USA > Virginia > Loudoun County > Loudoun County > History and comprehensive description of Loudoun County, Virginia > Part 5
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Where rolling and sloping the surface drainage is good, the water passing rapidly from the surface into the numerous small streams flowing into Goose Creek, which is the main drainage way of this type. In the low, flat lands the water stands or flows very slowly from the surface. Owing to the impervious nature of the clay subsoil, underdrainage is very slow, and the land is often cold and sour.
Corn, wheat, and grass are the principal crops grown on 45-5
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this soil type, the average yields per acre being as follows: Corn, from 20 to 40 bushels; wheat, from 8 to 15 bushels; and grass, from 11/2 to 212 tons. Apples do fairly well.
The greater part of the type is tilled, while the uncultivated areas are used for pasturage and wood lots, the forest growth being black oak. In dry seasons, where the soil covering is not deep, the land bakes and cracks, and in this condition it can not be cultivated. In wet seasons the soil becomes too wet and sticky to work.
Penn Loam.
The Penn loam consists of from 8 to 12 inches of a dark, Indian-red loam, underlain by a heavier loam of the same color. This peculiar red color is distinctive of the formation wherever found, and, consequently, the type is one easily rec- ognized. The texture of the type is very uniform, with the exception of a few small areas where the subsoil is a clay loam. The soil is locally termed "red-rock land," on account of the numerous small red sandstone fragments which occur in the soil and subsoil in quantities varying from 5 to 20 per cent of the soil mass. The soil is free from large stones or other obstructions to cultivation.
This type occurs in several large, irregular areas on the Newark formation of the Piedmont Plateau in the eastern part of the County. The areas have a general northeast and southwest trend. A few small areas occur in close proximity to the larger ones. One of the larger areas is situated just south of Leesburg, while another occurs east of Lucketts.
The topography consists of a gently rolling to nearly level plain, and there are no steep slopes or rough areas. Drainage in this type is excellent, the easy slopes allowing a gradual flow of water from the surface without undue erosion, except with very heavy rains on the steeper slopes. The loamy sub- soil allows a ready but not too rapid percolation of surplus soil moisture, and never gets soggy or in a cold, sour condi- tion. Numerous small streams extend throughout the area of this type, allowing a rapid removal of all surplus water into the Potomac River, the chief drainageway of the County.
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Along these streams, which in all cases have cut out beds some 10 to 30 feet below the surrounding plain, the slopes are gradual.
The original growth on the Penn loam was a forest of oak, hickory, and walnut, but at the present time nearly all of the type is cleared and farmed. The soil is not naturally very productive, but is prized on account of its great susceptibility to improvement, its quick responsiveness to fertilization, and its easy cultivation and management. The surface is smooth and regular, and the absence of stones, together with the loamy texture of the soil, makes it easy to maintain good tilth. Any addition of fertilizers or lime is immediately effective, and by judicious management the type may be kept in a high state of productiveness. Many fine farms with good buildings are to be seen on this type. The crops grown are corn, wheat, grass, clover, apples, and small fruits. Graz- ing, stock raising, and dairying are practiced to some extent. The land yields from 40 to 60 bushels of corn, from 10 to 15 or more bushels of wheat, and from 1 to 2 tons of hay per acre.
Cecil Loam.
The soil of the Cecil loam consists of from 8 to 12 inches of a brown or yellow loam. The subsoil consists of a heavy yellow or red loam, or occasionally clay loam. The soil and subsoil are usually free from stones, but occasional areas have from 5 to 30 per cent of angular quartz or schist frag- ments on the surface. Often a mica-schist enters into the composition of the subsoil, giving it a soft and greasy feel.
The greater part of the intermediate valley or base-level plain of the Catoctin Belt consists of the Cecil loam, and it occurs here as one large, connected area, inside of which are small areas of Cecil clay, Loudoun sandy loam, and Iredell clay loam. A considerable portion of the Catoctin Mountain also consists of the Cecil loam. In extent this is the most important soil type in Loudoun, covering about 33 per cent of the total area.
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The Cecil loam, owing to its rolling character, is well drained throughout. Many small streams traverse it, afford- ing ample outlets for surface water. The gently rolling areas are not generally subject to excessive erosion, but the steeper slopes wash badly, deep gullies and ditches being formed on the hillsides. Especially subject to erosion are the areas in which the subsoil contains a relatively large proportion of mica fragments. The soil and subsoil, though quite loamy, retain enough moisture in seasons of moderate rainfall to supply all growing crops.
The Cecil loam is devoted entirely to general farming. The crops grown are corn, wheat, grass, clover, vegetables, apples, and pears. The agricultural interests are further diversified by the practice of dairying and stock raising. The land is one of the best corn soils of Loudoun, being loamy and easily cultivated throughout the growing season. The average yield per acre ranges from 40 to 60 bushels. Wheat does very well, producing from 12 to 20 bushels per acre, and more in favorable seasons. Grass and clover yield at the rate of from 1 to 2 tons of hay per acre and form good grazing during a considerable part of the year. Apples and pears are grown everywhere on the type, usually in small orchards, and good yields of these fruits are obtained. Oats were at one time grown, and can be produced at the rate of from 35 to 50 bushels per acre, but the present acreage is small, the farmers claiming that this crop rapidly reduces the productiveness of the soil.
Nearly all of the type is in cultivated crops or pasture. The original timber growth was oak, hickory, and walnut; but little of this stands now, except on occasional woodlots. The Cecil loam is a soil which with careful treatment makes a fine farming land; but carelessly managed it very quickly deteriorates.
Cecil Clay.
The soil of the Cecil clay consists of a heavy loam, red or brown in color, and having an average depth of 8 inches. The subsoil generally consists of a red clay, although it is
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sometimes a heavy clay loam. The surface is generally free from stones, though occasional small areas have a few quartz and granite or schist fragments. In the Piedmont areas small rounded diabase fragments occur on the surface. Occasion- ally on steep slopes or high knobs the soil covering has been washed away, leaving the heavy red clay exposed on the sur- face. * These areas, however, are small.
The type occurs principally in the intermediate valley of the Catoctin Belt, between the Blue Ridge and the Catoctin Mountain, and on the west slopes of the Catoctin Mountain. In the valley it occupies several small, disconnected areas scattered throughout this region, while on the west slope of the mountain it is found in one of two long, broad areas, ex- tending in a northeast and southwest direction. Three small areas occur near the southeastern corner of the County, and the type is here closely related to the Iredell clay loam.
The most typical areas of this soil occur in the Piedmont Plateau and on the gentle slopes at the foot of the Blue Ridge in the vicinity of Bluemont.
This soil type has excellent surface drainage and is well watered and drained throughout by small streams. Few of the slopes are so steep as to wash badly. The heavy clay subsoil retains ample moisture for plant growth and the soil is rarely so wet as to necessitate tile draining, although this would undoubtedly be very beneficial in the case of the heavier phases.
The whole of this soil is under cultivation and it is highly esteemed wherever found, being naturally a strong soil and susceptible of improvement. The original forest growth con- sisted of oak, hickory, and walnut. The land is easily im- proved, retentive of moisture and manure, and with careful management makes an excellent soil for general farming. Owing to its tendency to bake, crops are liable to suffer during drought.
The land produces wheat, corn, grass, clover, apples, and pears. It is a strong wheat soil, and yields from 15 to 25 bushels per acre and occasionally more. Grass and clover
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hay yield at the rate of 172 to 212 tons per acre, while from 40 to 60 bushels of corn per acre are usually produced in good seasons.
All things considered, the Cecil clay is best adapted to the production of wheat and grass. The more loamy phases are adapted to corn, but the type as a whole is a much better wheat land than corn land. The soil is also well adapted to apples and pears. Bluegrass grows well and makes fine pas- turage, and stock raising and dairy farming are other indus- tries to which the Cecil clay is well suited. Care has to be used in the cultivation of this soil, for if worked when too wet it dries in large, hard clods that give trouble throughout the season and interfere with cultivation for a long time after- wards.
Cecil Silt Loam.
The surface soil of the Cecil silt loam consists of 12 inches of a light gray or white silt loam. This material is underlain by a subsoil of yellow silt loam slightly heavier than the soil. The type is locally termed "white land," and is closely related to the Penn loam and the Iredell clay loam, these types surrounding and grading gradually into it. In some areas the soil is quite free from stones, while in others from 10 to 30 per cent of the soil mass is composed of small rock fragments.
The type occupies several small areas in the Piedmont region, in the southeastern part of the County. The largest of these areas lies about 2 miles east of Leesburg, and a considerable part of the type is adjacant to the Potomac River. It occupies high, rolling, ridgy, or hilly lands, and has some rather steep slopes, though in general the surface is only gently sloping.
The drainage is good, but wherever the slopes are steep erosion proceeds rapidly, making gullies and washed-out places that hinder or entirely prevent cultivation. The type is well watered by small streams which flow the year round.
Probably one-half of this type is cultivated. The remainder
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is covered with a growth of scrub oak, pine, and some cedar. The soil is thin and only fairly productive, and consequently is not greatly desired for agriculture. It is very easy to work, but has to be cultivated carefully to avoid washing. The crops raised are corn, wheat, grass, and some apples. Corn yields from 25 to" 35" bushels, wheat from 12 to 15 bushels, and clover and timothy[ hay from 1 to 2 tons per acre. Small fruits and vegetables do well.
Although naturally a thin soil, the Cecil silt loam is fairly well adapted to the' production of the crops just named. Of the small fruits, peaches, plums, and berries do best. On the whole the type is considered much better adapted to wheat than to corn. It is limed and fertilized to a considerable extent, and responds well to such applications.
Cecil Mica Loam.
The Cecil mica loam consists of 12 inches of a friable, mica- ceous yellow or yellowish red loam, underlain by a yellow or yellowish-red loam, whose mica content increases with the depth until at 24 to 30 inches the subsoil is little more than a mass of small mica flakes which gives it a loose texture. Occa- sionally the subsoil is a clay loam for several inches before grading into the unweathered mica particles.
On the surface there is from 5 to 40 per cent of angular quartz fragments, ranging from 1 to 6 inches in diameter, some being much larger.
The Cecil mica loam occurs as one long, narrow strip, occupying the lower, gentle eastern slopes of the Catoctin Mountain. The southern end of the stip begins a short distance north of Leesburg, and extends in a northeasterly direction to the Potomac River, opposite Point of Rocks, Md.
The topographic features of the Cecil mica loam consist of gentle and occasionally steep rolling slopes. The surface is well drained and on the steeper slopes the soil washes badly and deep gullies are formed. In a season of moderate rainfall the soil and subsoil retain considerable moisture, but in dry weather crops suffer from drought.
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No farms are found entirely on the Cecil mica loam, but those farms of the Piedmont, extending up the mountain slopes, generally include some of this soil. Such areas are often farmed, but more generally used as woodlots. Where culti- vated the yields are scant, except where the soil is heavily fertilized. Corn yields from 10 to 30 bushels per acre and sometimes more, and wheat from 6 to 12 bushels per acre. The type is best adapted to forestry, chestnut orcharding, and grape growing.
De Kalb Stony Loam.
The soil of the De Kalb stony loam consists of a yellow or gray sandy loam of coarse texture, having an average depth of 12 inches. The subsoil consists of a heavy yellow sandy loam to a depth of 24 inches or more, where it rests upon a mass of sandstone fragments. These sand- stone fragments and bowlders occur in varying quantities throughout the soil and subsoil. Where the fewer stones are found the soil is not so sandy, but a light loam, yellow or brown in color, underlain by a deep yellow loam subsoil.
The De Kalb stony loam is a mountain soil, occurring in long, parallel bands of varying width, extending in a general northeast and southwest direction, and mainly occupies the crests and slopes of the Blue Ridge and Short Hill mountains. It also occurs in smaller areas on the crest and east slope of Catoctin Mountain.
On the Blue Ridge and Short Hills the De Kalb stony loam covers the whole of the mountains, and here the physiog- raphy consists of long, sharp, rock-crested ridges, with steep, rugged slopes and occasional cliffs and huge ledges. There are occasional benches on the mountain sides, and here there is an accumulation of two or three inches of a black mold, resting on the broken sandstone fragments, and covered with a growth of locust, oak, and berry vines.
Owing to the steep and rugged surface of this soil, together with its stony character, superficial drainage is rapid and thorough, the water rushing in torrents from the mountain
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slopes, while as a result of the loose texture and the large number of stone fragments in the soil the water passes rapidly through it, and there is never an excess of moisture in the soil or subsoil.
On account of the steep and stony nature of the De Kalb stony loam little of the type can possibly be cultivated. The soil is naturally a very thin one, and is not capable of pro- ducing fair yields except in its less stony phases.
The principal growth on the type is chestnut, oak, and some pine. Probably 95 per cent of the type is uncultivated, and is valuable only for the timber growth it supports. Where cultivated the average yields per acre are as follows: Corn, from 10 to 20 bushels; wheat, from 6 to 10 bushels. Apples and especially peaches do fairly well on the mountain phase where not too stony.
The greater part of the De Kalb stony loam is not adapted to agricultural purposes at all, and it is not likely that the land will ever be valuable except for forestry. It is locally termed "mountain land," and is the poorest agricultural soil of the County.
Porters Clay.
The Porters clay consists of from 6 to 12 inches of a brown or reddish-brown loam, underlain by a heavy red loam or clay loam. The type consists of fairly rough mountain land, and is very stony, having from 15 to 60 per cent of small and large schist ¡fragments on the surface, some of which are several feet in diameter. The soil is light and easy to work wherever it is not so stony as to interfere with cultivation.
This soil is a strictly mountain type and not of great extent. It follows the crest and part of the east slope of the Blue Ridge Mountains for several miles, extending in a north- easterly direction and ending at the areas of sandstone formation.
The type is well drained throughout, while the texture of the subsoil is sufficiently heavy to retain considerable moisture through quite extended dry spells. The steeper slopes are uncultivated, and hence are not subject to erosion.
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A considerable proportion of this soil type is under cultiva- tion, especially on the broad mountain top. Those areas not cultivated are covered with a heavy growth of oak, hickory, locust, and walnut. Corn and wheat can be grown on the type with fair yields, but little of the latter is grown on account of the stony nature of the land. Corn yields from 20 to 35 bushels, wheat from 8 to 15 bushels, and grass and clover from 1 to 2 tons per acre. Irish and sweet potatoes give good yields, and fine apples and peaches are produced. Peaches are liable to winterkill, and the crop is uncertain for this reason. This type is peculiarly adapted to fruit growing, and especially to the production of apples.
Meadow.
The Meadow of Loudoun is usually a brown silty or sandy loam, with a depth of several feet. The type occurs in nar- row bands along the larger streams, forming a bottom or low terrace a few feet above the mean water level. The nature of the soil depends greatly on the surrounding soils, as it is formed from sediment of the wash from these types and par- takes of their textural characteristics to some extent.
The type, while low and flat, is generally well enough drained for cultivation, although this is somewhat hindered by overflows; consequently the land is chiefly used for grazing. The soil is alluvial in origin, being built up by successive over- flows of the streams. Little of the type is forested. Where cultivated it is generally used for corn, which yields from 50 to 75 bushels an acre. Little wheat is grown, although the soil is capable of producing fair yields of this crop. It also produces from 2 to 3 tons of hay per acre, and affords excel- lent pasturage. The crops are somewhat uncertain, however, on account of overflows which sometimes occur after the planting season, though in the case of the River the danger from flood is usually past before the time for corn planting. Where the areas are in grass the floods usually do little dam- age. Productiveness is in a great measure maintained by the addition of the sediments left by the overflow waters.
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FLORA AND FAUNA.
FLORA .- Records of the days of early settlement point to a scarcity and an inferiority of large timber in Loudoun (then Prince William) and contiguous counties. The responsibility for this condition has been traced to the hunters who frequented this region prior to its settlement and wantonly set fire to the forests in order to destroy underbrush, the better to secure their quarries. A comparatively dense and vigorous new growth followed the discontinuance of this pernicious practice.
At the present time, after the encroachment of field and pasture for nearly two centuries, a large portion of the county's area is still under forest cover. The stand, in the main, is somewhat above average size and quality.
The total value of forest products cut or produced on farms in 1899 was $51,351. This includes only the wood, lumber, railroad ties, etc., which the farmers cut in connection with their ordinary farming operations. The reports of persons making lumbering or wood cutting their principal business are not included.
The trees common to Loudoun are four varieties of the white oak, i. e., common, swamp, box, and chestnut-leaved, the latter, however, appearing only along the margin of the Potomac River; black, Spanish, and red oak, chestnut oak, peach or willow oak, pin oak; and in the eastern parts of the county, black jack, or barren oak, and dwarf oak, hickory, black and white walnut, white and yellow poplar, chestnut, locust, ash, sycamore, wild cherry, red flowering maple, gum, sassafras, persimmon, dogwood, red and slippery elm, black and white mulberry, aspin (rare), beech, birch, linn, honey- locust, sugar maple, sugar nut, yellow and white pine, hem- lock, and red cedar.
Among the smaller trees and shrubs are the white thorn, maple-leaved or Virginia thorn (suitable for hedging), haw- thorn, wild May cherry, or service berry, water beech, fringe tree, red bud, black alder, common alder, sumach, elder, laurel, witcli-hazel, hazel-nut, papaw, chinkapin, burnish
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bush, nine bark, button-bush, honeysuckle, several varieties of the whortleberry or huckleberry, and wild gooseberry.
A few of the brambles niet with are the greenbrier, high blackberry, dewberry, or low blackberry, and raspberry.
A list of the vines and creepers would comprise the fox grape, three varieties; pigeon, or raccoon grape, chicken grape, a wild bitter grape, sarsaparilla, yellow parilla, poison- vine, or poison-oak, clematis, trumpet-flower, and wild potato vine.
The medicinal herbs found in Loudoun are the rattlesnake root, Seneca snakeroot (also called Virginia snakeroot), many varieties of mint, liverwort, red-root, May apple, butterfly- weed, milk weed, thorough-stem, trumpet-weed, Indian- physic, lobelia inflata, and lobelia cardinalis, golden-rod, skunk- cabbage, frost-weed, hoar-hound, and catnip.
The injurious plants with which the careful farmer must contend are the wild garlic, tribby weed, dog fennel, two varieties of the common daisy, oxeye daisy, St. John's wort, blue thistle, common thistle, pigeon-weed, burdock, broad and narrow-leaved dock, poke-weed, clot-bur, three-thorned bur, supposed to have been introduced from Spain by the Merino sheep, Jamestown or "jimson" weed, sorrel, and, in favorable seasons, a heavy growth of lambs quarter and rag-weed.
Of introduced grasses, Loudoun has red clover, timothy, herd's-grass, orchard-grass, and Lucerne to which last little attention is now given. Native grasses are the white clover, spear grass, blue grass, fox-tail and crab grass, the two last- named being summer or annual grasses. Several varieties of swamp or marsh grass flourish under certain conditions, but soon disappear with proper drainage and tillage.
Although some of the wild flowers of Loudoun merit the attention of the florist, as a whole they have no commercial value or significance and, for this reason, an enumeration of the many varieties has not been thought expedient.
FAUNA .- Wild ducks, geese, and turkeys, pheasants (Eng- lish and Mongolian), partridges and woodcock are among the game fowls of Loudoun, and eagles, crows, buzzards, owls,
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and hawks among the predatory. The usual list of song- birds frequent this region in great numbers and receive some protection under the stringent fish and game laws in force here.
Red and gray foxes, raccoons, opossums, woodchucks, squirrels, hares and smaller animals are quite general.
In pioneer days the county abounded in the larger species of game common to the forests of North America. Among these were the beaver and otter, buffalo, deer, wolf, wild-cat, panther, bear, fox, and elk or wapiti (Cervus canadensis), noble herds of which ranged the mountain sides and valleys of this section.
TRANSPORTATION FACILITIES .*
Good roads, always of immeasurable importance to the farmer, were early made necessary by the tremendous crops of marketable products harvested from Loudoun lands. Though this need, in time, became imperative the roads were never hastily and imperfectly constructed; they were built with an eye single to permanence and with due allowance for generations of unintermittent and augmentative traffic.
These roads yielded their promoters modest dividends, but with the completion in 1832 of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, bordering the county just across the Potomac, trans- portation to and from Washington (Georgetown) and Alex- andria was materially cheapened and the earnings of the turnpike companies suffered a corresponding decrease, the income, in many cases, being barely sufficient to defray the expense of maintenance. Tolls are now collected at only two points in the County.
The turnpike craze spread to Loudoun not long after the War of Independence and culminated about forty years later.
*No apology is offered for the omission of vital statistics that might and would have been included in this department had earnest appeals addressed to State officers and the State Corporation Commission met with more courteous and, I might add, dutiful consideration. Not the least assistance was vouchsafed by any of them .- THE AUTHOR.
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It wrought a revolution in public travel, relatively nearly as great as that brought about by the railway craze in more recent years. The corporate names of some of the roads constructed through Loudoun before its subsidence were, the Goose Creek and Little River Turnpike, Loudoun and Berlin (now Brunswick, Md. ) Turnpike, Ashby's Gap Turnpike, Leesburg Turnpike, Leesburg and Snicker's Gap Turnpike, Little River Turnpike and Snicker's Gap Turnpike. Their combined authorized capital stock was $637,325, of which amount more than two-thirds was subscribed by individuals, the State assuming the balance.
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