CHAPTER LXIV. 
REPORT ON THE GEOLOGY OF BELMONT COUNTY, NORTH 
OF THE CENTRAL OHIO RAILROAD. 
BY JNO. J. STEVENSON. 
+ 
Belmont county is bounded on the north by Harrison and Jefierson 
counties, on the east by the Ohio River, on the south by Monroe county, 
and on the west by Guernsey county. It contains sixteen townships, 
with a total area of not far from six hundred square miles. 
The surface of that portion of the county which hes north from the 
Central Ohio Railroad is much diversified, the streams being very num- 
erous, and some of them quite large. In the west, Stillwater Creek 
drains Warren, Kirkwood, and Flushing townships, while Wheeling 
Creek and its many tributaries drain Union, Wheeling, Richiand, Cole- 
rain, and Pease townships. The soil for the most part is excellent, 
owing to the large proportion of limestone in the rocks whence it is 
derived, but the steepness of the hills renders extensive farming opera- 
tions somewhat unsatisfactory. The inhabitants have expended much 
strength upon wool-raising, which has proved to be, in the main, quite 
profitable. In several townships stock-raising has been attended with 
success. In the western portion of the county tobacco is an important 
crop, there being shipped from Barnesville alone upwards of two millions 
of pounds per annum. The steep hills along the Ohio are covered with 
deep, rich soil, which is admirably adapted to grape culture. 
The county seat is St. Clairsville, a prosperous village of several hun- 
dred inhabitants. The principal villages are Bellair, Bridgeport, Barnes- 
ville, and Flushing. The community throughout seems to be pros- 
perous. Much attention has been bestowed upon the roads, many of 
which are macadamized. Schools and churches are numerous, and, for 
the most part, of such a character as to reflect credit upon the taste and 
intelligence of the people. | 
GEHOLOGICAL STRUCTURE. 
This portion of Belmont county exhibits no satisfactory evidence of 
glacial action. A few water-worn fragments were obtained on some of 
the higher hills, but they had been transported for but a short distance, 
if, indeed, they had been transported at all. In structure they are the 
same with rocks in the immediate vicinity. Along the river the gravel 
