WEST VIRGINIA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 



235 



Pittsburg. The first stave saw mills came into the county in 

 1880. In the following 15 years great numbers of staves were 

 sawed and sold to contractors who shipped them to Pittsburg 

 from St. Marys. 



The first saw mills to operate in the county Avere sash saw 

 mills run by water power. These began as early as 1830. The 

 Sylvan mill, located on Middle Island creek about 6 miles 

 above its mouth, was the principal mill in the county from 

 about 1840 to 1880. During most of the year this mill ran day 

 and night. The lumber which it manufactured was rafted to 

 southern points along the Ohio river. Other mills of this kind 

 were the Locke mill, the Lamp mill, the Gattrell mill, the Wat- 

 son mill and the Seckman mill, all located on McKim creek 

 a tributary of Middle Island. 



Portable steam saw mills were brought in about 1870. 

 Their coming marked the beginning of the greatest activity in 

 the lumber industry. Companies bought timber and located 

 mills in nearly all sections of the county. The most extensiva 

 operation was that of Jones and Haines. With a stationary 

 mill at Jonestown on McKim creek and several portable mills 

 at various points they employed a force of 100 to 150 men from 

 1875 to 1884. Cochran Brothers, with 1 mill in Pleasants 

 county and 1 in Eitchie, removed about 3 million feet of tim- 

 ber from Cow creek. Hammet Brothers, also, cut timber in 

 the same section. Capt. Martin Bachman and Nicholas Broth- 

 ers were prominent operators on French creek. 



The cross-tie industry was large from 1870 to 1895. The 

 principal shipping point was St. Marys. 



Black walnut, which was once common in rich coves and 

 bottoms throughout the county, was largely taken out and ex- 

 ported to Europe during the ^'walnut boom" from 1870 to 

 1875. 



There has been an enormous oil production in the county 

 since 1860. The first territory was developed on Horseneck 

 creek in that year and later developments began in 1889. No 

 other one industry has dra^ATi so heavily upon the supply of 

 oaks and other hardwoods of the county. Oil well derricks of 

 the earlier development were "boarded up" on all sides and 



