WEST VIRGINIA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 



133 



which are McElroy creek, Arnold creek, Buckeye creek and 

 Meathouse Fork. Portions of the southern part are drained by 

 tributaries of Hughes river and of Leading creek. 



Original Timber Conditions. 



The timbers of the county were the oaks, hickories, walnuts, 

 yellow poplar, white ash, and other hardwoods, all reaching a 

 large size and attaining a high degree of excellence in the rich 

 lands commonly found in all sections. There were small quan- 

 tities of yellow and white pines, hemlock and red cedar. 



The Lumber Industry. 



The principal outlets for manufactured lumber have been 

 the Baltimore and Ohio railroad since about 1857, and Middle 

 Island creek and its larger tributaries. 



Water saw mills on Middle Island creek and its branches 

 were common until within recent years, cutting vast quantities 

 of fine yellow poplar and some other timbers. About 90 per 

 cent of the yellow poplar was sawed and rafted to a chair fae- 

 tary in Marietta, the rest going to Pittsburg. 



Beginning with about 1880 oak timber was cut and much 

 of it sold in Marietta and in Beverly and Malta on the Musking- 

 um river in Ohio. 



Much timber has been used in oil rigs thousands of which 

 have been constructed in the county during the past 25 years. 



Large numbers of staves and ties have been floated down 

 Middle Island creek to St. Marys, the ties being sold largely to 

 the Pennsylvania railroad and the staves to manufacturers of 

 oil barrels in Baltimore. 



The timber that has been taken "has gone down the water 

 courses which liberally supply the county with transportation 

 for timber, or has been hauled to the railroad over tram roads 

 which are numerous and of considerable length, one of them 

 being about twenty miles long, and over which vast quantities of 

 timber have been hauled. In most places where the timber has 

 been removed it has been taken, staves, ties, telegraph poles, 



