USA > West Virginia > Tucker County > History of Tucker County, West Virginia, from the earliest explorations and settlements to the present time; > Part 10
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Scores of mountains of Tucker have names given them by local occurrences, or in way of distinction. Among these are Old Andra, named, it is said, from a man of that name who used to follow wagoning along the road that passes over it. One very cold night, while traveling the road, he missed some article from his load, and went back to hunt it, leaving his son, a small boy, in the wagon. He had fur- ther to go than he anticipated, and upon his return, found his boy frozen to death. The circumstance was applied in
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designating the place, and finally the mountain came to be known as Old Andra, a name ever since retained by it. The mountain is about seven miles from St. George, on the road to Aurora.
Sims' Knob was named from Bernard Sims, who used to live at its base, and who was killed by the Indians. Lips- comb's Ridge receives its name from the Lipscomb family, who settled there in an early day. Closs Mountain was named from David Closs, a Scotchman who bought the mountain many years ago, and still lives there. Shafer's Mountain was named from Shafer's Fork, and Green Moun- tain from its verdure in summer. Pifer Mountain was named from Andrew Pifer. Hog Back, on the waters of Horse Shoe Run, is so named from its resemblance to a hog's back. Location Ridge is so called because the loca- tion for a turnpike is there. Miller Hill, four miles below St. George, on the road to Rowlesburg, is named from Wil- liam Miller.
If the subterranean wonders of Tucker County were bet- ter known, it would rank among the first counties of the state in that respect. No caves as extensive as Mammoth, of Kentucky, or Luray, of Virginia, have been discovered. But there are natural wonders of this kind, some explored and others almost unknown. They are found in the lime- stone formation.
Falling Spring .- On the Dry Fork road, some fifteen miles from St. George, is a natural curiosity, called Falling Spring. Just above the road, where a little mountain stream falls over a cataract, is an opening in the limestone rock, in an oblong shape, about thirty feet deep, into which the water falls as spray. There is no account that the pit has ever been descended into. Viewing it from the top, it looks
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as though from its bottom a cave may extend back into the mountain. Probably it will some time be explored, and then its true nature and extent can be known.
Jordan's Cave .- On the other side of the river, almost opposite Falling Spring, is a large cavern called Jordan's Cave. We quote the following from the Biography of Abe Bonnifield :
On the west side of Dry Fork there is a cave, frequently called Jordan's Cave. This name is given on account of an ignorant fellow of that name who discovered it, and who pretended to have remained there a considerable time and to have made many dis- coveries in it. He wrote a book descriptive of it,* and claimed to make known to the world many wonderful things. Jordan's book is as destitute of elegance and correct composition as the narrative which it contains is of truth. It would be but justice to his pam- phlet to say that for falsehood, nonsense and absurdity it has few equals and no superiors. Reports say that Jordan has since gone crazy.
Mr. Penn, who was with Jordan, says that the cave is, indeed, a wonderful place, and thinks that they must have traveled several miles under ground.t He says that there appeared to be many different apartments. Probably there is room here for much further research, which would richly repay the geological visitor for his pains.
The more recent explorations of Jordan's cave have more and more confirmed Jordan's account of it, as it is remem- bered by those who have read his book. The cave is a suc- cession of halls and rooms, one beyond the other, through all of which flows a stream of clear, cold water.
Blowing Cuve, at the head of Elk Creek, is more of a cu- riosity than Jordan's Cave is, although not so extensive. It is called Blowing Cave, because in warm weather a strong
* This book cannot now be found.
t The cave has since been explored by Rufus Maxwell, Dr. William Ewin, David and A. T. Bonnifield, and they found it less than half a mile in extent.
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current of cold air flows from it, and is sufficiently cool to chill one who remains in it a few minutes. This cave has been explored to the distance of nine hundred feet, and is, also, a succession of chambers and rooms, some of which are fantastic and beautiful.
There are numerous other caves and caverns in the county, some of which have been only partly explored. On Limestone Mountain there is a cave said to be very exten- sive.
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CHAPTER VIII.
LUMBER INTERESTS OF TUCKER COUNTY.
NATURE bestowed upon Tucker County a splendid growth of timber. When the old pioneers first visited the bottom lands along the river, they found there the most gigantic oaks, hickories, walnuts and other timbers. No woodsman's ax had ever broken in on the solemn reign of these primeval kings. Perhaps, near some beautiful spring, or on the shaded bank of some mountain stream, the roaming Indian had paused long enough in his pursuit of game to hack, with his flinty hatchet, a few trees, or he may have stripped them of their bark, with which to erect him a shelter against the rains of the verdant summer or the snows that come in the winter time. Or, some savage, in the desire of his heart to lift himself out of the dark depths of wildness and bru- tality, may have cleared away, with hatchet and fire, the trees and rubbish from some fertile acre, and there built for himself a better wigwam than that of his more savage neighbor ; and, on the little plantation of his own clearing, there may have grown by his rude cultivation a few square rods of grain or vegetables. But such an Indian, if he ex- isted, had more than mere forest or sultry summers or icy winters against which to contend in his struggle to grow better and to foster the germ of civilization which he felt rising in his soul. Nature and nature's obstacles were hard enough to be removed or triumphed over, and the inani- mate enemies to his advancement, that were all about him, were enemies enough ; but, they were not the worst. His
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own people, the tribes of his fellow-beings, would not rise to a higher grade of existence, and they would not suffer him to rise. The little field that he had cleared and tilled until it was yielding him a sustenance, was the object of his kindred's hatred. They raided upon it, and carried away or destroyed what was growing, and the owner, in his dis- couragement and anger, flung down his wooden hoe and his flinty hatchet, and declared that he would no more labor where no profits would ever be gained. Thus, the little plantation was abandoned to its original wilderness, and soon the brambles covered it. The brambles grew into trees, and again the land was an unbroken forest, and thus it was when the white man's foot first pressed the soil.
There seems to have been as much timber in Tucker when first visited by whites, as there ever was afterwards. The amount that the trees grew in one hundred years, making large trees of small ones, was counteracted by the number of large ones that died and fell down in that time, so that the amount of marketable timber in the county did not in- crease, and probably never would have increased, had it remained untouched by man forever. It is maintained by some that at a period not very remote, the region west of the Alleghanies, and among them, was treeless, as the west- ern prairies are. Such may have been the case, but there is nothing in Tucker to warrant such a conclusion. As far back as any account is had, the trees were as large and stood as thick as they do in the unmolested forests of to-day. Our history extends back only about one hundred and twenty years ; and in that time nothing has transpired to lead one to suppose that the general condition of our for- ests are undergoing a change.
The age of some of our trees, as indicated by their an-
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nual rings, show that they were here before Columbus saw San Salvador. The size of a tree is little by which to judge its age. A sycamore one foot in diameter may be less than ten years old; while another tree of the same kind and size may be one hundred. It depends upon where they stand, whether in a place suitable for growing or not. A pine tree on the Fork Ridge of Pine Run was thirty-nine inches in diameter and one hundred and nineteen years old. An oak tree three inches larger, cut by George Sypolt on Holbert Run, was five hundred and six years old. A sycamore that formerly stood on John H. Swisher's farm, on Horse Shoe Run, was over six feet across the hollow within. Of
course, its age could not be known, but hollow trees are of slow growth. A hollow sycamore in the Horse Shoe was said to have been ten feet across the hollow; but, its exact size is not agreed upon by those who have seen it. A red oak that formerly stood on Horse Shoe Run below Bon- nifield's, was sawed down. It was solid and over five feet across. Its annual rings were so thin that they could not be counted. There were, however, hundreds of them, and the tree must have been among the oldest in the county.
It was many years after the first settlements of the county before its timber had any marketable value. There was no place where it could be sold, and it was counted as so much rubbish-worse than nothing where the ground must be cleared. The first settlers along the river were almost dis- couraged when they contemplated the time and labor that would be required to remove the gigantic oaks that stood thick all over the bottom lands. Some few of them were made into rails; but, further than this, they could be put to no use ; and it became neccessary to destroy them with ax and fire. The work required years and years, and was
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completed within the memory of those still living. The amount of timber thus destroyed must have been immense, as we can judge by taking into account the extent of terri- tory so timbered, and the number and size of the trees. But, it was all destroyed before timber here had any value.
But, gradually, as the country began to develop, rude saw-mills were built, and a few plank houses took the place of the primitive log cabins. This was the first use, aside from rail fences, to which lumber was put in this county. The demand was small, and the manufactories were few.
The first call for lumber to go out of the county was that to build the bridge across Cheat, where the North-western Pike crosses, five miles above Rowlesburg. A large part of this lumber was sawed by Arnold Bonnifield, and after being hauled to the river, was built into rude rafts, and driven with the current to its destination.
The kinds of timber found in Tucker, having a marketa- ble value, are several : pine, including several kinds, white, yellow, pitch, spruce and hemlock. The spruce and hem- lock are often confounded with each other, and what one calls spruce another calls hemlock. Properly, the hemlock does not really grow'here ; but a species much like it is found along deep hollows, and is noticeable for its small leaves, from one-fourth to three-fourth of an inch long, and the sixteenth of an inch wide, and for the symmetrical form of the tree, which grows in the form of a huge cone, taper- ing regularly from the first limbs to the top of the tree. The knots of this tree are very hard, brittle as glass, and will break an ax that is not tempered in the best manner. The wood has firmness and strength, but is not susceptible of a neat finish. It is less valuable than white pine. The
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grain of its wood is coarse, and breaks in a zigzag manner.
White pine, all in all, represents and has represented the greater portion of Tucker County's wealth of timber. It is not a fine wood ; but, is durable, neat and substantial. It is soft, thus being easy to work, and light, making it con- venient for hauling. It will receive a finish better than hemlock, and next to that of poplar. It is the tallest tim- ber in the Alleghany Mountains.
Spruce pine, formerly called hemlock, grows on the sumn- mits of our highest mountains, and has never yet been put in market to any considerable extent. Its greatest abund- ance is on and beyond the Backbone Mountain, in the Canada country. Its lowest limit of natural growth is not less than fifteen hundred feet above the sea, although a few trees may be found any altitude. The bark of the tree is smoother than white pine, and the trunks are very round and regular. The wood is harder than that of white pine.
In value next after white pine is that of poplar. It grows in any locality and in any soil; although it flourishes best in rich land and toward a northern exposure. The trees are tall, and generally carry a size nearly uniform from the ground to the limbs, which are usually crooked and clumsy. and the first ones are about two-thirds of the distance from the ground to the top of the tree; and from that to the top they are scattered at hap-hazzards. The wood is of a yellow color, and is used in cheap furniture, and for building pur- poses. But, it is not suitable for either, when sawed into thin boards, because it curls and warps when it becomes dry. It can be dressed smoother than any pine, and pre- sents a harder surface, and is freer from knots.
Cherry and walnut are the two kinds of wood best suited to furniture and highly finished carpenter work. They are
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next to mahogany for this purpose. Walnut is the prefer- able of the two, because it warps less than cherry ; but cherry is much used, and when properly worked and handled is excellent for tables, stands, and the finishing of doors, windows and rooms. The tendency of cherry to warp is partly compensated for in its harder quality and tough grain. But walnut is the better in all cabinet work that is meant for climates that change. No cherry should ever be used in organs, bureaus or geared machinery. The supply of either of these timbers in Tucker is limited. Walnut is found thinly scattered over the whole country, and there is no particular place where it is not found ; and the same is partly true of cherry ; but, in Canaan, it is found most abundantly.
We have in Tucker two kinds of maple. One we call sugar, and the other maple. They are, quite different. The latter is often called silver maple. Both are hard wood, and make good wood-work of machinery. The maple is used for furniture, and is really nicer than either walnut or cherry, when properly dressed and varnished. Its wood is waved in the most beautiful manner, and surpasses the finest imitations that art can make. Knots, that in other woods are blemishes, are in maple desirable, because they produce the finest curves and undulations, that seem to ex- tend like waves over water, further and further until lost by the gradual blending into the general surface of the wood. Often the curves meet, coming from two knots, and, instead of crossing each other, as they do on water, they seem to check each other, and pile up, one on another, as though trying to pass, but unable to do so.
Curved lines and curved motions are the most pleasing to the human eye ; and in nature almost everything is
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LUMBER INTERESTS.
found to be in accordance with this principle. Water moves in curves, trees grow in curves, sound and light and heat, with few modifications, move in curves, and in the atoms about us, we have reason to believe that all motion is in other than straight lines, while we know that the planets move about a center.
This truth of nature, that beauty of form is due to the uniform variation of lines, is seen to perfection in the for- mation of the wood of the maple.
An industry of Tucker County, not of much financial value, but still of value to the people, is the making of sugar from the maple and sugar trees. All trees of this kind, in the north, are called maple; but here there is a local dif- ference. The sugar is understood to be one thing and the maple another; and the difference is as clearly defined as it is between any kinds of wood. Sugar is made alike from both. In February, March and April the trees are "tapped," as it is called, and the water that flows from them, after being retained in a trough set for the purpose, is boiled in kettles, and thus the sugar is made. The water from the maple tree is scarcely sweet to the taste; but that from the sugar tree is quite sweet. Strange as it may seem, the wa- ter from the maple tree will pan out nearly as much sugar as that from the sugar tree. There is a slight difference in the taste of the sugar; and that made from the maple is browner than that from the sugar tree. The sugar season lasts from the middle of February to the middle of April.
Ash, hickory and locust are the three hardest woods in common use. Ash is the most like iron in durability and strength. It is unyielding, and in the frame-work of ma- chinery it is not surpassed. Hickory is tougher than ash, and will bend into all shapes before it will break. Its most
10
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HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY.
usual use is for handles. Locust is not often employed in wood-work. It is very hard, but its hardness is not its best quality. As posts for fences it lasts longer than any other wood. Posts of it have been known to last nearly three- fourths of a century. On Horse Shoe Run, near its month, is a locust post that is believed to have been planted abont 1817. It is still sound. It was planted top down, and has ever since been used as a bar-post.
When exposed to the alternate action of dry and damp, timber decays much sooner than when kept wet or kept dry all the time. Timbers under the water, away from the air, will last infinitely longer than when the air can act upon them, and the water, too, at the same time. The old mill- dam timbers at St. George are good illustrations of this. They were put in near 1776, and a few years later were covered several feet deep with gravel, and there they re- mained until 1875, when the gravel was washed off, and the timbers were left exposed to view. They were sound, and are still sound, although for nine years they have been ex- posed to both water and air. They are of oak wood, and still plainly show the marks of the ax. They are in the ford of Mill Run, on Main street, St. George.
When entirely in the dry, wood will last also a long time. The interior timbers of houses seem to undergo no change so long as they are kept entirely dry. In a cave of Grant County, West Virginia, is a cedar log that was carried there about 1754, and was used as steps (notches having been eut in it) for getting down over a precipice, when the settlers fled there to escape from the Indians. The log is still sound ; and where the notches were ent, the marks of the ax, and even the paths made by dull places in the ax, are as plainly seen as when the log was placed there. The log is
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cedar, of which wood Tucker County has a very limited supply.
The mountains facing the river are covered with oak timber. This has been much used for rails, in past years, and is still used to a considerable extent. Oak in the market, com- mands a good price, and is now rafted down the river in large quantities ; but there are drawbacks in the way of getting it to market. It is very heavy to haul, and, when rafted, floats so deep that it is difficult and expensive to get it to the railroad. Green red-oak will not float at all. Some years ago Mr. N. M. Parsons cut a lot of rail timber, and hauled it to the bank of the river, designing to float it down to a suitable place for splitting it. It was placed on skid- ways, sloping to the water, and when all was ready, the prop that held the first log was knocked out and the whole skidfull of logs went rolling into the river, sank instantly to the bottom, and has not been seen from that day to this.
Sycamore is also heavier than water, and will sink. It is a worthless, or almost worthless wood. It is coarse and spongy, and from this county very little of it has ever gone to market. It is twisted and will not split, and when sawed can be used for such few purposes that it is an undeveloped article in our woods. It grows almost exclusively along the river and the larger streams flowing into it, and is seldon found on lands of any altitude. One tree grows on the head of Hansford Run, at the old Gower Farm, and this is probably the most elevated tree of the kind in the county. On the islands in the river, and in the damp bottoms on both sides, the sycamore flourishes to perfection. When young, the tree grows tall, stately and beautiful. Its slender trunk is as straight as a beam of light, and as graceful as the fabled trees in the mythical forests of old. The color
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of the bark changes with the seasons. At one time it is dark brown, at another tinged toward red, then gray, then spotted white and black and then white as snow. This is due to the fact that the tree sheds its bark.
One thing might be noticed : Sycamore trees that grow tall and regular never get very large. The enormous trunks that have been seen, are ugly, crooked, twisted and seem to have been dwarfed in their younger years. They are, also, nearly always hollow, when above medium size. As the outside grows, the heart decays, and the larger the tree the thinner the shell of wood, until the gigantic sycamores are, upon examination, found to be mere shells.
The seeds of the sycamore are contained in a light, yel- lowish ball, resembling cotton in texture and silk in color. The seeds attach themselves to this substance, and are blown by the wind about over the country. The seeds of the maple and sugar have a wing with which they fly through the air, whirling round and so fast that they look like wheels. Pine seeds are in the cones, and fall verti- cally to the ground, as do the acrons of oaks and the nuts of the hickory.
The beech timber of the county has never been much sought after. It is of value only for a few purposes, such as shoe lasts, toys and whimwhams. It grows in all parts of the county, but best in Canada.
There are numerous kinds of semi-worthless timbers in the county, such as birch, of which there are two kinds, black and white, and lynn, buckeye, elm, chestnut and laurel. Chestnut is of much use in making rails, and of some use for lumber.
The largest amount of our timber that has been taken out, has gone to market in the log ; but, much of it has been
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sawed and shipped as plank. The improvement in mills has been gradual and steady. The first ones were hardly worth the name. They were unscientific, would not do good work and would cut only a few hundred feet a day. They were run by water-power, and, of course, had vertical saws, fastened to immense sashes, to lift which required nearly enough force to do all the work of sawing, if rightly applied. The wheels were only "flutter-wheels," which wasted more power than they transmitted. But, these old mills answered the purpose for which they were built, and were displaced as soon as the occasion demanded better works. They often would not make cighty strokes a minute.
The sashes, much improved, are still found in the county. They are well constructed, and average one hundred and twenty strokes a minute, and do considerable work. One man may saw and stack one thousand feet a day, which is not far behind the per man average of larger mills, although much less than that of some. Dr. Bonnifield's was an in- provement on any mill in the country at the time it was built, but it was not what it should have been. ' It had three times more power than it put to a good use; and its sash was enormously heavy. It did good work, and during the thirty or forty years of its existence, it cut thousands of feet of lumber. Some of it was sent down the river to build the North-western Turnpike bridge, and some went other places. One hundred thousand feet was washed off in a freshet. It quit work about 1865.
N. M. and George M. Parsons had a mill of the same kind that did a large amount of work, and sent a considerable amount of lumber down the river in rafts. Mills of this kind soon became numerous all over the county, wherever there was water power to run them.
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HISTORY OF TUCKER COUNTY.
The first mill without a sash, a "muley mill" as it was called, was built by Rufus Maxwell about 1865. It was an improvement upon the sash mills. The saw made over three hundred strokes a minute.
When steam mills were introduced into the county, the lumber business underwent a revolution. Or, rather, it suddenly sprang into life. A steam mill was erected on Black Fork, and was run by a company, but it did not prosper. Taylor's mill on Shafer's Fork did good work. Howe's mill, and Steringer's, and one in Canaan, all sawed large bills of lumber.
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