Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1885-05-24
PROSPEROUS CHARLOTTE.
A NEW COUNTY TALKED or.

Tobacco Market.
lCorrespondence ofthe Richmond Dispatch. !
COLES FERRY, May 30, 1885.
Although this is the best part Of
charlotte county and one Of the finest
sections Of East Virginia, being some
what remote from the lines Of travel, il
IS little enough known to make report
oil men and things here as they appear
TO q stranger Of interest to the general
reader Of the Dispatch.
For several years the people of this
part Of the county have been trying to
get nsrrow-gauge railroad run up
here, as they are fifteen or twenty
miles from the Richmond and Dsnville
road, but the folks in the middle and
northern portion Of the county had
enough railroad, and didn't want to be
taxed for their countymen's conve-
nience, so they outvoted them on the
appropriation, and the south-enders
were left railroadless. also minus
sundry beeves and fat mutton.
expended on free barbecues for
the negro voters, and almost breathless
from the active canvass made on the
stump and off the stump. In their in
dignation at what they called the self
ishness OF the north-enders, the good
people vowed they would have q new
county. and those who were not so
good srore they would; and still,
though many months have passed, they
srumble and talk of county up here,
TO be No. l0l in the State, and to be
made up Of contiguous portions of
Charlotte, Halifax, and Campbell, with
the county-seat at Brook Neal. now in
the southeast corner Of Campbell. on
Stanton river. There is large build
ing there cut Of which they say they
can make q courthouse, and they
threaten to agitate the question before
the next Legislature.
RIVER NAVIGATION.
Still the people at this end, with the
enterprise characteristic Of them. did
not relax their efforts to secure better
outlet to the busy world than their
mud pixies and slow teams afforded
them, and finally obtained Government
aid in the way Of an appropriation from
Congress Of $4,000 a year for several
years to deepen the channel of Stanton
river. That work, under the charge Of
Engineer Manning, has been progressing
for two years, and the river has been
permanently opened up to within three
miles Of Coles ferry. This work
will be resumed this summer. a.
soon as the water gets low in the
river. The Government boats are at
anchor at the ferry, and the officer in
charge is only awaiting the shallow,
warm, summer water, when he will
soon work up as high as the ferry, and
then the trade will justify the opera
ton of river steamer. Business
will be greatly increased when the
channel is open to Brook Neal, twelve
miles higher up. Much of the trade
that now goes to Lynchburg will nat.
urally seek the Richmond and Dan.
vile markets by the river to Roanoke
station, on the Richmond and Danyillc
railroad, where that great thorOughfarC
crosses the Staunton, and where the
steamboat wharves will be built.
THE RIVER TRADE.
The enterprise is 8 promising one t
the company or individual which frs
takes hold Of the steamboat line. lfnC
trade is secured other than that of thu
river plantations along the route it vii
be good. Besides several good planta
tions on the river. near Brook Neal, i!
Red Hill, the old Patrick Henry estate
now owned by his grandson, Wiz
Henry, Of Richmond. Adjoining it i
Winstone, a part of the same estate
now in the hands Of Winston Henry, an
other grandson Of Patrick. On the op
posite side Of the river in Halifax il
the fine old Buster place, Bell
View, now owned by William
Jordan, OF South Boston, and the large
Clark plantation adjoining, belonging t.
Thomas Clark. After several othe
good properties along the river comes
Stanton Hill. in Charlotte. owned b,
Hon. Charles Bruce, which is one 0
the very finest estates in Virginia.
tract of about 1000 acres, with 70I
acres Of good lowgrOunds, worth sl0l
per acre, shipping about 100 hog>head
of tobacco and from 1900 to j,00I
bushels of wheat yearly, with corr
and other crops in proportion. On tn
Halifax side of the river is MildendO
the fine ancestral estate of Majo
Charles S. Darlington, late presiden
of the James River and Kanawha Ca
nal Company, who now resides upol
it. Opposite, on the Charlotte side, i
South Isle, fine river plantation, nov
in the hands of Mr.. Henry Rice; theI
Wards Neck, one Of the best estate
on the river, once the property of Hon
William II. Dennis, President of tn
Virginia Senate, and now in the hand
of his son-in-law, S. d. Morton; mex
below are the estates of Joseph n. Ell
munds, Esq, and Mrs. Paul Caring
ton Ridgeway-both good prOpertie
and large tobacco and wheat farms
and thus they run ON both sides of tn
river down to Roanoke station.
GETTING TO MARKET.
All Of this fine country Is now mac
cessible to the railroad, and in order L
reach it is dependent upon wagoning o
the precarious river-batteau transPorta
ton, which costs as much for freigh
from Coles ferry to Roanoke station
Tor Randolph, as it is called OF late) a
from that place to Richmcnd--twent..
miles against ninety-besides beinl
subject to the ruinous tribute exacte'
by the bOatmen en- route, which ave
RACES almost another freight bill
to say nothing Of the depreda
tionS made by these Bedouins o
the river upon the watermelons
roasting-ears, pig-pens, 1c., whicl
are convenient along the banks. Al
old planter who has resided here TO
thirty-f,e years told me that the cos
of getting produce from this section t
Richmond and marketing it average
one fourth of the price obtained for it
taking one crop with another. This