other tim- 
 ber remains over a greater part of the county, nearly all the oak is 
 still standing and in the southern part of the county no timber at 
 all has been taken off. The timber of Roane is very fine, and com- 
 mands first class prices in all the markets where it is found. The 
 principal varieties found in the county are oak, poplar, ash, walnut 
 sycamore, maple, beech, pine, chestnut and hickory. Some other 
 varieties are found in greater or smaller quantities. There is a great 
 deal of timber suitable for ties, and the streams that are not large 
 enough for logs will carry out ties. There are also vast quantities 
 of tanbark in the county. 
 
 Oil. — It is thought, upon the basis of surveys and calculations 
 made, that Roane count}^ lies in the Little Kanawha oil field, but 
 no search has ever been made for oil and there is not known to be 
 any in the county. 
 
 Iron. — Iron ores exist in small quantities in this county but no 
 attempts have ever been made to ascertain their value. There is 
 also some limestone, found along with the iron. 
 
 Stone. — There are large ledges of valuable building sandstone. 
 A beautiful grey sandstone, which is easily worked, susceptible of a 
 high polish and durable, is found in inexhaustible quantities and 
 
Roane County. 
 
 231 
 
 has been used to some extent in the county. A good deal of this 
 stone was used in the construction of the buildings for the Second 
 Hospital for the Insane at Spencer. Clay for the manufacture of 
 building brick is found in abundance and the brick made from it 
 are pronounced by experienced workmen to be of very fine quality. 
 
 Agricultural — The soil of Roane county in every portion is 
 good, and its rolling character, with broad valleys and gently slop- 
 ing hills, affords available farm property in about the entire county. 
 The northern and western portions are those in which farming is 
 most extensively carried on at present, the other parts being m6re 
 in timber. Corn and wheat are grown, principally in the bottom 
 lands, the corn yielding better and being the principal crop. The 
 county is particularly adapted to grazing. Blue grass grows spon- 
 taneously in the uplands and covers the hills with magnificent pas- 
 turage. In the lower parts timothy grows very heavy and makes 
 excellent hay and a great deal of it. Clover grows well in all parts 
 of the county. Naturally, where so much pasturage exists, cattle 
 thr.ive and many of them are raised, as many, it is said, as in any 
 other county in West Virginia. Very fine stock is grown and this 
 is the principal occupation of the people. Sheep are also raised in 
 great numbers and prove very profitable. Hogs receive their share 
 of attention and much good pork goes out of Roane every winter. 
 Good Iruit is raised in all parts of the county, the hills being well 
 suited to its culture. Fruits, poultry, butter and eggs, live stock 
 and the timber products are the principal sources of revenue to the 
 county and are all sent out in considerable quantities. 
 
 SUMMERS COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Summers is one of the most south- 
 ern counties in the State. It is south of the center, north-east of 
 the southernmost point, and not far from the south-eastern boun- 
 dary, the southern point barely touching the boundary of Virginia. 
 Through the centre of the county from east to west flows the Green- 
 brier river, along the bank of which runs the Chesapeake and Ohio 
 railroad. From the south the New river enters the county, uniting 
 with the Greenbrier at Hinton, on the western border. From the 
 south-west the Bluestone river enteis the county and empties into 
 the New river above Hinton. None of these rivers is navigable. At 
 
232 
 
 Summers County. 
 
 one time a steamboat was built for the New river trade above Hin- 
 ton and it was run for a short time, but the water was found to be 
 insufficient and the boat was abandoned. The Chesapeake and Ohio 
 railroad is now the only means of communication which the county 
 has with the rest of the world, and by this the distances from Hin- 
 ton, the county seat, are: to Richmond 272 miles, to Charleston 97, 
 to Parkersburg 232, to Wheeling 326, to Cincinnati 308, and to 
 Chicago 613. The county is principally rough. The hills are high, 
 and in places steep and rugged. The rivers cut deep into the bases 
 of the hills and make the mountain sides along them steep and 
 rough. Back from the rivers, though, the mountains flatten out 
 and b,ecome much less rough, and in places spread out into good 
 farming country. 
 
 Coal.— Summers is not a good coal county. Into the western 
 portion the New River coal extends and in the southern part the 
 Flat Top coal is found, but it is only in a small part of the county 
 that any coal is found, and then only along the edges of fields that 
 are worked elsewhere. However, there is good workable coal in the 
 county, and the only trouble is that there is not enough of it. 
 
 Iron. — Iron ores are found scattered over nearly all the county, 
 but no developments have ever been made, and the value or extent 
 of them is unknown. Surface samples may be picked up almost 
 anywhere and there are some apparently valuable samples too. Iron 
 ore in Raleigh county analyzes 55 per cent, of metallic iron and the 
 Summers county ore is probably very similar to this. 
 
 Fire Clay. — This and potter's clay are abundant in the county 
 and of good quality. Among the beds of clay now known to exist 
 have been found relics of prehistoric races — broken pottery, etc. — 
 showing that before the discovery ot America by Columbus, the 
 value of these clays was known, and they were put to practical test 
 in the making of utensils of every day use in the wigwam. And 
 now, after a lapse of more than four hundred years, the clay is still 
 here and our people, so many years behind these prehistoric races, 
 are just beginning to learn of their value. The deposits are large 
 and the clay excellent for all the purposes for which it may be used. 
 
 Building Stone. — In that entire portion of the county north of 
 the Greenbrier river and the New river below the mouth of the 
 Greenbrier — about half the county — several seams of a most beau- 
 
Summers County, 
 
 233 
 
 tiful brown sandstone are found. This is a splendid building stone 
 of a beautiful color, and has already given the county a wide spread 
 reputation. It is sent to all parts of the country from the several 
 quarries that have already been opened up, and may be seen in 
 some of the handsomest buildings in most of the larger cities. Some 
 of the same stone is also found in the southern part of the county, 
 but not so much as there is in the northern part. There is also a 
 red stone, similar to the brown except in color, but there is not so 
 much of it as of the brt)wn. Large ledges of white and grey sand- 
 stone are also found. In the western part of the county is a very 
 • fine sandstone valuable especially for bridge piers and for work un- 
 der water. It has been shipped largely for use on the Atlantic coast 
 for piers, etc. It is a very tough, tenacious stone and long slabs of 
 it will bend several inches before they will break. Almost every 
 kind of stone except limestone may be found in Summers county. 
 
 Timber.— Fully two-thirds of the county has been stripped of its 
 timber, but some very fine tracts still remain. The principal woods 
 are oak, poplar, ash and other hard woods, including some walnut. 
 In the southern or Flat Top region there is a little pine but not 
 much as compared with the amount of other timber in the county. 
 The timber can not be floated down the New river owing to the 
 rapids and boulders in the river, but much is now being hauled to 
 the railroad where it is sawed and shipped. 
 
 Agricultural. — While not particularly an agricultural county 
 Summers is still well adapted to several varieties of agriculture. 
 Some grain is grown though not enough is now raised in the county 
 for home consumption, more being brought in than is taken out. 
 Part of the county is rocky and mountainous but there is a large part 
 of it that is well suited to farming. Most of the county is good graz- 
 ing land, grass growing well all over it. Some cattle are raised and 
 are profitable, though as a stock raising county Summers will not 
 compare with Greenbrier and Mpnroe, the adjacent counties on the 
 east. It is well adapted to sheep raising and although ttiis industry 
 is now almost neglected it ^would undoubtedly prove profitable. The 
 southern part of the county has shown itself to be remarkably well 
 adapted to the culture of tobacco and some very fine tobaccos are 
 grown. All kinds of fruits do well in the county, particularly 
 grapes, apples and berries. The high, flat mountain tops, fertile 
 soil and cool climate are excellently adapted to fruit culture. 
 
234 
 
 Taylor County. 
 
 TAYLOR COUNTY. 
 
 « 
 
 Location and Character. — South of the Pennsylvania line, west 
 of the Maryland line, and not over 30 miles from either, is Taylor, 
 one of the smallest counties in the State. Flowing in a north-west 
 direction, and dividing the coanty into almost equal parts, is the 
 Tygart's Valley river which unites in the next county with the 
 West Fork river to form the Monongahela. From Grafton, which 
 is about the center of the county, the Baltimore and Ohio railroad 
 runs in four directions, eastward to Baltimore and New York, west- 
 ward to Parkersburg and Cincinnati, to the north-west to Wheeling, , 
 and southward through Barbour county to a connection with the 
 West Virginia Central and Pittsburg railroad. Grafton, the county 
 seat, is excellently situated with regard to transportation. The dis- 
 tance to Martinsburg is 180 miles, to Baltimore 294, to Wheeling 
 100, to Parkersburg 104, to Charleston 238, to Cincinnati 300. and 
 to Chicago 567. On the east are the foot hills of the Laurel moun- 
 tains, the roughest land in the county. Most of the land is rolling, 
 with gently sloping hills except along the river, where they are 
 steep. The county is well watered with the small stre^^ms which 
 flow into the Valley river and the West Fork. The eastern half is 
 more distinctively the mineral part, while the west is similar to 
 Harrison, the grazing county on the west ■ Though small, Taylor 
 county is favored with much natural wealth of various kinds. 
 
 Coal — About the entire county is underlaid with the coal of the 
 Lower measures, which in this county contain two workable beds, 
 the Upper Freeport and the Lower Kittaning, which are both worked 
 in the adjacent county of Preston, and are both excellent coking 
 coals. The veins are from 3 to 6 feet thick in this county. In a 
 portion of the county, the extent of which has not been definitely 
 ascertained, but over at least 10,000 acres, the Pittsburg coking coal 
 is found in a vein varying from 6 to 8 feet in thickness. In the 
 western part'of the county there is a 9 foot seam of gas coal of as 
 fine quality as any in the State. 
 
 For the year ending June 30, 1891, the reports of the State Mine 
 Inspectors show that there were in Taylor county two coal mines 
 producing 83,851 tons of coal and 25 coke ovens producing 8,458 
 tons of coke. For the year ending June 30, 1892, the reports show 
 
Taylor County. 
 
 235 
 
 that the two mines produced 74,000 tons of coal and the 25 coke 
 ovens 7,756 tons of coke. 
 
 Iron. — Iron ores in considerable quantities are found in various 
 parts of the county and have been worked to some extent. As long 
 ago as 75 years there was a furnace in Taylor county making iron 
 and since that time others have been in operation, but there is none 
 now. Iron ores, though, are abundant and are found throughout 
 the eastern part of the county in veins of from 1 to 16 feet in thick- 
 ness and showing, upon analysis, from 30 to 60 per cent, metallic 
 iron. There is also some manganese but it is not found in very ex- 
 tensive quantities. 
 
 Fire Clay. — Over several thousand acres in the eastern part of 
 Taylor county is found a twelve foot bed of the finest kind of fire 
 clay. It has not been worked but tests made of the clay show it 
 to be the equal of any fire clay known. There are two varieties, one 
 suitable for paving brick, the other for finer work. All over the 
 county good fire clay is found, being similar in the west to that of 
 Marion county. It is safe to say that in no county in the State is 
 there clay of superior excellence or in greater quantity than in 
 Taylor county and when that time arrives when West Virginia's 
 production of clay products shall equal that of New Jersey, then 
 Taylor county will be found producing as much as any county in 
 the State. 
 
 Oil and Gas. — No oil has ever been found in Taylor county. The 
 Marion county oil field does not extend into this county, or at least 
 has never been found. There is, though, considerable natural gas 
 which bubbles up from beneath the earth in several parts of the 
 county. It is not improbable that future developments may show 
 that there is oil in Taylor county. 
 
 Timber. — Taylor county has been settled a long time, has had 
 railroad facilities and river transportation for logs, and its most val- 
 uable timber has been cut out. Not over a fifth of the county re- 
 mains in timber, which is principally oaks, poplar, walnut, chestnut, 
 hickory, etc. Grafton was at one time the market for all the timber 
 from the Buckhannon and Valley rivers, which was floated down 
 and caught in the boom above Grafton, but the railroads now con- 
 trol most of this business. The timber is sawed where it is cut and 
 the railroads carry it out. 
 
236 
 
 Tucker Codnty. 
 
 Agricultural. — The soil of Taylor county is all fertile, hills and 
 valleys alike. Corn is the principal grain raised. Other grains are 
 not grown to any great extent, but grass covers a large part of the 
 county. The western and northern portions border along the graz- 
 ing lands of Harrison and Marion counties, and the county is in the 
 blue grass belt. For grazing Taylor county is about the equal of 
 any county in the State. The western half, particularly, is fine 
 grazing territory and good stock is raised. Cattle and sheep are 
 raised and there is almost no waste land, hills and valleys all mak- 
 ing good pasture. The county is well suited for fruit, which grows 
 well. 
 
 TUCKER COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character.— The boundary line between West 
 Virginia and Maryland follows the Potomac river to its source and 
 runs thence due north to the Pennsylvania line. The source of the 
 Potomac, as ascertained and marked by Lord Fairfax is at 
 the point where the town of Fairfax now is in Tucker county. An 
 extension of the north and south line through the county would 
 divide it into almost equal parts. Tucker lies at the west base of 
 the main Alleghany range of mountains, and is one of the counties 
 connecting the main part of the State with the narrow strip of 
 counties east of the mountains. From south to north through the 
 county flows the Cheat river, a tributary of the Monongahela. The 
 eastern part of the county is watered by the Blackwater river, a 
 stream whose waters are always black, and which with several other 
 tributaries from the south flows into the Cheat in this county. 
 None of the streams are navigable, but afl()rd the means of getting 
 out timber. The county is very mountainous and high but is not 
 much broken except along the rivers. A good deal o^ the surface 
 is high table land. Through the county in a northeast and south- 
 west direction runs the West Virginia Central and Pittsburg rail- 
 road, making connections northward for the east and running up 
 into Randolph county, thence down the Tygart's Valley to a con- 
 nection with the Baltimore and Ohio branch road in Barbour county. 
 St. George, the county seat, is about 6 miles from the railroad by 
 which the distance to Martinsburg is 1G9 miles, to Baltimore 283, to 
 Wheeling 182, to Parkersburg 186, to Charleston 320, to Cincinnati 
 381, to Chicago 649. 
 
Tucker County. 
 
 237 
 
 Coal. — About one-half of the county is well supplied with coal, 
 the principal veins being the Upper and Lower Kittaning coal of the 
 Lower measures. At several places in the county the coal is mined 
 and since railroad communication has been established the produc- 
 tion of coal and coke along its line has increased tremendously. 
 There are two good veins of coal in the county, one about 9 feet 
 and the other 6^ feet in thickness, excluding slate. Both are excel- 
 lent coking coals, analyses of the coke made showing it to be among 
 the best produced in the United States. For smithing the coal of 
 Tucker county is unexcelled. The reports of the State Mine In- 
 spectors show that in the year ending June 30, 1891, there were 
 four mines , employing 335 men and producing 189,050 tons of coal, 
 and 230 coke ovens producing 69,162 tons of coke. For the year 
 ending June 30, 1892, the number of mines was 6, employes 690, 
 coal production 396,320 tons, coke ovens 423, coke production 72,- 
 298 tons. 
 
 Stone. — Large quantities of good building stone are found in the 
 county, both lime and sand-stone. There is no iron in the county. 
 
 Timber.— Over a third of Tucker county is still covered with valu- 
 able timber. This comprises cherry, oak, maple, poplar, spruce and 
 hemlock. The two latter have suffered from the rav^iges of the pine 
 destroying insect, but still ofier thousands of acres of valuable tim- 
 ber. A great deal is being done to bring the timber of Tucker 
 county to market, and the activity is very marked, particularly 
 since the completion of the railroad. Saw mills are placed on every 
 creek, and at very short distances along the railroad, and planing 
 and wood working mills of every description are following. Large 
 crews of men fill immense lumber camps in the forests, and are fast 
 stripping the county of all its valuable timber. There is, however, 
 a considerable portion of it that is untouched yet. The forests are 
 very thick and the timber growth is large. An undergrowth of 
 laurel grows among the trees, higher than a man's head, and so 
 thick that crews of "swampers" have to be sent out ahead of the log- 
 gers to clear passage-ways so they can fell the timber. 
 
 Agricultural. — There is very little farming of any kind done in 
 Tucker county, the work in timber and coal taking the place of that 
 on the farm. Much of the land, though, is well adapted to farming. 
 Cereals grow well, corn being the principal one raised. Grasses form 
 
238 
 
 Tyler County. 
 
 the most important crop of the county, and grazing the principal 
 line of agriculture. Cattle of excellent quality and large size are 
 raised, and no region of the State raises better cattle than can the 
 region of which Tucker is a part. The county is especially adapted 
 to sheep raising. There is hardly any part of the county that will 
 not produce good grass, and sheep in this county do well and prove 
 profitable. The county is also suited for fruits. 
 
 TYLER COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Tyler county is one of the counties 
 lying in the Ohio valley. It is the second county south of the 
 northern panhandle and borders along the Ohio river for about 15 
 miles. Through the center of the county flows Middle Island 
 creek, which with its tributary streams waters well the whole county, 
 emptying into the Ohio in the adjoining county of Pleasants. This 
 stream is navigable for small flat boats in favorable seasons, while 
 the Ohio river which follows the western boundary of the county is 
 navigable for the largest steamers, except in occasional seasons of 
 low water. The county is mostly rolling and hilly. The Ohio 
 river bottoms are broad and level and the valleys of the smaller 
 streams are also broad. The hills are not high or steep and most of 
 them are well suited for cultivation. The suil in the valleys and on 
 the hills is alike good and productive. The only railroad in the 
 county is the Ohio River road, which follows along the western 
 border for the entire length of the county. Middlebourne, the 
 county seat, is ofl" the railroad about 10 miles, the nearest point 
 being Sistersville, by way of which the distance from Middlebourne 
 to Wheeling is 57 miles, to Parkersburg 37, to Charleston 171, to 
 Cincinnati 232, to Chicago 524 miles. 
 
 Coal. — The county is situated in the Upper coal measures, and 
 the Pittsburg vein, the most important one in the measures, is found, 
 with its excellent coking coals. The vein which is worked in Har- 
 rison county near the Tyler county line, and which is there above 
 the water level, is found in Tyler from 50 to 350 feet below the sur- 
 face of the earth, being deeper toward the western part of the 
 county. The vein is from 8 to 10 feet in thickness and contains 
 excellent coal. None of it has ever been mined in Tyler county, it 
 
Tyler County. 
 
 239 
 
 being easier to bring the coal in by rail from other places than to 
 shaft for it here. 
 
 Oil. — In Tyler county is located the last large producing oil field 
 discovered in the State, and which is now the best one of them all. 
 It is known as the Sistersville field, from the town of Sistersville, 
 which is right in the midst of it. No place in the field is held 
 sacred and on every available lot a well or two has been put down. 
 One is in a church-yard, while others are in private yards so close 
 to the homes of residents that the great walking beams almost 
 scrape the houses as they move up and down. The first well shot 
 in this field was in February, 1891. It pumped nothing but salt 
 water for four months and was then abandoned. About a year 
 afterward pumping was renewed and the well showed oil It is 
 now the best well in the field, pumping about 300 barrels of oil a 
 day. The field was actively opened in February, 1892, and at the 
 first of the present year there were 225 producing wells, 50 more 
 being drilled, and 30 riggings going up. The total production of 
 the field at that time was about 15,000 barrels a day. The pumps 
 bring up both oil and water, about five times as much water as oil, 
 but the production given above is in oil, exclusive of the water. 
 The field is oval in shape, the oil pool clearly defined, its greatest 
 width being about two miles, its length about five miles. The dis- 
 tance to the oil sand at water level is about 1,400 feet. The sand is 
 250 feet thick, the first 50 feet producing oil. There have been very 
 few dry holes in the field, most of the wells drilled in proving to be 
 good producers Along with the oil there is plenty of natural gas, 
 and this is piped for many miles to all the cities and large towns in 
 reach, where it is used for fuel and lighting purposes. 
 
 Iron, — Some iron ores are found in this county, but no investiga- 
 tion of their value or extent has ever been made. The ores are 
 brown hematite and nodular ores, some of them thought to be very 
 rich, and the deposits are quite large. 
 
 Stone. — Limestone fo-** building purposes and an excellent hard 
 sandstone are found in the county and used locally for building. 
 
 Clays. — Fire clays and ordinary brick clay are found in several 
 parts of the county and are thought to be in valuable deposits. The 
 location is good for clay working establishments of all kinds and 
 the clay is as good as any that is found along the Ohio river. 
 
240 
 
 Tyler County. 
 
 Timber. — Not over two thirds of Tyler county has been cleared, 
 the rest remaining in timber. Oak, poplar, hickory, chestnut, ash 
 and walnut are the principal woods, though there is very little of 
 the latter left now. The lands along the streams have all been 
 pretty well cleared, but on the lands back from them and on the hills 
 little has been cut. The watsrs which penetrate the county are 
 large enough to carry timber out on rises, and afford easy means of 
 getting it to market. A great deal is worked up in the county. Saw 
 mills, stave mills and other wood working industries are numerous 
 in the county and the forests are rapidly disappearing. 
 
 Agricultural. — The soil of Tyler county is fertile and productive 
 the surface level in the valleys and sloping gently on the hills, so 
 there is hardly any portion of the county that is not suited for 
 cultivation. The Ohio river bottoms are very productive, the val- 
 leys of the smaller streams are also rich and the hill lands are ad- 
 mirably adapted to some lines of agriculture Grains of all kinds 
 grow well, fruits are good and productive and grasses make excel- 
 lent sod. Cattle are raised in goodly numbers and sheep also do well. 
 
 UPSHUR COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Near the center of the State, but 
 slightly to the north-east of it, is Upshur county. The southern 
 portion of the county is in the high region which divides the waters 
 of the northern part of the State from those of the southern, and 
 the entire county is high and portions of it mountainous. Through 
 the centre of the county the Buckhannon river flows northward, 
 passing into Barbour county, where it flows into the Tygart's Valley 
 river. Along a portion of the eastern boundary flows the Middle 
 Fork of the Tygart's Valley river, a'.id in the southern portion of 
 the county is the Little Kanawha rivt^r. These streams are all 
 small in Upshur and none of them navigable, but with their tribu- 
 taries abundantly supply the county with water. The county, 
 though partly mountainous, is not much broken, the mountains 
 are not steep, and the surface, while mostly high, is level and roll- 
 ing. Buckhannon, the county seat, is located on a high level along 
 the Buckhannon river, near the center of the county. From it two 
 branches of the West Virginia and Pittsburg railroad run through 
 the county — one southward into the magnificent forests in the upper 
 
Upshur County. 
 
 241 
 
 end of the county, the other westward to the main branch of the same 
 road at Weston. By way of this road the distance from Buckhan- 
 hannon to Parkersburg is 123 miles, to Martinsburg 243, to Balti- 
 more 357, to Wheeling 152, to Cincinnati 318, and to Chicago 619 
 miles. When the railroad up Elk river from Charleston is com- 
 pleted, the distance to Charleston will be 160 miles A short rail- 
 road from Buckhannon to a connection with the B. & 0. in Barbour 
 county is contemplated but not begun. 
 
 Coal. — There is a good deal of coal in the county, Upshur having 
 the same two seams that Barbour county has — the Pittsburg, with 
 an average thickness of about six feet, and the Roaring Creek coal, 
 which is in several veins of varying thickness, running up to ten 
 feet, and is in all respects similar to the coals of the same seam in 
 Barbour county. There is a coal found in Upshur — found in "pock- 
 ets" — covering perhaps 8,000 acres of the county so far as now 
 known, which is a splendid blacksmith coal, has very little sulphur, 
 — less than one per cent., — and is used in forges without coking. It 
 is a superior smithing coal, much sought for by those who know it, 
 and is similar to a coal valued highly for this purpose which is said 
 to be found in but two other localities. Notwithstanding the quan- 
 tity of coal that is hidden away in Upshur county, none has ever 
 been mined, save in a few places for local use. 
 
 Iron —Upshur has a little iron ore, but hardly in workable quan- 
 tities. 
 
 Clay and Stone. — Fire clay, which has been tested and pro- 
 nounced very fine, is found widely distributed throughout the 
 county. The depth of the bed is not known, but it has been dug 
 into for 10 feet, and the bottom of the bed was not then reached. 
 The clay is of excellent quality and in enormous quantities, and 
 will undoubtedly bring the county into prominence as a center for 
 clay manufacturing at no distant day. 
 
 Building stone, both lime and sand, is found in the county. The 
 limestone is not found over a large extent, being only in a portion 
 of the county, but there is an abundance of fine sandstone for build- 
 ing purposes. 
 
 Timber. — About one half of Upshur county is still covered with 
 timber, which is being rapidly taken out. In this county is found 
 some of the finest timber in the State, and hitherto it has been 
 
242 
 
 Upshur County. 
 
 comparatively neglected so that now, upon the completion of the 
 railroad into the forests, the timber is being rapidly removed. One 
 firm alone in the southern end of the county employs over 500 
 men in getting out and sawing up the timber. There are in the 
 southern part of the county numerous coves between the moun- 
 tains where the many streams which have their sources in or near 
 this county rise. These coves are rich in soil and well protected, 
 high and dry, so the conditions are most favorable for excellent 
 timber. There was once fine walnut in the county but most of it 
 has been taken out. Poplar, oaks, spruce, pine, hemlock, ash and 
 cherry are the principal timbers standing, and some of the finest 
 specimens in the State are found here. 
 
 AoaiCDLTURAL.— Farming and grazing are the chief interests of 
 the county. The soil, not so fertile as some, averages very well. 
 The mountains are not steep, and every foot of ground in the county 
 is available for agricultural pursuits. Blue grass springs up when 
 the land is cleared and forms an excellent grazing country. Horses 
 and cattle were formerly raised in great numbers, but the decreased 
 prices for stock discouraged the people and fewer horses and cattle 
 are raised. Sheep, though, are grown to a considerable extent, and 
 the county is well suited to them. Farming of all kinds may be 
 successfully carried on, though grazing is its favorite form among 
 the present occupants of the county. Fruit raising proves profit- 
 able and the county is well adapted to its culture. It is high — 
 Buckhannon, about the average, is 1,200 feet — and dry, and fruits 
 are well protected. Grapes and apples do particularly well. 
 
 WAYNE COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Char/.cter. — Wayne county is the westernmost 
 one in the^^State. It forms the western corner where the States of 
 West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio join. Along the northern end 
 of the county flows the Ohio river. The western boundary is the 
 Big Sandy river and the Tug Fork of the same, which separate this 
 State from Kentucky. Through the county from south to north 
 flow the Right and Left Forks of Twelve Pole river, which unite 
 at Wayne Court House. The Ohio is nearly always navigable for 
 ^ large steamers. The Big Sandy is part of the time navigable even 
 above Wayne county. Along the Ohio shore through the entire 
 
Wayne County. 
 
 243 
 
 county run the Chesapeake and Ohio railroad, which connects Cin- 
 cinnati and Chicago with the seaboard, the Newport News and 
 Mississippi Valley railroad, connecting central Kentucky with the 
 C. & 0., the Ohio River railroad, connecting Wayne county with 
 Wheeling and intermediate points, and the Huntington and Big 
 Sandy railroad, running from the mouth of Big Sandy to Hunting- 
 ton. Through the length of the county, north and south, runs the 
 Norfolk and Western railroad, connecting Chicago with the sea- 
 board. Wayne, the county seat, is on the N. & W. railroad, 21 
 miles from the Ohio river, 30 from Huntington, 80 from Charleston, 
 224 from Wheeling, 173 from Cincinnati, 552 from Norfolk, and 478 
 from Chicago. The county is hilly, bordering on the mountainous 
 in places. The Ohio river bottoms are broad and there is much 
 other good level bottom land in the county. The hills slope gently 
 and none of them are steep. The county is practically undeveloped 
 except along the rivers and railroads. These portions have been 
 pretty well settled and occupied, the rest remaining in its original 
 state. 
 
 Coal. — Five miles above the Court House, on the left fork of 
 Twelve Pole, coal is found, while on the right fork the first is seen 
 13 miles above. From these points up, along both branches, the 
 coal is very abundant. The southeastern half of the county is thus 
 plentifully underlaid with coal, while the rest of the county has 
 none. In the upper part of the county the coal is very fine and 
 can be found almost anywhere, and of almost any kind. In the 
 western part the coal runs out over the hill tops or dips low under 
 the Big Sandy to reappear in Kentucky, as at Peach Orchard. The 
 coal of Wayne ranges from 2 to 11 feet in thickness, though from 5 
 to 6 feet are average veins. Veins of from 4 to 6 feet are more 
 easily worked than are thicker ones because they have usually no 
 partings of slate, and because less timber is required to prop up the 
 top. Several kinds of coal are found in this county, including an 
 excellent article of coking coal which has been tested and produces 
 a splendid coke. There is also a good splint coal which 
 contains little sulphur, is hard and excellent for shipping. Wayne 
 has also a good deal of cannel coal which reaches in places a thick- 
 ness of 4 feet. Wayne's coal is practically untouched. Until the 
 construction of the N. & W. raiJroad none of it had been mined at 
 
244 
 
 Wayne County. 
 
 all except for local use, and even now there are but four or five 
 mines along the line in Wayne. Oae 7 foot vein of coal is under- 
 laid with a, 6 loot vein of fire-clay. 
 
 Clays. — Excellent beds of fire clays are found in various parts of 
 the county. The clay is of superior quality, and sample bricks 
 made from it surpass in hardness, firmness and capacity for absorb- 
 ing water some of the famous fire brick of the country. There is a 
 great abundance of this fire clay and it is easy to get at. As men- 
 tioned above, a 6 foot vein of clay underlies a 7 foot vein of coal, 
 so that the material and fuel for making brick and tiling may be 
 mined at the same time. , A valuable deposit of potter's clay is also 
 found, but has not been worked. 
 
 Ochre. — A fine deposit of yellow ochre, several feet thick, is 
 found in the county, which has not been worked, but is valuable 
 for making paint. There is a considerable quantity of ochre await- 
 ing development. 
 
 Iron. — A good deal of iron ore is found all over the county and 
 of several different kinds. The veins range from 18 to 72 inches in 
 thickness, besides which ''pockets" are found in several places. The 
 ore found near the Court House is the same as that used in the 
 furnaces at Ironton, Ohio, where its use has been markedly success- 
 ful. Over on the Sandy side of the county is the thickest deposit 
 of ore where it is 72 inches. Some of this iron is very rich, but it 
 has never been developed at all, and its value is scarcely known. 
 Wayne is one of the few counties in which the black band iron ore 
 is found. This makes an excellent iron and is the material from 
 which much of the celebrated Scotch pig is made. Limestone for 
 fluxing is also found in the county near the iron and coking coal. 
 
 Oil and Gas. — Natural gas is plentiful and escapes from the earth 
 in many places in the county, while just across the line in Ken- 
 tucky one of the largest gas wells in this part of the country is daily 
 pouring forth its thousands of feet of valuable vapor. No oil has 
 as yet been found in Wayne, though the prevalence of so much 
 gas would indicate that oil might be found at no great distance. 
 
 Salt. — In boring for oil and gas salt water has been found in 
 large quantities and in Kentucky near the State line salt has been 
 made for market, but no attempt has ever been made in Wayne to 
 make any salt. 
 
Wayne County. 
 
 245 
 
 Timber. — But a comparatively small portion of Wayne county 
 has ever been devel* pel at all, and it is estimated that three-fourths 
 of the county is still in forests. Probably one-half of it is covered 
 with untouched forests, the other fourth with only the very finest 
 poplar taken off, leaving about three-fourths of the county covered 
 yet with good timber. The land is all well watered and easy to take 
 timber out of, but many large land owners have hitherto refused to 
 let the timber be taken from their lands, and thus so much has been 
 left. The timber comprises poplar, oak, ash, lynn, beech, birch, 
 maple, a little walnut and some pine. Several saw mills are at 
 work in the county cutting timber, but comparatively little is being 
 taken out. Besides the saw timber there are vast quantities of tim- 
 ber suited for ties, telegraph poles and staves and other small tim- 
 ber. There is a good deal of hickory suitable for wagon and car- 
 riage works, and almost inexhaustible quantities of tanbark. The 
 market value of the tanbark alone is more than equal to the as- 
 sessment valuation of the entire county. 
 
 Agricultural.- -Onl}' the river bottoms and the sloping hills 
 close to them have ever been farmed, and this principally in the 
 northern part, but the entire county is suitable for farming, and as 
 the timber is taken off it will gradually be brought under cultiva- 
 tion. The bottom lands are rich and yield good crops of grain. 
 Corn in particular yields abundantly, in the best lands from 50 to 
 70 bushels an acre, and in some cases yields of 110 bushels are re- 
 ported. One of the crops to which the land seems specially suited 
 is tobacco The new land is the best adapted to it and excellent 
 tobacco is grown in the county. .Grass grows well and the hills and 
 valleys where the timber is removed are covered with splendid pas- 
 tures. Horses, cattle and sheep are raised and shipped in goodly 
 numbers. Good cattle are raised and the county is suited in all re- 
 spects to sheep raising, but the number of sheep is not so large as 
 it should be. In this line as well as in the developing of the nat- 
 ural resources, there is room for the assistance of many more peo- 
 ple than are now engaged in it. 
 
 WEBSTER COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character.— Webster county lies slightly to the 
 south-east of, but very close to the]»center of the State. It is all 
 
246 
 
 Webster County. 
 
 high and principally mountainous. From east to west through the 
 center of the county floAvs the Elk river. Through the southern 
 portion flows the Gauley, and for a short distance near the northern 
 border flows the Little Kanawha river. Addison, the county seat, 
 is at the junction of two forks of Elk, 1430 feet above the sea level 
 and the surrounding mountains are from 800 to 1400 feet above that. 
 South of Addisan is the dividing ridge between the Elk and Gauley 
 rivers, and across this ridge it is but three miles from the Elk to the 
 Gauley, while the bed of the latter is 80<) feet higher than that of 
 the Elk at Addison. Hitherto distant from railroads and the high- 
 er civilization of the State, Webster has remained almost as it was 
 when, away back in seventeen hundred and ninety odd, old Mr. 
 Arthur, father of Rev. R. A. Arthur, of Addison, killed the last 
 buffalo ever seen in this section of the country. Webster Springs, at 
 Addison, was then a salt lick and the old buflalo trail over the moun- 
 tain to it is still visible. Buffalo are extinct but other wild animals 
 are numerous in«the county. Frequently bears are seen; young 
 cubs are caught every year and an occasional fight between bears 
 and woodsmen is reported. One man has a couple of young native 
 wolves and deer are slain every fall. Wild turkeys and other small 
 game are plentiful. The northern part of the county is a high plateau 
 but most of the county is very rough and the mountains are steep 
 and broken In the southern portion of the county are "the glades " 
 These are marshy table lands at an elevation of about 2,400 feet 
 above sea level. They are probably the bott<^ms of some ancient 
 sea, as shells and other evidences of marine life have been found 
 there Imbedded in the earth ten feet below the surface a white 
 pine log was found a few years ago. Whers it came from is not 
 known as there is now no pine or evidence of any within ten miles 
 of the place where this was found The glades are absolutely level. 
 The soil is black, has absorbed water until it is soft and mushy for 
 ten feet deep and shakes, when disturbed, like a big bowl of jelly. 
 Below the marshes is a whitish yellow clay which absorbs no water. 
 There is no way for this water to run off and it remains and makes 
 the marshes. There are some 80,000 acres of these glades which 
 drainage would convert into excellent farming lands. The soil is 
 rich and only needs drainage to become productive. Until within 
 a year there has been no railroad in Webster county but in the year 
 
Webster County. 
 
 247 
 
 past the Gauley extension of the West Virginia & Pittsburg has 
 been completed through the county, south-west of the center from 
 the main line in Braxton county to the Gauley river near the south- 
 ern part of the county. Addison, the county seat, is 13 miles from this 
 railroad, by which the distance to Wheeling is 220 miles, to Parkers- 
 burg 180, to Martinsburg 300, to Baltimore 414, to Cincinnati 375, 
 to Chicago 680. The distance to Charleston is 65 miles over land, 
 and 35 by rail. Upon the completion of the railroad up Elk river the 
 distance by rail will be 140 miles. 
 
 Coal. — Webster county contains a great deal of coal, principally 
 the New River coking coals, which are found in veins of from 2J- to 
 6 feet thick. Near the top of one of the mountains the excellent vein of 
 coal operated by the Gauley Mountain Coal Company at Ansted, in 
 Fayette county, crops out. Near Addison one vein of coal has been 
 dug into for 9 feet without reaching bottom, but this was prob- 
 ably on a slant, and the actual thickness of the vein is not so much 
 as this. Over in the glades are coal veins of 10 feet thickness with 
 a parting 3 feet from the bottom. The lower part of the seam is 
 good coal, the other a shale, rich in oil and giving out an intense 
 heat when used with coal, but which will not burn alone. Few of 
 the coal veins of Webster county have ever been discovered. It is 
 known that the county lies among the New River coal measures, 
 and some excellent openings of this coal have been made, but there 
 are undoubtedly more veins which are not now known. The west- 
 ern part of the county lies in the Lower coal measures, which also 
 produce most excellent coking coals. There are also known to be 
 other coals below the bases of the mountains, but no investigations 
 have ever been made as to their quality or extent. Omc vein re- 
 cently discovered measures 12 feet in thickness and is supposed to 
 underlie the entire county. Cannel coal of excellent quality is 
 found in the western part of the county over a considerable area. 
 While investigations have not been thoroughly made, it is knowm 
 that Webster county possesses plenty of coal of the very best quality, 
 in workable seams above the water level. It^ development is a mat- 
 ter of but a short time, 
 
 Iron.— Some iron ore has been found in Webster county, but 
 none as yet that would t^slj for mining. In Braxton, the adjoining 
 
248 
 
 Webster County. 
 
 county, iron is found, and it is not at all improbable that it may be 
 found in Webster. 
 
 Fire-Clay. — In many parts of the county good fire-clay has been 
 found and bits of earthen ware are occasionally picked up among 
 the relics of pre-historic races, showing that the value of the 
 clay has long been known. ' 
 
 Lead. — Tradition tells of silver and lead being found between 
 Addison and Stroud's creek, which empties into the Gauley, and 
 mined by the Indians. White slaves were sometimes taken by the 
 Indians to the mines, but the few who knew their location died in 
 the possession of th-e secret. At one place on Stroud's creek old 
 pottery, supposed to be Indian crucibles, has been found, and it is 
 supposed they were used to melt the ores in. At the mouth of 
 Stroud's creek, after freshets, nuggets of lead as big as buckshot have 
 been found. They have the appearance of being splashings or drip- 
 pings from the melting pot, and it is said that this is the place the 
 Indians took the ore to reduce it. An occasional search has be en 
 made for the lead mines, but has always been unsuccessful. 
 
 Salt. — The salt springs at Addison were discovered before the 
 last buflfalo was killed by Mr. Arthur a hundred years ago, when 
 buffalo came across the mountains after salt. Later Mr. Arthur and 
 others made a good deal of salt here for domestic use and sold some 
 of it in neighboring counties. None is now^ made though the salt 
 water still pours from the ground from several springs. Sulphur 
 and other minerals are mixed with the salt in the water and make 
 a highly recommended medicinal water which brings hundreds of 
 people every year to test its virtue. 
 
 Timber — Nine-tenths of Webster county is still covered with 
 virgin forest. For seventy-five miles above Addison 200,000 acres 
 along the Elk and its tributaries are covered with untouched forests 
 of oak, poplar, black spruce, ash, black birch, cherry and other va- 
 rieties. The black spruce covers some 30,000 acres of land, and is 
 interspersed with cherry which is in places very abundant. Near 
 Addison a gentleman has a barn built entirely of cherry, showing 
 the abundance in which it is to be found there. There is in the 
 county considerable black birch which is a beautiful hard wood 
 somewhat resembling cherry. On the Gauley side of the divide 
 there are some 40,000 acres of untouched timber in Webster county 
 
Webster County. 
 
 249 
 
 alone which are tributary to the new railroad town of Camden-on- 
 the-Gauley. The timber of Webster is among the finest in the 
 State, poplar trees measuring from 4 to 9 feet in diameter and from 
 40 to 80 feet in length. All the trees are of good size and the land 
 is all well covered with this splendid timber. The timber is all 
 easily accessible, growing as it does on the steep mountain sides, at 
 the foot of each of which is a stream large enough after rains to 
 float the timber cut from the mountains. Recently the cutting of 
 timber has been begun and at one time last summer a single lumber 
 firm had in Elk and its tributary streams in Webster county twen- 
 ty million feet of timber, all cut and waiting for flood tide to be 
 taken to the mill. At Camden-on-the-Gauley the largest saw mill 
 in the State has been erected with a sawing capacity of 80,000 feet 
 a day and the timber is beginning to be cut out pretty rapidly. 
 
 Agricultural. — With so much timber standing, of course there 
 is very little of the county under cultivation. The soil is rich but 
 little of it has been cleared. Along the rivers and roads are a few 
 rough farms but only a few small clearings lie hid among the for- 
 ests. The soil is very productive and grains of all kind do well- 
 The very finest buckwheat is raised, and corn on the rich hill lands 
 yields 25 to 50 bnshels to the acre. The plateau lands in the 
 northern part of the county will make splendid agricultural lands 
 when cleared, but much of the county is^ so steep as to be practi- 
 cally unfit for farming. For grazing most of the county is avail- 
 able, and it has been carried on to some extent. Blue grass springs 
 spontaneously from the soil as soon as the timber is removed. Ex- 
 cellent pasturage is afl'orded and cattle and sheep of the very best 
 can be raised. The mountain mutton is very fine and many sheep 
 are already raised. 
 
 WETZEL COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — The first county south of the north- 
 ern panhandle, bordering on both Pennsylvania and Ohio, is Wetzel. 
 In the eastern part of the county rises the Big Fishing creek, a 
 stream which traverses the county, flowing into the Ohio at New 
 Martinsville, and with its tributaries waters the whole county. 
 This stream affords the means of transporting to market a large 
 amount of the timber of the county. Principally rolling, with 
 
250 
 
 Wetzel County. 
 
 slight hills, the surface is broken in places with higher hills which 
 occasionally assume considerable proportions and are quite steep. 
 Much of the county, though, lies well and is not too steep for culti- 
 vation. Through the western part of the county, following the 
 Ohio river for about fifteen miles, is the Ohio River railroad, con- 
 necting north and south with all the east and west lines which 
 cross the State. Running through the north eastern part of the 
 county for about the same distance is the main line of the Balti- 
 more & Ohio railroad connecting the east and the west. New Martins" 
 ville, the county seat, is on the Ohio river and the railroad bearing 
 that name. The distance from there to Wheeling is 39 miles, to 
 Parkersburg 56, to Charleston 189, to Baltimore 4(>9, to Cincinnati 
 251, to Chicago 505. 
 
 Coal. — In the eastern part of the county is a vein of coal above 
 the water level, said to be 12 feet in thickness, and good coal. The 
 coal has never been developed, but examinations show that there is 
 good coal here in workable quantities, while under the entire 
 county, from 200 to 300 feet below the surface, are found the other 
 coals which underlie all the counties in this part of the State. 
 None ol them have ever been mined but their place has been found 
 by borings for oil and other purposes. 
 
 Stone. — Good sandstone for building purposes is found well dis- 
 tributed over the entire county. There is also limestone in por- 
 tions of the county suitable for building and agricultural purposes. 
 The fine sand found in the Ohio river is abundant here and in the 
 smaller streams of the county, and is valuable for building pur- 
 poses. 
 
 Oil. — Situated near the rich producing oil territory of Marion, 
 Monongalia, Doddridge and Tyler, almost surrounded by rich pro- 
 ducing territory, it would seem that there should be plenty of oil 
 beneath the surface of Wetzel county, but as yet the investigations 
 have shown but little as compared with the territory of the adjoin- 
 ing counties. Some oil has been found and a good deal of gas but 
 as yet the Wetzel field is not known as a good producer. Still a 
 good deal of the land is bound up in oil leases and developments 
 are Vjeing made, which may yet show that there is oil in the county. 
 
 Timber. — The county contains some valuable timber. Owing to 
 the proximity of the county to the markets and the excellent water 
 
Wetzel CouNxy. 
 
 251 
 
 transportation afforded in all parts of the county a great deal of 
 the timber has been taken out, but about a third of the 
 county is still in timber. The oaks are the principal kinds of tim- 
 ber left though there is still some poplar and other kinds that may 
 be easily gotten out. Millions of feet come annually out of the Big 
 Fishing creek, every rise in the stream bringing out a great many 
 logs, ties and other forms of timber. There is some tanbark pro- 
 duced in the county. 
 
 Agricultural. — The county is well adapted to agriculture and is 
 carefully cultivated. The greater part of the county is under culti- 
 vation, a large part of it being in grasses. The Ohio river bottoms 
 and the valleys of the streams that traverse the county are the 
 most fertile in the county and are all in a high state of cultivation, 
 producing large crops every year. Some of the lands produce as 
 much a.s 80 bushels of corn to the acre and keep it up constantly. 
 The hill land is mostly cultivated also a id the crops there are all 
 satisfactory. Garden stuff is raised by many of the farmers in the 
 county, the cities near at hand affording a good market for them. 
 Fruits of all kinds yield Avell. The climate is sufficiently cool to 
 make it a good one for apples, grapes, etc., and all kinds are raised 
 in considerable quantities. Clovers, blue grass and other kinds of 
 grasses grow in all parts of the county and make excellent pastur- 
 age. Cattle are raised, sheep grown for their wool and for mutton 
 and stock raising is about the greatest industry of the county. The 
 high and dry lands of the county, the fine grass and the abundance 
 of pure, clear and rapidly running water in the county make it a 
 good one for stock raising. 
 
 WIRT COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Northwest of the center of the S'ate 
 and about two-thirds of the way from there to the Ohio river is 
 Wirt county. The Little Kanawha river, navigable for steamboats, 
 flows in a north-westerly direction through the county, dividing it 
 in almost equal parts. The Hughes river, Reedy and Spring creeks 
 and the West Fork all empty into the Little Kanawha in this 
 county. The county is principally rolling in character, with some 
 hills but no steep ones. The valleys are in places broad and very 
 fertile. The Little Kanawha river is improved with locks and 
 
252 
 
 Wirt County. 
 
 dams owned by a navigation company, and daily packets ply the 
 river from the Ohio to a point in Calhoun county, and have occa- 
 sionally been able to reach Glenville in Gilmer county. From 
 Elizabeth, the county seat, to Parkersburg, where there is railroad 
 connection, it is 26 miles by river. From Elizabeth to Wheeling is 
 120 iniles, to Charleston 159, to Martinsburg 310, to Baltimore 324, 
 to Cincinnati 221, and to Chicago 526 miles. There is no railroad 
 in the county, but the Little Kanawha Valley railroad is projected 
 to run from Parkersburg up the Little Kanawha. The towns along 
 the entire length of this river are connected by telephone. 
 
 Coal.— Only small veins of coal are found above water level in 
 Wirt county. From 18 to 30 inches is their thickness, and they are 
 too small to make it profitable to work them Below the surface 
 there is an abundance of excellent coal of the Lower measures. In 
 boring for oil veins of from 8 to 10 feet in thickness have been found 
 at a depth ot from 60 to 100 feet below the surface of the earth. 
 These veins are supposed to underlie the entire county, audit would 
 be an easy matter to construct a shaft by means of which this coal 
 might be readily mined. The quantity of coal contained in these 
 hidden veins is almost inestimable, but it is beyond question that 
 there is to be found beneath the surface of Wirt millions of tons of 
 it, and the day will come when the out-put of coal irom Wirt 
 county will equal that of any other county in the State. 
 
 Iron. — Iron ores may be found in almost every part of Wirt 
 county, and in veins from 7 to 11 feet in thickness. Analyses made 
 of specimens selected at random from this county show them to 
 contain from 50 to 64 per cent, of metallic iron. Railroad trans- 
 portation would afford an opportunity to test this iron in a practi- 
 cal way. 
 
 Oil. — Wirt county was the scene of the earliest oil excitement in 
 the State. Away back in 1861 Burning Springs was quite a town. 
 Many of the now prominent people of the State were among those 
 who made money then in oil, and Senator Camden, owner of so 
 many West Virginia railroads, forests and coal fields, is said to have 
 gotten his start on the road to fortune in this place in the days of 
 the first oil excitement. There were no two and three thousand 
 foot wells then; oil was found at 96 to 300 feet and in a short time 
 the whole territory was punctured like a pepper box. On 800 acres 
 
Wirt County. 
 
 253 
 
 at Burning Springs there were at one time 300 wells. Then came 
 the war, and in 1863 the Confederate General Jones set fire to the 
 place and the entire field was swept by fire. In 1865 the excite- 
 ment broke out anew, but it was not long till the oil gave out. 
 There were no modern methods in vogue, the wells were not cased 
 and when bored deep enough the water came in and they were 
 ''drowned out." But few remain productive and the town, consist- 
 ing of half a dozen dilapidated houses, a few leaky gas pipes and 
 scores of piles of old rusty machinery with an occasional walking 
 beam, is now about as dead as it can be. A well bored recently to 
 a depth of about 2,000 feet shows up well and promises to be pro- 
 ductive of much oil. While some made their fortunes in oil, many 
 lost and the entire value of all the oil taken out never equalled the 
 amount of money sunk in the oil field. This early product was a 
 magnificent oil, and brought from $5 to $8 per barrel, always com- 
 manding a little higher price than any other on the market. Re- 
 fined oil and other products consumed 90 per cent, of the oil so 
 that in the crude oil there was a waste of not over 10 per cent. In 
 the early days the oil was barreled, the barrels rafted like logs and 
 great rafts of oil were floated down to Parkersburg. Other fields 
 have taken the place of this one now, but some oil is still produced 
 and the deep wells will probably yield considerable oil when the 
 field is tapped with them. 
 
 Timber. — Wirt has been pretty well stripped of its timber, very 
 little of which remains, probably not over a tenth of the original 
 amount. The county was once covered with splendid timber but 
 its proximity to the Ohio river and railroads at the mouth of the 
 Little Kanawha and the numerous streams through the county afford- 
 ing transportation for timber, have caused about all the timber there 
 ever was to be taken out early, and while the Little Kanawha is 
 filled with timber rafts most of the time, they come from the coun- 
 ties above and are cut into lumber in Wirt county or in Wood at 
 the mouth of the river. 
 
 Stone and Clay.— Limestone is found in the county and a good 
 sandstone for building purposes. A sandstone which is utilized 
 for whetstones and grindstone purposes is also found in the county 
 but its use has been quite limited. 
 
254 
 
 Wirt County. 
 
 Fire and potter's clays are found in considerable quantities but 
 have never been developed. 
 
 Agricultdral. — Wirt county is composed mainly of excellent 
 agricultural lands and but for the fact that the soil has been neglect- 
 ed and timber and oil operations carried on instead of farming, it 
 would now rank higher than it does in agriculture. The soil is 
 rich, tne hills slope gently, the valleys are broad and crops produce 
 well. Corn and the other cereals and tobacco are well adapted to 
 the soil and yield well The county is an excellent one for grazing. 
 Blue grass grows luxuriantly and spontaneously on many mountain 
 sides and sheep and cattle are easily raised. Considerable attention 
 is given to sheep and they do exceedingly well. Cattle and live 
 stock are raised cheaply, living the greater part of the year on open 
 pastures, and are close to railroads and thus near market. Particu- 
 larly is Wirt a fine fruit county and some magnificent specimens 
 are seen. Luscious blackberries and raspberries of excellent size 
 and flavor grow wild along the road sides and apples, peaches and 
 other fruits grow to enormous size. On "Limestone Hill," in the 
 western part of the county, especially fine fruits are grown and the 
 culture of orchards produces a considerable revenue to the people of 
 the county every year. 
 
 WOOD COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — Northwest from the center of the 
 State, bordering on the Ohio river and about midway between the 
 northern and western extremities of the State is the county of 
 Wood. Along its entire western border flows the Ohio river, while 
 through the center of the county in a northwest direction flows the 
 Little Kanawha river, emptying its waters into the Ohio at Par- 
 kersburg, the county seat. Both are navigable the entire year for 
 steamboats. Following the Ohio river the entire length of the 
 county is the Ohio River railroad, which follows the entire western 
 border of the State connecting Wheeling with Huntington. The 
 Baltimore & Ohio railroad also passes through the county, giving 
 direct communication with the east and the west. Parkersburg is 
 98 miles from Wheeling, 121 miles from Huntingjton, 135 from 
 Charleston, 398 from Baltimore, 195 from Cincinnati, and 500 from 
 Chicago. The county contains much of the fine Ohio river bot- 
 
Wood County. 
 
 255 
 
 torn lands, the rest of the county being rolling and hilly. In the 
 southern portion of the county the land reaches a greater height 
 than anywhere else but is even there not mountainous. The cli- 
 mate is mild and healthful, the soil productive, the transportation 
 facilities good. 
 
 Coal. — At Volcano, near the Ritchie county line, coal is mined 
 for local use from a small vein under three feet in thickness. This 
 is the only place in the county where any coal is found above the 
 water level but beneath the surface the entire county is underlaid 
 with good coal. At Parkersburg borings for oil showed a seven 
 foot vein at a depth of 1,100 feet below the surface. East of the 
 river the coal is not so deep and might be easily shafted for and 
 mined. 
 
 Oil. — In and near Wood county was found the first oil ever pro- 
 duced in West Virginia and large quantities have been produced 
 from this county. The Volcano field is the principal one and pro- 
 duces a fine quality of lubricating oil. It is a natural lubricating 
 oil, very fine and requires no mixing or refining. While the field 
 is small the value of the oil is so great as to make the field a valu- 
 able one. Vast quantities of the oil have been produced and it is 
 still being produced from wells about 600 feet deep. Deeper wells 
 have been sunk in the county but no other oil has yet been found, 
 although the county is almost entirely surrounded by oil producing 
 territory. Parkersburg has always been an oil market since the 
 first discovery of petroleum and a large refinery has been in opera- 
 tion for many years. 
 
 Clay. — Fire clay of excellent quality is found in large deposits, 
 particularly in the oil region. The clay is very fine and it would 
 pay well to work it except for the competition of towns along the 
 river which have the advantage of cheap transportation and near- 
 ness to market. At Parkersburg a pottery has been in operation for 
 years, using the fine potter's clay found in the vicinity and making 
 as fine pottery ware as is made in the country. All that . is made 
 meets with a ready market and several times as much as is made 
 might easily be made and disposed of at a good price. The business 
 seems to be profitable and with plenty of the finest kind of clay and 
 advantages for shipping there is no reason why the river valley por- 
 tion of the county should not become a large clay working center. 
 
256 
 
 Wood County. 
 
 Stone. — Just across the Ohio river from a portion of Wood county is 
 the largest establishment for makiag grindstones in the United States 
 and the same ledge of stone from which they are made extends into 
 Wood county on the other side of the river. The stone has a na- 
 tional reputation and car loads of the stones are shipped daily. The 
 quarries on the West Virginia side of the river have been cpntroUed 
 by lease by the company which is making the stones on the other 
 side of the river and its development has been prevented by thera. 
 The lease is said to have expired and West Virginia will soon take 
 a proper rank in the production of grindstones for the use of the 
 nation. It is a fine stone and there is a good deal of it. 
 
 Timber. — With the timber of the county easy of access and two 
 rivers flowing through the county the timber has been pretty well 
 taken out. Perhaps a half of the county is still in timber, most of 
 which is oak, poplar and similar kinds of wood. The bottom 
 lands and all the best farming country has been cleared but some 
 of the higher lands are still in timber. 
 
 Agricultural. — There is some very fine farming land in Wood 
 county. The Ohio river bottoms, among the most fertile lands in the 
 State, run for thirty-nine miles through the county, besides which a 
 great deal of the county is well adapted to farming and grazing. 
 Excellent crops are produced, grains and produce of all kinds yield- 
 ing well. Back from the river on the higher lands grass grows 
 abundantly, a portion of the soil being limestone soil and producing 
 a heavy growth of fine blue grass. Fruits yield well and large 
 orchards are kept in all the higher parts of the county. Some of 
 the fruits, particularly the apples, are exceedingly fine. Considera- 
 ble attention is paid to grape culture and some of the largest vine- 
 yards to be found in the State are grown in Wood county. Stock 
 raising is largely engaged in and the Wood county stock farms con- 
 tain some excellent stock. Horses are bred in considerable num- 
 bers and cattle and sheep are also largely raised. 
 
 Parkersburg is the third city in the State, with a popula- 
 tion, as shown by the census of 1890, of 8,408, which has since 
 then considerably increased. The increase from 1880 to 1890, was 
 27.74 per cent. It is a flourishing city of importance as a railroad, 
 commercial, manufacturing and shipping point. Oil refineries, 
 wood working establishments, foundries, machine shops, etc., com- 
 
Wyoming County. 
 
 257 
 
 pose the manufactories, while a large part of the State is supplied 
 with goods from Parkersburg wholesale houses. Both the B. & 0. 
 and the 0. R. railroads have their shops here. The city has both 
 natural and manufactured gas, electricity, water works, fire depart- 
 ment, good sewerage, paved streets, street railway, handsome public 
 buildings, stores and residences, four national banks, and a great 
 deal of wealth is represented by its citizens. 
 
 WYOMING COUNTY. 
 
 Location and Character. — McDowell is the southernmost county 
 in the State and Wyoming lies immediately north of it. The 
 county is rough and mountainous throughout and is bordered by 
 mountain ranges, the Guyandotte mountains on the north being 
 among the highest in the State. Through the centre of the county 
 for its entire length the Guyandotte river flows westward, several 
 tributaries uniting their waters with the river in this county. Along 
 the southwestern border for a short distance flows the Tug Fork of 
 Big Sandy. Along the banks of the Tug is the Norfolk and West- 
 ern railroad, which touches the edge of the county for a short dis- 
 tance. Oceana, the county seat, is on the Clear Fork of Guyandotte 
 river some 15 miles from the N. & W. railroad. Before the con- 
 struction of this road the nearest railroad was the Chesapeake and 
 Ohio, 52 miles from Oceana, from which all the supplies for the 
 county were hauled over the mountains. By the N. & W. the dis- 
 tance to Huntington is 184 miles, to Cincinnati 345, to Norfolk 416, 
 to Wheeling 399, to Chicago 650 miles. By the C. & 0. the distance 
 to Charleston is 126 miles. 
 
 Coal. — Wyoming is one of the most highly favored^ counties in 
 the State in coal. In the eastern part of the county is the Flat 
 Top coal, which dips under the earth and theXanawha coals appear 
 above it further toward the west. Over the central and western 
 parts of the county ten veins of coal extend, some of them 5 and 6 
 feet and one is reported 14 feet in thickness. Every kind is found 
 — cannel, coking, splint and steam. In fact every kind of coal 
 found in the United States is found here except anthracite. No 
 coal has ever been shipped. All that has been mined was for do- 
 mestic use and very little has been consumed in that way. It is 
 -aid that there is not a spot in the county a mile from a coal vein, 
 
258 Wyoming County. 
 
 and every resident of the county may have his own coal veiij 
 every land owner his fuel for the digging More than that — if hi 
 doesn't like one kind of coal all he has to do is to open anothej 
 vein and try a different kind. The proposed branch of the N. & W\ 
 railroad up Twelve Pole and Guyandotte rivers would penetrate] 
 the finest of the Wyoming coal fields from end to end, as won] 
 also the proposed railroad up Coal river from its mouth near Charles- 1 
 ton to a connection with the N. & W. This latter road could be 
 constructed on an easy grade along the Big and Little Coal rivers to 
 the Walnut Gap mountain which separates Boone from Wyoming 
 and could be built under this mountain through an 11 foot coal 
 vein and the coal taken out would pay for the tunnel. The coal 
 vein is at water level on both sides of the mountain and the tun- 
 nel need not be over a mile or two long. Throughout Wyoming 
 county, as in Boone and Logan, coal may be found along the road- 
 sides almost anywhere. With some 50 or more feet of coal in 
 every mountain, not a bushel of which has ever been taken out of 
 the county, and almost every variety to select from, the enormous 
 value of these immense deposits can scarcely be appreciated. 
 
 'Stone. — Excellent sandstone for building purposes is found in 
 this county in great abundance. 
 
 Timber. It is only within the last three years that any timber 
 at all has been taken out of Wyoming county and even now there 
 are from five-sixths to seven eighths of the county in the original 
 forests. No timber in the State surpasses in excellence that of Wyo- 
 ming county. A recent sale comprised all the timber on 50,000 
 acres, on which there were estimated to be 100,000 poplar trees above 
 22 inches in^diameter and which would average 3 logs to the tree. 
 Two good poplar trees to the acre is a good average. Estimates on 
 oak give from to 6 trees to the acre besides the poplar and other 
 varieties. The poplar logs will average from 4 to 5 feet in diame- 
 ter. Walnut averages about the same though some trees grow to 
 enormous size. Most of the walnut has disappeared, though in 
 some part«^, notably the western part, there is much of it left. 
 Hickory, chestnut and other kinds of timber grow profusely and 
 to enormous sizes. One enterprising firm, knowing the value of 
 the timber of Wyoming, has quietly purchased a large amount of it 
 and has begun a wholesale destruction of the forests, but it will 
 
Wyoming County. 
 
 259 
 
 take years to cut them down and there is still much valuable tim- 
 ber available in the county. 
 
 Agricultural. — Unbroken as is the original forest, little opportu- 
 nity has been offered for farming. The western part of the county 
 is very rough and broken but there are portions that are suitable 
 for cultivation. The valleys are productive and much of the land 
 is rolling rather than mountainous. Corn is the principal crop 
 grown, although the soil is adapted in places to tobacco. Cleared 
 of the timber the hills would make good grazing lands, for grass 
 grows well. Cattle and sheep are raised with little trouble and 
 might be grown in greater abundance. Fruits would do well, 
 though few are now raised. 
 
UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS-URBANA 
 
 ■iiiili 
 
 JAN 18 ICC }