USA > West Virginia > Tucker County > History of Tucker County, West Virginia, from the earliest explorations and settlements to the present time; > Part 11
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The mill brought to the county by C. R. Macomber has surpassed any of the others in the quantity of sawing done. It was brought to the county about 1874, and was set at the mouth of Wolf Run. It remained there several years and was moved to the farm of Silas R. Blackman, and was kept there until 1880 when it was moved to Hansford Run, and remained there four years.
This lumber, and all the lumber of Tucker that ever found its way to market, passed down Cheat River, mostly in rafts.
Cheat, although a small stream in comparison with others, is a noted river, and it has a history worth knowing, if it all could only be known. But much of it never can, except in part. Upon its banks and in its waters have been enacted scenes of peace and war, and its waters have flowed red with the blood of battles. Its shores have been shaded by the groves and orchards, and there the wild Indian has made his home.
The source of Cheat River is not in Tucker County. The river comes from a thousands rivulets and rills that trickle
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over rocks and creep through the shade of overhanging branches, and unite, and flow onward in larger streams, over stony beds, through rocky channels, into caves and out, down cataracts, where the crystal spray is gray in the sombre shadows or painted by sunlight or moonlight or the pale, soft light of stars into cascades of gorgeous rainbows that come and go in the passing phases of the brightness on, down, swifter or slower as the course is steeper or more level, until, from the ten thousand fountain-heads, all the springs and rills and brooks rush together with a murmur of gladness and a whisper that tells that they have met before.
The water that bubbles from the springs, far away in the mountains, under the cliffs of hills, or low down in the mar- gins of quiet valleys, comes into the air with all the purity of rain, falling from the sky. No diamond in the crown of India's princes is more pure in the elements of beauty. While in the crowded cities and market-places of the east, or the north or west or south, the summer is sul- try, and the throngs of people pass to and fro, burning with thirst, and have nothing but warm and unwholesome water with which to quench it, far up among the green mountains of Tucker are flowing and welling, free as the air and the light, and still more pure, if possible, the never-failing springs of clear, cold water, that flows forever, whether human lips are bathed by it or not.
Until recently, wells were almost unknown in Tucker County. Springs were so plentiful, and so much better than wells, as they always are, that people had only to look around a little before building their houses, and they could find a place where the water would be at their very door. Besides, where there was a spring, there could be built a
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good milk-house, a luxury to every family, and one that cost less than almost any other luxury, and one that none, who considered it in time, need be without. The spring, the milk-house, with its fresh butter and cool milk, the open fire place to purify the room by carrying away foul air, as well as to lend a cheerfulness by its light and heat, and the wholesome, well-done corn bread, rendered a doctor more ornamental than useful a few years ago,
Some changes have taken place, and others must, of ne- cessity, follow as a consequence. Every family cannot or does not now have a spring, a milk house and an open fire- place. Springs are less plentiful and families more plenti- ful than they used to be, and some dig wells and keep milk and butter in the cellar. As the land is cleared, there is a tendeney on the part of the springs to dry up when drouths come upon the country. This is due to the fact that, while the land is covered with trees and timber, the rain that falls upon it is retained longer and is given time to soak into the ground. When in the ground, it finds sloping strata, and along them it flows until the surface of the ground is reached. This forms a spring. But when the timber has been re- moved and there is no rubbish to hold the rain, it flows off into the creeks and rivers, and but little sinks into the ground to find the surface again in the form of springs. Thus, as the land is cleared, the number and flow of springs diminish, while the actual annual discharge of the creeks and rivers may increase.
This drying up of springs, so far, has had only a little effect upon Tucker County. There are still enough springs for each family to have a good one, and then be ten thousand left to flow untouched. But many do not find it convenient to live where the sping is, so they build away from it and
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dig a well. Wells are often very good, but they are never as good as a good spring, and will become more or less im- pure in spite of all care.
The rills and brooks and rivulets that flow together to form Cheat River are as innumerable as are the trees of the forest. They come from every muntain and every hill, and every valley and vale sends down a supply. Some well from the high crest of upland plains, and some from subter- ranean caves, and some from glades and some from valleys ; but, all meet at last, and blend with the completeness of chemical affinity.
Shafer's Fork and Dry Fork have their sources beyond our borders ; but we can claim Black Fork from source to mouth as our own. It heads, in its numerous branches, in the Canaan Valley, around the base of the Alleghanies. It is the outlet of the rain that falls in that basin. The Alle- ghanies, the water-shed between the waters of the Atlantic and those of the Gulf of Mexico, extend along the eastern and north-eastern side of Canaan, and separate the fount- ains of the Ohio from those of the Potomac. The country included between the Backbone on one side and the Alle- ghany on the other, was, in geological ages, a lake, which, by the wearing away of the rim on the south-western side, thereby forming a channel, was thus drained dry ; and the water that falls there as rain and snow, still finds an outlet through the same channel. This is Black Fork.
It is formed by many streams. The head of the principal one is in the southern end of the valley. This is fed by Beaver, Little Blackwater, which gets its supply from Glady Fork, Long Run and from others, and by other streams that flow in from either side. By the time they all unite and pass the gap in the Backbone, they form quite a river.
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The name Black Fork is a descriptive one. The water is of a dark red color. Not only has it this characteristic while in its mountain channels; but it retains it after breaking away and after it has joined the clear waters of Shafer's Fork and Dry Fork. The whole river then, from there to its mouth, and even, to a less extent, the Monon- gahela below, has a reddish black tinge. The rocks in the bottom of the river, and all bodies seen under its surface, put on a phantasmagorial aspect. The color of the water is transmitted to them, and they appear darkly red. Even the fish, those particularly which live in Black Fork, are colored by the water. Not only does the color attach to their scales, surface and fins, but their flesh, if properly so called, is colored throughout.
It has been to some a subject of wonder why the water is so colored. But, it ought to be easily observed that it is due to the decaying leaves and roots of evergreens, mostly pines. One unaccustomed to the water can taste the pine in it; and a few minutes of experimenting will show that the hue of the water is on account of the pine. Where it rises from springs, unsurrounded by pines, or where it flows through a beech forest alone, the water is clear. If one will drop into one of these clear springs a handful of de- caying pine leaves, he may at once observe that the water is colored thereby.
With this fact understood, it is apparent that, in the course of a few more generations, the dark tinge which now characterizes the waters of Cheat, will be seen no more, and the history of it will be in the past. When the country shall become settled, and when farms shall have taken the place of the laurel-beds and pine forests, then the waters of
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the river will be cut off from their supply of decaying ever- greens, and will flow pure and clear.
The influence which man wields over nature is greater than the unthinking ever think of. Not only can he, as he soon will in the case of this river, change the color of water that has flowed dark from time immemorial, but, it is also in his power to control, to some extent, the volume of water which a river sends out. If the Canada and Canaan Valley were cleared of its thickets, and all its swamps drained by a thorough system of underground drainage, Black Fork would carry off, in the course of the year, more water than it does now. And then; when heavy rains come, it would rise to a greater height than has ever yet been known.
Dry Fork and Black Fork unite before they reach Sha- fer's Fork, and after uniting take the name Black Fork, or Big Black Fork. It is about three miles from the conflu- ence of Dry Fork and Black Fork to the mouth of Shafer's Fork, or to where the two flow together to form the river proper. The battle of Corrick's Ford was fought on Sha- fer's Fork. Just below, is Alum Hill, a mineral formation of alum, from which the mountain takes its name. The alum comes to the surface, in little springs, and when at the surface, soon dries, and partly crystallizes. The alum is tolerably pure, but has never been used to any consid- erable extent.
From the forks of the river, northward to the Preston County line, the river has various names at different places, or rather, certain places in it have been given names, which either describe some feature or define some locality. Job's Ford, or more recently Callihan's Ford, is a river-crossing at the Holly Meadows, and got its name first from Job Parsons who used to live on the north bank, and got
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its second name from S. M. Callilian, who more re- cently lived on the south bank. The Holly Meadows was named on account of the holly trees that grew and still grow there. They are evergreen, and the leaves have a fringe of thorns on them. Formerly they stood thick about the bottom lands; but now they are not so plentiful. At Job's Ford, during Garnett's retreat, Capt. E. Harper recommended that a stand be taken and battle given. The stand was taken; but the failure of the pursu- ing enemy to put in an appearance, rendered a battle un- necessary.
From just below Job's Ford, the river sweeps around the base of the mountain to Sims' Bottom, where Sims was killed by the Indians, and there turns toward the east. In this distance there are several deep eddies. After passing Neville's Ford, where some of the Confederates nearly drowned during Garnett's retreat, the river reaches Wolf Run, where there is an island, and where Macomber's steam mill was for several years. Soon after this, Slip Hill is reached. This is a precipitious mountain, so steep that the soil has slipped into the river, leaving the bare rocks exposed. A road has been dug around it, and is never entirely safe. It is at one place about two hundred feet from the river, and the bluff below is almost perpendicular. A bridge, that looks more dangerous than it really is, spans a deep defile at the worst place in the road.
Immediately beneath Slip Hill, a few years ago, a man named Moore was drowned, while in swimming. The water is deep and he got beyond his depth. Half mile further is the Turn Eddy, as it is called. It gets its name from two reasons. First, because the river there turns from its eastern course toward the north, and second, because, at
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that place, at the eastern shore, the water turns back and flows up stream. A log thrown into the water at that place will float up stream, turn and swim out into the middle of the river. This is one of the best places on the river for building rafts, and there have been made large numbers of log, lumber, stave and shingle rafts.
One-half mile below here is Willow Point, which is a deep ford, named from a thicket of willows that grow on the bank, and extend somewhat in the shape of a wedge into the river. It was here that David Bonnifield was drowned. He and George Gower were crossing when the river was deep riding, and in the swiftest place their horses threw them. Bonnifield was an excellent swimmer, but he never reached the shore. Gower could not swim at all, and got out.
One-half mile further is the mouth of Horse Shoe Run, where the Pringles and Simpson who came through that country in 1764, crossed the river. There, too, James Par- sons crossed when escaping from the Indians near the same time, and there he crossed later, when the Indians tried to allure him into an ambuscade by gobbling like a turkey.
From there it is not far to the Island, which is known by that name over all the country. It is an Island near half a mile in length, densely timbered with sycamores, and has been a famous hiding place for deer, pursued by dogs. On one side of it is Wild Cat Point, a sharp cliff jutting from the mountain, and on the other is the Pond, which is a pond no longer. It used to be a slough or bay extending into the land ; but, in a freshet, the lower end was washed away, forming a channel through to the river a mile below, and making of the Pond an arm of the river.
Opposite the Island is a small island of about one acre. On the bank by this small island, on the mainland, is the site
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of an old Indian town, and there have been exhumed bones of human larger than those of ordinary persons. One- fourth mile below this is Horse Shoe Ford, and half mile further is the mouth of Dry Run, where the river is very swift and raftsmen must know the channel to go safely through. This passed, the St. George Eddy is reached.
From Sims' Bottom to this point the river flows round the Horse Shoe, a distance of six miles. But, from river to river, across the isthmus, the distance is scarcely one-sixtli that far. Could a canal be cut across this neck of land, it would give the facilities for a tremendous water-power, one sufficient to drive ten times as much machinery as there is or probably ever will be in the county.
The Horse Shoe is named from its resemblance to the shoe of a horse. From cork to cork, so to speak, the dis- tance is scarcely more than one mile, while around, it is six.
The St. George Eddy extends from the mouth of the Pond, the lower end of the Horse Shoe, to Ewin's Ford, be- low St. George, and is about one mile in length. It is per- haps the most picturesque and beautiful portion of the river. St. George stands on its shore, thus lending an air of life and civilization to the rural scenery along its banks ; while on the south side (for the river here flows westerly) a steep, forest-covered mountain rises abruptly from the wa- ter's edge, as a bluff, and then, after gaining a certain height, slopes gradually back to the higher summit beyond. When the river is low, as it generally is in the summer time, St. George Eddy is remarkably calm and placid. The wa- ter moves slowly and silently, and its surface is covered with white bubbles, which float lightly, and form a marked contrast with the dark, red water of the river.
The Rocks, about one-half a mile above the town, are a
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nice landing for skiffs; and pleasure parties often go on excursions there. Thick trees overshadow it, and a stream of cold water dasles down the steep mountain side, and is lost in the sombre river. At other points along the same shore, above and below, rivulets come down the hills by cataracts and cascades, until their final leap carries them into the deep water of the river. In winter these rills from the mountain freeze, and the ice piles thicker and higher, until the whole face of the hill becomes a glacier, and re- mains so until the warm winds of spring destroy the ice. But, the river and the scenery along its shores are seen in all their beauty only in the summer, when the trees are in full leaf. A fringe of trees lines the northern shore, and the foliage of maples, sugars, sycamores, beeches and other woods are blended in a verdant wall of quiet freshness. Just beyond, but seen only through the openings here and there in the groves, are the fields of farms, where the plan- tations of corn, and the acres of small grains and grasses ex- tend furlongs back from the river, and separate it from the steep rise of the mountains beyond.
In the summer evenings the mountains and trees cast their shadows over the river, and make it a delightful place for boat-riding. It is much frequented by persons, young and old, in the evening, and the painted skiffs, Indian ca- noes and other barks may be seen floating placidly upon the water or passing swiftly to and fro.
At the lower end of the St. George Eddy is Ewin's Ford, named from Hon. Win. Ewin who lives upon the bank of the river at that place. This is at the mouth of Clover Run, and here the road to Rowlesburg crosses the river.
The next feature in the river, worthy of note, is Auvil's Mill Dam, a dam built by John Auvil across the river to
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turn water into his mill race. The dam is a difficult place to be gotten over by raftsmen, and afterward it is a hard channel to keep. Rattlesnake Ford is named on account of a den of rattlesnakes that were formerly there. Jonathan Run is where Jonathan Minear was killed by the Indians, and is a considerable rafting wharf. From there to Miller Hill the river is straight, and the raftsmen steer for a rock that looks white in the summer time and black in the winter, when there is snow on the ground.
When the river passes the mouth of Bull Run, and trends off toward the east, it is washing the rugged base of Miller Hill, named from William Miller, who lives there. The Rowlesburg road passes around the hill, and from it the river, dashing over its rocky way, presents a scene of romance and beauty. When upon the river, it is found to be unusually narrow and swift, and it so bends that it is hard to keep rafts from running upon the bowlders that have rolled down from the hill and lie in the edge of the water. The waves roll high, and, some years ago, when the Rowles- burg Lumber and Iron Company run boats on the river to carry shingles to Rowlesburg, this part of the river was found to be the most difficult to pass, on account of the height and crestedness of the waves.
At the lower end of Miller Hill the river strikes fairly against the mountain, and turns to the north. Where it makes the turn, is a deep hole of water, with the dreadful name of "Murder Hole." River men remember it, because, upon entering it at full speed, as rafts do after passing through two miles of swift water, the oars strike dead water, and, by sluing, frequently knock the men into the river. There are different accounts as to how this eddy got its name. One is that wolves once killed a band of sheep on
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the bank near by, and another that a man was accidently drowned there.
Two small islands, named Pig and Macadonia, are soon passed, and the river is drawing near Licking Falls. This is another rough place, where the river falls several feet in a small distance. It is flowing north when it strikes Lime- stone Mountain, and by it is deflected toward the west. Where it strikes the mountain, the rage of years and cen- turies of floods have torn out rocks from the earth, and the river is partly blocked up with them. As the waters are damned up, and break over, they form Licking Falls, at the mouth of Licking Creek, and near where Lieut. Robert McChesney was killed.
Turtle Rocks are soon passed. These are several large, angular rocks, rising out of the river on the northern or eastern side, where the water is deep. In the summer time large numbers of clumsy, lazy turtles may be seen basking in the sunshine, and from this the rocks take their name.
The Seven Islands are well known to all rivermen ; for, if a raft can pass there, its way to Rowlesburg can be de- pended upon. The islands seem to have been seven in number when they got their name; but the number is not constant. They are partly sand bars, and a flood in the river may build or destroy several of them.
The river now passes from Tucker into Preston. From where it first enters the county to where it leaves it, follow- ing the windings of the river, is from forty to sixty miles, depending upon which fork is measured. It does not flow with a uniform rapidity through the county. At times it is very swift, and again it is slow. Among the mountains it is swifter than after it reaches the Holly Meadows. Thirty miles, the distance from the Turn Eddy to Rowlesburg, has
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been run in five hours by boats on a good stage of water. When the water is low, of course, the progress is less rapid. Often it takes twelve hours to make the same trip. Rafts and boats go only a very little faster than the current of the river.
The timber that is sawed into lumber in Tucker County and is taken to market, goes down the river in rafts to Rowlesburg. A large number of log rafts go down annually. An average raft contains seventy logs, and twenty-five thousand feet. The logs are held together by polls fastened across the logs by staples. Oars from twenty to fifty feet long are placed on the ends of the rafts to keep them in the channel.
Among the most noted log raftsmen who have been along the river of late years, may be mentioned William H. Lips- comb, Thomas F. Hebb, Baxter Long, S. E. Parsons, Philip Constable, Charles Parsons, Lloyd Hansford, Magarga Par- sons, L. E. Goff, Hiram Loughry and Finley Toy.
Another kind of rafts is that of planks or sawed lumber. This has been an important industry in the county, and is still largely carried on. Planks are rafted by building them into platforms, usually sixteen feet square, and twelve inches thick, and then lashing the platforms end to end, until the raft is from sixty-four to one hundred and twenty-eight feet long. Two such rafts, side by side, are called a "double raft ;" and when they are laden with lumber until the plat- forms are entirely sunken, they contain about seventy-five thousand feet. The most extensive lumber rafter of Tucker County, is C. R. Macomber, who has thus taken to market millions of feet. Others who have rafted extensively are A. C. Minear, Finley Toy, W. D. Losh, A. H. Bonnifield and others. The largest plank rafts have four oars.
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An industry that has sprung up within the past few years in Tucker, and one that brings in a considerable revenue, is the shingle mills. . The first was built by the Rowlesburg Lumber and Iron Company at John Fansler's on Horse Shoe Run, some eight miles above St. George. The mill was something new in the country, as its steam engine was the first one ever in the county, and people came from near and far to see it. The tram-road, which brought logs to the mill was also the first thing of that sort ever in the county, and its trucks were looked upon with a wonder sec- ond only to that excited by the steam engine.
The mill was built by Balus, a mill-wright from Balti- more, and the machinery was set up by Frank Blanchard, who sawed the first shingle ever sawed in Tucker County. He was and is one of the best machinists in the State. When the mill was gotten ready to run, large crowds came together to see the fool thing start. Some said that it was a grand thing and others that it would be the ruination of the country. However, it got to going, and worked to per- fection, cutting eight thousand shingles a day. They were eighteen inches long and four inches wide. Of course, some were wider and some not so wide; but, this was what was required in the measurement. They were packed into bunches of two hundred and fifty each, and were hauled to the river on sleds in the winter time and on wagons in the summer. Among those who hauled were Ward Parsons, C. L. Parsons, John Closs, B. F. Dumire, James Knotts and William Losh. The mill was kept running for several years, and until the Rowlesburg Lumber and Iron Company went into bankruptcy. After that the mill was run at intervals until all the timber in the vicinity had been cut, when it was removed. The most prosperous period of the mill's existence was about 1870.
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The next shingle-mill in the county was that built by Rufus Maxwell, and run by water-power. In its after mod- ifications, the saw ran horizontal instead of vertical.
Abraham and Daniel L. Dumire built the next one on Laurel Run, at the Lead Mine post-office. This mill was sold from one to another, until the controlling interest was in the hands of Cyrus Dumire. George Auvil built the next shingle factory. It was located on Mill Run, about two miles above St. George.
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