…partisan rangers and their operations in the South Fork river valley of present-day West Virginia.
"The County of Hardy, located in the Eastern Panhandle of West Virginia, was formed in 1786 from Hampshire County. Possessing an area of 700 square miles and a population in 1860 of 9,864, Hardy County was one of the constantly disputed sections of western Virginia during the Civil War.1
Through this county flows the South Branch of the Potomac River with its surrounding magnificent valley. In all West Virginia, one cannot find a more beautiful or interesting section than the South Branch Valley. Several miles wide, "the Valley," as it is commonly called, contains lands whose fertility lends itself to successful farming. Agriculture and stock raising have always been the main source of employment in this area, with corn, wheat, apples, peaches, melons, cattle and poultry having important interests. Truck-farming has a vital role, each household possessing its own small garden.
On either side of the Valley are high mountains with rough terrain and heavy timber. Throughout the area wild-life is plentiful, and hunting has always been a major diversion and source of meat supply. In the winter snows are whipped by winds of gale force, and snowdrifts are usually numerous…"
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