WEST VIRGINIA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 



141 



which is handling from 600 to 800 rafts a year of saw timber and 

 about 100,000 cross-ties. W. J. Holden and Lowther and Flem- 

 ing, of Parkersburg have also been purchasing and rafting cross- 

 ties from the county for several years. 



Portable saw mills were brought to the county about 1865. 

 Many of these have continued to run to the present time. They 

 have sawed large numbers of cross-ties and considerable export 

 oak and bill stock within reach of the railroad in the eastern end 

 of the county. No band mills have operated in the county. Two 

 of the prominent portable saw mill operators were John R. Bart- 

 lett and Benj. Allen. 



The stave industry has not been extensive. A considerable 

 quantity of split staves, however, has been hauled to the railroad 

 and shipped, and Withers and Vandevender have been engaged 

 for some time in sawing staves at several points in the county. 



The Present Forest Conditions. 



There are about 13,000 acres of excellent virgin forest ly- 

 ing in the southwestern part of the county on the waters of the 

 Eight Fork of Steer creek. All of this, except about 1,000 acres, 

 is in the hands of operators who will probably manufacture the 

 white oak found there into staves within the next few years. A 

 tract of 1,700 acres in the northern end of the county comes 

 under the head of cut-over forest. All the rest of the woodland 

 is owned in small scattered boundaries by farmers. As a rule 

 the farmers' woodlots have but little merchantable timber. 



GRANT COUNTY. 



Location and Area. 



Grant county, formed in 1866 from a part of Hardy, lies 

 south of Garrett county, Maryland, and of Mineral county; 

 north of Pendleton, east of Tucker and west of Hardy. Its area 

 is 483 square miles or 309,120 acres. 



