WV-FOOTSTEPS-D Digest				Volume 00 : Issue 35

Today's Topics:
  #1 Excerpt from "The Potomac Naturali   ["Koren Fae Rawlings" <pendhist@acc]




______________________________X-Message: #1
Date: Wed, 26 Jan 2000 18:29:46 -0500
From: "Koren Fae Rawlings" <pendhist@access.mountain.net>
To: WV-FOOTSTEPS-L@rootsweb.com
Message-ID: <000201bf7193$876c0dc0$bc264dc6@default>
Subject: Excerpt from "The Potomac Naturalist" by J. Lawrence Smith
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As many of you are interested in WV, and doing genealogical research
in Pendleton , Grant and Hardy Counties, I thought I would transcribe
some parts of the Potomac Naturalist, so that you may get some idea of
the area your ancestors settled, and why they loved it.   Today the
county is not changed a lot.   There is still rustic, rural, unspoiled
areas to be seen and enjoyed.   I will send several excerpts of
different interest.   Try to picture the land as your ancestors found
it.

The Potomac Naturalist
The History of the Headwaters of the Historic Potomac
1968, by J. Lawrence Smith

Introduction:  From the Vantage Point  {part 1}

Come with me to the crest of North Fork Mountain above the Smoke Hole
in Pendleton County, WV.  We will climb the fire tower atop the
mountain and make this our vantage point from which we can look across
much of the three county area of Pendleton, Grant and Hardy as the
mountains and valleys are unfolded before us towards the four points
of the compass.

As we stand on the tower and look in various directions, we can see
many of the prominent features in this region of the upper Potomac and
with binoculars it is possible to bring many of these outstanding
features into sharper focus for a closer view as we look at them
across the distance of several air line miles.   From our vantage
point on the fire tower we can gain a vast and sweeping picture of the
landscape, the mountains and valleys, and many prominent natural
features in the upper Potomac region.  It is possible to encompass so
much from this point on top of the mountain as we focus our view of
the mountainous landscape that well be the subject of the following
pages.

Looking towards the south along the western side of North Fork
Mountain, we can see Germany Valley.   The name of the valley comes
from the Pennsylvania Dutch settlers who were of German descent and
moved into the valley, cleared the forests and began farming the rich
soil.  The River Knobs can be seen that rise abruptly along the
western edge of the valley and seperate the valley from the North Fork
River and its course northward into Grant County.   Towering above the
course of the North Fork stands Seneca Rocks, but we cannot see this
widely known natural feature in Pendleton County from our vantage
point due to the mass of the mountain obstructing our view.

Shifting our view in a more westerly direction, we can see the massive
ridge of Spruce Mountain.  On this mountain is located the highest
piece of solid ground in the state of West Virginia at Spruce Knob.

Towards the west we look into the great cleft in the mountain ridge
that has been cut by Seneca Creek as it rushes from the mountain
heights and flows into the North Fork River at Mouth of Seneca.
Green Knob lifts its head above the other knobs in the west.   U.S.
route 33 can be seen winding its way up from the valley of the North
Fork as it climbs the face of Allegheny Mountain before it drops down
the mountain's back into Randolph County.

In the northwest we can see the long and flat-topped ridge of
Allegheny Front Mountain with its patches of spruce.   The land along
the top of this mountain has been called the Roaring Plains since the
wind often howls across the mountain's flattened top and the spruce
trees bear the scars with their limbs blown to one side.   With the
use of binoculars, we can see the fire tower at Bell Knob as it
perches near the edge of the mountain's steep flank.

As we look northward along the crest of North Fork Mountain, we see
North Fork Gap where the North Fork River has cut a great gash in the
spine of the mountain.  Beyond the gap lies the high sandstone cliffs
with their talus slopes where New Creek Mountain has its southern
terminus.   This mountain is a continuation of the same ridge as North
Fork Mountain, but it has been given another name at this point
because the river has forever broken the back of the mountain by
cutting its course eastward through the gap.

Looking along the top of the mountain in a northerly direction, we see
the high cliffs of Tuscarora sandstone that outcrop between our
vantage point and North Fork Gap.   This is the same hard sandstone
that has been uplifted to form Seneca Rocks at Mouth of Seneca.   In
the distance just to the east of the mountain ridge, can be seen
housed and barns in the neighborhood of Cabins west of Petersburg.

Moorefield, a town that has known a rich history and the waes of war
with the ebb and flow of the armies of the North and South during the
Civil War, is visible in the northeast.   The ridge of South Branch
Mountain rised beyond Moorefield and here at a high point on the
mountain, the red pine grows and reaches one of the southernmost known
places of growth for this northern pine.   Not far from Moorefield,
the outstanding feature of Baker Rock can be seen along withthe other
imposing palisades of Oriskany sandstone that are thrust upward from
the mountain's flank.   Eastward from Baker Rock lies the crest of
Elkhorn Mountain.

As we look towards the east, it is possible to see the small community
of Kline, to look through the Greenawalt Gap and beyong to South Fork
Mountain.   Beyond South Fork Mountain is the impressive ridge of
Shenandoah Mountain, the mountain that has uplifted its high and lofty
back to separate West Virginia from Virginia.   Doubtless, the lofty
ridge of Shenandoah Mountain which has often posed a barrier to
transportation and communication was a prominent factor in Pendleton
County and its people becoming a part of the state of West Virginia
over one hundred years ago.

Casting our sights to the south, southeast along Shenandoah Mountain,
we look towards Reddish Knob.   Looking northward along the crest of
the mountain, the fire tower above Brandywine can be seen and also the
one at Cow Knob.   Where the back of the mountain slumps, it is
possible to see a ridge beyond which is probably North Mountain that
seperates Hardy County from Shenandoah County, VA.   The clarity of
the air and the great visibility from the vantage point are impressed
upon us by the fact that we are looking at North Mountain at a crow
flight distance of twenty-five miles.

Koren Fae Rawlings
304-358-3261
Pendleton Co, WVa Historical Preservation Association
pendhist@access.mountain.net