The Elk County advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Pa.) 1868-1883, 1878-08-15

OF THE PLACE = GENERAL KANE
AND THE THOMSON HoUsE-SwEB-
IsH SETTLEMENTS.
tCor. willamsport Gazette & Buletin.1
Kane, Mexican county, Aug. g.
| Where is Kane? 1t is on the summit
of the Allegheny mountains, in
Mexican county, 1853 miles west of
Williamsport, and 95 east of Erie. The
point where it is located is the highest
touched by the Philadelphia and Erie
railroad in its passage over the APP
| palachian chain. 1t derives its name
from General Thomas L. Kane,
brother of the celebrated Arctic ex-
| plorer, DIR. Elisha Kent Kane, who
came here us early as 1855 to look after
the immense landed interests of his
father. At that time this entire Sec
ton was q wilderness-a terra incog-
nita, and known as the wildcat dis
trict. 1t was oily frequented by hun
ters, on account of the abundalice of
game, but to the outside world it was
scarcely known. When the Philadel-
phia and Erie railroad was completed
the place soon became noted for the
extreme purity and salubrity of the
atmosphere. According to the early
surveys of the locating engineers it
was found to be 2,0O6 feet above the
level of the sea, but later calculations
! place it at ,021 feet. The ascent over
the mountain is made by steep grades.
| requiring two locomotives for all heavy
freight trains.
REGULARITY OF THE SUMMIT.
This region is locally termed the
| Big Level, a name which originated
with the early hunters and explorers,
as it is a broad spread of gently undu.
lating country, measured by an ex-
tent from northeast to southwest of
fifty or sixty miles, and an average
breadth of from four to eight miles.
Remarkable as it may seem itpossesses
fertile soil, which is shown by
the enormous size the timber has
attained, and by the crops produced
| by the farms which have been literally
| carved out of the wilderness. On the
western slope of this great mountain
plateau all the waters fall into the AL
legheny river, and are carried to the
Gulf of Mexico, whilst on the eastern
declivity they are received by the Sus-
quehanna and borne to the Chesapeake
Bay. Here the primeval forests may
be seen in all their glory. The timber
consists principally of hard wood, such
as beech, cherry and light sprinkling
of chestnut, with abundance of hem
lock, which grows to enormous size.
The cucumber tree flourishes here and
reaches a great size. There is very
little pine, but considerable white
wood. The hemlock yields immense
quantities of bark for tanning pur-
posesi but as it is only bringing So, so
per cord at the present time, as little as
possible is stripped from the trees. In
collecting this bark there is necessarily
a great destruction of timber, as the
finest trees in the forest are felled, and
when the bark is removed, the trunks
are left to rot upon the ground. Saw
mills at various points have been
erected, but they fail to consume more
than tithing of the logs that are pro-
duced.
MOUNTAIN CITY.
When the Philadelphia and Erie
railroad was first opened it wag intend
ed to erect large machine shops, and
found large city at this point and for
time great expectations We're enter
tanned. Here the western division,
which commenced at Erie, ends, and
here the middle, or mountain division,
which ends at Remove, commences.
The former is 95 miles in length, and
the latter 100. Owing to the steep
grades on both sides of the mountain,
it is the most expensive of the three
great divisions into which the road is
divided. 1t was found necessary,
however, to erect round house at this
point for the locomotives to be kept
here, together with machine shop
for light repairs. In course of time
village grew up, which now numbers
about 700 inhabitants. It has a post
office, school houses, three small hotels,
a Catholic, Methodist, Lutheran and
Presbyterian churches. The location
is beautiful one, and the town will
undoubtedly attain a respectable size
in few years. Already the impetus
given to trade by the development of
the Bradford oil field, about twenty
miles north, is beginning to be felt
here. Within few weeks an oil well
has been put down at point in the
KiIlzua valley, about eight miles
north, which is now flowing at the
rate of ten barrels per day. 1t is also
intimated that other test wells will
soon be sunk at short distance from
the village, and if they should prove
successful the town will suddenly be-
come busy and thrifty place.
THE THOMSON HOUSE.
The chief attraction at Kane is the
large hotel erected several years ago by
the Mexican Land and Improvement
Company, but now owned by General
Kane, and called the Thomson House,
in honor of j. Edgar Thomson. the