Kentucky Agriculture: Boone County

Settlement in Kentucky is intimately related to agriculture. The earliest explorers were interested in hunting, but those that followed were invariably looking for lands to cultivate. The pioneers did not like trees, at least not large forests full of trees, and they set to work to clear the countryside as soon as possible. The clearing of the trees was all done with the ax, and with fire, at an enormous cost in labour. Trees were something to be gotten rid of. They were unproductive, and could not be used for crops until the clearing was done. In addition they might hide lurking Indians. Though settlers may have contemplated the beauty of these primeval forests they did not let this hinder them in their prime objective: They loved to see large expanses of cleared land in crops and pastures.

Along the banks of the Ohio River, in the alluvial flood plains, lies the largest amount of prime cropland in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. The only area that can match it is the inner Bluegrass. Boone County, with more than forty miles of river shoreline, one of the longest in the state, offered a quantity of such land as a prime attraction to early settlers. Even today these river bottom lands have the highest yields of corn per acre any where in the nation. It was not long before all of these lands were claimed. The lands at Big Bone, though claimed early, include very few acres of this prime land; most of what there is lies in narrower strips along Big Bone and Mud Lick creeks.

Aside from the flood plains Boone County falls into two distinct sections based on soil type: These sections are the eastern and western, and this has had a huge impact on settlement and agriculture in Boone County, for the best lands (excepting the river areas) were furthest from the river, which meant difficulties in transportation. Picture a wavy line running roughly down the center of the county, with a single band running along the Ohio River: this band is considered to be 75 to 100 percent prime. To the east the land is considered to be between 25 to 50 percent prime, which means that the land is considered suitable for cultivation. To the west the land is considered less than 25 percent prime, which means that it is considered suitable for pasture for stock, and occasional cultivation, and it is in this area that most of the land at Big Bone falls. The soil is mostly composed of silty clay, and the steepness of most of the land means that the top soil is but a shallow layer in most places. Most of it is marginal agricultural land. Its best use would be as woodland and pasture, with some intermixture of crops on the most suitable land.

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