San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1882-04-06
GOLD IN VIRGINIA.
Mountains Full OF It-Machinsry and Capital
Needed 20 Get II cut.
nhflaaaluhfa Nina


of Virginia. 1t is not generally known.
however, that gold in large quantities
can be had il the proper machinery
necessary to mine, crush and wash were
on hand and in the hands of those who
understand the business of mining.
Seventy-three miles west of Lynch.
burg, on the VIRGINIA and Tennessee
branch Of the Norfolk and Western
Railroad, the Allegheny Springs are
situated, and nine miles further west
lies the town of Christiansburg, at the
head of the Valley of the Roanoke.
This valley is hidden away between the
Allegheny and Blue Ridge range of
mountains. As il extends westward il
begins to narrow at Big Springs and at
Christiansburg there is no valley left
worth speaking about. Six miles south
of the latter town, and eight miles
southwest of the springs above men,
toned, the two ranges of mountains
come to a point, one losing its identity
in the other, and here is situated what
is known as "the gold tiends," covering
territory of thirty. eight square miles
in the counties of Montgomery and
Floyd. Why it is called field it is
hard to say, because there are no fields
about-nothing but mountainsides,
ravines and water-csurses, and as wild
a locality as one would desire to see.
That gold in the dust, in the small mug.
get and in the lump is abundant, there
is apparently no shadow of doubt,
and in ten years from now the locality
will be better and more generally known
than it is at present.
In the spring of 1861 a returned
Californian named Thomson, was riding
with his father in buggy from Blacks
burg to Floyd Court House, and in
passing Brush Greek the son remarked
to his father that the country resem.
bled and reminded him of California.
Getting out of the wagon the young
man wandered about exploring for fif-
teen or twenty minutes and came back
with piece of quartz in his hands,
saying to his father: "Here is gold and
this country is full of it," Further in.
vestlgation proved that Thomson was
correct, but then the war broke out and
all those who were in the secret of the
gold deposit became interested in the
game of carnage that lay before them,
the Brush Greek, Pilot Mountain and
the golden bonanza were forgotten or
lost sight OF for the time being. Two
years ago the biologists of Virginia
looked into the matter and Prof. Zeb
Hotschiss, of StauntoI, and Prof. Fon-
taine, of the University of Virginia,
paid the premises visit in person, and
on the strength of their opinions par
ties of men commenced in a rough and
stp-shod manner to wash the dirt
along Brush Greek in searth of the
golden treasure. Although their en-
gineering implements consisted only
of tin wash-pans and .frying-pans with
the handles broken off, the toilers
managed to make from So to $50 day.
Prof. Fontaine, when asked for his
opinion in relation to the yield, said
the prospects of finding gold in large
quantities there were better than in
the early days of California. There
were at least 200 men working along
the creek, and the professor said that
with patent washing machine he could
follow those men and get more gold out
of the dirt they threw aside than they
got out of what they called choice dirt.
Pointing to Pilot Mountain, he said
that all the gold that those men were
finding was washed down from there;
that the mountain was filed with gold,
but it required capital and machinery
to get it out, and that the people now
at work would never realize the benefit
of their early findings, because it was
only matter of time when the land
would change owners, and then that
section of Virginia would bloom and
city would spring up in a night.
When the Times representative last
paid visit to the gold fields the anna
teur miners had moved their quarters
to Laurel Greek, eight miles south of
Brush Creek, and were toiling away
with fair success. Their mode of liv-
ing was about the same as in all camps
of the kind. They go or send to Chris
tainsburg for supplies, paying for every
thing needed in gold dust or nuggets,
being allowed IS cents pennyweight
for the gold. Out of the thirty-fve or
forty stores in the county seat of Mont
gomery there is not one whose shelves
are not filed with DO tiles or jars con-
tanning gold, all of which is sent to
Philadelphia and New York and sold
for 50 cents pennyweight.
The whole territory is watered by
several running brooks and streams,
the chief of which are Laurel and
Brush Creeks, which empty into the
Upper Roanoke River, not very far
from the Allegheny Springs. The
lands along the Brush are owned by a
man named Waters, who was born in
that wild region, and, like the Indians
he is opposed to new corners from any
section, and this is one reason why the