The Jackson standard. [volume] (Jackson C.H., Ohio) 1847-1888, 1875-07-29
West Virginia.
BY SAMUEL BAKER.


Having spent four weeks in June and
July, 1875, on Elk River, in West Vir-
ginia, 1 propose to publish through the
columns of your paper short and truth
full description of the Elk River country,
its mineral wealth, its timber and soil, |
facilities of market, &C., as far as came
under my observation. Elk Ril er is a |
tributary of the Kanawha, and rises in
Webster county, West Virginia. passing
through Braxton, Clay and Kanawha
counties, in a westerly direction, unites
with the Great Kanawha at Charleston,
from its source. Elk River is beautiful
stream of pure water, and has an average
width of about three hundred feet
for eighty-four miles, the distance ex-
pIored by the writer. Its fall by actual
measurement from Sutton, the county
seat of Braxton county to Charleston,
distance of one hundred and two miles,
is one hundred and eighty feet. A small
steamboat runs up Elk River to the
mouth of Big Sandy, distance of twen-
ty-one miles from Charleston. The hills
on each side of Elk River vary from one
to three hundred feet in height, and
come in close to the banks of the River
consequently there is very little bottom
land on this River. Competent engineers
have estimated the cost of making it
navigable for small steamboats, from
Charleston to Sutton, at five hundred
thousand dollars.
A Railroad route has been surveyed
| along the north bank of Elk River from
Charleston to Sutton, and the cost of
building estimated at about the ordinary
prices per mile of building railroads in
other parts of the United States. In or
dinary floods metal boats or barges can
each carry one hundred tons of metal to
Charleston at less expense than by rail-
road or steamboat.
The land back from and on both sides
of the River is hilly and uneven, and
presents view something similar to the
land and hills around Keystone Furnace,
in Bloomfield township, jackson county.
The top soil is generally of brown cast
on the hills, and generally clothed with
heavy timber, consisting of white oak,
black walnut, hickory, cucumber, yellow
poplar, and chestnut. On the bottoms,
and along the streams, the timber con-
eists of beech, birch, sycamore, ash,
spruce, hemlock and papaw. The papaw
is found on nearly all the hillsides, and
in some localities on the tops of the high
est hills. The soil is well adapted to the
growth of all kinds of grain and vegeta-
| bles
Iron ore, stone-coal and limestone are
found all along Elk River. Ore is in
abundance in almost every hill Speci-
mems of the ore from different localities,
from Enterprise to Standing Rock, a dis
tance of twenty-three miles on the River,
can be seen at the Mayors Office in Jack
son. There are two veins of ore in these
hills. The lower vein is about one hun
the top vein is about forty feet higher
than the lower vein. They vary in thick
ness in their different locations from
eighteen inches to two feet There is a
great sameness in the quality of the ore
all along the River.
Stone-coal is plenty and of good quail
ity, at different places. l visited two coal
openings on Elk River, four miles below
Elk RIVER Furnace, one on the north and
the other on the south side of the River.
The coal in both places is about the same
thickness, eight to nine feet quantity
nf FOL - L L.
The inhabitants report coal and iron ore
in abundance in the hills back from the
River.
The Messrs. Savage & Co. have erected
Furnace at the mouth of Strange Creek,
seventy-seven miles above Charleston,
which they expect to put in blast about |
the middle of September next. The |
stack is finished and is built of sandstone |
of fine quality and large dimensions. |
The stack is a model piece of workman
ship, forty feet square at the base. by
forty-two feet high, and eleven feet across
the boshes. Great credit is due Thomas
NJ. Jones, of Cross Roads, jackson county,
Ohio, for the manner in which this work
has been executed Elk River Furnace
stands on the south side of the River. in
very pleasant and romantic situation,
surrounded on all sides with hills, and
enough bottom land along the banks of
the Creek and River, to afford gardens
for the forty-two houses they have
erected for the accommodation of the
furnace hands. These houses are
all built of good material, and
will compare favorably with the
buildings and fixtures about similar
establishments in any of the older fur
mace is surrounded on all sides by forests
of timber, and an abundance of ore and
stone.coal
Great praise is due to the Messrs. Saw
age Il Co. for their perseverance and in
dustry in developing the mineral wealth
of Elk River, and it is to be hoped that
before long they will have the satisfac-
ton of seeing their labors crowned with
success.
Thara are two othar desirable snots on I