FOREST CONDITIONS IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA. 55 



been mined for from 30 to 40 years. The ore was formerly smelted here, 

 but now it is taken in the rough state to Johnson City, Tenn. Before 

 the Civil War, iron ore was mined and smelted near Magnetic City. 



Lumbering, which is carried on chiefly by small portable mills, is the 

 principal industry. Some 52 sawmills are at present operating in the 

 county, of which a dozen or more are small water-mills, run in connec- 

 tion with grist mills. All lumber is hauled to the railroad by wagons. 

 This is an expensive process, for though the distances are not great, the 

 hauls are made most difficult by the poor condition of the roads, which 

 in the winter and spring months are almost impassable for a loaded 

 wagon. Three of the larger lumber companies have built tram roads 

 from their logging yards to their mills and the railroad, in order to do 

 away with the difficulties of wagon hauling. 



Forests still cover 77 per cent of the county. The best grades of tim- 

 ber are in the northern and southeastern portions, where there are vir- 

 gin stands. Probably the largest single tract of virgin timber, consist- 

 ing of some 9,200 acres situated in the Linville Biver drainage basin, is 

 held by the Linville Improvement Company. Around Magnetic City 

 and Cranberry, where the forest was cut over some 25 or 30 years ago 

 for smelter wood, thrifty second growth stands of young oak, chestnut, 

 poplar, and sugar maple occur. These young stands will develop into 

 valuable forests if protected from fire. 



In the less severely culled woods, which constitute the greater part of 

 the forests, chestnut and the oaks are the most important species. In 

 the coves and near the heads of streams, chestnut is the most character- 

 istic tree, probably making up 40 per cent of the stand. The trees are 

 generally large, and the timber for the most part over-mature and poor. 

 Most of it has little value, except for extract wood. In the bottoms hem- 

 lock is in poor condition. It is estimated that at least 30 per cent of the 

 trees are shaky or otherwise defective. This bottomland type of hem- 

 lock growth which is most common in the Linville Valley and near 

 Montezuma generally occupies deep, loamy clay soils that are well suited 

 to agriculture. These will eventually be cleared up and the land con- 

 verted into farms. Spruce and balsam occupy the tops and upper slopes 

 of Grandfather, Koan, and Unaka mountains. The trees are generally 

 small and scrubby, and the stand will not average over 20 cords to the 

 acre. Ked spruce makes up about 60 per cent of this forest and balsam 

 35 per cent, while birch, buckeye, and hemlock constitute the remainder. 



Fires are most frequent in the vicinity of the railroads, and until 

 recent years there has been little attempt to prevent them. Probably 

 from 20 to 25 per cent of the forest is still burned over annually. 



