The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1909-04-08
GARRETT COUNTY AND
ITS NATURAL RESOURCES
Information Cleaned from the Annual
Report of the Bureau of Statistics.

From the seventeenth annual report
of the Bureau of Statistics and InfOr-
nation, copy of which was forwarded
THE REPUBLICAN by Mr.. Charles j, Fox,
Chief of the Bureau, the following con-
corning Garrett county is CLEANED:
Garrett county comprises the western
end of the State. 1t is bounded on the
north by the Mason and Dixon Line,
which separates it from Pennsylvania,
on the west by West Virginia, on tire
south and southwest by West Virginia,
and on the east by Allegany county.
The Geological Survey divides the coun-
ty into the Potomac Valley District, the
Savage Valley District, the Glades
Valley District, the Castleman Valley
District and the Youghiogheny Valley
District. Along the western boundary
of the county there is an elevation of
over 5000 feet above the sea level. This
includes the crest-line of the Great
Backbone and Big Savage Mountains.
Between these mountains lies range
of broad, flat-tOppei, or gently-arching
hills.
The entire county is mountainous, but
everywhere over the surface, covering
hill and valley alike, is found a coating
of soil varying in depth, and grading
imperceptibly into the underlying or
resting directly upon the surface of the
rocks. In the valleys the soil is usually
deep and productive, and on the noun
tain slope it is shallow and stony. In
some places the soil is stained deep
red, not altogether unlike the underly-
ing beds of shale and sandstone. In
other places the productive clays seem
to bear no relation whatever to the
deeply-buried limestone, while on the
mountain tops the soils seem but mass
of broken gray sandstone. mixed with
small amounts of sand and clay 1t is
this sol covering with which the farmer
has to deal.
The soils of Garrett county, in the
valleys, yield easily to cultivation, and
the principal products are buckwheat,
oats, hay and potatoes, and fair yield,
in some sections, of wheat. rye and
corn.
The principal manufactures of the
county emanate from the forest, which
are plentiful, and consist of lumber,
shingles, slaves, and the mining of
coal and shale
One of CARROTS chief sources of
wealth is her minerals, coal, fire clay
and limestone. The Georges Creek
coal fields lies along the boundary line
between Garrett and Allegany counties,
the major portion being in the latter
county, but considerable of the coal be-
ing in Garrett The Georges Creek
coal is known all over the United States
as being of superior quality. Along
the Potomac River, the southeast
boundary of Garrett, lies another field
of coal, which is being developed.
While practically throughout the en-
tire county coal may be found, as yet it
is undevelOped, except as above stated,
it being the smaller veins, and only
worked where it lies near to railroads.
1t can be said CARROTS resources are
inexhaustible. 1t is only within the
past few years that small seams of
coal are being worked, and as the years
pass by and large veins become ex-
hausted, it naturally follows that the
small veins will be opened up more ex-
tensively.
The report of the Maryland Geologi-
cal Survey of December 1902, says:
The coal of Garrett county is confin-
ed to the synclines, or, as they are call
ed when they contain coal seams, coal
basins The synclines of Garrett coun-
ty are all coal basins. There are of
these coal basins lying partly in Garrett
county. The Georges Creek basin lies
in the northeastern part of the county
to the east of the Savage mountain.
The most important part of this basin
lies to the eastward of Garrett county
and has already been described in the
publications of this survey. The Poto-
mac basin lies in the southern and
southeastern part of the county, to the
east and south of Backbone mountain.
The Potomac river flows near the axis
of this basin, so only half of it is in
Maryland. The basin is structurally
the continuation of the Georges Creek
basin The Castleman basin lies in the
north. central part of the county, be-
tween Meadow and Negro Mountains.
1t is the continuation of the Salisbury
basin of Pennsylvania. The Lower
Youghiogheny basin lies in the north
west part of the county, to the west of
Winding Ridge and to the north of Dog
Ridge. 1t is the continuation of the
Confluence basin of Pennsylvania. The
Upper Youghiogheny basin lies in the
ives t-central part of the county, be-
tween Shaggy mountain and a ridge,
which is the continuation of the Meadow
moutain, part Of which are here called
Roman Nose and Halls Hill.
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