Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XV.djvu/201

 SOUTH CAROLINA 193 the middle country is a belt called the ridge, where the land rises abruptly, and thence con- tinues to ascend, exhibiting beautiful alterna- tions of hill and dale, till it terminates at the ex- treme N. W. part of the state in the Blue Ridge, the highest peak of which in South Carolina is Table mountain, 4,000 ft. above the Atlantic. The coast line extends from Little River inlet, in a S. W. direction, to the mouth of the Sa- vannah river, about 200 m. The coast presents numerous inlets, bays, shallow sounds and la- goons, and a few good harbors. Winyaw bay, the easternmost harbor of any note, is 14 m. long and about 2 m. wide. Georgetown is at the head of this bay, to which vessels of light draught ascend. Passing S. W., Bull's bay is next in order, then Charleston harbor, St. Helena sound, and Beaufort harbor, or Port Royal entrance, besides a number of small in- lets. Beaufort harbor, which admits vessels of 24 ft. draught, is one of the best in the southern states. Stono inlet, a few miles S. of Charleston, admits vessels drawing 9 or 10 ft. of water. St. Helena sound is a spacious opening 10 m. long and 3 m. broad. Small ds skirt the S. portion of the coast, shut from the mainland by narrow channels, hich afford inland steamboat communication tween Charleston and Savannah. These isl- .ds are low and flat, and produce sea island tton. Rice is also here produced in large antities, and tropical fruits flourish. Savan- h river, which forms the boundary between uth Carolina and Georgia, is formed by the nfluence of the Tugaloo and Keowee, which rise in the mountains near the line of North Carolina and unite at Anderson, in the W. part of South Carolina; flowing thence in a S. S. E. direction 450 m., it empties into the Atlantic 18 m. below Savannah, near lat. 32 N. and Ion. 81 W. The Savannah is navi- gable for large vessels to the city of Savannah, and for steamers of 150 tons to Augusta, 230 m. further, and by means of a canal round the falls at Augusta smaller boats ascend 150 m. further. The other principal rivers are the Great Pedee, the Santee, and the Edisto. The first, which rises in the Blue Ridge, flows E. S. E. and S. S. E. through North Carolina, where it is called the Yadkin, passes through the E. portion of South Carolina, receives the Black river and Lynch's creek on. the right, and the Little Pedee and Waccamaw on the left, and empties into Winyaw bay. It is navigable for steamboats to Cheraw, a distance of about 150 m., above which navi- gation is obstructed by a fall. The Santee is formed by the junction of the Congaree and Wateree, which by their tributaries rise in the Blue Ridge (W. part of North Caro- lina), flow S., and unite in the central part of South Carolina ; the stream thus formed, flow- ing upward of 120 m. in a S. E. direction, reaches the Atlantic by two mouths, North and South Santee, a few miles S. W. of Win- yaw bay. The principal tributaries of the Congaree are the Saluda and Broad rivers. The Santee is navigable for its entire length, and its tributaries, the Wateree and Congaree, by aid of canals, are navigable for small boats nearly to the mountains, about 200 or 300 m. from the ocean. The Edisto and Combahee rise in the interior, and flowing S. reach the Atlantic near the southernmost point of the state. These streams are navigable for very small boats. The state is remarkably well watered, and almost every county abounds in good water power. Geologically South Caro- lina is nearly equally divided between the primitive and the alluvial formations ; the for- mer prevailing in the upper portion, the latter along the coast. Among the beautiful gran- ites of the state, the porphyritic granite of Camden and Buffalo creek, and the red gran- ite near Columbia, are conspicuous. Of the syenites, those found in Abbeville, Fairfield, and Lexington counties are the most beauti- ful. The first resembles the Quincy granite, and the last is remarkable for its white feld- spar, contrasting so strikingly with the black crystals of hornblende. White and variega- ted marbles are found in Spartanburg and Laurens. Gneiss, sufficiently slaty to be split into flagging stones, has been discovered in Pickens and in the lower part of York. Por- celain earth abounds through the primary regions, wherever the feldspathic granite is found in a state of disintegration. Soapstone of fine quality exists in several localities. Red and yellow ochres abound in Chesterfield co. Limestone is most abundant in Laurens and Spartanburg, while the white feldspathic sand- stone, buhrstone, and flagstone are found in many of the upper counties. Manganese oc- curs in nearly every county N. of Columbia. Coal is found in Chesterfield and Marlboro. The gold-bearing rocks of the Atlantic slope extend through the N. W. corner of South Carolina, the metal being found in Abbeville, Edgefield, Lancaster, Pickens, Spartanburg, Union, and York counties. There are mines in Abbeville, Edgefield, and Union. The first mint deposits from South Carolina were $3,- 500 in 1827; the aggregate of such deposits to June 30, 1874, was $1,379,077. In several cases large nuggets of pure gold have been found, and gold-bearing veins have been suc- cessfully worked ; but the largest quantities of gold have been obtained from surface wash- ings. Copper occurs in some counties, while iron ore is found in the N. part of the state, above the King's mountain range, but no ex- tensive efforts have been made to develop the deposits. Lead is found in Pickens co., bis- muth in Chesterfield and Lancaster, and black lead in Spartanburg and Pickens. The lime- stones of the Blue Ridge may be used as fertil- izers, while the richest deposits of bone phos- phates on the continent, if not in the world, have recently been discovered in Charleston co., near the Ashley and Cooper rivers. These deposits underlie many square miles of surface