A Study of People and Conditions in a Low-Income Farming Area of Southern Lewis County, West Virginia

Excerpts: Lewis County, West Virginia, has at its southern tip a piece of rugged land comprising approximately 9 square miles. This tip differs sharply from the more gently rolling hill land immediately to the north, but is similar to the adjoining land in the three neighboring counties. The area is drained by a dozen or more streams and runs, which have cut it into a series of steep valleys and narrow ridges, with only occasional narrow strips of level bottomland and hilltop flats. Forty-six percent of the land area has a slope of 40 percent or more, the generally accepted limit for even the most extensive types of farming in the State. This report is the result of a study, requested by the Lewis County Land Use Planning Committee, to find out more about the human element in this total problem situation. In the survey an attempt was made to get information as to the present conditions of people living here, something of their background, and their attitudes toward their present situation and the future. This material is primarily for the use of planning bodies and action agencies in trying to understand better the nature of the problems, both on this relatively small area and in similar places elsewhere in the State, as a first step in any attempt to correct the maladjustments with sound planning and remedial measures.

节选内容：西弗吉尼亚州（West Virginia）刘易斯县（Lewis County）的最南端，坐落着一片面积约9平方英里的崎岖地带。该地带与北侧紧邻的缓坡丘陵地貌形成鲜明差异，但与周边三个邻县的毗连区域地貌特征高度一致。
该区域有十余条溪流与径流水道贯穿，将地表切割为一系列陡峭山谷与狭窄山脊，仅零星分布有狭窄的河漫滩与山顶平地。区域内46%的土地坡度达到40%及以上——这一坡度是本州范围内绝大多数规模化农业种植所能接受的上限阈值。
本报告源自刘易斯县土地利用规划委员会（Land Use Planning Committee）委托开展的一项研究，旨在深入探究该整体问题情境中的人文因素。本次调研旨在收集当地居民的生活现状、部分背景信息，以及其对当前处境与未来发展的态度相关数据。
本资料主要供规划机构与行动部门使用，以更好地理解该小型区域乃至本州其他类似区域的问题本质，作为通过科学规划与补救措施校正各类发展失衡的首要步骤。