Alleghany County
… was formed in 1859 from Ashe County. In the NW part of the state, it is bounded by the state of Virginia and by Surry, Wilkes, and Ashe Counties. The name is a corruption of the Delaware Indian name for the Allegheny and Ohio Rivers and is said to have meant "a fine stream." Area: 230 sq. mi. County seat: Sparta, with an elevation of 2,939 ft. Townships are Cherry Lane, Cranberry, Gap Civil, Glade Creek, Piney Creek, Prathers Creek, and Whitehead. Produces corn, barley, apples, hay, pipes, turkeys, Christmas trees, Irish potatoes, dairy products, livestock, textiles, apparel, and crushed stone. There are manganese and granite deposits in the county.
