The Big Sandy news. [volume] (Louisa, Ky.) 1885-1929, 1909-06-11
history OF THE DISCOVERY
4 Wealth in the Big Sandy Valley,
and What Il Consists Of
BY Everett Hugh sovards. {

Mmpdny Was NldINtIeu III lrouuuH, l.
lnder Royal Grant, TO survey S0O,OOo
acres in Kentucky, then part OF
Sncastle county, Virginia In the
spploy OF this company DR.. Thomas
Walker, with five companions, coming
Arough Cumberland Gap, pushingi
sheIr way, through the cane brakes
81 the Kentucky river, and olalnbor-
ng over the precipiDus mountains
y the Upper Big Sandy, naturally be-
acid very rugged country and intl-
ID 10 locate enough good Lar nd
~ they returned 10 Virginia fa.s
Eas the first company organized 20
SET possession Of land in Ken ..
After this, several other parties
name into the country, some TO !
nte land, some to hunt and somQ
70 make their homes In the wilder
aess. Some histories say that George
Washington surveyed 1900 acres in
AZ Big Sandy Valley, including the
avn OF Louisa, and that he carved
Ais name on corner tree. The re-
suit OF his work is shown in the
aames OF several creeks, suNh as the
Two Pole creek, Twelve pole creek,
nd others, which he named
As people L ard of the wonderful
resources OF the Dark aud Bloody
sround," as II was called, more and
more came in, resolved TO settle
kere, and they found the country far
/ heher than they had expected. Agri-
HIturo was carried on to some AK
ANT. in the valleys and main thbu-
Sries Of the Big Sandy and cattle
EraEed on the hillside. although /, Is
aid that COW and a calf WEI" once
grazing on n hill 80 steep that they
,Ali out Of the pasture and bvoh"
heir neCks.
IS The mountains If Eastern Ken.
mcky were so shut off from the out
aide world, because OF the lack Of
means Of transportation that oth"r
people knew practically nothing OF
Melr vast wealth. Gradually, how
EVER. the natives bupah - realize The
possibility and to market some OF
ne natural product.
The forest had ALWAYS been con.
'dufed nuisance and treated NC
urdiugly, but rs the demand io'
/ lmGar grew. logs were Cloatcd e
~ 4 q largo mills ON the OHIO Curly
IlBnt was so common that many
fn in this country not forty year
" can remmeber seeing fence rails
Which we're split from this wood
Twcnty-nye years ago the SINCE
fgcwing Machine Company bough
lArge numbers Of walnut trees 4
twenty five cents per tree. Now
black walnut stump will bring s.
sr more, Recently several staVe mill
nave been put in operation, and a"or
40OO slaves are shipped daily irur
l1Se county. There Is still an 7nur
lance OF timber for mining purpose
lFxllroad ties, and for spoke, handI
bad wagon factories.
The petroleum Of Eastern Kcutuck
not a negligible thing. From II
-vrk formation we should expect
land oil hclI, and Il is found
large enough quantities TO make Il
iadustry an important one. Oh
bow being pIped from Beaver cree
Floyd county, 10 Pittsburg, and G
4, 70 the Atlantic Seaboard The ma
Ual gas is fully as important as Il
, oil. Gas has been found ON Hurr
zane creek and in all the other te
& I ellis drilled. In fact, several citi
and towns are supplied with natur
las from Eastern Kentucky, and
uipe line has just been complete
from the WarfIeld section, on Tt
liver. : , Cincinnati to furnish g
70 that city and Others on the line
There is layer Of limestone 3
pet thick the whole length OF Pi
Mountain, which makes n fine gra
n lime and Portland cement. INN
fately above this is the bed of ir
Ee, and in the same vicinity is t
! famous Elkhorn cokipg coal; the oil
pIace known where these three mi
unity, making an ideal place for
4, Dcation of blast furnaces and ST
n mills.
Another thing not generally kno
] Is that the shale or slate, as 1t
commonly called, makes fine Vitrif
J sewer pipe, which is much in dema
But in considering the wealth
J. the mountains, let us not forget
scenery. Point out, II you can,
man who has once lived in the MOI
tains who does not want to CO
back again. Nowhere can you Fl
Erander, or more inspiring scene
than in Eastern Kentucky, One
the most wonderful sights to be s.
Il the place called the 'BreaHs
y sandy" where the Big Sandy ri'
IN distance of X miles, has
Us way through tn Polid rock OF
cumberland Mountains, over