USA > Ohio > Noble County > History of Noble County, Ohio: With Portraits and Biographical Sketches of some of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 17
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In 1849 a charter was granted to the Sharon Railroad Company to build a road from Sharon to the Muskingum River in Washington County. The incorporators were Elijah Stevens, Samuel Aikens, Jesse M. Stone, Oliver Keyser and Isaac Parrish; eapital, $30,000. Provi- sion was made that after the com- pany was organized, by agreement of a majority of the directors and an increase of capital, the railroad might be extended to Marietta and to Cum- berland, or to either place.
Hon. Isaac Parrish, who was then engaged in the milling business at Sharon, was the chief projector of the railroad, the primary object of which was to enable him to trans- port the flour from his mill to the Muskingum River, whence it could be taken by boat to southern mar- kets. The summer after the charter was obtained the work of grading
miles of the road were graded. But owing to a lack of capital and to disagreements among the railroad projectors, all the labor expended was without result.
In February, 1853, by provision of the charter, and by permission of the court of Guernsey County, the di- rectors ordered an increase of capi- tal of ยง20,000 and the extension of the railroad to Cumberland. In March, 1853, T. W. Peacock (after- wards president), was chosen one of the directors, and Hon. Isaac Parrish president. Next, it was proposed to build the road from Cumberland, Guernsey County, to McConnels- ville, Morgan County ; and not long afterwards a bigger scheme pre- sented itself, and the "Pittsburgh, Maysville and Cincinnati Railroad Company " was organized with the object of building a railroad from the Ohio River at or near Steuben- ville to Maysville, Kentucky, and thence to Cincinnati, passing through the counties of Guernsey, Morgan, Athens, and onward in a southwest- erly direction. This was the famous "Calico" railroad project, upon which not less than $300,000 were expended during the next ten years, and though many miles of roadbed were constructed not a rail was laid. Wretched mismanagement caused the total collapse of the company, and the scheme of building a great through line slumbered for many years, finally to be revived in a new form and under a new company. In 1875 W. II. and C. B. Stevens purchased that part of the property
*The Central Ohio Railroad was completed from Bellaire to Columbus in 1853.
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lying between Cumberland and Washington, Guernsey County, un- der certain conditions. Through their efforts the line was completed between Cumberland and Point Pleasant, and operated under the name of the Eastern Ohio Railroad. In 1881-2 a syndicate was organ- ized by Hon. F. M. Atkinson, of Noble County. The Cincinnati, Wheeling and New York Railroad Company formed, Mr. Atkinson made its President, and the road ex- tended from Point Pleasant to Sene- caville and thence to Morgan Junction on the Baltimore and Ohio. The people of the northwestern part of Noble County invested heavily in the enterprise with disastrous results to themselves. The great through line remains in statu quo and the affairs of the company are in an un- settled condition. According to the original plan the road was to follow the Beaver Fork of Will's Creek, via Batesville. In the vicinity of that town a considerable portion of the road was graded. The road is still operated between Cumberland and Morgan Junction.
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THE CLEVELAND AND MARIETTA RAIL- ROAD.
In the fall of 1866 railroad meet- ings were held in Marietta and Cald- well, and the project of a railroad from the former place to Point Pleasant was discussed. Hon. Wil- liam P. Cutler, of Marietta, was then the leader of the enterprise. The first public discussion of the matter in Noble County took place at a meeting held in Caldwell, on
Nov. 8, 1866. Sheriff Eliab Matheny presided, and D. S. Spriggs acted as secretary. A committee, consisting of Rev. George Fetters, D. S. Gibbs, and William McKee was appointed to confer with the citizens of Mari- etta and Cumberland, to see if some arrangement could not be made whereby the old Southwestern ("Calico") railroad should be ex- tended from Cumberland to Mari- etta. About this time and later other routes were discussed, and prelim- inary surveys made, one for a road along the East Fork of Duck Creek, and another along the West Fork of the same stream.
At a meeting held at Cambridge, February 19, 1868, of delegates from Washington, Noble and Guernsey Counties, after conferring with Thomas W. Peacock, president of the Southwestern Railroad, it was decided that it was impracticable to avail themselves of the charter of that road, but still advisable to build a railroad up the valley of Duck Creek, through Caldwell and Cam- bridge. It was also resolved that a new and independent company be formed. Gen. A. J. Warner, of Ma- rietta, J. S. Foreman, of Caldwell, and E. W. Mathews of Cambridge, were appointed an executive com- mittee to carry out the provisions of the resolutions.
In September, 1868, the Marietta and Pittsburgh Railroad Company was incorporated, and on the first of October it was announced that sub- scriptions for building the road would be received by the following named corporators: W. H. Frazier,
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HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY, OHIO.
William W. Gidden, William C. Okey, Caldwell; and William P. Cutler and R. R. Dawes, Marietta. Through the exertions of these gen- tlemen and other prominent citizens the interest of the public was aroused, and the work of securing subscrip- tions and the right of way went for- ward auspiciously. To secure the road to Caldwell, Noble County was required to subscribe $60,000 and give the right of way. Every citi- zen agreed that a railroad was needed ; and the following item from a Caldwell paper of the date March 25, 1869, will perhaps show as well as anything how much it was needed. The picture is not overdrawn :
" MUD .- Mud to the right of us, mud to the left of us, inud all around us ; mud-bound and muddy, we sit in our sanctum with muddy boots, trembling at the prospect of a month of mud still ahead of us. We dream of mud and have dim visions of puffing locomotives and macada- mized roads crossing the dismal and almost impassable barrier that sepa- rates us from the outside world - and awaken in the morning to find mud everywhere we look, that defies description and laughs at all figures of rhetoric and arithmetic."
The sum of $175,000 having been secured in Washington and Noble Counties, it was decided to build from Marietta to Caldwell and the work began in the fall of 1869. In the first annual report of the board of directors. Dec. 8, 1869, HIon. W. I'. Cutler, president of the road, gives the following facts relative to its history :
"The charter of this company cov- ers the ground from Marietta, by way of Caldwell, to the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and St. Louis Railroad near Uhrichsville in Tuscarawas County, with the design of connect- ing there both with that railroad and also, by way of New Phila- delphia, with Cleveland and all the more northern lines. The effort to secure foreign aid sufficient to jus- tify the undertaking of the entire line at once having failed, it was de- cided to accomplish the same object by constructing first that portion of the road lying between Marietta and Caldwell, leaving the remainder of the work to be accomplished with local means applicable to that pur- pose, aided by the credit resulting from the completion of so valuable a division of the road.
" An appeal was therefore made to the citizens of Washington and Noble Counties for subscriptions to the capital stock, which has resulted in a total subscription of $175,000. With this amount of actual capital secured, a contract was entered into with the firm of Warner, McArthur & Co. to build the first 33 miles of the road, and to receive in payment $5,000 per mile cash, being the pro- ceeds of the above subscription ; $4,000 per mile in capital stock, and 88,000 per mile in first mortgage seven per cent bonds at par; thus making in all $17,000 for the fin- ished road; the work to be done in two years from the 11th of May. 1869 * * Under this contract the work has been commenced and vigorously prosecuted. Track-laying
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will commence as early in the spring as the weather and the state of the embankment will permit."
At the meeting at which the above report was submitted the following were unanimously elected directors for the ensuing year: William P. Cutler, R. R. Dawes, James Dutton, Samuel Shipman, William HI. Frazier, David Mckee and Thomas Green. The work was continued in 1870 and 1871, and in September of the latter year trains were running between Dudley and Marietta. About the same time a vigorous canvass was inaugurated to secure subscriptions and the right of way for the exten- sion of the line from Caldwell to Point Pleasant. In November, 1871, trains began running between Cald- well and Marietta: Before the end of the year it was announced that the requisite amount had been raised for the extension of the road to Cam- bridge. The line was completed to Point Pleasant in August, 1872, and to Cambridge in the fall of the same year. In 1874 the road was com- pleted to Canal Dover, its present northern terminus, where it connects with lines running north and cast. At Cambridge it crosses the Balti- more and Ohio Railroad, and at New- comerstown the Pan-Handle Line, thus affording important connections with both the east and the west. The company, organized under the name of the Marietta & Pittsburgh Railroad Company, afterwards be- came the Marietta, Pittsburgh & Cleveland, and is now known as the Cleveland & Marietta Railroad Com- pany. The length of the line from
Marietta to Canal Dover is 98 miles.
For the construction of the road through the county the citizens of Noble raised in all about $115,000. The right of way was all given with the exception of a small portion, the cost of which did not exceed $500. Among the Noble County men who were especially active in securing the road may be mentioned IIon. William HI. Frazier, one of the directors; Ful- ton Caldwell, F. G. Okey, Judge A. P. Jennings, David Gouchenour and William W. Glidden. Several others did effective service in securing sub- scriptions in their respective neigh- borhoods. Mr. Glidden had charge of the matter of securing the right of way, and his canvass was very thorough and successful.
The C. & M. Railroad has had the usual experience of small local lines. It early became financially bankrupt, and passed into the hands of Gen. A. J. Warner as receiver. In 1877 it was sold at Cambridge for the sum of $200,000, and bid in by Cyrus W. Field and others. Under its present management the road is being improved on an extensive scale, and the track re-laid with steel rails.
The company was re-organized July 14, 1886, with A. T. Wikoff, George K. Nash, C. C. Pickering, William Quinn and J. I. Kidd as incorpora- tors. July 15, 1886, the following directors were chosen: Morris K. Jesup and John W. Ellis, of New York, and A. J. Warner, A. T. Wi- koff and George K. Nash, of Ohio. General A. T. Wikoff was elected president of the company, and G. R.
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HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY, OHIO.
Candee, of New York, secretary and treasurer. General Wikoff, as re- ceiver of the road, had previously been its manager for some time.
THE BELLAIRE, ZANESVILLE & CINCIN- NATI RAILWAY.
The project of a narrow-gauge rail- road from Zanesville to Caldwell and eastward was discussed as early as 1871, and in that year the Zanesville, Cumberland & Caldwell Railroad Company was incorporated. In the following year a number of local capitalists and citizens associated together for the purpose of securing a railroad through Belmont, Monroe, Noble, Guernsey and Muskingum Counties, to be called the Bellaire, Woodfield & Zanesville Railroad. Neither of these projects matured, the attention of many of those inter- ested being diverted to the work of extending the Duck Creek Railroad (C. & M.) from Caldwell northward.
The Bellaire & Southwestern Rail- road (narrow-gauge) was built be- tween Bellaire and Woodsfield in the years 1876-9, and was formally opened between the two places on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 27, 1879. The company was organized with E. G. Morgan as president, but the act- ual work of building the road was performed under the efficient super- intendence of Col. S. L. Mooney, president. Immediately after the completion of the road to Woods- field, measures were taken to provide for its extension westward to Sum- merfield and Caldwell. Meantime, in December, 1879, J. H. Sullivan, of Bellaire, and F. M. Atkinson, of
Batesville, projected a new and dis- tinct road, to be called the Bellaire, Beaver Valley & Shawnee Railroad, which was to connect with the B. & S. W. at Jerusalem, Monroe County, and run westward to the Muskingum River. One of the proposed routes was by way of Senecaville and the "Calico" Railroad to Cumberland, and thence to McConnelsville; the other, by way of Muddy Fork of Will's Creek and Little Buffalo to Sarahsville, and thence to Caldwell and Beverly. Supscriptions were taken for this road, and for a time railroad matters were very lively, es- pecially in the eastern part of the county. The projected Beaver Val- ley road ultimately became merged in the Cincinnati, Wheeling & New Fork, or "Calico," of which Hon. F. M. Atkinson became president; and the prospect, in 1880, and 1881, that this road was to become a great through line, caused the abandon- ment of the projected extension from Jerusalem ria Batesville to Seneca- ville.
December 16, 1879, an enthusiastic railroad meeting was held at Sum- merfield to consider the matter of extending the B. & S. W. road from Woodsfield to the Muskingum River. The sentiment of the citizens was al- most unanimous in favor of the pro- posal. Then followed meetings and discussions in the eastern townships of the county, and great interest was awakened. The people of Summer- field and vicinity began the work of securing the right of way, and sub- scriptions in January, 1880. Then the project slumbered for a while, and
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railroad talk appeared to lose its in- terest for nearly a year. At a meeting held at Caldwell, in December, 1880, Colonel HIurlburt spoke in behalf of the railroad company. W. W. Glid- den, Fulton Caldwell, J. W. Tipton, Sr., W. W. Collins, George A. Smith, D. S. Spriggs and R. P. Summers were appointed a committee to look after the interests of Caldwell and to take action to secure the road. The railroad company proposed to iron, equip and run the road, provided the people living between Woodsfield and Caldwell would give the right of way, and subscribe enough money to grade the road and furnish ties. This required a subscription of over $100,000 for the thirty-five miles of road between the two towns. At this time the managers of the enterprise talked of making the road a through line to Chillicothe and Cincinnati, running to Beverly or McConnels- ville, and thence westward.
In September, 1881, the requisite amount having been subscribed, the subscriptions were turned over to the railroad company, who issued a bond to build the road from Woodsfield to Caldwell, via Louisville, Summer- field, Freedom and Sarahsville. Ground was broken for the exten- sion in October, 1881. Among the citizens of Noble County to whom especial credit is due for their labors in behalf of this road we mention the following names, copied from a local paper dated August, 1881: William W. Glidden, Fulton Cald- well, John W. Tipton, Sr., F. G. Okey, Irvin Belford, George A. Smith, William Young, John Lem-
max, L. W. Finley, Benjamin Dan- ford, Jacob Hamilton and Charles Oblinger. Many others might be named, but suffice it to say that the best citizens generally aided the project according to their financial ability.
While Noble County was prepar- ing for the extension of the B. & S. W. Railroad, Zanesville capitalists or- ganized the Zanesville & Southeast- ern Railroad Company, with the avowed purpose of building a narrow- gauge road from Zanesville to Bev- erly, to connect at some point with the B. & S. W. when the latter should be extended west from Cald- well. In January, 1882, this com- pany was consolidated with the B. & S. W., forming the Bellair, Zanes- ville & Cincinnati Railway Com- pany. During the same year the pro- posed route to Beverly was aban- doned, and instead it was decided to build from Zanesville via Chandlers- ville and Cumberland to Caldwell. Zanesville and Muskingum County responded liberally, pledging over $200,000 to the road, and work was soon begun in Muskingum County.
August 1, 1883, the B., Z. & C. was opened to Summerfield. Novem- ber 29, the first regular passenger train ran over the completed road from Caldwell to Zanesville, and December 3, 1883, the first passenger train ran from Summerfield to Zanes- ville. Owing to heavy rains and in- sufficient ballast upon the roadbed traffic was suspended between Sum- merfield and Cumberland during most of the following winter, but re- sumed over the entire line in the
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HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY, OHIO.
spring of 1884. The distance from Bellair to Zanesville is 112 miles, and the route is through one of the most hilly and picturesque regions in Ohio.
The B., Z. & C. passed into the hands of I. H. Burgoon, receiver, in
June, 1886, but is still running under the old name. The rolling stock has recently been increased, and the road is being improved rapidly. It is a great benefit and convenience to a wide extent of country formerly without railroad facilities.
CHAPTER XI. PHYSICAL FEATURES AND NATURAL RESOURCES OF NOBLE COUNTY.
AREA AND GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION OF THE COUNTY -TOPOGRAPHY - SURFACE, SOIL AND STREAMS- COAL AND IRON -THE IMPORTANCE OF THE COAL AREA -THE MEIGS CREEK COAL-ITS LOCATION DETAILED -POSSIBILITY OF FUTURE MINING WEALTH -SALT- THE PIONEER SALTMAKERS-THE INDUSTRY ON THE MUSKINGUM RIVER-THE OLIVE SALT WORKS ESTABLISHED IN 1814 - DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIMITIVE APPARATUS-THE DECLINE OF THE INDUSTRY -GAS AND PETROLEUM - THE OLDEST OIL WELL IN OHIO- "SENECA OIL"- OLD-TIME GAS AND OIL. WELLS IN NOBLE COUNTY -RISE OF THE PETROLEUM INDUSTRY - HISTORY OF PETROLEUM PRODUCTION IN THE DUCK CREEK VALLEY -THE EXCITEMENT OF 1860-THE FIRST PRODUCING WELLS-DEVELOPMENT OF THE FIELD - THE SOCUM WELL -LATER PHASES OF THE OIL BUSINESS - WONDERFUL GAS WELL -THE MACKSBURG FIELD - PRESENT STATUS OF OIL PRODUCTION.
N "OBLE County, the latest formed of the eighty-eight counties in Ohio, lies in the southeastern portion of the State and is situated south of Guernsey ; west of Belmont and Mon- roe, north of Washington, and east of Muskingum and Morgan. Terri- torially, it is among the smallest counties in the State, having an area of 404 square miles or 258,560 acres.
The surface is very hilly, yet there is but little waste land, as nearly every elevation can be cultivated from its base to its summit. The scenery is pleasing and attractive, and in many places borders on the
picturesque. The climate is agree- able and healthy. The soil is largely of limestone formation and is strong and productive, well adapted to grasses, fruits and cereals. The country is especially well adapted to grazing. Mixed farming prevails and a great variety of products is to be found. Wool-growing and tobacco- raising are two branches of industry which are especially successful and profitable here.
The rocks represented in the county are of the Devonian age and consist of carboniferous rocks, fossiliferous limestone, shale and sandstone. Lime-
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PHYSICAL FEATURES AND NATURAL RESOURCES OF NOBLE COUNTY.
stone is abundant, and good sandstone for building purposes is found in many localities. Iron ore, said to be of ex- cellent quality, is found at several points. Brine for salt-making can be found almost anywhere in the county, and petroleum has been produced for some years on the west fork of Duck Creek.
Noble County has no large streams. Three creeks -Buffalo Fork, Seneca Fork and Beaver Fork of Will's Creek, with their lesser tributaries, drain the northern and northeastern part of the county. These streams flow in a general northwesterly direction, ulti- mately mingling their waters with the Muskingum. The western town- ships of the county are drained by Meigs Creek and Olive Green Creek and their branches-all small in this county - which are also received by the Muskingum. Duck Creek, a trib- utary of the Ohio, has three principal branches in this county, known as the East, West and Middle Forks. These streams, the course of which is southerly or southeasterly, drain a large area of the castern, southeastern and central parts of the county. The bottom lands are not extensive, but are rich and productive.
The county is supplied with good railroad facilities, contains several growing towns, and, for an old-settled community, is rapidly increasing its wealth and extending its improve- ments.
COAL .*
Aside from its economic features,
the geology of Noble County presents little that is interesting to the general reader. The county lies within the coal measures and contains two prin- cipal coal seams-the lower, that generally designated as the Pitts- burgh coal; the other, known hitherto as the Cumberland, we will here style the Meigs Creek coal, as it is thus denominated in the latest geo- logical report of the State.
The Meigs Creek coal, which ap- pears to be identical with the Sewick- ley coal of the Pennsylvania series, is the most important coal formation found in Morgan, Noble and parts of Muskingum and Guernsey Counties. It lies about 250 to 260 feet above the crinoidal limestone, and from 80 to 100 feet above the Pittsburgh coal. The coal is of an inferior quality, containing much sulphur, and when burned leaves a large amount of ashes and clinkers. It contains but 38 to 48 per cent of fixed carbon. Most of the coal seam has in it a tough streak from two to six inches thick, near the center of the seam, which, if not carefully picked out. seriously injures the quality of the coal.
The most important district of the Meigs Creek coal includes that part of Morgan County east of the Mus- kingum River, the southeastern part of Muskingum County, all of Noble, and the southwestern part of Guern- sey. Through this area, the Meigs Creek coal is the only coal above drainage that can ever be mined in a large way. There is a large area of coal in eastern Morgan and western Noble Counties, 4 to 43 feet in thick-
* Condensed from Report of the Geological Sur- vey of Ohio, vol. V. chap. XIX, by C. Newton Brown.
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HISTORY OF NOBLE COUNTY, OHIO.
ness, that could easily be reached by mined. appearing practically the railroads in the valleys of Meigs and same. Olive Green Creeks.
Every township in Noble County except Buffalo contains this coal. The best areas are in the western and southern parts of the county. The . valleys of the west fork of Duck Creek. in the central part, and of Buffalo, Seneca and Beaver Forks of Will's Creek, in the northern part. cut out large areas of the seam. The The coal has been opened and mined for local supply on almost seam will average for the whole county very nearly four feet. In , every farm in Brookfield where there some places it is found to be five , is an outerop. At John Dickson's feet, but frequently not more than steam mill in the northwest quarter two and one-half or three feet. In . of section 31, the coal showed some parts of the county a "roof the following section: clay. shale coal," twelve to eighteen inches . roof, poor; coal, six inches; clay thick, is found six to eighteen inches above the main seam.
Brookfield Township is especially rich in the Meigs Creek coal. Most of the coal used in Cumberland is mined in this township. The coal exists in all parts of the township, except in the extreme northeast corner. In the eastern and northern parts, the coal is high in the hills; but in the southern and western parts it is only a few feet above the creek valleys. In the southwest quarter of section 4, on HI. C. Hun- ter's land, measurement of the coal section resulted as follows: Hard shale, good roof ; coal, eleven inches ; slate parting, one-half inch; coal, sixteen inches ; clay, or slate parting, two inches; coal, twelve inches ; hard slate, with ferriferous sandstone, one-fourth to one-half inch; coal, twelve inches ; clay. On George McEndries' land, the same coal is
Thirty to forty feet below the coal in the northern part of Brookfield there is a ledge of fine-grained, tough i sandstone which makes an excellent quality of building stone. The ledge is about fifteen feet thick. Here was quarried the main part of the stone used in the construction of the Guernsey County court house.
parting, often with ferriferous sand- stone, one-half inch; coal, thirteen inches ; hard slate, full of ferriferous sandstone, one-half inch; coal twen- ty-eight inches; clay. Here the total seam is four feet. In some places it reaches four and one-half or five feet. On John A. Thrap's land, in the northwest quarter of section 22, the following was found to be a section of the Meigs Creek coal: Clay, shale roof, poor; coal, slaty and poor, six inches; clay part- ing, one inch ; coal, fifteen inches; hard slate parting, one-half inch ; coal, eleven inches; black slate, two inches ; coal, thirteen inches; clay. The average of the three analyses of the Brookfield Township coal is as fol- lows: Moisture. 3.41 per cent; vola- tile combustible matter, 40.30 ; fixed carbon, 45.41 ; ash, 10.88. The pro- portion of sulphur was 5.31 per cent.
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