The Van Buren press., 1878-07-16
CRAWFORD COUNTY.
4 Brief Description of It's Soil, Timber,
Minerals. ETC.. etc.
Attractions offered to Immigrants.

the Sthtet auIOlulH9 the InuTpkee Natlpii
and contains an area of about 2,00t
acres, a good portion Of which is rive
and creek bottom lands There is in tht
County nearly 10000 acres subject tt
homestead or other entry, and about To
600 acres of Railroad Lands, which are
now in the market, and offered at from
81 to 90 per acre, according to quail
ty Other unimproved lands can bt
bought at from $3.50 to $1,000 per acre
and lands partly improved at from Sl te
to $1,000, per acre.
The Lands of Crawford County are
the larger part Of them, exceedingly fer.
tile, and the greater part of them suscept.
ible of cultivation. There are, within its
| limits, more alluvial lands than most, il
not all the other western counties. Well
watered, good timber, and capable OF
supporting a dense population The
present population is estimated at $4,000.
Schools and Churches abound in all parts
of the county, there being forty light
School Districts in the county, in which
free schools are taught from three to ten
months in the year.
There are in the county eight Steam
FIGURING Mills, two Wool-carding ma
chimes, and large number of Steam
Cotton Gins, DC, DC, as well as other
machinery.
Cotton, Corn, Wheat, Oats, Tobacco,
Grasses, Grapes, etc all do well, turning
off large crops.
Fruits of all kinds: Apples, Pears,
Peaches, Grapes, etc, are not excelled
anywhere, and in this connection we may
state, that at the Arkansas State Fair,
held at Little Rock last Fall, the first and
second premiums were awarded Crawford
County for the best and largest display
of Apples exhibited; the contesting cx.
hibits being large and numerous, In
short, the agricultural products Of our
fertile lands will vie in richness and quail.
ty with those of the most favored locali-
ty in the Union.
The Little Rock and Fort Smith Rail
way, runs through the entire breadth of
the county from cast to west And the
Arkansas River, which is navigable the
greater part of the year, runs along the
entire length of its southern boundary,
thus giving to the citizens of the county
ample shipping facilities, and such as are
not enjoyed by many of her sister coun-
ties.
The description of Crawford County,
which we publish below, is taken from a
report made from an actual reoonnois-
sance by Messrs j, NJ Washbournc and
]. Ii. Haney, to the l.. Il. & f. S. Rail.
way, in 1857 Since that time there has
been of course, vast improvements made
in the condition of the county, in most
all respects;
but in the adjoining Cherokee Country, COM
mcncing nine miles north of westward from
Van Buren, il one of the greatest pineries
north of the Arkansas River. 1t will hereaf,
ter, be very valuable to your Road. The up
lands in the eastern section Of this county
generally, are level and fertile, rich In grass
es, vines grape, and underground. Sprn gs
are common in parts and water obtained with
readiness by digging. These lands are un-
derlad by ferruginous shales and clays, and
where unproductive, can be made SO by ma
terial existing there or in the hills. One of
the finest tracts Of bottom land begins in the
city of Van Buren,. and runs down the river,
past the mouth of Frog Bayou or Clear Greek
to the mouth of Mulberry. The greater part
NN''
growth of vine, shrub and grass; Well-wa-
tered, and as productive as any land on the
Arkansas.
Shales are everywhere exposed, even In the
city In several places Coal, or coal indiees
are found all over the county, but the coal, as
a rule, is not as thick as it is in Franklin On
Frog Bayou, considerable tributary to the
Arkansas. at Phillips bank, 5. Is, I. o, Il. 80
coal has been dug for thirty five years, said
by smiths, who have worked 1t, to be the best
coal in the region; 1t Is three feet thick, and
easy to quarry; it extends quite a distance
along this Bayou, and is a part of the Arkan-
sas coal field. This stream has long been ia
med for its fine, wide, high and rich lands. A
few small prares skirt it with excellent
grasses and herbs.
On Flat Rock, stream eastward from Van
Buren, two miles, shale is exposed, and coal
has been found The uplands, along this
stream, are fine for fruits grapes and berries
This shale runs into Van Buren, and In the
we'll sunk for the steam mill there, coal was
struck, as. also, very hard, blue, almost i'm
penetrable rock. Along this stream small
Fragments of crystal--as, also, on a low ridge
on the land of f. Scott. 5. O. I. 8, Il. 81, and
along the hillside, near the Van Buren steam
mill-are gathered. Limestone occurs at the
base of the bluff of ferruginous ss ndstone
above Van Buren,; this bluff of sandstone
abuts on the river. and yields a fine building
sloUc, anu pI us HclSut, WHICH Is DTbdt
table land, are some OF the finest building
sites to be found in its picturesque valley-it
Is tempting to the wealthy immigrant, This
bluff fronts, also on Lees Creek. at its con.
uence with the Arkansas, and runs along that
stream into the adjoining hills; the mouth o.
this stream is in 5. lS T. 8, r. 80; opposite
the bluff, across the creek is a high hill, il
which lead was tonud many years ago--it was
probably drift. Fine springs gush out along
the valley of this stream, and its many aiilu.
ents; iron oNydes and carbonate are com,
mon everywhere, and the carbonate Is oxcee-
| DINGHY heavy; indeed the absence of iron is
the exception in this valley. The water in
this region Is very good, and the springs
about and near Van Burcn, are accounted
the best IN she country. The water is cold
and sweet. These streams will all supply
mills; and the county grows excellent
wheat. The corn, cotton, cereals, grasses es-
peciallv blae-which takes hold of the soil
and spreads rapidly and close (as it does, in
deed in other parts of the valley )--clover and
] fruits are all grown here in great perfection
/ and quantity to the acre. Fruits, especially
| have been so thoroughly tested and cultivat-
! ed by DR.. K. Thurston, near Van Buren,, that
! it is now demonstrated that the Arkansas will
| produce fruit equal to any other valley in the
world.
| The Valley of Lees Creek contains excel
lent land, both bottom aud high lands; these
| last are, for the most part. broken, rough and
rocky. The Valley of Lees Creek, with its
| tributaries, Is probably wider than that OF
any other tributary running into the Arkan.
sas, on the north, within the State. but rrea,
hills and high bluffs Of the millstone-grit
sandstones everywhere intersect il; and vet
/ there are great bodies of fertile hOttom a IA