Chariton courier. (Keytesville, Chariton County, Mo.) 1878-current, 1891-07-02
Conn m uHicntPd.
FINCASTLE. W.

Judgment, would mostly interest
your readers.
| departed from Clifton Forge, stu
ated in a beautiful little valley on the
banks of Jackson river, and just east
of the highest range of the Allegheny
mountains, at 800 Thursday morn
ing the 18th inst, and arrived at
Jackson soon thereafter, a distance
n thirty-five miles east, where | met
my cousin, John Thrasher, who join
ed me in a stage ride across the
mountains to Fincastle, where we
found the pleasant home of another
cousin, Wm. b. Hayth, proprietor of
the Hayth hotel in this lofty and
healthy little city.
On Friday evening we drove over
to the Houston iron mines, some six
or seven miles across the hills and
dales, and where wheat, corn, grass
and a general variety of fruits met
our eyes in every direction. Hous
tons iron mines furnish large ship
ments of ore to the cities of Roanoke
and Lynchburg.
On Saturday. and in company with
Mrs. W. B. Hayth and daughter,
Miss Lula, we drove out to the Fin
castle fair grounds, and the palatial
residence of my friend and relative,
Mr.. A. 4. Woodson, who is a brother
to Mayor Blake l.. Woodson, of Kan
sas City. He has a magnificent grass,
grain and stock farm in the valley of
the Catawba river, and his grain
fields were alive with hands harvest
ing his immense crop OF golden
grain" There is a little unusual but
true history of a large track of these
lands. In their early discovery, a
man by the name OF Ben Bourtlen,
an Englishman, captured n spotted
buffalo calf some time before the rev
olutionary war and sent it to the
crowned head of England, for which
he received a grant of 250,000 acres
OF land in the Catawba valley. Hence
we are on historic grounds.
On Sunday morning my friend,
Woodson, and myself, drove over to
Isaac s. Austin's, near Zion church,
and shared the kind hospitality OF
himself and family at their dining
board.
Crops are looking exceedingly well
here, and the farmers arein the midst
of their wheat harvest. \ great va
riety of fine vegetables abound in
every garden, and the fruit crop is
very extensive. Cherry trees grow
very large here and resemble cotton
wood trees in Missouri, and they are
found growing spontaneously
through the woods. This (BotetourD
county is one of the wealthiest and
most fruitful counties in Southwest
Virginia, and its mineral resources
are remarkably extensive and in
calculable.
1t is now practically demonstrated
that the spurs of the Alleghanies in
this county contain Il great variety
of gray, black and brown marble
stone. We have examined a number
OF specimens and never before seen Il
better polish and surface put upon
stone.
Fircastle contains about / 900 in
and now has big boom
on her hands, occasioned by the de-
velopment of her iron, coal and mar
bic mines on every side, and the early
completion of the Roanoke, Fincas-
tie & Clifton Forge railroad, which is
now being graded all along the line.
Fine building stone is shipped from
here to great many points and
hence is a great commodity.
There are over twenty canning fac
tories in this county, and all seem to
be paying institutions. This city is
situated about sixty miles west OF
Lynchburg and near the Catawba
valley. 1t contains a number of bust
ness houses, four churches, two hotels,
one county paper, the Fincastle
Herald, bright newsy and ably
edited Democratic sheet, of which
Clinton Camper is proprietor, one
wooden mill and one -four and grist
mill, one large foundry, two black
smith and wood shops, but not a
saloon in the town, lhere are three
physicians here, among whom is DR..
Cyrus Doggett, who came here from
Moberly, Mo-, about six years ago.
The Holm Female institute is stu
ated at the BotetouTt springs, ten
miles north of this place, and is one
of the most popular institutions of
learning in the state, and is largely
attended every year by the fairest
and most lovely bellies of the old
Dominion. The springs there are
said to contain many medical prop
critics for the infirm, and are visited
every summer by guests from all
parts of the United States.
There are several other beautiful
springs in and around this town,
which are also attended by hosts of