The Big Stone Gap post. [volume] (Big Stone Gap, Wise County, Va.) 1892-1928, 1900-12-13
Our Wise County Census and
What 1t Reveals.

EDITOR OF The BIG STONE GAP PosT:
The writer desires to call attention
to the recent announcement oil the
census of our county, and to impress
upon your readers some idea of the
phenomenal growth Of our population,
and of our wonderful physical and
material development during the past
ten years.
The writer first put foot within the
limits of this county in November,
1889, spending his first night within
her borders at the home of his old
friend. Robert Jones, on the banks OF
Powell's river in your town--then
believe known as Imboden City, and
lust on the eve of her great boom.
She then had no railroads; but the
! l.. & n. and s. A. & o. were both
under construction, though some
thing like a year and half was yet
to elapse, ere the trampling hoofs OF
the iron horse would wake the echoes
of the surrounding mountains, and
Big Stone Gap would become gan
elion on the nerves Of the great
worlds commercial life.
There was then no East Big Stone
Gan. no Furnace, no East Stone Gap
only a little village under the shad-
ows of Imboden Hill and along the
rivers near it's base-small, but buoy
ant with expectations. How many
of these have been realized, and how
many have proved will-o'-the-wisps,
that lured but to deceive-who shall
tell?
Since that day the marvels of
I.oonev Creek and Stonega have
come; and now, where only scatter
ed mountaineer dwelt in his isolated
home, the earth has been honey
combed with mines, and the glare OF
thousand coke ovens redeemed the
midnight sky,
Leaving Big Stone Gap, we passed
up the beautiful Powell's Valley,
crossed over the mountain at its
head, and entered Princes Flats.
We passed solitary house in the
limits of the present town of Norton,
and saw that the right of way for
the railroad had just been cleared,
where now is the Norton yard-the
terminus of two great railroad sys-
tens.
There was then no West, no East.
no Middle Norton-no Dorchester
these have all been born since that
bleak November day in 1889.
Passing Gladeville, the now hust-
ling, beautiful county seat, with its
magnificent public and beautiful pri-
vate buildings-then only an insig-
nifcant village Of small cheap houses
we pressed on to Guests Station,
then having no indication of rail
road except the stakes driven to
mark out it's future path. No Coe-
bure, no Maytown, or Shutdown. or
Bondtown-no Toms Creek-except
the creek itself-where now a rival
Stonega lights the heavens with the
glare of her ovens, and makes night
and day vocal with the rattle Of ma
chnery, the shrieks Of whistles, and
the rush of trains.
Further eastward there was no
Virginia City, no st. Paul. All
these have come in the space of eleven
brief years; and many companies with
capitals of hundreds of thousands
even millions of dollars-own and OPP
crate great plants in various sections
of our county. Hundreds Of cais a
day bear from our borders the prod
ucts of our mines, our ovens and our
forests. But the work OF develop
menti is only begun-has only touched
our Southern border-while back
from the railroads lie fabulous treas
ures vet untouched; but which, when
developed. must inevitably make our
county one of the richest in the state.
Our increase in population has
been as wonderful as our material
development. While our sister coun-
ty OF Scott has gained only 1000 in
population, or little less than D per
cent; while Lee has gained but 1910,
or an increase of 9 percent; and
while Tazewell has gained BIB, or
nearly 10 per cent; Wise county has
gained le3OS, rising from 9345 in
1890 to 1868 in 1900, a gain of
over 10 per cent; so that the little
backwoods county of ten years ago,
with population enough to entitle
her to only one clerk for both circuit
and county courts, and necessitating
the addition of two more counties to
make hundredth part Of the states
population, and now has over the
hundredth part of the states inhabi-
tants within her own borders. EMIT
ling her to a separate member Of the
House of Delegates of Virginia.
Ten years ago our school popula-
ton was little over 3000-now il is
1910; then we drew about $4,000
of state school funds-this year over
$40, 600. 90; then we had about thir-