The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1855-06-19
SOUTH WESTERN VIRGINIA.
N o. 1 IL.

al
North Hoiston--Its depos,9es of Ga,;s,,:, y
and Salt The Preston SAT- KoYen.- Tbe
Sail Wells. &c
on the morning of Friday, the sth inst,
our company after enjoying largely and mos,
pleasantly, the hospitality Of their generous
sad liberal friends of Abingdon, sat out for
me Salt Wells of Washington and Smvtb -
we were minus, two Of our number. tMr.
MoRpEcAI and Mr. GILL, who had returned
nome very much to their loss and our repret
Messrs. ROBERTSON and PRESTON, aceomna
nled US to the Wells, as did Mr.. WIN. G. FER.
eUsoS, formerly of Richmond,) who holds
an important station at the Salt Works, and
20 whom we were much indebted for his
kindness. -''
Our two stages, carriage and buggy. and
"citizens on horses formed quite an imno.
sing cavaicads to the surprise of the natives.
we were now about to perform an indispen
saole part OF our pilgrimage. We were all
under religious obligation for ona cauae
ard another to visit Sal rice,, bat had com
promised with our consciences to substitute
the SaH Wells for the arid plains at the
head of that notable stream TIE substitu
ton might not be considered fair, since it
was more of a pleasure than a punishment
to go to the wells but that is yerv GOOD
reason why we preferred it Who would go
TO the river, when they could visit the wells.
and feast at "the Lick that pleasant old
mansion at the side of the valley
Leaving the main turnpike, about mile
from Abingdon, we travelled l6 miles in a
north easte-ly dir Jon to Saltville-the
name OF the place where the wo ks are loca
ted. We crossed in our route, with little
difficulty, Walker mountain. After eros.
sing that mountain we were struck with the
peculiar features of the country which indi.
Gated the disrupting agencies, which had
wrought their effects upon it. Yetthe scene
ry was beautiful, and grew in picturesque
ness, as we advanced along the descending
line of the valley to the Wells. Our prox.
unity to them, was plainly deducible from
the bare hills from which the timber had
been cut for the Salt Works whose sides
were scanned with deep trenches made BY the
wheels of wagons loaded with wood, as they
dragged their way TO their bases As we
emerged from curve in the route, and the
Preston Salt Valley burst upon the view, all
Were struck with its singular beauty. The
casual observer, such as am, he'd he never
known the fact, could have told, that there
must be some rare good, as well as rare beau
ty in this wonderful Valley
The Preston Salt Valley is included in the
Valley of the North Ho'stop, which is mark
ed by an enormous fault or fracture of the
rocky crust, which extends for distance of
not less than o-e hundred miles; but only
about fifteen or sixteen miles of its north
eastern extremity are said to be character
lied by TIE conditions essential to the accu-
mutation OF saline and gypseous ingredients.
Gypsum is found at various points in these
sixteen miles, lying in Washington and
Smyth counties; but thus far, of all the ba-
sins IN the line of the disruption in the orig
inal strata, the Preston Salt Valley is the only
one where have been developed the salt
deposits and salt water in suffi cient quantity
for commercial purposes, and there it would
seem to be inexhaustible. Many fruitless
attempts have been made in other basins to
discover it. In one of these efforts a shaft
six hundred feet was sunk without finding
SALT but it penetrated plaster the entirs
depth. and the cost of the pit was nearly de-
Fayed by the plaster excavated, it having
proved valuable gypsum, anhydrous, or
frc e from water These beds of gypsum are
of course of unknown extent. They are
known to cover a great surface, but their
depth has not been ascertained. 1t is suffi-
cient to know that they are inexhaustible.
In the Preston Salt Valley the beds are i'm
mense, lying few feet from the surface, and
extending down it is net known how far
This Valley of the North Holston, shut in
by lofty sandstone mountains on the north
western and southeastern sides, has net
work OF short crests and insulated knobs,
deep ravines and winding valleys, that give
to 1t picturesque appearance. The exten-
sive longitudinal fault having been intersect-
ed by series of lateral dsruptons, gave to
the water by its alternate daming and break
ing away, its great power, and drove it in
winding currents, shaping the hills and
"groovlng out the ravines between them"
The excavations along the valley at Saltville,
show the violent agencies that have been at
Th2rn
earth and finely poundedslate and stone that
have been subjected to sliding and grind
ing process and pressure of great power
There, too, are fossil remains of animals be-
longing to the Mammoth species, many spec
linens of which are sbewn at the salt works.
Imagine, as is the case, that these hills and
hollows, enriched by the decomposed rocks
of the locality, are clothed with luxuriant
vegetation, and you may well conceive that
But the most interesting part of it is the
Preston Salt Valley, ofwhich Professor Hen
ry ID. Rogers has given the following faitn
full description:
"In the middle of this chain of hills of the Ho-
ston Valley lies beautifully encircied by fertile in
dented slopes, and chain of knobs and spurs the
small but remarkable Valley OF the Salt Works
and Gypsum quarres of the Preston and King cs-
ta.es. The bed of the Valley Is an oval shaped
plain, of rather more than 800 acres In extent,
smooth as a bowling green, but not as level, having
8 gentle uniform slope from its south eastern 10
It's north western side or towards the Holston
river From this rapid stream, 1t is separated by
a nearly straight range of variously shaped lime
stone knobs, between whose fertile sdes descend
ravines into the pentin basn which discharges It's
collected waters into the river through the deepest
of these transverse passes. On the opposite OF
south eastern side, the plain is half engirt by a
semi circular sweep of mountain, a crescent
ike linden, alton Ia the iark Of the bounding ridge
[Just on the outer edge of this semi.circle stands
the old mansion of the Preston family, where the
Board of Trade et ais. were most oountifully EN-
tertained The soil of the Valley Is wet and peaty,
and beneath Ii, to an enormous depth, there sp-
pears 10 be no solid rock, but deposit of clay
and earth imbedding n places large bodies of rock
salt and of gypsum and saturated In Its lower por
tons with highly concentrated Brine"
Col. T. l.. Preston, who owns all but the
Southwestern end of the Valley, is the pro-
prietor of adjacent lands, of great fertility,
10 the extent of about 6000 acres.
THE SALT WELLS.
These wells are owned by a number of per
sons. Col Preston owns more than half of
those worked. while there are other wells on
his land, not now in use. Some four or more
acres only of the King property, corners in
upon the salt wells; but that is quite sufficient