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Cherokee county derives its name from the Indian tribe which formerly inhabited it. The county was constituted in 1836. It is a border county lying alongside Georgia upon the east. Its natural advantages are very great, especially those relating to its mineral richness. Its agricultural capabilities are also good. Considerable enterprise has existed in the county for many years, and great progress has been made in the development of its resources, as its numerous mining interests will attest.
The area of Cherokee is 660 square miles.
Population in 1870, 11,132 ; population in 1880, 19,108. White, 16,418 ; colored, 2,690.
Tilled Land: 88,819 acres.—Area planted in cotton, 24,388 acres; in corn, 33,373 acres ; in oats, 7,477 acres; in wheat, 10,085 acres; in rye, 163 acres; in tobacco, 82 acres; in sweet potatoes, 335 acres.
Cotton Production : 10,777 bales.
As will be seen from the statistics furnished, within ten years extending from 1870 to 1880, the population of Cherokee was almost doubled. There has been a steady influx of population into the county which has increased with the years. More and more its numerous advantages in soil, climate, mineral wealth, and location are being appreciated.
The face of the country is generally uneven and sometimes mountainous, and like all the counties of this region, the upper lands are thin with very fertile valleys lying between.
The cultivated soils of Cherokee are composed of red and brown loams which belong to the caves and valleys, and skirt the principal streams. Upon these lands most of the cotton of the county is produced. Then along the ridges and hills are found the thinner soils, which have a grayish cast and are mixed with a flinty gravel. The character of both these classes of lands varies very greatly with the different localities. Then there are what are called "the flatwoods," which form a considerable belt in the county. Though this soil, when analyzed, shows that it has fine productive capabilities, it is but rarely cultivated, because care has not been taken to drain it. No doubt it can be brought into profitable cultivation. Perhaps in no county in the State can there be found a greater diversity of soil than in Cherokee.
The valley lands are almost entirely devoted to the production of corn, cotton, wheat, and oats. Upon the higher or tablelands are produced excellent fruits, chief among which are apples, pears, peaches, and plums. Fruit trees are but seldom disturbed by frost. With proper care and cultivation orchards growing upon these elevated lands become very profitable. The vine is cultivated with wonderful success along the mountains.
Stock-raising in Cherokee is on the increase because of the revenue derived from the experiments already made. Herbage grows with such readiness, and in such profusion, as to encourage the greater production of stock.
The growth of the forests comprises oaks (of the several varieties), hickory, chestnut, short and long-leaf pines. There is quite an extensive prevalence of pine forests in the county, which have given rise to many mills and log-yards, which are established at convenient bluffs along the Coosa river, giving employment to many laborers.
In several portions of Cherokee there are extensive and valuable deposits of iron ore, much of which is worked up in the furnaces along the East Teunesse, Virginia and Georgia railroad. The following iron works arc in successful operation in the county: The Stone-wall Iron Company, Tccumsch Iron Company, Rock Run Furnace. Alabama Iron Company, Cornwall Iron Works, and Round Mountain Furnace. There is a fine cotton factory at Spring Garden. Rich coal deposits also exist in the county.
Cherokee has an abundant water supply, being traversed by the Coosa, Chattooga, Yellow, and Little rivers, and Cowan's, Ball Play, Wolf, Spring, Terrapin, Yellow, and Mill creeks. All these are valuable streams, which are fed by numerous tributaries. This is the only county the heart of which is penetrated by the beautiful river Coosa. With the exception of Etowah, near whose eastern boundary the river runs, it forms the border line of all the other counties which it waters. But Cherokee, it divides in twain, imparting fertility and beauty from limit to limit of the county. The waterways already named have almost without exception immense capabilities of water-power adapted to the planting of vast enterprises.
The line between Cherokee and DeKalb counties runs along the summit of Lookout Mountain.
The Broomtown Valley in the northwest corner of Cherokee is worthy of special mention by reason of its fertility and romantic beauty. The grandeur of this section is enhanced by its bold and clear streams, which ramify it throughout.
Transportation is afforded the county by the East Tennessee, Virginia and Georgia railroad, and the Coosa river.
Center, the county-seat, and Cedar Bluff are the leading towns. Together with other centers of population, these possess good educational and religious advantages. At Gaylesville there is a high school of note.
Lands range in price from $2.50 to $35 per acre. The government owns 20,720 acres of land in Cherokee county.
Source: Alabama As It Is by Benjamin Franklin Riley, D. D., 1887 , Transcribed by C. Anthony
