Before the timber boom in the New River area, the Glade Creek and Piney Creek valleys contained about 50,000 acres of virgin pine and substantial stands of yellow poplar and oak. This seemingly endless old-growth deciduous forest was a siren song . . . — — Map (db m197519) HM
As logging in the New River Gorge expanded, timber operations gradually became more efficient. Local timber company J. R. Beaty and Company created the first railroad in Raleigh County, the Glade Creek and Raleigh (GC&R) Railroad, in 1895. The . . . — — Map (db m197516) HM
While early explorers knew about the rich timber and coal resources in this region, it took the completion of the Chesapeake and Ohio (C&O) Railroad through the New River Gorge in 1873 to open the area up to major logging and mining operations. . . . — — Map (db m197514) HM
