The Aberdeen weekly., 1909-08-06
Topography and Soils of Monroe
County.

/ port on the soil survey OF MOnrof
county, Mississippi, by Messrs. r
/ A. Winston, Ora Lee, Jr, A. W
| Mangum, W. Latimer, Howard
c. Smith, and A E Kocher The
report contains a brief history oi
the county and a description of its
/ topography, climate, agriculture
and soils, and Is accompanied by a
large colored map shov ing the ex-
tent and kinds Of soils found The
following is a summary of the re-
port:
Monroe county liesin the north
eastern part Of the State of Mlssis-
sippi, in the first tier Of counties
along the Alabama county line and
about 60 miles south of the Tennes-
see border. 1t comprises lS7 GAO
acres, or about 761 square miles.
The topography ranges from rolling
to undulating or paratively lev
ell. The two principal drainage lines
are the Tombigbee river, flowing
across the central portion of the
county from north to south, and the
Buttahatchie river flowing in the
same general direction through the
eastern part and emptying into the
Tom bigbee at the southern edge of
the county.
The settlement of the area Is
fairly general, more marked .shOw
ever, over the more productive soils
and in the neighborhood of the rail
roads and towns. A large part of
the area is under cultivation and
yields range from fair to good The
timbered hilly sections in the east
and the low-lying. poorly drained
areas in the valleys Of the larger
streams represent the lands of low
est agricultural value at present.
A Aberdeen, with about 5000 in
habitants, near the center Of the
county, is the county-seat, and the
most important town of the county.
while Amory in the north with a
population of 800, is a thriving
business place.
Three systems Of railroads op-
crate in the area; the Frisco, in the
northeastern section, the Mobile &
Ohio in the western, and the Hi
nois Central in the southern. Am
pie transportation facilities are con
venient to all sections Rural mail
delivery routes and telephone lines
are universal Public roads are yet
largely unimproved, though efficient
methods of road building are being
adopted. Artesian water is had in
abundance over large sections of the
area.
Climatic conditions are favora-
BILE to a diversified agriculture. The
winters are mild and short and the
summers long and com paratively
lot. The rainfall is well distribu-
ted throughout the year, with the
highest average during the late win
ter months.
Cotton and corn are the staple
crops grown, with oats, wheat, sor-
ghum, melons, peanuts, potatoes,
vegetables. fruits, berries, cowpeas.
alfalfa, Johnson grass, melilotus,
ETC., produced in sufficient quanti-
ties To meet local needs. The intro
duction OF alfalfa in the black prai-
rie region and its successful culture
bids fair tn make that one of the
staple crops of the limestone region.
Commercial fertilizers are used ex-
tensively on the lighter sandy soils.
No general system of crop rotation
is largely practiced and little recog
milton is given to the adaptation of
soils to crops. Negro labor is large
ly used and proves satisfactory un-
der supervision. The monthly wage
is about SIS
Twenty-three types of soil are
established in the area, varying in
texture from sandy loans to clays
Large areas still support a forest
growth of hard wood and pine.
The Houston clay is probably
the strongest upland soil of the area
for general farming purposes. Cot
ton, corn and forage crops are the
chief products, cotton yielding from
one-half to three fourths of bale
and corn from 80 to Is bushels to
the acre. Johnson grass. alfalfa,
and melilotus are the chief forage
crops. with yields ranging from 3 to
6 tons to the acre The type has
value of $40 to $50 an acre.
The Houston chalk represents
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