268 



CONDITIONS BY COUNTIES. 



tributaries are Macfarlan creek, Indian creek, Slab creek and 

 "Whiteoak creek, flowing in from the north, and Bear run, 

 Leatherbark creek, Grass run, Spruce creek, Bone creek and 

 Otterslide creek, flowing in from the south. Goose creek flows 

 south near the western edge of the county. 



Original Timber Conditions. 



Yellow poplar grew in all parts of the county, but not to 

 as large a size as on some of the waters of the Little Kanawha 

 river higher up. Wild cherry was plentiful near the forks of 

 Hughes river and along many of the streams. Mr. John Cain, 

 county surveyor of Ritchie, speaks of a wild cherry which had a 

 clear trunk 83 feet in length and 30 inches in diameter near 

 the ground. This tree grew on Gillespie run, a branch of North 

 Fork. Basswood was found in abundance and of good quality 

 at the bases of north hillsides in most sections. Yellow pine 

 was common on ridges and flats. On low benches of hills and 

 at the heads of coves the yellow pines grew to a large size. Oaks, 

 including white oak, chestnut oak and black oak, were dis- 

 tributed over the whole county. Other common timber trees 

 were beech, chestnut, hickory and walnut. There were scat- 

 tered clumps of white pine here and there and fringes of hem- 

 locks grew along the colder streams. 



Christopher Gist, who passed with his ^exploring party 

 down the North Fork of Hughes river in February, 1752, speaks 

 of the land near Harrisville as "rich and well timbered with 

 lofty "Walnuts, Ash, Sugar trees, etc. but hilly in most places." 



The Lumber Industry. 



The 2 principal outlets for the timber of Ritchie county 

 are Hughes river and the Baltimore and Ohio railroad. 



Rafting and floating have progressed in the lower end of 

 the county from about 1840 to the present. During the early 

 years of water transportation all logs were rafted; but for 20 

 years or more logs have been floated loose and caught in booms. 

 It is stated that most of the timber cut from all points 10 miles 



