Statistical.

AREA AND FARMING TABULATIONS.

The area of Loudoun County is variously reckoned at 460, 468, 495, 504, 510, 519, 520, and 525 square miles. The approximate accuracy of any single estimate in this confused assortment can not easily be determined, none, so far as is known, having been officially confirmed. Yardley Taylor, who, in 1853, made a most careful survey of the County, fixed its area at 525 square miles. By far the most trustworthy authority in this and certain other connections, his findings have been adopted with little uncertainty or hesitation.

Of this number, 207 square miles lie east of Catoctin Mountain and are of the upper secondary formation, while the remaining 318 square miles to the westward are of primitive formation.

The longest line across the County is 35 miles, and extends from the lower end of Lowe's Island at the old mouth of Sugarland Run, to the summit of the Blue Ridge at Ashby's Gap; the second longest, 34 miles, extends from the corner of Jefferson County, West Virginia, at the margin of the Potomac River below Harpers Ferry, to the corner of Fairfax County on Bull Run, within half a mile of Sudley Springs in Prince William County.

Within the limits of Loudoun are included 313,902[16] acres of the finest farm land to be found in any county of the State. The farms number 1,948, the average size being 162 acres. They are smallest in the northwestern portion of the county and of moderate size in the central portions, the largest occurring in the southern and eastern portions. In 1900, 1,754, or 90 per cent, were operated by white farmers, and 194, or 10 per cent, operated by colored farmers.

Table I.—Summary by Decades of the Improved and Unimproved Land in Farms, with per cent of Increase and Decrease.

Census year Acres of Land in Farms. Per cent of Increase.

Total Improved Unimproved Total Land Improved land Unimproved Land

1900 313,902 251,874 62,028 6.4 6.9 4.8

1890 294,896 235,703 59,193 [*]1.3 1.4 [*]11.0

1880 298,869 232,391 66,478 8.2 15.1 [*]10.7

1870 276,291 201,888 74,403 [*]6.7 [*]8.3 [*] 1.9

1860 296,142 220,266 75,876 .5 5.7 [*] 1.2

1850 294,675 208,454 86,221

[*Decrease.]

The most striking fact to be noted concerning the reported farm areas is the comparatively great decrease in the decade 1860 to 1870. This was, of course, one of the disastrous effects of the Civil War, from which the South, in general, after more than forty-five years, has not yet fully recovered, as is shown by the fact that in some of the South Atlantic states the reported acreage of farm land in 1900 was less than it was in 1860.

A continuous increase is shown in the area of improved farm land except in the decade 1860-1870. The decrease in the amount under cultivation, reported in the census of 1870, was due to conditions growing out of the change in the system of labor which prevented a complete rehabilitation of agricultural industry.

Only three other of the 100 Virginia counties reported larger improved areas in 1900, viz: Fauquier, 291,734 acres; Pittsylvania, 280,456 and Augusta, 276,459.

Table II.—Number of Farms by Decades: Summary, 1850 to 1900.

1900 1,948

1890 1,818

1880 1,841

1870 1,238

1860 1,207

1850 1,256

Comparison of the number of farms reported in 1850 with the number at the last census shows an addition in fifty years of 692 farms.

The great increase between 1870 and 1880 is seen at a glance. During this period the large plantations were steadily undergoing partition, in consequence of the social and industrial changes in progress after the Civil War.

Table III.—Farms Classified by Area—1900.

Under 3 acres 22

3 and under 10 acres 155

10 and under 20 acres 171

20 and under 50 acres 246

50 and under 100 acres 264

100 and under 175 acres 396

175 and under 260 acres 324

260 and under 500 acres 274

500 and under 1,000 acres 88

1,000 acres and over 8

Table IV.—Number of Farms of Specified Tenures, June 1, 1900.

Owners 1,116

Part owners 173

Owners and tenants 18

Managers 48

Cash tenants 232

Share tenants 361

Total 1,948

POPULATION.

The persistent high price of Loudoun lands has discouraged increase of population by immigration. Indeed, in more than eighty-five years, except for the slight fluctuations of certain decades, there has been no increase through any medium.

The last census (1900) fixed Loudoun's population at 21,948, of which number 16,079 were whites, 5,869 negroes, and the remaining 101 foreign born. This aggregate is even less than that shown by the census of 1820, which gave the county a population of 22,702, or 754 more than in 1900.

The succeeding schedules, giving complete statistics of population for Loudoun County by the latest and highest authority, were taken from United States Census reports, collected in 1900 and published in 1902.

Population, Dwellings, and Families:

1900.Private Families.

Population21,948 Number4,195

Dwellings4,157 Population21,690

Families4,231 Average size5.2

Private Families Occupying Owned and Hired and Free and Encumbered Homes, 1900.

Total private families 4,195

Farm Homes Owned. Other Homes Owned.

Free 959 Free 622

Encumbered 257 Encumbered 147

Unknown 120 Unknown 81

Hired 648 Hired 1,169

Unknown 7 Unknown 185

Total 1,991 Total 2,204

Native and Foreign Born and White and Colored Population, Classified by Sex, 1900.

Native born. Native White—Foreign Parents.

Male10,634 Male114

Female11,213 Female121

Foreign born. Foreign White.

Male59 Male58

Female42 Female42

Native White—Native Parents. Total Colored

Male7,583 Male2,938

Female8,161 Female2,931

In 1860, one year before the outbreak of the Civil War, the County held within its boundaries 21,774 souls: 15,021 white, 5,501 slave, and 1,252 free colored. In number of slaves at this period Loudoun ranked thirty-sixth in the list of Virginia counties which then also included the counties now in West Virginia. This number was distributed amongst 670 slave-holders in the following proportions:

1 slave 124

2 slaves 84

3 slaves 61

4 slaves 83

5 slaves 46

6 slaves 39

7 slaves 35

8 slaves 27

9 slaves 22

10 and under 15 slaves 80

15 and under 20 slaves 36

20 and under 30 slaves 23

30 and under 40 slaves 4

40 and under 50 slaves 4

50 and under 70 slaves 1

100 and under 200 slaves 1

The following table gives the population of Loudoun County decennially, from and including the first official census of 1790:

1900 21,948

1890 23,274

1880 23,634

1870 20,929

1860 21,774

1850 22,079

1840 20,431

1830 21,939

1820 22,702

1810 21,338

1800 20,523

1790 18,952

The reports of population by magisterial districts given below, with a single exception, show an appreciable decrease between the years 1890 and 1900:

1900. 1890.

Broad Run district 3,309 3,463

Jefferson district 3,106 3,307

Leesburg district 4,299 4,246

Lovettsville district 3,104 3,210

Mercer district 4,010 4,570

Mt. Gilead district 4,120 4,478

The following incorporated towns for the same period are charged with a corresponding decrease in the number of their inhabitants:

1900. 1890.

Hamilton 364 407

Hillsboro 131 156

Leesburg 1,513 1,650

Lovettsville 97

Middleburg 296 429

Waterford 383 385

These circumstances of fluctuation and actual decrease might appear singular if it could not be shown that practically the same conditions obtain elsewhere in the State and Union, or wherever agriculture is the dominant industry. Especially is this true of the counties of Clarke, Fauquier, Prince William, and Fairfax, in Virginia, and Jefferson, in West Virginia. All these farming communities adjoin Loudoun and exhibit what might be called corresponding fluctuations of population between the above-named periods.

A decrease then in the population of any of these districts is obviously due, in a large measure, to the partial or total failure of the crops which causes the migration of a portion of the population to large cities or other parts of the country. If the failure occurs immediately preceding a census, the decrease shown will, of course, be large.

As another contributing cause, it can be positively stated that the disfavor in which agriculture is held by the young men of Loudoun, who seek less arduous and more lucrative employment in the great cities of the East, is, in part, responsible, if not for the depletion, certainly for the stagnation of the county's population.

The white population of Loudoun County in 1880, 1890, and 1900 was as follows:

Census.Population.

1880 16,391

1890 16,696—305 increase.

1900 16,079—617 decrease.

The negro population of Loudoun County for the same periods was:

Census.Population.

1880 7,243

1890 6,578—665 decrease.

1900 5,869—709 decrease.

The figures show that the negro population has steadily decreased, while the white population increased from 1880 to 1890, and decreased from 1890 to 1900. The proportion of decrease for the negroes was much greater than for the whites. As the occupations of the negroes are almost entirely farming and domestic services, crop failures necessarily cause migration to other localities, and as Washington and Baltimore are not far distant and offer higher wages and sometimes more attractive occupations, there can be no doubt that the decrease is principally due to the migration to those cities.

INDUSTRIES.

Agriculture, in many of its important branches, is by far Loudoun's leading industry, and is being annually benefited by the application of new methods in cultivation and harvesting. The farmers are thrifty and happy and many of them prosperous.

During the Civil War agriculture received a serious setback, as the County was devastated by the contending armies, but by hard work and intelligent management of the people the section has again been put upon a prosperous footing.

The agricultural methods in use throughout the County are very uniform, notwithstanding the fact that there are a comparatively large number of soil types in the area.

A system of general farming, with few variations, is practiced, although some of the soils are much better adapted to the purpose than are other soils of the area. The system of rotation practiced consists of drilling in wheat and timothy seed together on the corn stubble in the fall, and sowing clover in the following spring. The wheat is harvested in the early summer, leaving the timothy and clover, which, after obtaining a good growth, is grazed or cut the next year for hay. This land is then plowed, and the following spring corn is planted, to be followed by wheat again the next fall, thus completing the rotation.

Loudoun's gently sweeping hills and broad valleys support great herds of cattle and flocks of sheep, and yield immense crops of corn, wheat, oats, and other cereals. More corn is produced and probably more live stock marketed by Loudoun than by any other of the 100 counties of Virginia.

The wheat is either sold for shipment or ground into flour by the many mills of the County, which mainly supply the home demand. The surplus is shipped chiefly to Washington and Baltimore. The major portion of the corn is used locally for feeding beef cattle, dairy stock, and work animals. Hay is shipped in large quantities and the rye, oats, and buckwheat are mostly consumed at home. Considerable pork is fattened in the County and many hundred head of cattle are annually grazed to supply the Washington and Baltimore markets.

A Government statistician was responsible for the following statement, based, no doubt, on the creditable showing made by Loudoun in the census of 1880: "Taken as a whole, probably the best farming in the State is now done in this (Loudoun) County." Of Virginia counties, it stood, at that time, first in the production of corn, butter, eggs, and wool, and in numbers of milch cows and sheep, and second only to Fauquier in the number of its stock cattle.

The breeding of superior stock and horses is an important branch of the County's agricultural activities. A contributor to Country Life in America, in an article entitled "Country Life in Loudoun County," says of it: "And the raising of animals is here not the fad of men of wealth who would play at country life. It is a serious business, productive of actual profit and a deep-seated satisfaction as continuous and well grounded as I have ever seen taken by men in their vocation."

The wealthier class of citizens of course specialize, each according to his personal choice. One, with 1,500 acres, all told, does a large dairying business and raises registered Dorset horn sheep, large white Yorkshire swine, registered Guernsey cattle, and Percheron horses. Another, with a like acreage, specializes in hackneys. A third, on his 300 or more acres, raises thoroughbreds and Irish hunters. A fourth, with 1,000 acres, fattens cattle for market and breeds Percheron horses, thoroughbreds, hackneys, and cattle. A fifth, owning several thousand acres, fattens cattle for export. A half dozen others, on farms ranging from 200 to 1,000 acres, raise thoroughbreds or draft animals. These are the specialties; on all the farms mentioned the owners have their secondary interests.

Some of the farmers whose capital will not permit the purchasing of high-priced breeding stock, have long been engaged in the business of finishing cattle for the market, animals being shipped from Tennessee, West Virginia, and elsewhere to be fattened on the wonderful grasses of Loudoun County. These steers are pastured from several months to two years, or according to their condition and the rapidity with which they fatten.

Sheep are to be found on most every large farm and are kept for both wool and mutton. Buyers visit these farms early in the winter and contract to take the lambs at a certain time in the spring, paying a price based on their live weight. When far enough advanced they are collected and shipped to eastern markets.

The rapid growth of near-by cities and the development of transportation facilities have exerted a great influence in the progress of the dairy industry in Loudoun County, increasing the demand for dairy produce, making possible the delivery of such produce in said cities at a profit to the farmer, and thereby inducing many to adopt dairy farming as a specialty instead of following it as incidental to general agriculture.

The dairy cows in Loudoun, June 1, 1900, numbered 8,563, of which 7,882, or 92 per cent were on farms, and 681, or 8 per cent, were in barns and enclosures elsewhere.

If the number of dairy cows, June 1, 1900, be taken as a basis, the five most important Virginia counties arranged in order of rank are as follows: Loudoun, 8,563; Augusta, 7,898; Rockingham, 7,312; Bedford, 6,951; and Washington, 6,792.

If prime consideration be given to the gallons of milk produced on farms only in 1899, the counties rank in the following order: Loudoun, 3,736,382; Fairfax, 3,310,990; Bedford, 3,244,800; Rockingham, 3,141,906; and Augusta, 2,993,928.

If greatest weight be given to the farm value of dairy produce, the order is as follows: Fairfax, $301,007; Henrico, $247,428; Loudoun, $242,221; Pittsylvania, $200,174, and Bedford, $194,560.

From every point of view but the last, Loudoun ranked as the leading dairy county of Virginia. The relative rank of other near competitors varied according to the basis of arrangement. The value of dairy produce is materially influenced by nearness to markets and also by the average production per farm, and these factors assisted in modifying the rank of Loudoun with reference to farm values of dairy produce.

The good prices obtained for apples during recent years have led some to plant this fruit on a larger scale than heretofore, and the result is so far quite gratifying. Apples do well on most of the soils of Loudoun. The best are sold to buyers who ship to large markets. The poorer qualities are kept for home consumption, used for cider and fed to hogs. Pears are grown in small quantities throughout the County. Peaches do well on most of the soils, but yield irregularly on account of frosts. All indigenous vegetables succeed well, but are mostly grown for home consumption, market gardens being conspicuously scarce.

Hosts of summer boarders give to Loudoun a large transient population requiring for its accommodation numerous hotels and countless boarding houses. This trade brings considerable money into the County and is a factor in its prosperity not to be ignored.

Scattered over Loudoun may be found great numbers of small industries, many of them employing steam, water, or motor power. These comprise grist mills, grain elevators, quarries, canneries, packing houses, saw mills, an artificial ice plant, and miscellaneous enterprises. Though comparatively insignificant taken singly, viewed collectively they show an aggregate of energy and thrift wholly commendable.

Several of Loudoun's more important enterprises were launched subsequent to the last general census and this circumstance renders its reports of manufactures, at no time complete or entirely reliable, of uncertain value as a symposium of the County's manufacturing interests at the present time. However, they are the latest reports obtainable and constitute the only official statistical exhibit of this subordinate source of wealth. They afford at least a partial insight into the present status of the manufacturing interests of Loudoun and, to this end, are reprinted below:

Number of establishments 164 Number of proprietors and firm members 197

Capital: Expenses:

Land$25,957 Fuel and rent of power

Buildings79,350 and heat$8,811

Machinery, etc104,402 Miscellaneous12,935

Cash and sundries141,548 Cost of materials used424,538

Total$351,257 Total$446,284

Value of products$638,136

FARM VALUES.

The tables appearing under this and the two succeeding kindred headings were constructed from the latest general census reports, and are a most complete and trustworthy statistical exhibit of the agricultural resources and products of Loudoun County. Table I.—Value of all farm property, including implements and machinery and live stock, with increase and decrease, and per cent of increase and decrease, by decades: Summary 1850 to 1900.

Census Year Value of all farm property Increase in decade. Per cent of increase. Average value per farm.

1900 $11,056,109 00 $971,459 00 9.6 $5,675 62

1890 10,084,650 00 [#]729,731 00 [#]6.7 5,547 11

1880 10,814,381 00 [#]1,437,636 00 [#]11.7 5,874 19

1870[##] 12,252,017 00 323,187 00 2.7 9,896 62

1860 11,928,830 00 2,446,073 00 25.7 9,883 04

1850 9,482,757 00 7,549 97

[##: Values in gold.]

[#: Decrease.]

An especially great increase in the total value of farm property will be noted in the decade from 1850 to 1860. Then followed the Civil War with its great destruction of farm property, and from this disaster the County did not fully recover before 1890.

The average value per acre of all farm property in Loudoun increased from $32.18 in 1850 to $35.22 in 1890.

Table II.—Value of farms with improvements, including buildings, with increase and per cent of increase, by decades: Summary 1850 to 1900.

Census year. Value of Farms. Increase by decade. Per cent of increase. Average value per farm. Average value per acre.

1900 $9,138,560 00 $518,830 6.0 $4,691 25 $29 11

1890 8,619,730 00[#]911,524 00[#]9.6 4,741 33 29 23

1880 9,531,254 00[#]1,345,752 00 [#]12.4 5,177 22 31 89

1870[##] 10,877,006 00 368,795 00 3.5 8,785 95 39 37

1860 10,508,211 00 2,158,840 00 25.9 8,706 06 35 48

1850 8,349,371 00 6,647 59 28 33

[##: Values in gold.]

[#: Decrease.]

In 1900 there were only two counties of Virginia with higher farm values than Loudoun. They were Rockingham, with $11,984,440, and Augusta, with $11,464,120.

Table III.—Value of land and buildings, with the per cent of the total represented by the value of buildings, June 1, 1900.

Land and improvements (except buildings)$6,649,690 00

Buildings2,488,870 00

Total$9,138,560 00

Per cent in buildings37.4

Table IV.—Number of farms and number and per cent of those with buildings, June 1, 1900, with average values of land and buildings.

Number of farms:

Total1,948

With buildings1,933

Per cent with buildings99.2

Average value of—

Land, per farm$3,414 00

Land, per acre21 18

Buildings, per farm1,278 00

Buildings, per farm with buildings1,288 00

Table V.—Total and average value per farm of farm implements and machinery, with increase and decrease and per cent of increase and decrease in the total value, by decades: Summary 1850 to 1900.

Census year Value of farm implements and machineryIncrease by decadePercent of increaseAverage value per farm

1900 $295,910 00 $103,000 00 53.4 $151 90

1890 192,910 00 9,683 00 5.3 106 11

1880 183,227 00 [#]23,473 00 [#]11.4 99 53

1870[##] 206,700 00 [#]31,564 00 [#]13.2 166 96

1860 238,264 00 42,470 00 21.7 197 40

1850 195,794 00 155 89

[##: Values in gold.] [#: Decrease.]

The percentage of increase was least for the decade 1880 to 1890. After 1870 the farmers did not, until 1900, report as large investments in machinery as they did prior to the war.

Only two other Virginia counties reported higher values of farming implements and machinery in 1900. They were Augusta, with $439,090, and Rockingham, with $436,340.

LIVE STOCK.

Values.

The total value of the live stock on farms only, June 1, 1900, was $1,621,639, or 14.7 per cent of $11,056,109, the reported value of all farm property. Of the live stock value, domestic animals, worth $1,556,935, constituted 96 per cent; poultry, worth $58,276, 3.6 per cent; and bees, worth $6,428, .4 per cent.

Table I.—Reported value of live stock on farms with increase and decrease and per cent of increase and decrease, by decades, and average values per farm and acre.

Census year. Value. Increase of value. Per cent of increase. Average value per farm. Average value per acre.

1900 $1,621,639 00 $349,629 00 27.5 $832 46 $5 17

1890 1,272,010 00 172,110 00 15.6 699 68 4 31

1880 1,099,900 00 [#]68,411 00 [#] 5.9 597 45 3 68

1870[##] 1,168,311 00 [#]14,044 00 [#] 1.2 943 71 4 23

1860 1,182,355 00 244,763 00 26.1 979 58 3 99

1850 937,592 00 746 49 3.18

[##: Values in gold.]

[#: Decrease.]

Animals Sold and Slaughtered.

The census enumerators and special agents secured reports of the amounts received from the sale of live animals in 1899, and of the value of animals slaughtered on farms. With reference to reports of sales, they were instructed to deduct from the amount received from sales the amount paid for animals purchased.

Table II.—Receipts from sales of live animals and value of animals slaughtered on farms, in 1899, with averages and number of farms reporting.

Farms reporting domestic animals1,911

Amount of sales$392,852 00

Average amount of sales per farm205 57

Value of animals slaughtered109,618 00

Average value of animals slaughtered per farm57 36

Neat Cattle.

The total number of neat cattle in Loudoun County reported June 1, 1900, was 30,277, of which 29,432 or 97.2 per cent were on farms, and 845 or 2.8 per cent in barns and inclosures elsewhere.

Fauquier, with 34,098, led all counties in the number of neat cattle, Loudoun ranking second, with 30,277. In the number of dairy cows, Loudoun headed the list of Virginia counties with 8,563, or 665 more than its nearest competitor, Augusta county.

Of calves, Augusta reported 5,476; Rockingham, 5,416; Washington, 4,177, and Loudoun, 4,090.

Table III.—Number of Heifers and Cows on Farms, June 1, 1900, with Percentages.

Heifers 1 and under 2 years1,917

Dairy cows 2 years and over7,882

Other cows 2 years and over588

Total10,387

Per cent:

Heifers18.5

Dairy cows 75.9

Other cows5.6

Dairy Products.

Table IV.—Gallons of milk produced on farms in 1899, and gallons sold and estimated gallons consumed on the farm for specified purposes.

Produced3,736,382

Sold875,780

Utilized in the production of—

Butter2,198,542

Cream sold181,566

Consumed on farms:

Total2,380,108

Per farm reporting milk1,321

Uses not reported480,494

The reported quantity of butter produced on farms in 1899 was 628,155 pounds, an average of 349 pounds per farm reporting, and an increase of 12.4 per cent over the production in 1889. 330,785 pounds were sold during the year 1899.

The four counties of Virginia which produced the greatest quantity of butter on farms were, in the order named, Bedford, 727,680 pounds; Rockingham, 658,063; Augusta, 633,360, and Loudoun, 628,155.

Steers.

Of the 26,187 neat cattle 1 year old and over in Loudoun June 1, 1900, 14,597, or 55.7 per cent, were steers. Of this number a few only were working oxen, as the great majority were kept exclusively for beef.

Horses, Mules, Etc.

The number of horses reported on Loudoun farms in 1900 comprised 797 colts under 1 year old; 1,048 horses 1 and under 2 years, and 7,722 horses 2 years and over. The numbers not on farms were, for the three classes named, 22, 13, and 684, respectively. There was, therefore, a total for Loudoun County of 8,406 work horses, and 1,880 too young for work, making a grand total of 10,286 horses, of which 93 per cent were on farms and 7 per cent in barns and inclosures elsewhere.

Only two counties of Virginia, i. e., Augusta and Rockingham, reported more horses than Loudoun, and the last-named County led all in number of colts.

The total number of mules of all ages in the County in 1900 was 109.

Sheep, Goats, and Swine.

There were reported in Loudoun June 1, 1900, 31,092 sheep, of which 15,319 were lambs under one year, 15,040 ewes one year and over, and 733 rams and wethers one year and over. All but 0.2 per cent of that number were on farms.

Loudoun headed the list of Virginia counties in number of lambs under one year and ranked second in number of ewes one year and over.

The total number of goats of all ages in Loudoun June 1, 1900, was 20.

The total number of swine of all ages June 1, 1900, was 17,351, of which 15,554, or 89.6 per cent, were on farms and 1,797, or 10.4 per cent, in barns and inclosures elsewhere.

Domestic Wool.

Tazewell headed the list of Virginia counties in 1900 in both number and weight of fleeces shorn, and was followed by Loudoun with a total of 15,893 fleeces, weighing, unwashed, 87,410 pounds. Almost double this amount in pounds was sheared in the fall of 1879 and spring of 1880.

Poultry and Bees.

The total value of all the poultry raised on Loudoun farms in 1899 was $114,313, an average value per farm of $58.68.

The number of chickens three months old and over, including guinea fowls, on farms in Loudoun County June 1, 1900, was 132,627; turkeys, 7,218; ducks, 2,171, and geese, 1,036.

The total value of all poultry on hand, including the value of all young chicks unreported, as well as that of the older fowls, was $58,276, an average of $29.92 per farm reporting.

Shenandoah was the banner county of Virginia in egg production, reporting 1,159,000 dozens; Rockingham ranked second, with 1,150,500 dozens, and Loudoun third, with 771,780 dozens, the fourth highest competitor, Augusta county, lacking 60,580 dozens of this last number.

Of Virginia counties at the last census Loudoun ranked third in the number of chickens on farms, third in number of turkeys, third in value of poultry products in 1899, and second in value of poultry on hand June 1, 1900.

There were in the County June 1, 1900, 2,225 swarms of bees, valued at $6,428. They produced the same year 24,970 pounds of honey and 1,110 pounds of wax.

SOIL PRODUCTS.

The total and average values of Loudoun's farm products of 1899, with percentages, are set forth in the following table:

Value of products:

Fed to live stock$1,018,434 00

Not fed to live stock1,817,414 00

Total$2,835,848 00

Per cent not fed to value of farm property16.4

Average value per farm:

Fed to live stock$523 00

Not fed to live stock933 00

Total$1,456 00

Average value per acre:

Products fed$3 24

Products not fed5 79

Average value per acre of improved land:

Products fed$4 04

Products not fed7 22

Corn and Wheat.

Of the 100 counties in Virginia, Loudoun ranked third in corn acreage in 1899, reporting 46,248 acres, and, the same year, headed the list in the production of corn with 1,538,860 bushels, an excess of 350,830 bushels over its nearest competitor, Fauquier county, which had planted in corn 981 more acres.

Loudoun ranked third in wheat area in 1899, Augusta taking the lead in area as well as in production. The next three counties in the order of production were Rockingham, Shenandoah, and Loudoun, the product of the last-named being 447,660 bushels. The same order prevailed in 1890.

Oats, Rye, and Buckwheat.

The area reported under oats in 1900 was 765 acres and the product 13,070 bushels. In 1890, 4,504 acres were planted in this crop and produced 69,380 bushels. No barley was reported in 1899.

The reported area under rye in 1900 was 597 acres and the yield 5,560 bushels. The preceding census reported 1,830 acres and a product of 13,137 bushels.

Loudoun reported but two acres of buckwheat under cultivation in 1899, as against 232 acres in 1879. The yield at the last census was only 12 bushels, and in 1879, 2,338 bushels.

Hay and Forage Crops.

The total area in clover in 1899 was 1,555 acres and the yield 1,598 tons. Loudoun reported only 2 acres planted in alfalfa or Lucern and a corresponding number of tons. The total area sown in millet and Hungarian grasses was 70 acres and the product 86 tons. Twelve thousand four hundred and ninety-five acres were planted in other tame and cultivated grasses in 1899, and 11,364 tons cut therefrom. The principal grass included under this designation is timothy. In grains cut green for hay Loudoun reported 1,342 acres under cultivation in 1899 and a product of 1,503 tons.

The reported acreage in forage crops in 1899 was 867 and the product 2,473 tons. The principal crops included under this head are corn and sorghum cane cut green for forage. The production of Loudoun exceeded the tonnage of every other county in the State. The report of the tonnage of the cornstalks cut where the crop had been allowed to mature for the grain was 21,614 tons.

Miscellaneous Crops, Etc.

Four hundred and eighty-four acres planted in miscellaneous crops in 1900 produced 33,312 bushels.

Seven hundred and twenty-nine acres were devoted to miscellaneous vegetables (exclusive of Irish and sweet potatoes, and onions), and the product valued at $41,136.

From the 11 acres devoted to sorghum cane, 7 tons were sold and 789 gallons of syrup produced.

The number of square feet of land under glass used for agricultural purposes June 1, 1900, was 48,310.

Orchard Fruits, Etc.

The reported value of the orchard products of 1899 was $51,363.

The following table shows the number of each class of orchard trees of bearing age, June 1, 1900, with products by bushels:

Trees. Number of trees. Number of bushels grown.

Apple 83,027 195,406

Peach and Nectarine 22,446 3,900

Pear 4,983 2,828

Cherry 4,179 3,930

Plum 1,589 534

Apricot 117 30

Unclassified orchard fruits 42 20

The farms of Loudoun produced in 1899 2,304 barrels of cider, 388 barrels of vinegar, and 13,530 pounds of dried and evaporated fruits.

Small Fruits, Etc.

The total value of small fruits was $3,574, the number of acres under cultivation 40, and the product 62,280 quarts.

There were in Loudoun June 1, 1900, 9,742 grapevines of bearing age. They produced in 1899, 171,921 pounds of grapes, from part of which yield were made 766 gallons of wine.

The number of pecan, Persian or English walnut and other nut trees of bearing age reported was 35.

Flowers, Ornamental Plants, Etc.

The total area devoted to flowers and ornamental plants for commercial purposes in 1899 was eight acres, the amount of sales therefrom $15,400, and the square feet of glass surface reported by florists' establishments 53,300. Of Virginia counties Loudoun ranked fourth in amount of sales and third in area of glass surface.

The total area devoted to nursery products in 1899 was 10-1/4 acres and the amount of sales therefrom $2,225.

FARM LABOR AND FERTILIZERS.

LABOR.

The scarcity of efficient labor is one of the most serious troubles with which the farmers of this County have to cope. In the northern portion the labor is principally white, while in the southern part there is a greater proportion of the negro race.

Some farmers employ men by the month, paying from $15 to $18 and board, but at a distance from centers of population this transient labor is hard to secure, and even fancy wages sometimes fail to attract a sufficient supply. In other cases a laborer and his family are allowed to live on the farm, and he is paid by the day for such work as is required of him, the usual wage being 75 cents or $1, with the opportunity of working throughout a considerable part of the year. The laborer usually pays a small rent for his cottage, but is allowed a piece of ground free for a garden. Where the farms are small the greater part of the work is done by the farmer and his family, and the situation is less difficult; but with the large farms it is often impossible to secure sufficient labor, especially during harvesting.

The total and average expenditures for labor on farms in 1899, including the value of the board furnished, was $292,150, an average of $149.97 per farm and 93 cents per acre.

FERTILIZERS.

Commercial fertilizers are used extensively throughout Loudoun. These consist chiefly of phosphatic fertilizers, although some nitrogenous mixtures are used. Barnyard and green manures are employed to a considerable extent. Lime is applied freely to many of the soils. It is brought into the area in cars, hauled from there to the farms by wagon, and thrown in small piles over the land, the usual application being twenty-five or thirty bushels to the acre. It is almost always put on the land in the fall, and after becoming thoroughly slaked by air and rain, is spread over the land as evenly as possible. Applications are made every fifth or sixth year. Where farms are situated at considerable distances from the railroads but little lime is used on account of the difficulty of transportation.

The total amount expended for fertilizers in 1900 was $107,490, an average of $55.18 per farm and 34 cents per acre and amounted to 3.8 per cent of the total value of the products. In 1879, only one other county in the State, i. e., Norfolk, spent as much for the enrichment of its soils. The amount expended for fertilizers in that year was $133,349.

EDUCATION AND RELIGION.

Education.

Few of the early settlers of Loudoun enjoyed any other advantages of education than a few months' attendance at primary schools as they existed in Virginia previous to the Revolution. But these advantages had been so well improved that nearly all of them were able to read and write a legible hand, and had acquired sufficient knowledge of arithmetic for the transaction of ordinary business. They were, in general, men of strong and penetrating minds and, clearly perceiving the numerous advantages which education confers, they early directed their attention to the establishment of schools. But for many years there were obstacles in addition to those incident to all new settlements, which prevented much being done for the cause of education. The controversies in which they were involved and the war of the Revolution employed nearly all their thoughts and all their energies previous to the State's admission into the Federal Union.

Of the real efficiency of the Colonial schools of Loudoun but little can be learned. Teachers, as a rule, were on a par with their surroundings. If they could read, write and cipher to the "single rule of three" their educational qualifications were deemed sufficient. They generally canvassed the neighborhood with a subscription paper, forming the schools themselves and furnishing the few necessary books. The rates were from $1 to $2.50 per scholar by the month, and lower when the schoolmaster "boarded around." But he was most likely to succeed in forming a school who contracted to take his pay in produce.

Few schools were taught by women in Colonial times and female teachers were still rare until a comparatively recent period.

The salaries of regularly appointed tutors varied according to the nature of the schools and the ability of the district to meet the expense.

After the Revolution, with increasing prosperity, came a spirit of general improvement and a new interest in the cause of education.

The present condition of education in Loudoun is hopeful, public instruction being now popular with all classes. Intelligence is more generally diffused than at any previous period of the County's history, and happily, the progress of moral education has, on the whole, fully kept pace with intellectual culture. Our boys and girls are reared in a home atmosphere of purity, of active thought, and intelligent cultivation; all their powers are keenly stimulated by local and national prosperity and unrestricted freedom in all honest endeavor.

With the improvement in the school system has come a better style of school-houses. The "little red school-house on the hill" has given place to buildings of tasteful architecture, with modern improvements conducive to the comfort and health of the scholars, and the refining influences of neat surroundings is beginning to be understood. Separate schools are maintained for colored pupils and graded schools sustained at populous places.

With free schools, able teachers consecrated to their calling, and fair courses of instruction; with a people generous in expenditures for educational purposes, and a cooperation of parents and teachers; with the many educational periodicals, the pedagogical books, and teachers' institutes to broaden and stimulate the teacher, the friends of education in Loudoun may labor on, assured that the new century will give abundant fruitage to the work which has so marvelously prospered in the old.

Total Receipts of School Funds for the Year Ending July 31, 1908. (From report of Division Superintendent of Schools.)

From State funds$13,968 92

" County school tax 12,355 38

" District school tax 14,640 82

" All other sources 322 30

" Balance on hand August 1, 1907 6,644 60

Total$47,931 97

Total expenditures42,788 58

Balance on hand August 1, 1908$5,143 39

School population, Number of Schools, Enrollment and Attendance by Races and Districts, 1906-1907. (From report of State Superintendent of Schools.)

Districts. School Population. No. of schools opened. Whole number Enrolled. Total

White.Colored.White.Colored.White.Colored.

Broad Run 748 228 19 4 538 131 669

Jefferson 619 216 15 4 446 196 642

Leesburg 381 143 9 3 358 107 465

Lovettsville 614 34 13 1 498 24 522

Mercer 628 482 15 7 467 277 744

Mt. Gilead 695 457 16 6 493 231 724

Town of Leesburg 255 130 6 3 196 121 317

Total3,940 1,690 93 282,996 1,0874,083

Religion.

The Church, with her faiths, her sacraments, and a part of her ministry, was an integral part of the colonization of the County from the beginning and continuously. Everywhere, with the spreading population, substantial edifices for public worship were erected and competent provision made for the maintenance of all the decencies and proprieties of Christian religion. The influence of these institutions, and of the faith which they embodied, was most benign and salutary. They gave to the age of the Revolution its noble character and its deep-seated principles, the force and momentum of which have come down, with gradually decreasing power, to our own day. But with these institutions and with their proper effect and influence was mingled the fatal leaven of secularity.

All the leading denominations are represented in Loudoun by churches and congregations to the extent shown by the following table of statistics, representing conditions as they existed at the close of the calendar year 1906, and based upon the returns of individual church organizations so far as received by the Census Office, through which Bureau they were obtained for initial publication in this work.

Denomination. Total number of organizations. Communicants or members.

Total number reported.

All denominations 97 7,606

Baptist bodies:

Baptists—

Southern Baptist Convention 11 1,199

National Baptist Convention (colored) 15 1,235

Free Baptists 2 55

Primitive Baptists 6 171

Friends:

Society of Friends (Orthodox) 2 122

Religious Society of Friends (Hicksite) 3 278

Lutheran bodies:

General Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in the United States of America 4 645

Methodist bodies:[17]

Methodist Episcopal Church 19 1,179

Methodist Episcopal Church (South) 21 1,716

Colored Methodist Episcopal Church 1 45

Presbyterian bodies:

Presbyterian Church in the United States (South) 4 345

Protestant Episcopal Church 7 416

Reformed bodies:

Reformed Church in the United States 1 140

Roman Catholic Church 1 60