Director

The site of the memorial and interpretive signs are located at the former site of the coal company store. The company store, last operated by the Koppers Division of the Eastern Gas and Fuel Assosiates was&nbsp;originally constructed by the East Gulf Coal Company in 1919 was managed by George G. Burnette, a man from Kentucky, in the early 1920s. Although the store is no longer standing, it is remembered by some of the residents of Helen. John L. Lewis, former president of the Winding Gulf Restoration Organization remembers buying ice cream there as a child.&nbsp; <blockquote>"I even remember what kind it was — one of those orange ’sicles with the cream inside," </blockquote>Despite the store no longer standing, the memorial and signs help residents and visitors to remember the rich history of their town. Just as the company store was once a central location in Helen, the Miners Memorial and now the interpretive signs have become one as well. Some of the themes of the interpretive signs include, baseball, African Americans in the mines, and Helen's connection to Camp Lightfoot. <blockquote> </blockquote>

The interpretive signs installed on March 27th, 2018 help tell the story of Helen and keep its rich history alive. 

The original company store, built in 1919.

The miners Memorial in the summer of 2017.

The miners memorial is a result of three years effort on the part of the Winding Gulf Restoration Organization, a local non-profit organization based out of Helen. With the help from nearby businesses and organizations, the memorial was finished in the summer of 2007 and honors those miners who lived or worked in Helen. Also located at the site of the memorial are interpretive signs installed in 2018 with the help of the National Coal Heritage Area Authority and the Preservation Alliance of West Virginia.

Miners Memorial and Interpretive Signs

This heritage trail includes memorials dedicated to the memory of miners whose lives were suddenly lost in major industrial disasters and related sites in Central Appalachia. The trail is a work in progress and intended as an educational resource and a tribute to the generations of miners and their families from this region. 

Central Appalachia Miners Memorial Heritage Trail 

This digital storymap includes pins for memorials and markers that share the history of coal mining, miners, and their experiences in coal camps as well as mining-related disasters. 

West Virginia Miner’s Memorials

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The early morning of December 30, 1970 was a cold blustery one when around forty coal miners entered the Finley Coal Co. Nos. 15 and 16 Mines, located on Hurricane Creek in Hyden, Kentucky. Just a few short hours later, just after noon time, an explosion ripped through the mine that people miles away could hear and feel. The cause of the explosion was the result of a primer cord that ignited coal dust. One man, A.T. Collins, who was the conveyor belt operator, was thrown nearly sixty feet outside the mine into the road. Thirty-eight other men were not as lucky, they all perished in the explosion.As the cold winter day went on, victims were slowly pulled out of the mine and taken by ambulance to the local school's gymnasium where their loved ones came to identify the bodies. Some of the men had been so badly shattered by the coal dust explosion that the only way to identify them was by their Social Security number, worn on the back of their belts. The ages of the miners ranged from 18 to 60. The disaster was one of the most deadly mining disasters in American history, and the worst in Eastern Kentucky. Just one year prior to the Hurricane Creek Mine Disaster, President Richard Nixon had signed the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act into law, establishing new safety measures that would prevent such disasters. After finding traces of dynamite and Primacord (a brand of detonating cord) in the mine, which were both banned by the law, an investigation concluded that there was "nearly absolute failure" in enacting the law.In response to the mining disaster, the second one in a three year span, the U.S. Bureau of Mines director Elburt Osborn callously remarked, "This disaster was not unexpected. We've had two good years since Farmington (in West Virginia, where 78 miners were killed) and I think we can expect almost one of these a year." After Hurricane Creek, no new mine-safety regulation was passed at the state or federal level. Even the owner, Charles Finley, went on trial for negligent operation but in the end paid no penalty.Upon hearing of the deaths of the thirty-eight men and of the 104 children in total they left behind, country music singer Loretta Lynn organized a big benefit to aid the widows and their children. Lynn, who had just released her hit song "Coal Miner's Daughter," grew up just seventy-five miles from Hyden and was aware that Leslie County was one of the poorest in the nation. The benefit took place on March 1, 1971 in Freedom Hall in Louisville, with close to 15,000 people in attendance. More than forty country music performers joined Loretta Lynn for the benefit and Colonel Sanders provided free dinners. Later in 1971, singer and songwriter Tom T. Hall would record a song called "Trip to Hyden," discussing his own personal journey to the sad town and the effects of the disaster.For decades after the disaster occurred, all that stood on the site was a large pile of dirt. It appeared the story of the miners' fate would eventually fade into history. But almost forty years after the Hurricane Creek Mine disaster, A.T. Collins' son started a movement to build a memorial to all the men using coal severance money. In 2011, the Hurricane Creek Mine Disaster Memorial was dedicated, featuring plaques with all of the names of those who died, and the one who survived, as well as those they left behind.

The Hurricane Creek Mine Disaster Memorial is located just four miles east of the town of Hyden. The memorial pays tribute to one of the worst mine disasters to have occurred: the Finley Mine disaster. On the morning of December 30, 1970, a massive explosion went off in two Finley Mines, owned by Charles Finley, hurling one man sixty feet out of the mine and killing thirty-eight others. The disaster took place one year after the Coal Mine Health and Safety Act went into effect, and an extensive investigation found that there was "nearly absolute failure" in enacting the new safety laws. After forty years, a memorial paying tribute to the one survivor and thirty-eight men who lost their lives in the disaster was finally erected on the site of the old Finley Mine. 

Hurricane Creek Mine Disaster Memorial 

<blockquote>“There’s not a whole lot of emphasis on the history of what coal miners did and the struggles they went through and the tumultuous time. The Battle of Matewan has all the elements of a classic Western shootout, yet while something like the Gunfight at O.K. Corral has become a part of American lore, Matewan has languished in obscurity for a number of generations.”1</blockquote>The West Virginia Mine Wars began in 1912 when unionized coal miners went on strike along Paint Creek and Cabin Creek in Kanawha County. Organized by the United Mine Workers of America, one of the largest workers' rights organization in the country which at that time was only twenty-two years old, the strike was intended to win higher compensation for the miners' dangerous work. Coal companies cried foul and brought in strikebreakers and deputized private detectives armed with machine guns to quash the dissidents. The miners responded by arming themselves and fighting back, and though martial law was declared in the district several times, by the time the strike ended the following year, it was well known around the nation as one of the bloodiest labor conflicts in American history. The UMWA’s most famous organizer, Mary “Mother” Jones, was among the leaders of the strike and witnessed the violence. Speaking around the country, she would recall snow stained with blood and miners’ families shivering in tent colonies through the winter. She told audiences, “When I get to the other side, I shall tell God Almighty about West Virginia!”2But these union victories in West Virginia during the 1910s led the coal operators to fight back. By the 1920s, coal fields in Mingo and Logan counties had unionized--so coal operators in Mingo county hired the Baldwin-Felts agency to evict union coal miners and their families from their camps. Since miners were paid in company scrip which had no value outside their own coal camps, this would have rendered the affected families penniless and homeless.The evictions climaxed in a shootout between Mingo County Sheriff Sid Hatfield and his deputies--backed by miners--and the evicting Baldwin-Felts detective agents on the railroad tracks in Mingo county on May 19, 1920. Though murder charges against Sheriff Hatfield were dismissed,he was later killed by Baldwin-Felts agents as he climbed the steps of the McDowell County Courthouse. Galvanized by this injustice, miners gathered to fight back.<blockquote>"It was a literal war that was being fought and many of the miners stuck to a code of silence about their goings on, about the specifics of what happened, largely because they could have all been prosecuted for various crimes, everything from insurrection to murder to treason. There’s not as an extensive written record of the events that you might have, say, for the Battle of Gettysburg, where one can look at letters, diaries and official communications back and forth.”1</blockquote>A year after the Matewan shootout, tensions between miners and coal companies climaxed at the Battle of Blair Mountain took place between August 25, 1921 and September 2, 1921. Fought between unionized miners and some three thousand deputies, National Guardsmen, and Baldwin-Felts agents, this battle was the largest labor uprising in United States history and one of the largest, best-organized, and well-armed uprisings since the American Civil War. Over a million rounds of ammunition were fired, and coal company forces hired private planes to drop bombs on the miners.The battle ended when the U.S. Army arrived and the laborers surrendered. Dozens of people died in these conflicts over basic civil liberties, the right to form unions, and the right to a decent wage and a life of dignity.2The West Virginia Mine Wars Museum gives the spotlight to the laborers and tells history through their perspective. The museum also has Matewan Massacre Drama performances on certain days of the year. By exhibiting these events within the historic Chambers Hardware Store on the streets of Matewan, where some of the pivotal moments of the Mine Wars took place, the museum vividly depicts the struggle experienced by so many thousands of miners during this tumultuous era. The Museum has also designed traveling exhibits to better share this uniquely important history wherever possible.The site of the Blair Mountain Battlefield was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2009, but its preservation is still threatened by current mining operations.6

Located in the former Chambers Hardware store in Matewan, the back wall of the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum still bears bullet holes from the legendary conflict it represents. While the Matewan Massacre shootout itself was only one occurrence in a massive chain of labor strikes, killings and political machinations, it helped touch off a catastrophic series of events that culminated in the assassination of Sheriff Sid Hatfield (of Hatfield and McCoy fame) and the infamous Battle of Blair Mountain--where 10,000 armed miners fought for several days against several thousand deputies and private coal company militiamen. The museum commemorates these events and explores them from the perspective of the common coal miner.

West Virginia Mine Wars Museum

Holden Island Creek No. 22 Mine opened In 1943. &nbsp;Twenty men went into the Holden Mine on a snowy March morning, and not long after work a slate fall occurred in the tunnels between the men and the shaft bottom. Officials blamed the fire on a cable or trolley line which was suspected to have been knocked down near a wooden timber that arced until the wood caught fire. The coal then caught on fire causing a raging inferno to roar through the tunnels inside the mine. The men were sealed off from the fire by the slate fall. Rescue workers poured water into the mine using as many as twelve different water-hose, but freezing temperatures soon froze the lines on the surface. Finally, when the fire was contained, teams of 40 men working around the clock slogged though knee-deep water in the smoke and steam hoping to rescue the men. Veteran rescue workers called it "hell's fire." Ventilation expert, Willis Carter who was one of the trapped miners, volunteered to crawl through a narrow passageway to try an find a way out. A young miner, Kyle Blair agreed to follow him. The others decided to wait for fire fighters and the rescue team. Carter said Blair Blacked out for about twenty-five minutes as they crawled toward the surface. After that, Carter's repeated remarks of encouragement kept Blair moving with him through a circular route in old mine workings. When they finally reached safety, Blair said he remembered little of their four hour ordeal except that Willis kept talking. Blair said, "I just grabbed the right man." Carter was asked if there was panic among the men. He said, "No, I don't think so, except for a time right at the first. I thought Donaldson was in some sort of shock. He wouldn't even answer me when I told him the men could not get out through the Elk Creek Slope. He kept telling Josh Chafin, a section foreman, to take his men and head for the Elk Creek Slope." Donaldson was a safety inspector who just happened to be with them when the fire broke out. Company officials hoped he could direct survival tactics by putting up brattices (canvas walls) to block off heat and fumes. Carter said he thought all of the men could have escaped if they had followed him. Eight days after the fire began rescue workers came upon 13 bodies. All had died within hours after the accident of carbon monoxide gas. None of the bodies were burned, and the men appeared to have been relaxed when death made its silent approach. Two men were eating from their lunch buckets. One man was found in a kneeling position with his arms encircling a timber, and was apparently praying when he was over-come with the deadly gas. Freda Enyart Horvath, wife of Berti, believed this to be her husband, and wrote him a goodbye letter after she heard the news.Josh Chafin, Jr. of Pine Creek was found still clutching the note he had written to his wife. The note was delivered to his wife twelve hours before the first body was brought to the surface. The note read: Mable, I love you more than you will ever know. Take care of the kids and raise them to serve the Lord.” It was signed, “Jr.” . . . the name he went by. Josh and his wife were members of the Central Baptist Church on Holden Road.The bodies were wrapped in blankets and plastic bags, and carried to the base of a 485-foot elevator shaft. They were lined up neatly to await their return to the surface. A heavy wet snow fell covering the ground. The men were taken to the Harris Funeral Home which was chosen as a central station where families could claim the remains and make funeral arrangements. The last two miners to be recovered were Charles Adams and Louis Workman.It took nine days to recover the bodies. Seventy-two children were left fatherless and sixteen wives were made widows by the mine disaster.&nbsp;The following is the list of miners who perished at 22 Holden:Charles Adams, 46; Frank Ardis, 63; Ernest Bevins, 35; Okey Bryant, 49; James Carter, 30; Josh Chafin Jr., 37; Roy Lee Dempsey, 52; William Donaldson, 53; Garfield Hensley, 43; Berti Horvath, 32; Flint Lock Jarrells, 39; Albert Marcum, Jr.; Melvin Newsom, 46; Isom Ooten, 43; James V. Lundell, 26; Orville Sargent, 32; Carl White, 39; and Louis Workman, 32.Ironically, Kyle Blair who escaped death at the Island Creek No.&nbsp;22 mine disaster, died tragically in another mining accident about 1974. He was a mine foreman on the tipple at a Boone County mine, and fell into a coal crusher.

On Tuesday, March 8, 1960, the Holden Mine at Island Creek No. 22 caught fire in the coal seam, and it created a carbon monoxide gas which killed eighteen men by asphyxiation. The men were trapped shortly after entering the mine at seven in the morning. The last word from them came about 8:30 that morning shortly before the telephone lines burned.Officials blamed the fire on a cable or trolley line which was suspected to have been knocked down near a wooden timber that arced until the wood caught fire. 

Island Creek No. 22 Mine Disaster

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; As news spread through
the small community of the mining explosion, people gathered outside the mines.
Many of these men had wives and children that were soon on the site to await
the news of their husbands and fathers. However, it took workers two days to
remove the bodies. So families waited in silence to hear who had survived and
who had been killed in this horrible explosion. &nbsp;

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The community
banded together to create a monument to honor their loved ones that perished.
Situated outside the entrance to the mine, a gated stone monument with the story
of the disaster and those effected was built. A church has been turned into a
present day museum.&nbsp; It houses many
artifacts pulled from the mine that belonged to those that died in the
incident. That church stood witness to the explosion and was likely used for the
funeral location for many of the lost miners.

&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;The local Nellis Elementary School helps
maintain the monument.&nbsp; The students
leave flowers for each holiday at the monument.&nbsp;
Members of the community, along with students from the nearby Nellis
Elementary school, still gather at the memorial on November 6, to commemorate
the anniversary of the tragedy. The service include songs from students at
Nellis Elementary and other tributes.&nbsp; The
community won’t let the memory of the lost miners be forgotten.

     November 6, 1943, 11 men were killed after a mining machine sparked and ignited gas causing an explosion in a mine shaft in Nellis, WV. At the entrance of the road to the mine, there is still a monument that remembers the miners that were victims in this horrible incident. The heartbreak of this disaster is still obvious all throughout the area. A museum in a local church is dedicated to the miners who lost their lives. The children of the men lost in the explosion still live in the area.

Number 3 Nellis explosion of 1943 Memorial 

This monument represents the lives of the 29 miners that were killed in a mining explosion about 3 miles outside of Whitesville, West Virginia. The explosion occurred at about 3:27 PM on April 5, 2010. This mining accident was the worst the state of West Virginia has seen since 1970. In 2012, the state decided not to open the mine back up because of the tragic accident. People from Whitesville and many other communities around West Virginia came together and formed an Upper Big Branch Miner's Memorial Group. The group held candlelight vigils, gatherings, prayers, and ultimately built a memorial for the miners who tragically lost their lives. The memorial opened in July of 2012. At the center of the memorial plaza, the 50-foot long granite slab displays a life-size outline of the 29 miners who lost their lives in the disaster. The monument stands to honor not only the memory of the victims of the UBB disaster, but the memory of all of those lost in the coal mines throughout West Virginia's history. Every year, on the anniversary of the accident, the wreaths are placed around the memorial. In 2015 former CEO of Massey Energy Don Blankenship was found guilty of conspiracy to violate safety standards. Investigators stated that Massey allowed gases to build up in the mine and threatened the miners with their job if they were to do or say something about it. Blankenship served a one year federal sentence after his conviction. Upon release from prison, Don Blankenship ran as a Republican for the United States Senate in West Virginia, but switched to the Constitution Party after losing in the Republican primaries. <blockquote>The Miners lost that day-</blockquote><blockquote>1. CARL CALVIN "PEE WEE" ACORD</blockquote><blockquote>2. JASON ATKINS</blockquote><blockquote>3. CHRISTOPHER BELL</blockquote><blockquote>4. GREGORY STEVEN BROCK</blockquote><blockquote>5. KENNETH A. CHAPMAN</blockquote><blockquote>6. ROBERT E. CLARK</blockquote><blockquote>7. CORY THOMAS DAVIS</blockquote><blockquote>8. CHARLES TIMOTHY DAVIS</blockquote><blockquote>9. MICHAEL LEE "CUZ" ELSWICK</blockquote><blockquote>10. WILLIAM ILDON "BOB" GRIFFITH</blockquote><blockquote>11. STEVEN "SMILEY" HARRAH</blockquote><blockquote>12. EDWARD DEAN JONES</blockquote><blockquote>13. RICHARD K. LANE</blockquote><blockquote>14. WILLIAM ROOSEVELT LYNCH</blockquote><blockquote>15. JOE MARCUM</blockquote><blockquote>16. RONALD LEE MAYNOR</blockquote><blockquote>17. NICOLAS DARRELL MCCROSKEY</blockquote><blockquote>18. JAMES E. "EDDIE" MOONEY</blockquote><blockquote>19. ADAM KEITH MORGAN</blockquote><blockquote>20. REX L. MULLINS</blockquote><blockquote>21. JOSHUA SCOTT NAPPER</blockquote><blockquote>22. HOWARD D. "BOONE" PAYNE</blockquote><blockquote>23. DILLARD EARL “DEWEY” PERSINGER</blockquote><blockquote>24. JOEL R. "JODY" PRICE</blockquote><blockquote>25. GARY WAYNE QUARLES</blockquote><blockquote>26. DEWARD ALLAN SCOTT</blockquote><blockquote>27. GROVER DALE SKEENS</blockquote><blockquote>28. BENNY RAY WILLINGHAM</blockquote><blockquote>29. RICKY WORKMAN</blockquote><blockquote> </blockquote><blockquote>A list with portraits and short biographies can be found on the memorial website linked below.</blockquote>

On April 5, 2010, the Upper Big Branch mine explosion rocked the small town of Whitesville West Virginia. With the loss of 29 miners, the UBB mine disaster was the worst mine disaster in the state in decades. To remember their lost loved ones, the community created a memorial in their honor. The Upper Big Branch Mining Memorial Group, Inc. ensures the continuing maintenance and upkeep of the memorial.


The Upper Big Branch Miners Memorial

The mine at Eccles was first opened in 1905 and was owned by
the Guggenheim family from New York. At the time, the Eccles Mine was believed
to be a relatively safe mine that was up to the ventilation standards. However,
around 2:10pm on April 28, 1914 the No. 5 mine exploded. The explosion is said
to have been caused by a miner blowing a hole through a coal barrier in order
to shorten his walk between his working areas. This caused a problem to the mine's
ventilation, leading to a buildup of methane in the air which was then ignited
by another miner’s open-flame lamp (1). The subsequent explosion killed all 174
workers in Eccles Mine No. 5 that day. Blackdamp, the deadly gas resulting from
coal mine explosions, traveled from No. 5 to the connecting No. 6 mine. Nine
men in the Eccles No. 6 mine died due to asphyxiation from the afterdamp. One
man from mine No. 6, William Derenge, survived both this explosion in 1914 and
a second explosion at the Layland Mine on March 2, 1915 in which 112 men died.
In both instances he survived by barricading himself from the deadly afterdamp.

It took recovery crews a total of four days to reach the
victims of the disaster. A temporary morgue was established on site to help
with body identification, however the explosion was so violent many bodies were
unable to be identified. Five of the dead miners were only fourteen years old and
many of the miners were immigrants. New workman’s compensation laws provided
assistance to widows of the miners. They received $20 every month until
remarriage or death and $5 a month for every child under fifteen, up to three
children (2). The state also provided coffins and burial boxes for the dead. This
was the deadliest coal mine explosion in the United States in the year 1914.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Mines a total of 2,451 miners died on the job
that year. This was 334 less than the casualties of 1913 (3). 

On March 8, 1926, Eccles experienced another explosion which
killed 19 miners. The mine at this point was operated by a subsidiary of the
Stonega Coal Company. Fine coal particles present in the air contributed to
this explosion. Similar to the 1914 disaster, both connecting mines No. 5 and
No. 6 were affected by the explosion. A total of 45 workers survived this second
explosion.&nbsp;Eccles Mine&nbsp;continued in operation until 1928, and the coal seam utilized by the mine continued to be extracted for many decades afterwards from other shafts. There are historical markers and memorials dedicated the the Eccles Mine Disasters.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The memorial commemorates the victims of two mining disaster, the first in 1914 and the second in 1926. The 1914 tragedy was the second-worst mine disaster in West Virginia coal mining history. On April 28, 1914 the No. 5 mine of the New River Collieries Company exploded in Raleigh County about four miles from present-day Beckley. The explosion carried over to the connecting No. 6 mine. A total of 183 men died in this mining disaster as a result of a faulty ventilation system. A second disaster occurred twelve years later when nineteen miners were killed on March 8, 1926. Both disasters were preventable as they were caused by the ignition of methane gas by mining equipment.

Eccles Mine Disaster Memorial Cemetery

The Great Depression that followed the great stock market crash of 1929 was a devastating economic climate for most Americans. When the prospect of work came along, thousands of unemployed workers usually jumped at the chance. Growing chemical giant Union Carbide &nbsp;then in the process of building a metallurgical plant in Alloy, West Virginia needed both a way to power the new factory and a massive supply of silica for the manufacturing process. The company devised a way to provide both with a new project: the Hawks Nest Tunnel.With the mountainous terrain and falling waters of the area, near where the confluence of the New and Gauley Rivers become the Kanawha, hydroelectric power had been in use since the early 1900s. Union Carbide awarded Rinehart and Dennis Corporation of Charlottesville, Virginia the contract to build a three mile long tunnel through Gauley Mountain which was very rich in silica. The water would be diverted through the tunnel to a new dam for power. The contract was awarded on March 13, 1930 and the company had exactly two years from that date to have the tunnel, dam, and powerhouse completed.There was no shortage of available men to work. The Great Depression provided the opportunity to find an available and easy workforce. &nbsp;Approximately 5000 men were recruited to work on the tunnel over the course of the two years-with ⅔ of them being African American. Of these 5000, 2982 were underground drilling and blasting while most of the skilled positions were filled by men from Union Carbide. Workers lived on site, in shacks, sometimes 8 men to a room. Workers were paid 35 cents an hour and worked up to 60 hours a week--however, they paid $1 a week for shack rent and electricity plus 50 cents a week for the use of a company doctor and local hospital.The tunnel was dug through Gauley Mountain between Anstead and Gauley Bridge. Core ground samples revealed most of the rock to be high-grade silica bearing sandstone. Normally with this type of rock, a “wet drilling” technique would be used, where water is applied to the drill bits to reduce dust. However, with so little time to complete the project a dry drilling technique was used. Workers would often come home covered in a white dust from head to toe. &nbsp;Because this was a civil engineering project, safety measures were reduced. The tunnel had poor ventilation. There was a lack of dust control and only a limited use of personal breathing protection.Within months of starting the project, workers started to get sick. At first, company doctors diagnosed them with pneumonia, but as more men fell ill, their families were less satisfied with the company’s explanation. A Fayetteville law firm took on the case and consulted an independent professional, Dr. Leonidas Ryan Harless, to conduct chest x-rays of affected workers. &nbsp;Harless confirmed that it was not pneumonia, but silicosis: a progressive fibrosis of the lungs caused by inhaling pulverized silica dioxide. The law firm went on to sue for compensation for the workers and their families against Rinehart and Dennis Corporation, aided by an agreement from Dr. Harless that he would examine any worker they represented. The Corporation’s defense stated that tunnel had the best ventilation possible while the machinery and the working conditions at Hawks Nest were the best ever known. A settlement was eventually reached--a mere $200,000. &nbsp;This settlement was split between 538 families and some settlements ranged from $30 upwards to $1,600.The complete death toll from the disaster is not known. The United States House of Representatives held a congressional hearing in 1936, eventually attributing 476 deaths to the disaster. In an award-winning study conducted in 1986 by epidemiologist Martin Cherniack, however, Dr. Cherniak asserts that upward of 764 actually died of silicosis and exposure to the silica dust. Congress did not pursue any punitive actions against Union Carbide or Rinehart and Dennis.While the death toll was still climbing, victims were dying so quickly that it became an issue as to where the dead should be buried. Only 40% of men lasted more than 2 months on the job--a mere 20% made past 6 months. The greatest hardships often fell to the African American workers--who in this segregated era were often not allowed burials in “white” cemeteries. At first, the recently deceased were dumped in the river bed and covered with tunnel rock. When public suspicions were aroused, Union Carbide paid a nearby farmer to bury African-Americans in unmarked graves in a field on Martha White’s farm in Nicholas County, near Summersville.Today, the tunnel continues to divert water and produce electricity for the metallurgical plant in Alloy. Though Union Carbide was dismantled and sold in portions throughout the 1980s and 1990s, their persistent destruction of records coupled with a campaign to silence workers in the 1930s has prevented a meaningful body of scholarship on the disaster since--though in 2016 West Virginia University Press re-published famed New York poet Muriel Rukheyser’s “The Book of the Dead,” written in 1936, which revolves around her interactions with Hawks Nest survivors.Silicosis has since been diagnosed as an occupational disease with compensation for workers. But while the tragedy at Hawks Nest informed this legislation, the tunnel workers of 1930-1932 were not protected by these laws, and their legacy remains largely unrecognized.

Despite being considered one of the greatest industrial disasters in United States history, the events at Hawks Nest Tunnel remain remarkably unacknowledged in the development of American labor. As the country sank into the Great Depression, in 1930-1932 a three-mile long tunnel from was dug through the heart of Gauley Mountain in the Kanawha Valley of West Virginia by Union Carbide corporation to divert water to a hydroelectric plant, and at the time the project was considered an engineering marvel. Lax safety standards and a disregard for worker welfare, however, caused the death of hundreds of workers from silicosis. Despite later legislation that set precedents in mining and safety standards, Union Carbide avoided any real consequences in the investigation that followed.


Hawks Nest Tunnel Disaster 

<blockquote>“I used to rabbit hunt over there on the Martha White farm out in the fields before Rt. 19 came through here. I could see the graves. They were little soft mounds of dirt with grass over them. If you were not careful, you could step on one and it would cave in. They were in rows right up and down the fence line. They moved a lot of them when the highway came through. Dug up the graves and took what was left down by Hughes Bridge on the Gauley River to bury them again." -Owen Symes, local resident.</blockquote>In March of 1930, Union Carbide needed a way to power their metallurgic plant in Alloy, WV. It was decided that water power would be the best bet. There was to be a tunnel, dam, and powerplant built. &nbsp;The tunnel would be on Gauley Mountain. It was drilled straight through the mountain--not only would it provide power for the plant, it would provide a massive supply of silica for manufacturing purposes. The mountain is pure high grade silica. Lax safety standards led to workers getting sick very quickly. Miners would come out covered in silica dust-a fine white powder that covered everything and would scatter when they changed out of their work clothes. &nbsp;According to the American Lung Association, “silicosis affects the lungs by damaging the lining of the lung air sacs. Once this begins, it leads to scarring and, in some situations, to a condition called progressive massive fibrosis. This condition happens when there is severe scarring and stiffening of the lung, which makes it difficult to breathe.” This was a known condition in the 1930s.When miners first started getting sick, it was diagnosed as pneumonia--a determination soon proved false as more miners fell ill and rapidly began to die, suffocated in weeks by the concentrated silica dust saturating their lungs. It soon became a problem with what to do with the deceased. At first, the bodies were thrown in the river and covered by tunnel rock. As miners continued to die, however, this method became untenable. Union Carbide paid the family of a local undertaker in Summersville to bury the deceased on their property--at a rate of &nbsp;$50 a body. It was simply known as Martha White farm to the locals. The Great Depression provided a willing, able, and steady workforce who were taken advantage of. The cemetery is for the African American miners who were not allowed to be buried alongside whites at the time. There are 40 men buried in the cemetery.The gravesite laid almost forgotten until the Department of Highways decided to widen Highway 19 in 1972. This required that the graves be moved. The DOH moved the graves to a site close to Summersville Lake without much fanfare. It wasn’t given any thought by the public, sadly. It quickly became a spot for people to dump unwanted broken appliances and roadkill. It sat unmarked and without caretakers for 40 years--until local couple George and Charlotte Neilan stepped in.In 2009, the couple prepared a grant application to fund a workers’ memorial. Their first step was finding the site. This is where West Virginia State University professor Richard Hartman stepped in to study DOH maps and more clearly define the location. Once found, it took three years to clean up the site. Local high school students aided in the efforts, and soon the rest of the community began to contribute. A fence and steps were built, and applications were made for a &nbsp;historical marker for the long-forgotten memorial.On September 7, 2012, a dedication ceremony was held to recognize the miners and the community’s tireless restoration. Held at Old Main Auditorium in Summersville, the event was attended by politicians, historians, community members, and three noted reverends. &nbsp;The names of all known miners buried in the cemetery were read off, though many remain unidentified, and each of the three ministers consecrated the ground. A monument was also dedicated to memorialize the names of the deceased miners. Rev. Ron English of the First Baptist Church of Charleston eulogized the event by saying, “Four words pivot around the purpose of our gathering: celebration, commemoration, commendation and correction,” further elaborating that it is the duty of the present to celebrate the lives of those men lost, commemorate them through the new markers and memorials, commend the dead for their sacrifice, and correct the tragedy that they were buried in unmarked graves.<div> </div>

The tragedy at Hawks Nest Tunnel is considered one of the greatest industrial disasters in American history. When chemical-manufacturing giant Union Carbide commissioned a 3-mile long tunnel through silica-rich Gauley Mountain in 1930, basic respiratory safety procedures were ignored and hundreds of the mostly lower-class African American miners contracted fatal cases of silicosis. The death toll, which is still contested, ran into the hundreds, and space was needed quickly to bury them. Racial tensions at the time did not allow African Americans to be buried with whites, so Union Carbide paid a local farmer for use of his fields as a makeshift cemetery. When the highway came through forty years later, in 1972, the graveyard was relocated and the dead forgotten again--until a local couple stepped in. Through the help of the community and local high school students, the cemetery has been restored and received a dedicated a memorial site in 2012. 

Hawks Nest Workers Memorial and Grave Site

This history of coal mining is deeply interwoven into the history of the Mountain State. In 1742, John Peter Salley explored the Allegheny Mountain region along the Kanawha River Valley with his team of surveyors. During his travels, he discovered an abundance of coal veins near the water way and referred to the body of water as the Coal River for this reason. In the early 1800s, coal would serve as a resource for working Blacksmiths and also heated homes while fueling the furnaces for the growing salt mines in the Kanawha River region. Significant mining operations began as early as the 1840s through the 1860s and the state of Virginia responded by passing laws regulating mine operations and investments in land and mineral rights.After the Civil War, some of the first major mining operations in the new state of West Virginia occurred in Fairmont Field near the present-day city of Fairmont. Its location on the Pittsburgh coal seam provided most of the eastern part of the country with a steady supply of coal. As the northern part of the state saw the expansion of significant coal operations, the southern coal fields also grew with the establishment of the Flat-Top Pocahontas fields of Mercer and McDowell Counties. These mines began shipping coal in 1883 and later grew into the Pocahontas Fuel Company in 1907. The arrival of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway in the early 1900s made it possible to ship coal from Logan and Wyoming County, triggering a further coal mining boom in West Virginia.The methods of mining, and the laws surrounding the profession, have evolved over the generations. In the antebellum period, free and enslaved workers mined surface coal with shovels and pickaxes and carried the ore with baskets and sleds pulled by draft animals. By 1890, mechanized coal cutting, hauling, and loading had become a normal sight to see. After the 1930s, long trains, conveyor belts, and shuttle cars became as common as the miners themselves. With technological advancements, West Virginia was able to see two of the largest production booms in its history: 146,088,121 tons of coal in 1927, and 173,653,816 tons in 1947.As the coal industry grew, mines recruited workers from other states and even other nations. Coal companies would provide these workers with not only a job, but also a place for their families to stay known as “coal camps.” Many coal camps were centered around a company store that sold items to workers on credit using company-issued currency known as “scrip”. Each company would have its own printed scrip that signified to their workers that certain scrip could be only used for certain businesses. The system placed power in the hands of the company, leading to potential for abuse when management decided to raise prices for rent, food, and household goods at the company store but did not increase wages.Between 1910 and the early 1920s, several conflicts between miners and mine management led to calls for unionization. Some conflicts about this issue turned into small-scale wars between miners and hired guards known as Pinkertons. On May 20th, 1920, Agents of Baldwin-Felts Detective Agency evicted miners and their families out of their homes for attempting to join a union, leading to a gunfight in the town of Matewan that killed seven agents, two miners, and mayor Cabell Testerman, while also injuring pro-union sheriff Sid Hatfield. The following three months of conflict would be later known to Mountaineers as the “Mine Wars of West Virginia”.The  “The West Virginia Coal Miner” memorial, designed by sculptor Burl Jones, features a statue of a coal miner. The base of the memorial depicts the common duties men and women performed while working in the coal mines. The memorial's plaque reads, "In honor and in recognition of the men and women who have devoted a career, some a lifetime, towards providing the state, nation and world with low-cost, reliable household and industrial energy... Let it be said that “Coal” is the fuel that helped build the greatest country on earth, has protected and preserved our freedom and has enhanced our quality of life. God Bless the West Virginia Coal Miner! Dedicated this 4th day of December 2002."The memorial was commissioned by the West Virginia Coal Forum, and it commemorates the hard-working men and women who have toiled in the difficult work of mining coal. The memorial served as a gathering place during the Upper Big Branch mine disaster in 2010 and continues to be the location where people come to remember the 29 men who lost their lives in that explosion, as well as countless other sacrifices West Virginia miners have made over the years.

The WV Coal Miners Memorial is located on the grounds of the West Virginia State Capitol Complex in Charleston, West Virginia. Coal mining has deep roots in West Virginia and is a quintessential aspect of culture in the Mountain State. However, coal mining is difficult and dangerous work. The Coal Miners Memorial was designed by Burl Jones in 2002 to honor the men and women who have dedicated their lives to mining coal in West Virginia. To this day, the statue remains a gathering site for those wishing to honor coal miners for their hard work, historical contributions, and personal sacrifices.

West Virginia Coal Miners Memorial

On November 5,
1930, an explosion occurred at the Millfield Mine resulting in the worst mine
disaster in Ohio’s history. The mine was ran by the Sunday Creek Coal Company
who also ran mines at San Troy, and operated many other mines in the Hocking
Hills region. 

At approximately 11:45 A.M. methane gas that had accumulated
in the mine shaft ignited when a spark was created between a trolley car and
the railing causing the explosion. The explosion was felt for many miles. 

One hundred ninety-one miners went to work on this day. Of
the 191 miners, 73 lost their lives. While some died from the explosion, others
lost their lives to carbon monoxide that filled the mine shaft. Others lost in
the disaster included the company’s president, William Tytus, 4 other mine
officials who were inspecting new safety equipment, and 4 visitors.

Nineteen miners were found 9 hours after the explosion by
rescuers. They were three miles from the main shaft. The disaster received
national and international press which led to an improvement in Ohio’s mine
safety laws in 1931.

The Millfield Mine disaster occurred November 5, 1930, at the Sunday Creek Coal Company Mine Number 6 in Dover Township, Athens County, Ohio. It was the state's worst mine disaster. According to the historical marker at the site in Millfield, Ohio, the explosion killed 82 people.

Millfield Mine disaster

The Wheeling Steel Corporation opened their mines in 1866. The Benwood mine supplied coal to the steel mill. The Wheeling Steel Corporation was actually formed in in 1920 when three companies consolidated-La Belle Iron Works, Wheeling Steel &amp; Iron Works, and Whitaker-Glessner Company. In the 1920, the Wheeling Steel Corporation employed over 17,000 employees and was the third largest steelmaker in the United States. &nbsp;In the 1880s, the first steel pipe produced in the United States was made at the Benwood works of Wheeling Steel. On a typical work day, miners would clock in at 6:30 am and make their way into the mine. They have to enter into the mine in teams. The first two teams had made their entry by 7:05am when the explosion happened. An explosion was believed to happened in the 8-north section of the mine. All checks and inspections had been done that morning and no gases were reported. Deliveries were made by the night crew which was supervised by one of the fire bosses. However, after the inspections were done, a roof fall happened and there was a release of gases. A miner came upon it thinking that the fire bosses had inspected it and cleared the area. He lit a flame, thinking he was safe--little did he know, it would cause the whole mine to go up in an explosion. Of the 119 men who died, most were found at the spot were they worked. They died almost instantly from the explosion. If they survived the explosion, they were unable to survive the damp or the crushing roof falls after. At least, 35 of the men died from suffocation because they did not have gas masks. The majority of the miners were of Eastern or Southern European descent including Italian and Polish. It took the Wheeling Steel Corporation nearly 17 hours before they started releasing information about the disaster. It was midnight on April 29 before the first news bulletin went out. No official report was being made as to what caused the explosion. It is still not completely known. It is believed to been caused by a pocket of gas that ignited. It was propagated by coal dust, swept all the inner workings and galleries of the mine. The families of the miners started to appear at the mine not long after it happened. However, because most of the miners were from all over Europe and spoke many different languages, it was hard to communicate with victim’s families. The roof falls caused the explosion made it hard for miners who survived the explosion to get out. However, it also made it hard for rescuers to get in. The rescuers had to make short trips in simply because of the after-damp and the gases that remained. It was a long and treacherous recovery effort. The disaster led to efforts in reduction of coal dust and the passage of laws to make mines safer.

On April 28, 1924, 125 men went into work at the mines of Wheeling Steel Corporation in Benwood, WV. Minutes after walking into the mine, 119 men were dead after an explosion happened at 7:05 am. Every miner who had made it into the mine failed to make it out. If they survived the explosion, they died of suffocation or were crushed to death by roof falls. This was the second worst mining disaster to date.

Benwood Mine Disaster

Disaster               On November 20th, 1968 at 5:30 am an explosion shook the mine, producing shockwaves that were felt several miles away. Miners living in the immediate area flocked to the scene in hopes of attempting rescue, where they reported flames shooting several hundred feet into the sky. Within hours over 20 miners had escaped to the surface but 78 remained trapped within. The fires continued to rage underground until the mine was sealed with concrete. Efforts to recover the bodies resumed a year later but over 19 bodies were never recovered. (Stewart, 120-140)Investigation               As early as 1909 officials expressed concern at the high amounts of flammable gasses released from within the mine. The mine had also been the site of several smaller incidents over the previous decade, including an explosion in 1954 which killed 15 miners. State and federal investigators at the time couldn’t determine any singular cause for the explosion. Instead investigators blamed a series of contributing factors such as: inadequate ventilation, poor testing procedures for methane gas, and a lack of control over both coal dust and the release of methane gas. (Stewart, 82-100)Legal response       There was pronounced public and political outrage over the explosion in Farmington. Then Secretary of the Interior Stuart Udall decried the incident in a speech and promised substantial change, bemoaning the “disgraceful health and safety record that has characterized this major industry” (Lockard, 71). The deaths at Farmington helped spur the passage of the Federal Coal Mine Health and Safety Act of 1969, which mandated four mandatory inspections per year at all underground mines in the US, strict regulations on air quality within mines, and more supportive health policies for miners. While enforcement was lax at first due to understaffing, the necessary organizations were soon expanded.Current Law Suit      New evidence discovered in regards to the accident in 2008 suggested that the chief electrician at the site knowingly disabled part of the ventilation system responsible for removing methane from the mine. This has caused new law suits to be drawn up by the families of the victims against the estate of deceased electrician Alex Kovarbasich and Murray Energy Group which now owns Consol. The law suit alleges that the mining company intentionally hid the role of Kovarbasich from investigators. The suit is ongoing. (http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2014/11/07/decades-after-deadly-w-va-mine-disaster-new-lawsuit-assigns-blam...)The MemorialThe list of those who died are as follows (an asterisk ( * ) indicates the unrecovered):Arthur A. Anderson Jr.Jack O. Armstrong*Thomas D. AshcraftJimmy BarrOrval D. Beam*John Joseph Bingamon*Thomas BoggessLouis S. Boros*Harold W. ButtLee E. CarpenterDavid V. CartwrightWilliam E. Currence*Dale E. DavisAlbert R. DeBerryGeorge O. DeckerHoward A. Deel*James E. EfawJoe FerrisVirgil "Pete" Forte*H. Wade Foster*Aulda G. Freeman Jr.*Robert L. GloverForrest B. GoffJohn F. GouzdCharles F. HardmanEbert E. HartzellSimon P. HayesPaul F. Henderson*Roy F Henderson Sr.Steve HorvathJunior M. Jenkins*James JonesPete J. Kaznoski Sr.*Robert D. KernsCharles E. KingJames Ray KniceleyCharles Korsh Jr.George R. KovarDavid Mainella Sr.Walter R. MartinFrank Matish*Hartsel L. MayleDennis N. McDonaldEmilio D. Megna*Jack D. Michael*Wayne R. MinorCharles E. MoodyPaul O. MoranAdron W. MorrisJoseph MutoRandall R. ParsonsRaymond R. ParsonsNicholas PetroFred Burt RogersWilliam D. ShemeRobert J. SigleyHenry J. SkarzinskiRussell D. SnyderJohn Sopuch*Jerry L. StonekingHarry L. StraitAlbert TakacsWilliam L. Takacs*Dewey TarleyFrank Tate, Jr.Goy A. TaylorHoy B. TaylorEdwin A. Tennant*Homer E. TichenorDennis L. TolerJohn W. ToothmanGorman H. TrimbleRoscoe M. TriplettWilliam T. WalkerJames H. WalterLester B. WillardEdward A. Williams*Lloyd William WilsonJerry R. YaneroPete Zogel, Jr.

The Farmington Mine disaster occurred on November 20th, 1968 the community of Farmington in Marion county West Virginia when the Consol No. 9 mine erupted in flames. The cause was never officially announced at the time but the incident helped inspire the passage of several laws designed to protect miners. Recently new evidence has come to light in regards to the incident, with investigations alleging that the incident was caused by negligence. Legal action in regards to the accident is ongoing. The memorial honors the 78 miners killed in an explosion on November 20, 1968.

Farmington Mine Disaster

The explosion occurred on the morning of December 6th,
1907 after a train cart exiting mine No. 6, fully loaded with almost 38
thousand lbs. of coal broke lose near the top of a trestle and slid back into
the mine. As the train slid down the shaft it caused extensive damage to the
electrical system and destroyed support struts and beams. The ventilation
disruption and air gusts caused massive amounts of dust and gas to be mixed
into the air throughout the mine. A series of massive explosion erupted within
the mine, blowing as much as 100 feet of earth from around one entrance, and
the sound and shockwave caused damage to the town of Monongah over half a mile
away. (McAteer, 110-117)

Rescue

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Workers
on the surface of the mine were quickly taken to nearby towns via the still
functioning cable car, and volunteer rescue workers were entering the tunnels
within 20 minutes in an effort to find and free the 330+ workers trapped in the
mine. Rescuers quickly worked to rebuild ventilating systems for the mine in
hopes of preventing suffocation of the trapped miners. Hundreds of volunteers
came in from Fairmont to help, driven by the emergence of some miners shortly
after the explosion. Rescue was limited by gas and dust stirred up by the
explosion (McAteer, 125-130). After over a day of searching and clearing all
collapsed tunnels the only survivor that was pulled from within the mine was
John Tomko, a Hungarian immigrant found with his deceased brother (McAteer,
137). &nbsp;

Investigation and Response

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; News of
the explosions at the mine quickly went international due to the massive loss
of life and international makeup of the workers. The immediate aftermath of the
disaster saw efforts by Fairmont Coal managers and stockholders to deflect
blame for the explosion, with President C.W. Watson claiming the day after the
explosion that it could only have been caused by the careless use of a mining
lamp (New York Times, December 8,
1907). &nbsp;An official report by the Bureau
of Mines published after the explosion listed the official death toll at 362.
Experts disagreed on the cause, citing everything from torn electrical wires to
improperly used head lamps (Humphry, 28-29). The poor safety standards and the
poorly planned and equipped rescue efforts at Monongah helped set the stage for
the creation of the Bureau of Mines in 1910, which was established to
investigate and help prevent mine explosions as well as to prepare properly
trained and equipped rescue crews (Humphry, 34-35). The final death toll is
still disputed mines were known to employee more workers than officially listed
and often didn’t include children in employee listings.

Legacy

&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The makeup
of the workers at Monongah resulted in swift international attention, and
support came from many areas wishing to help their family in America. Many Italian
workers at the mine came from Molise and nearby areas, today there are ongoing
efforts to recognize the sacrifices and struggles of the immigrants at Monongah
and monuments to the disaster are present in several regions of Italy today. (<a href="http://www.post-gazette.com/life/lifestyle/2007/12/05/Italians-arrive-to-honor-immigrants-killed-in-1907-Monongah-mine-blast/stories/200712050217" title="Link: http://www.post-gazette.com/life/lifestyle/2007/12/05/Italians-arrive-to-honor-immigrants-killed-in-1907-Monongah-mine-blast/stories/200712050217">http://www.post-gazette.com/life/lifestyle/2007/12/05/Italians-arrive-to-honor-immigrants-killed-in-...</a>)

On December 6th, 1907, Fairmont Coal Company mines No. 6 and No. 8 exploded near Monongah, West Virginia. Officially 362 people were killed in the explosion, though later historians and researchers place that number much higher. The resulting outcry over the disaster led to the enactment of numerous safety regulations and was a factor in the creation of the United States Bureau of Mines. The aftermath of the disaster was trying for the town’s residents and the surviving family of workers and left a powerful legacy that is still felt today.

Monongah Mine Disaster

On Thursday, January 21, 1886, the first big mine shaft explosion occurred in the state of West Virginia, at the Mountain Brook Shaft Mine of the Newburg Orrel Coal Company. According to the Preston County Journal, it was around 2:45 p.m. when there was an explosion of gas accompanied by "a rumbling sound like low, rolling heavy thunder, followed by a slight shaking of the ground."1 The townspeople gathered to witness the horrific event; the process of recovering the 39 human bodies and four mules lasted an entire week. The first body to be identified was Isaiah Timmons, who was the pit and fire boss. His son, William (age 14), who was the door keeper in the shaft, was also killed. Many family members worked together in the mine. The cause of the disaster was ruled as neglect of orders and disobedience of the law.1 Although the actual site of the disaster is not accessible, a memorial, dedicated by the Rotary Club of Newburg in 1989, is located outside of the Newburg Post Office. It reads: <blockquote>   THIS MEMORIAL IS DEDICATED TO THE 39 MEN WHO LOST THEIR LIVES IN THE GAS EXPLOSION OF THE MOUNTAIN BROOK SHAFT OF THE NEWBURG ORREL COAL CO., JAN. 21, 1886</blockquote><blockquote>   THE SHAFT WAS LOCATED IN THE WEST END OF NEWBURG ALONG THE B.&amp;O. RAILROAD TRACKS. IT WAS BEGUN IN JAN. 1882, AND REACHED A DEPTH OF 335 FT. THE MINE WAS THE DEEPEST OF THE 6 COAL SHAFTS IN THE STATE AT THAT TIME. THIS WAS THE FIRST BIG SHAFT MINE EXPLOSION IN W.VA.2</blockquote>The names of the men and boy who were killed are also listed - Clinton Albright, Nicholas Birtley, Richard Birtley, John Byer, Jr., John Carroll, Michael Clark, John Conoway, John Edwards, E. Fortney, Morgan Freeman, Harry Guy, Joseph Guy, Thomas Guy, Peter Hanley, John Hornsby, Joseph Johnson, Joseph Ross Kelly, Michael J. Kenny, Henry Lambert, John Lambert, Frank Laymire, William Laymire, James McGowan, Albert McWilliams, Daniel Miller, J. B. Miller, Frank Moon, Newton Moore, Arthur Ogden, George Riggins, Williams Sansbury, Andrew Scott, Wilbur G. Spencer, Isaiah Timmons, William Timmons, Charles Tunley, Jacob H. Weaver, John A. Weaver, Adolph Wein.2 Union Cemetery is located near the old Newburg School and is the final resting place for 21 out of the 39 miners.3 The other men, except for a few who were from out of town, were laid to rest in a nearby cemetery on Scotch Hill.4 History of Newburg Newburg, West Virginia, a town in Preston County, was incorporated in 1868. It was presumably named because it was the most recently established town on the Baltimore &amp; Ohio Railroad (B&amp;O). Newburg was formerly known as "Stop 88" as it was located 88 miles west of the B&amp;O station at Cumberland, Maryland. 5

The Newburg Mine Disaster Memorial honors the 39 men and boys were killed in the gas explosion at the Mountain Brook Shaft of the Newburg Orrel Coal Company in 1886. The Newburg Mine Disaster was the first big shaft mine explosion in the state of West Virginia. The bronze plaque was dedicated by the Newburg Rotary Club in 1989, and is located in front of the Newburg Post Office. 

Newburg Mine Disaster Memorial

Historical Background The Avondale Mine Disaster traces back to America's relentless love for coal, and throughout the 1800s, economic progress by way of the&nbsp;American industrial revolution was fueled by coal. At its center, Northeastern Pennsylvania had the largest anthracite (hard coal) deposits in the Western Hemisphere. Standard extraction procedures at the time&nbsp;required&nbsp;tens of thousands of miners, who poured into the region from the British Isles and, later, Western and Eastern Europe. Source material reflects the incredibly violent nature of coal mining, and events such as the Avondale disaster were bound to happen.&nbsp;Despite law enforcement aimed at coal operators in 1868 and subsequent&nbsp;safety legislation in 1869, these laws were rarely enforced. The rate of death was about 5 per 1,000 workers, and between 1869 and 1900, over 10,000 workers died and 24,500 were injured in Pennsylvania's anthracite district. The Disaster During the cold morning hours of September 6th, 1869, around 108 men were at work in the Avondale Mine. A sudden rush of fire from the furnace at the bottom of the 200-foot shaft&nbsp;burst upwards, sounding like an explosion and causing a breaker to catch fire, and Avondale engineer Alexander Weir blew the emergency whistle.&nbsp; The workers within the shaft did their best to escape the flumes of flame erupting upwards, and those who escape the fire succumbed to carbon dioxide as the fire ate all of the oxygen. Throughout the week, rescue attempts proved unfruitful, and after ventilating the shafts to reduce the overwhelming presence of the deadly Blackdamp, rescuers recovered 110 deceased bodies.&nbsp;

The most deadly mining disaster in Pennsylvania history occurred at the Avondale Colliery on September 6, 1869. Like other mining companies at that time, Avondale kept small fires burning at the bottom of coal shafts to create drafts that promoted better air circulation for the working miners. 

However, in 1869, sparks from the Avondale ventilating furnace set fire to the timbers in the shaft, and the flames engulfed the breaker at the surface, the only exit for those underground. The fire devoured the oxygen and collapsed the breaker into the shaft. It took two days of clearing debris and poisonous gases from the mine before rescuers reached the first victims. 

Some men had fallen while running, another was kneeling, and a father was found with his arm around his son. All told, the fire asphyxiated 108 men and boys and two of the men who attempted to rescue them.

Avondale Mine Disaster, 1869

The DisasterOn January 22nd, 1959, a normal workday quickly became a disaster, and at 11:20 am, two miners in the Pittson shaft heard an audible crack/pop. A full evacuation of the mine was ordered, though the severity of the situation was downplayed by acting superintendent Robert Groves.&nbsp;The roof of the Pittson vein collapsed, instantly killing three workers and trapping forty-five miners. Trapped by an estimated flow of 2.7 million gallons of water a minute, the miners could only search for a way out while their families and community gathered on the banks.The trapped miners were separated but eventually formed into two groups. The two groups trekked through tunnels for hours before escaping through the abandoned Eagle air shaft. Twelve miners were never found, their bodies washed away or destroyed by the tremendous water pressure. &nbsp;(Wolensky, 112-130)ResponseMany people gathered at the banks to wait for word on their family members, while at the same time disaster response officials from the company and state worked to respond to the massive amounts of water pouring into the miles of mines in the area.&nbsp;&nbsp;The intent was, at least in part, to end the flow and save viable veins in the declining but still profitable mines in the valley around the river (Wolensky, 176). The flow was so intense that a massive whirlpool formed in the river, and it wasn’t stopped until 3 days later.&nbsp;To seal the mine, tons of railroad cars, mine carts, and coal waste were dumped into the opening (Berger, 5). The state of Pennsylvania pumped millions of gallons of water from the mines and passed a 1.5 million dollar bill to the Knox Mine Company, which later declared bankruptcy (Berger, 8).The CauseInvestigators found that Knox management had ordered miners to dig under the Susquehanna River, in violation of Pennsylvania law and mine safety standards, which recommended at least 35 feet between a river and a mine tunnel.&nbsp;The tunnel that collapsed in the River Slope mine had less than 6 feet between the shaft and the river (Berger, 8). In investigations after the accident, it was found that mine owners were digging under the river illegally in an attempt to remain profitable and their efforts were enabled by corrupt United Mine Workers Association officials and lax state officials (Dublin, 111).&nbsp;It was this corruption that led to later criminal trials for several figures involved with the affair, and the corruption, lax safety standards, and higher risk of mining is said to have killed the anthracite coal mining in the region.Criminal Trial













A subsequent federal and state investigation revealed almost endemic levels of corruption. The parent mine company was found to not only be ignoring violations of safety standards but to be actively encouraging it. Union officials such as UMWA district president August Lippi were also found to be taking bribes in exchange for not objecting to low safety standards.&nbsp;State officials were shown to be lax in inspection and ignored subsequent operations after the River Slope mine was closed down 9 days before the incident. While ultimately 9 officials were indicted most were overturned on appeal and August Lippi successfully ran for another position within the UMWA (Dublin, 110-113). The criminal trials and the reveal of rampant corruption helped seal the fate of further attempts to operate mines within the region.

This monument commemorates the victims of the Knox Mine disaster which resulted in the deaths of twelve miners on January 22nd, 1959. The incident occurred when miners of the River Slope Mine, owned by the Knox Mine Company, were ordered to dig tunnels under a river. These tunnels were too close to the bottom of the river, causing the tunnels to fail and millions of gallons of water filling the mines. The tragedy cost the lives of twelve miners and led to trials that revealed unsafe practices and corruption throughout the industry. 

The breach resulted in a whirlpool emptying millions of gallons into the massive mine and a recovery effort that cost millions of dollars. This disaster played a pivotal role in ending anthracite mining in northern Pennsylvania. It also exposed negligent and even criminal practices on the part of mine operators and the UMWA in the region. 

Central Appalachia Miners Memorial Heritage Trail

Miners Memorial and Interpretive Signs

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Sources