14 
SOIL SURVEY OF JACKSON COUNTY 
county, and centers about the inland town of Melrose which is 
connected with Black River Falls by stage. 
Highways .—The main dirt roads throughout the western part 
of the county are usually graded and kept in good condition, as 
the predominating soil material usually makes a good roadbed, 
but hills are numerous and grades are frequently steep; so 
heavy hauling is difficult. Throughout the sandy portion of 
the county most of the roads are very sandy, but in some in¬ 
stances shale or clay, where available, has been used in improving 
the highways with very satisfactory results. 
Other improvements .—At Hatfield there is a large dam across 
the Black River just above the rapids, and this forms an exten¬ 
sive reservoir known as Lake Arbutus. A power house is located 
several miles south of the dam, and from here the electric pow T er 
is carried over high tension transmission lines to La Crosse 
and other points. 
Nearly all parts of the county are supplied with rural free 
delivery service, and telephones are in common use. 
Markets .—The towns within the area afford markets and ship¬ 
ping points for the farm produce raised. From Black River 
Falls to Madison, it is 127 miles and to Milwaukee 209 miles. 
It is 250 miles to Chicago, and 152 miles to Minneapolis, Minne¬ 
sota. 
Farm equipment .—The farm buildings and equipment in the 
Knox silt loam and Boone fine sandy loam and loam country 
are generally modern and up to date in all ways. In the vicinity 
of Melrose and the north side of the Trempealeau River valley, 
large barns and silos, electric lights and w T ater supply systems 
are common. A number of farms use tractors, although the 
amount of steep and rough land precludes the use of some types 
of tractors for field work. 
In the more sandy districts, farm buildings are generally 
less pretentious, occasional abandoned farms are seen, and 
equipment and machinery are of a less complete order. Al¬ 
though there are sometimes very good buildings and equipment 
on sandy farms, the general condition of these is usually a fair 
indication as to the fertility of the soil or the profitable nature 
of the farming done. 
