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CONDITIONS BY COUNTIES. 



Topography. 



The surface of the county, which is broken into irregular 

 hiUs and long, elevated ridges, slopes from an elevation of about 

 600 feet at the point where Big Coal river leaves in the northern 

 end, up to 3,500 feet along the southern border. 



The principal streams are the Big and Little Coal rivers, 

 both flowing through the county in a northwesterly direction 

 and uniting a short distance beyond the county line. The right- 

 hand tributaries of Big Coal are Bull creek, Lick creek, Short 

 creek, Tony creek, Joe creek and White Oak creek; its left- 

 hand tributaries are Fork creek. Brush creek, Drawdy creek 

 and Laurel creek. Little Coal river is formed near Madison, 

 the county seat, by the union of Pond and Spruce forks which 

 drain the whole southern and southwestern part of the county. 

 The principal tributaries of the Little Coal below Madison are 

 Turtle creek. Lick creek. Rock creek, Camp creek, Hewitt creek 

 and Horse creek. The headwaters of Mud river drain a small 

 area in the western part of the county. 



The larger streams flow slowly in most places, and between 

 high hills that slope abruptly to the narrow valleys. 



Original Forest Conditions. 



The forests of Boone contained little timber except the 

 hardwoods. There was a fringe of hemlocks along many of the 

 streams, and toward the heads of Big and Little Coal rivers this 

 species grew in considerable abundance. Pitch Dines grew on 

 ridges and southern faces in some parts. 



The following statement in regard to the timber in the vir- 

 gin forests of the county was written 17 years ago when fully 

 one half of the poplar timber" remained untouched and when 

 three fourths of all other kinds'* were standing in their virgin 

 state. 



**The principal timber trees are poplar, walnut, oaks, ash, 

 hickory, maple, beech, birch, lynn, pine, hemlock, cherry, chest- 

 nut and locust. Poplar and wahiut timber is especially fine in 

 Boone and trees of enormous size are often reported. 



"A poplar tree was cut in 1889 on the waters of Big coal 



