crops grown are peanuts, cotton, tobacco, and corn. 
Over considerable areas near the coast, drainage is too 
poor for agricultural production, and these areas will 
probably remain in forest. Forests also occur in exten- 
sive blocks on the higher soils throughout the province. 
Piedmont soils are chiefly of the Cecil-Appling 
group, with associated Durham, Appalachian, and 
Louisa soils. Originally fertile, they have been deteri- 
orated by severe sheet and occasional gully erosion and 
by poor cropping practices. Over large areas they 
are now more valuable for timber than for crops. To- 
bacco, corn, wheat, oats, vegetables, and fruit are the 
principal agricultural products. The typical land use 
pattern is an intermingling of crop, pasture, and forest 
land—all in relatively small blocks. Extensive areas 
of forest are much less common than in either the 
Coastal Plain or the mountains. 
The soils of the Blue Ridge portion of the Moun- 
tain province are chiefly the Porter-Ashe and asso- 
ciates. They are friable and inherently fertile but 
climate and topography restrict crop production. A 
self-sufficing farming system characterizes the area. 
Corn, wheat, burley tobacco, and fruit are principal 
crops. Livestock are an important source of farm 
income. In the Great Valley, the principal soils are 
the Hagerstown, Frederick, and associates, chiefly of 
limestone origin. These soils are dominantly silt 
loams and clay loams and are highly suitable for 
pasturage and fruit. Apples in the north and live- 
stock in the south are the principal farm products. 
The soils of the Appalachian Plateau are mostly the 
De Kalb, Leetonia, and Claymen. All of these soils, 
and especially the predominant De Kalb, are stony, 
frequently intermingled with rough, broken bedrock. 
Farming is of the dairy or general-farm type but most 
of the area is forested. 
Virginia’s chief mineral resource is coal, mostly bi- 
tuminous, but with smaller amounts of semibituminous 
and semianthracite. Original deposits are estimated 
at 32.5 billion tons. Production in 1941 was 18.4 
million tons of coal and 325,000 tons of coke, valued 
at $44,840,000. Coal and coke provided 63 percent 
of the value of all minerals produced in the State in 
that year, products such as stone, sand and gravel, 
clay, clay products, and zinc accounting for the re- 
mainder. ‘The total value of all mineral production 
in 1941 was $71,341,000 (6, pp. 152-156). Coal 
production is localized in three areas: In the Piedmont 
near Richmond; in the southwestern Valley near 
Marion and Pulaski; and, the principal area, in the 
Appalachian Plateau in extreme southwestern Vir- 
oinla. 
yi 
Water, both surface and ground supply, is one of | 
the most important resources of the State, and has_ 
contributed markedly to its development. The upper 
reaches of the major streams and their headwater 
tributaries provide water power and their tidal por- 
tions afford a major artery of transportation. Pre- 
cipitation retained in the soil and rocks as ground 
water provides for maintenance of stream flow and for 
well supplies. ‘“Virginia’s feasible, undeveloped water 
power is estimated to be sufficient for an output of 
4.5 billion kilowatt-hours annually” (9, p. 2). In 
1944, the total hydroelectric output of the State was 
579.5 million kilowatt-hours, or less than 13 percent 
of potential capacity. The 1944 output, however, rep- 
resented an increase of 18 percent since 1937. In 
1944, hydroelectric plants provided 16 percent of the 
total production of electrical power in the State (3.6 
billion kilowatt-hour) (7, p. 65; 9). 
Use of water for domestic and industrial purposes 
in the State is dependent on impounded surface waters, 
base stream flow, natural springs, and both deep and 
shallow wells. In the Mountain province most towns 
depend on small reservoirs or natural springs; in the 
Piedmont and Coastal Plain the larger cities depend 
on reservoirs or direct river intakes, while the smaller 
communities in general use deep wells. Since water 
shortages exist in the southern Piedmont and Tide- 
water communities dependent on wells, more im- 
pounding reservoirs are needed. Quality of the sur- 
face and spring waters in the mountains is generally 
high, that of the Piedmont and Coastal Plain surface 
waters is low, requiring extensive treatment for both 
domestic and industrial use. Full use of the poten- 
tial water resources of the State is dependent on wise 
land use on all the major watersheds in order to mini- 
mize soil erosion and excessive runoff, the forerunners 
of silting and floods. Wise land use obviously implies 
conservation management on both forest and farm 
properties. 
Social and Industrial Conditions 
Virginia’s economy is well balanced between agri- 
culture and industry. For the State as a whole, farm 
production is well diversified. Industrially the State 
ranks third in value of manufactured products among 
the 12 States of the South,’ being exceeded only by 
Texas and North Carolina. In 1939, Virginia pro- 
duced 13 percent of the value of all manufactured 
goods in the South, her products being valued at 989 
* Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Missis- 
sippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, 
Texas, and Virginia. 
Miscellaneous Publication 681, U. S. Department of Agriculture 
