The Carpathian Connection would like to thank Mr. David Kuchta for his continued support of TCC. Mr. Kuchta has spent years not only researching mines in the state of Pennsylvania but also working in them. Mr. Kuchta’s vast knowledge in this field has made him a celebrated author of numerous essays and works. All of the essays on this page, unless otherwise noted, were written by David Kuchta. Thanks Dave!
Black Maria
by, David Kuchta
During the early years here in the Panther Valley there were two words that originally brought fear into the hearts of miner's wives: Black Maria! Around the coal collieries during and after the turn of the century there was a black covered wagon that was pulled by a team of horses. In later years this was a motorized vehicle that was later known as an ambulance.
During the mid to late 1800s, when people would see this "Black Maria," coming up the street, it brought shudders to those wives of miners who knew that just maybe, they were bringing home their husband or son. In those days, they used the "Black Maria," both as an ambulance as well as a hearse. If there was a bad accident at the colliery, a loud whistle would sound the alarm. But, if it was just what would be considered an average mining accident the whistle wouldn't be sounded. Just as in modern times, the word would get out that someone was killed and everyone thought the worst. Many of the local kids would see the "Black Maria," coming up the street and would be running along side or behind it like a procession. By this time the wives of the miners would be waiting or watching on the front porches or stoops hoping that the "Black Maria," would pass on by. Many of the wives would be praying the Rosary or silently wording desperate suplications to heaven.
During these early years, miners that were seriously hurt were taken by horse and carriage up to Ashland Pa. This was over very rough roads and was a long trip. Many a miner probably died from the rough ride or because of the length of time it took to get to Ashland Hospital. In time, trolley lines were in place from Mauch Chunk to Pottsville, Pa. This did help considerably. Then around 1910, the Coaldale Hospital was built and this was a real blessing for the local coal miners.
But before these trolley lines or Coaldale Hospital was built, everyone had to depend on the "Black Maria" to bring home their loved ones. Probably, the exasperating part was that the miner could be still alive but critically hurt. If the mine officials thought that he couldn't make the trip up to Ashland, he would be taken to his home for his wife to make him as comfortable as she possibly could for the short remainder of his life. If the miner was dead, they would place him on the front porch of his home. At this time, friends or neighbors would come over and take the body into the house, clean, dress him in his finest suit and prepare the deceased for his wake.
Just a few years ago, I always thought that the "Black Maria" was a local expression that was only used in the Panther Valley area. Then I started reading other books on coal mining throughout the entire hard coal regions, and saw this same words used for their ambulance or hearse throughout the entire coalfield regions. This term, "Black Maria," got me thinking about where these words originated. I thought that being the early years of mining here in Pennsylvania were done by Welsh miners that perhaps the word originated in Wales. How wrong I was! When I did research into this question about the use of a horse and carriage or vehicles called a "Black Maria," to haul the critically hurt or dead miners, I found that they used it during the Great Depression in the communities located in the western prairies. I found that it was something like an adaptation of the Model T Ford, and was used for transporting the deceased. Then, a good friend of mine came to the rescue and solved the problem of where the words, "Black Maria," originated. The "Black Maria," was the black van, which conveys prisoners from the police courts to jail. The French called it a mud-barge or a "Marie-salope." The tradition is that the van referred to was so called from Maria Lee, an African-American woman, who kept a sailors' boarding house in Boston. She was a women of such great size and strength that the unruly sailors stood in fear of her, and when constables required help, it was a common thing to send for Maria, who soon collared the refractory (person resisting control or authority) and led them to the lock-up. So because of this, a prison-van was called a "Black Maria." In time it was also used to describe an ambulance and a hearse.
When I was a pre-teen, I used to go for haircuts with my father to George Swider's barbershop in Lansford, PA. The barbershop was first located at Patterson and Sharpe and then at his residence on East Bertsch Street. Since Swider was a fire boss at one of the Lansford Coal mines, a lot of mining went on while waiting for our haircuts. Sooner or later the subject of "boot-leg," mining became the topic. To those who don't quite understand the phrase bootleg mining¼it was usually a small mine operated by two to five workers. These were non-union and were built on property that didn't belong to the miners. In plain English; it was an illegal mining operation.
During the late 20s and early 30s during the "Great Depression," many miners were out of work and started their own bootleg hole. Many a family was raised on the money earned at these enterprises. Also, if it was not for the bootleg mine holes many homes would have been without heat during the winter season. Union miners had a love/hate relationship with "Bootleggers." If the miners worked, they couldn't care less, but if the legal mines were shut down or on strike the "Bootleggers" sold the coal cheaper and ran their operations on a shoestring. Most wouldn't pass a State Mine Inspectors rigorous inspection. They also didn't pay into the "Health and Welfare Fund." The locations of these illegal mine operations were kept secret. Any roads to the operations were kept camouflaged with branches, etc. Most of these mines were slopes driven on a steep pitch. The hoist motors would be the back axles of old cars or trucks hooked up to rigging that hoisted a small bucket or barrel, up and down the slope. Most of these buckets or barrels were pulled up on wood skids. Not too many used rails and small railroad wheels in their project. In the bigger mining ventures the car or apparatus to pull up the coal to the top of the tipple was a "gunboat." Most of these operations were in Schuylkill County on Reading Anthracite Coal Property. The larger coal companies went after the bigger veins of coal and didn't bother with the five or six foot veins.
The Coal Companies knew the approximate location of all the coal veins way back in the 1800's. The state had entire coalfields all explored and mapped out. In the larger valleys with mountains on both sides of it, it is not uncommon to have up to eight larger veins of coal running in an east, west direction. These same veins are located on both sides of the valley. The veins go deep down, under the valley and then come up the other side. Like I had said, most large operations didn't go after the smaller veins until after the mines had closed down and "strip-mines," became more popular. Some of the larger veins were from eight to ninety-feet thick with some forming a roll action and being over 150 foot in width. These were the Mammoth Veins and were the most popular veins to be mined. During the hay-day of mining, the larger mine corporations could have up to eight levels of mine operations below the bottom of the valley. When these mines were in operation, large pumps were used 24 hours a day to keep the water out of the working areas. It is a fact that about 20 tons of water had to be pumped from the mines for every ton of coal. So you can see that the expense is quite high in deep coal mining. Plus, all the mine water that is pumped out of the mines must be treated. The environmental expense is staggering.
The boot leg mines or smaller independent mines can't afford large pumping expenses. In this day and age there are only a few bootleg operations existing. There are many independent mines that sign leases with the landowner to mine coal. They either pay royalties on a ton of coal or sell all the coal that is mined to the owner for a predetermined price. These independent mines fall under the regulations of the State and Federal Government and are inspected by State Mine Inspectors. The smaller bootleg operators try to drive a slope in the vicinity of old workings. This way they drain all the water into the old mines. Of course there is always danger from the old workings because of cave-ins or even water accumulating in old gangways and breaking into new mines. Down through the years, many a bootleg miner lost his life in these illegal operations. All mines are charted and the state knows where old workings are located and were the pillars were robbed. Well usually! I have a friend who had one of these bootleg mines. It was in a part of the mountain that hid the operation from the landowners but some local bikers found the mine and supposedly reported it to the authorities.
The State Mine Inspector that checked out this mine was impressed with the way it was driven but when he received a complaint about them he had to shut it down. If my mind remembers, he blew it shut with dynamite and then had the local contractor come up with one of his bulldozers and doze it shut. In this case, the mine was a safe operation but was illegal as far as the landowners were concerned. Today, some of the smaller veins are mined with small buckets on a drag line shovel. I also would imagine that with today's helicopters and snoop planes, the illegal bootleg mine operators will be a thing of the past. If there are any of these illegal mines in operation in this day and age¼they are kept a secret!
When mining started in the Panther Valley, injured miners were taken to local doctor's office. If he was hurt extremely bad, the injured was hauled to the miners home, deposited there and left to the miners wife to make him as comfortable as possible during those last hours of his life. An interesting thing is that they used the "Black Maria," wagon to deliver both the injured as well as the dead miners to their homes. When people saw the "Black Maria," coming up their street, they thought the worst. During the later years of mining in the Panther Valley, badly injured miners where taken by horse and wagon all the way up to Ashland State Hospital. The roads were in terrible shape, and if the injured miner was hurt seriously, the ride there usually did him in.
During early 1900, streetcars were utilized to haul the injured to Ashland or Pottsville. The ride was much smoother but it still took too much time to reach their destination. Because of this distance from Ashland or Pottsville hospitals, the Coaldale Hospital came into being. In 1909, the miners of the valley volunteered a full days pay for the construction of a hospital while the Lehigh Navigation and Coal Company through the efforts of the Superintendent Ludlow, donated a site for the building. The Coal Company also told the miners that every dollar they donated; the company would also match that amount. The location of the hospital was east of the village of Seek. The hospital would overlook the valley and was built in a very pristine area. This area was where John Moser had built his first home, which was the very first home in the area, which became known as Coaldale. The building was completed on July 11, 1910. The contributions amounted to $50,000. The structure was a three-story brick building and was originally built to accommodate 30 patients. The hospital soon averaged 68 patients. The hospital was divided into three wards; two for men and one for women. Because of the congestion, every available room was utilized at all times. Later, they enclosed the two large porches on the south side which gave the hospital eight additional beds.
In 1911, the interior of the hospital was destroyed by fire. All patients were taken to nearby houses to be treated. Luckily, the homes were empty at the time. Throughout the years, the hospital has been in continuous operation. In 1934 the majority of the patients were miners of the valley, and that there were more surgical cases presented than medical cases. In the men's ward at one point of time, there were a large number of broken limbs, nine of which were suspended from slings, swung from overhead. There were also a large number of burned patients. One was a survivor of the Foster tunnel entombment. At the time he was in the hospital suffering from burns sustained in the mine explosion. The laundry, laboratory, and dispensary are located in the basement. The dispensary, which is quite small for the work being done, has about 80 patients per day. A modern X-ray machine, classed as one of the best for those early years, a modern kitchen with all the latest equipment and complete refrigerating plant were all added. The first nurses in the hospital were; Miss V. Kazakewica and Miss Nellie Close. The first patient admitted to the hospital was Stephen Snikschak from Lansford who was admitted on July 14, 1910. In time new wards were added for burn victims, women and children, including an isolation ward and corridors. Being that the original capacity of the hospital was 30 beds, there wasn't enough beds for new patients so 10 more beds and six cots were crowded in, allowing scarcely enough room between each bed for a nurse to attend the patients.
When possible the overflow was taken care of by placing two patients in one bed, and other are asked to sleep on the floor with blankets. To eliminate this problem, the Board of Trustees limited the class of patients admitted. Because of this some patients had to go 25 or more miles away to other hospitals. In time the board had to recall this order. Dates of new buildings are the following; the original building was built in 1909, the new annex, in Sept. 1927, and the nurses' home in 1933. The employees originally numbered 15 and in 1934 numbered 59. The bed capacity was originally 30, and in 1934 was 92. John Prostovich of Poland, was the first man to die in the hospital. The opening of the new maternity department was in January, 1932. The first child born there was Daniel Conahan of Seek, born on January 1, 1932. In 1927 ground was broken for the Nurses Home. For some reason work on the building ceased in 1929 when it was almost completed. Probably because of the Great Depression, things like this were curtailed. This building stood vacant until 1933, when the Board of Directors managed to cut all the necessary red tape with the State Department, and then preparations were made for its occupancy. I hope you have enjoyed the trip back into time.
Coal Mining History
by, David Kuchta
Just what do we know about the history of coal mining. When did it start? Where and how did it evolve down through the years? Frankly, I don't think too many of us have the faintest inclination about the history of coal and coal mining. I also don't think that anyone under the age of 40 remembers seeing our coal breakers or even hearing the high shrill whistle of the small coal mine "Lokies" going through the valley. These are sights and sounds that will never be seen or heard again. The younger generation and baby boomers probably never saw a coal miner walking to the lamp shanty in gum boots, face and clothes all blackened by coal dust! This is all part of our mine heritage, but only a small bit, because there is so much more to know. Before I got involved with the No. 9 Mine and Museum, I was just like everyone else. I read and heard how mines were damp, dark, deep, dusty and at times dangerous. It was also drummed into me by my father, that I wasn't going to end up working in a mine like him or my grandfathers. With five years of doing research and also working every weekend in the No. 9 Mine, I have learned a lot about the history of mining. When the old timers spoke, I listen! When I wrote my book, "Once A Man, Twice A Boy," I interviewed quite a few old time miners. But instead of researching the run of the mill information I researched out other information about horseplay, pranks, cheating by the company and the miners and also about kickbacks to the fire bosses. This kind of stuff wasn't discussed no less read about. I'm continually learning a lot about our coal mining past. I also enjoy writing about it and preserving this heritage for future generations.
When I went to school, many moons ago, the teachers drummed into us kids that Philip Ginter discovered Anthracite coal in Summit Hill in 1792. They made it sound like this was the first coal every found in the State of Pennsylvania, or as far as I was concerned the world! I soon found out that this discovery was strictly only for Carbon County, which doesn't take in too much area as far as coal mining is concerned. Anthracite Coal was already discovered in parts of Wyoming County (which at that time was a part of the large Northampton County.) To get a better idea of when and where the first coal mines were, I will try to give a break down through the years about the finding and use of coal. The very first coal mined that is recorded was coal that was mined during the Roman Occupation of Britain in 55 BC to 436 AD) along the banks of the rivers Clyde and Forth. Later in Britain coal was mined by the monks of Holyrood and Newbattle Abbeys in Scotland and also by the monks of Northumberland. In 1215 coal was mentioned in the Great Charter of King John Here is an interesting tidbit about coal mining. During King Edward’s reign (1239-1307) he imposed the death penalty to anyone using coal because it was believed that it gave off, "poisonous odors." That bias against the use of coal lasted for about two centuries. Most of us "Coal Crackers" think that the first coal discovered in America was in West Virginia or Pennsylvania. Sorry, not so! The first coal discovered in America was in 1673 near present day Utica, Illinois. This is credited to Louis Joliet and Jacques Marquette. It was also Benjamin Franklin who converted a fireplace that he had invented in 1741 to burn coal and subsequently invented the coal stoves that burn both Anthracite as well as Bituminous Coal. Although most of us senior citizens know what went on above the ground, so little is known what went on underground. We know so little about the profession of "coal mining." Coal mining wasn't just a hit and miss type of venture. Most mines were well planned and engineered. The coal companies knew were the veins of coal were located but when it came to inclines, rolls or pitches this was something that was found out when the tunnels and chutes were driven.
The surprising part of our coal heritage is that there is literally millions upon millions of tons of coal (some recoverable, some not) still in the ground after all these years of mining. Most of the easy (getting) coal is already mined. What is left are huge deposits of coal deep in the ground. Under Pottsville is the huge mammoth vein, which is from 100 to 200 feet wide. But with present day technology it is impossible to mine. The vein is 2,000 feet down. The biggest problem would be the expense of mining it along with removing all the water. Years ago they had to pump 20 tons of water for every ton of coal removed. With no concerns on river pollution this wasn't a problem but now with strict environmental laws this water would have to be treated and cleaned before being pumped back into our streams. The Mammoth Vein of coal is also under the Panther Valley, along with the other various veins of coal. In the future with more modern technology and better systems of mining, this coal may be mined. Of course, if a better way of mining and more economical and more environmental friendly fuel is discovered (such as Hydrogen) then the coal will stay where it is forever. Just knowing that the coal reserves are still there in the ground does put us in a more advantageous position over other countries around the world where there coal reserves are gone or where oil reserves are slowly getting depleted.
On September 27, 1915, eleven men were entombed in the East Mammoth Vein of the Foster Tunnel. It was a water level opening of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, situated on the Southwest boundary line of the town of Coaldale, Pennsylvania. A sudden rush of water from the East Mammoth top split gangway, an abandoned working area, entombed the 11 men for six full days. According to LC&N records, the 11 men were: four contract miners, two laborers, a battery starter, a loader, two mule drivers and a door tender who were involved in driving the chute that eventually flooded. It might be well to note that the East Mammoth top split gangway of Fosters tunnel had been worked and the breasts broke through into the East Mammoth top split gangway. The water, which closed the bottom split gangway, came from these breasts. No trouble was ever experienced with water problems in any of these breasts. In Chute No. 24, the water broke through at eleven o'clock on the morning of September 27 after a shot had been fired by William Watkins and Gint Hollywood, two competent miners, who were engaged in driving, the slant chute.
Both men managed to work their way amid the water and debris down the chute to a crosscut into and up No. 23 chute where they were entombed for 22 hours. The volume of water that broke through made its course from the old gangway, down No. 24 chute gutting it out as the water went along. The water broke down the pillars of coal between chutes Nos. 24 and 20. It violently eroded the No. 20 breast, which was enlarged three times its normal size. From there, the water and debris went down No. 20 chute into the gangway and then proceeded toward the mouth of the tunnel. In its course the water picked up timbers, rocks, coal and fine material, to close and compact the gangway from No. 19 chute to No. 25 chute. This distance is approximately 300 feet long. Upon being notified of the accident, General Inside Superintendent W. G Whildin and Mine Inspector I.M. Davies immediately went into consultation and under their supervision, rescue parties and plans for re-opening the gangway were promptly formed and put into immediate operation. Three rescue parties were formed and definite work assigned to each. One party was to make a narrow opening on the top of the gangway, and another party was to open the airway or monkey gangway and the third party was to follow the first party into the mine for re-opening the gangway to its full width.
It is reported that 150 workers took part in the rescue efforts. The party, which was opening the gangway to its full width, started at the No. 3 chute and cleaned up such materials that were carried by the water in its course toward the tunnel mouth. The rescue party, which worked the upper lift of the gangway, started at chute No. 19 and opened a hole 3 by 4 feet along the south rib (Wall of the tunnel.) This work was tedious and slow due to the extreme difficulties which were encountered along the gangway. Between chutes No. 20 and 21 the progress was impeded by striking a steel mine car and truck that was caught in the flood-waters. By means of an acetylene torch, enough of the mine car was cut away to permit the men to follow the north rib and proceed with the rescue work. At the time that the men were rescued, this rescue party had advanced very close to chute No. 25 where the mules were found amid the old timbers, rock, coal and other debris. The rescue party which advanced along the airway started at chute No. 19 and proceeded on to No. 20 where it was found that the pillars of coal had been washed away leaving No. 20 breast almost three times its normal size.
Three sets of timber, well planked, were used in crossing this breast and the rescue party advanced along this airway. The coal pillars between chutes Nos. 23 and 24 were badly damaged and extra precaution was used in opening this area. When reaching chute No. 26, black damp, CO2 was encountered and it became necessary to use a supply of compressed air to drive it out in order that the work might continue. Chute No. 26 was the first chute found opened and after driving the black damp gas out, the men explored the chute to its mouth and found the gangway filled with water. Two electric pumps were used in lowering this water and when sufficiently lowered, a raft was built and further explorations in the gangway began. On Oct. 3rd, John Humphries, the foreman at Foster's tunnel while on the raft, shouting as he went further into the mine, made contact with Elmer Herring. Elmer Herring who was the strongest of those imprisoned, came down the chute where the men had taken refuge. Herring yelled, "My God man, turn your light the other way, it is blinding me." Humphries asked Herring how were the other men? "All alive!" was Herrring's response. Subsequently, Herring led Humphries to the rest of the men huddled in Chute No. 27. At chute No. 27, the men were found all alive and in good physical condition. A temporary platform was built along the legs of the gangway timbers and each entombed man, after being trapped behind a wall of water, timber and loose coal for six days and five hours, was slid along this platform to chute No. 26. They went up the chute and along the course which was opened by the rescuers to chute No. 20 ½. Then, they were taken down the cute to the gangway where the company physician gave them hot coffee, and when necessary, a hypodermic injection to stimulate their weakened hearts.
The rescue was done in a very thorough manner. Each man was carried on a stretcher from No. 20 ½ chute to the ambulance at the tunnel's mouth. A slip of paper showing what treatment had been given each worker was given to the captain of the stretcher squad. This was delivered it to the physician of the Panther Valley Hospital, (Coaldale) where the men were taken to recuperate. After the rescue, all the debris that had fallen into the tunnel was hauled away, having filled 588 coal cars and 86 trucks. With the probability of more cave-ins, dangerous conditions from old timbers laying about in the mud and debris, black damp gas, and just the mere fact of further flooding, this rescue has to be considered as miraculous. Much credit was due to Mine Inspector David J. Roderick of Hazleton, who responded promptly when asked to assist with the rescue work and also to all the employees of the coal company without whose noble efforts nothing could have been accomplished.
1
2
3
4
5
Most miners carried a lunch can to work with a lid that held water. The miner would take the container of water, take off the cap and hold the can upside down to drain out the water, right on the floor of the Wash Shanty. Then he would holler, "Domu," which in the Slovak or Polish language means home. At that point everyone was ready to head on home or to the nearest gin mill. At times this did get out of hand. On one occasion one of the miners came into work with a terrific hangover from a long night of celebrating. Not wanting to work, he just emptied his water can, hollered "Domu," and everyone went on home.
There were periods of time, that there were short walkouts or strikes each and every month. Some of these got to be known as the "Strike of the Month." Some were for a just cause, some were over nonsense. I would imagine that many of these disagreements could have been worked out with an amicable agreement. With working conditions as bad as they were, it didn't take much to set off the workers. Perhaps what was written in the Lansford, Valley Gazette in July, 1975, explains it all. A coal mine is six dimensional; Dusty, deep, dark, damp, dirty and dangerous. Any one of these "D" words could aggravate a miner on any given day. Living in the Southern Hard Coal fields all my life, hearing my father or his friends discussing all the various problems at home, in the local gin mills, or at the barbershop that he went to, I heard it all. There was a point in time, that they thought that a Labor Party (not communist) but a party of all the blue-collar workers in America would have been organized during his lifetime. This never materialized and now it is too late. Just maybe the fact that the communists or socialist party used the words Labor Party in their title, made workers back off. Most of the various unions that represent the blue-collar worker in the 1990's have lost their clout. Now that I have aged and matured, I understand what all the complaints were all about.
May to October, 1902 Strike:
When Photographer, George Harvan gave me the book regarding the 1902 strike to research about some of the local riots, assaults, and other covert acts on the part of the strikers in the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company area, I figured that I would just do a little synopsis of all the details. After reading through four pages of these incidents, I thought it necessary to show the reading public all the hostilities that happened during that strike. It is extensive, but accurate. It comes from the book, Report of the Anthracite Coal Strike Commission.
Writers comments:
When you read through this report, you will see the word Hungarians used to designate certain factions of workers. It is my opinion, that most of these so-called Hungarians were mixtures of the Slavic people. In those days, Czechoslovakia was Austria/Hungry. Although the people in what is now called Slovakia, were Slovaks for centuries before. People who came from Eastern Slovakia listed their country as Hungry.
The English-speaking and American born people called them Slavs and some did use the word; "Hunky." These people were from the plains and mountains across Eastern Europe and the Balkans. They were Poles, Rusyns, Ukrainians, Czechs Slovaks, Serbians, Croatians, Russians and others. Included in this is also the eastern part of Austria that later became Slovakia. On my grandfathers mining certificate, the birthplace is listed as Austria, although he was born and raised in what is now called Slovakia.
These poor souls were threatened by the company that they would be evicted from their company homes if they didn't report to work, and when work would start again, they were threatened that they wouldn't have any jobs to return to. Having no savings to carry them through the strike, many had to make the decision to either honor the strikers and stay home, or go to work. Those going to work were intimidated and even beaten. Some of those who honored the strike had their belongings thrown out on the sidewalk, by the Coal Company, and evicted from the company homes they lived in. Many of these people had to move in with relations or friendly neighbors. Many just packed up their belongings and moved away from the coal regions. Some immigrants became so disillusioned with what was happening that they went back home to the countries of their origin. These had to be the worst of times.
May 16th. A large body of strikers surrounded the men loading stock coal at Hauto and threatened that if they did not cease work they would be stoned to death. Since then, these men have been fed and lodged by the company, all the while working and living under a strong guard day and night. June 2nd. The engineers and firemen were called out on strike. Many others did not immediately dessert, but through intimidation and fear of assault they were afraid to continue at work. In the course of a week few remained at their posts. June 4th. At Nesquehoning, houses of engineers remaining at work were stoned. Briggs, the engineer at No. 6, at night, in the presence of his wife, was threatened with bodily harm if he did not cease working. His wife was thrown into hysterics. June 8th. A large meeting of strikers was held in Lansford Opera House, at which Union President Johnny Mitchell was expected to speak. As a result of the meeting, the next morning June 9th, large gangs of strikers congregated on the street corners as early as 3 o'clock and by threats and intimidation turned back many of the men on their way to work.
June 11th. The Sheriffs of Schuylkill and Carbon counties were asked to restore peace. A young man, named Ackerman, in going to work at the Lansford shops, was surrounded by a large mob, and hit with a terrific blow in the face by a big Hungarian. Mobs made midnight calls at the houses of men who were away at work to frighten their wives with threats of blowing up their homes with dynamite if they did not persuade their husband from going to work. The following day, merchants, butchers, milkmen and bakers were warned by committees of strikers not to furnish the necessaries of life to the families of men at work or suffer the penalty of a boycott. A Hungarian working at No. 10, was captured in Tamaqua by Coaldale strikers, and marched him to McAdoo. To make the journey as painful as possible, they placed pebbles in his shoes.
June 16th. Mobs kept a number of stable bosses at home, thus preventing them from looking after the mules. June 28th. Strikers beat Martin Poinitski because he persisted in working. Both he and his wife were assaulted while on the way home from work. The following day, Hungarian workmen were kidnapped by strikers and forced to walk to McAdoo. June 30th. The clay gang was stopped from going to work; Policemen escorting men to work in the morning were attacked by mobs. Coal and iron Policeman Harris, in getting off a trolley car while on the way to his home, was surrounded by a mob and accompanied as far as the door of his home. Threatening to follow into the house, he drew his revolver and drove them away. Later on, he was arrested and put under bail for carrying a concealed deadly weapon. Four coal and iron policeman, in trying to make arrests at noon, were surrounded by a mob, pushed around, beaten and one badly wounded. A Hungarian was kidnapped and marched to Tamaqua by Coaldale strikers. The man was badly beaten. Thomas Barr and Henry Shaeffer, coal and iron policemen in protecting a Hungarian going to work, and attacked by a mob, were interfered with and beaten. The policemen swore out warrants against the leaders of the mob, who were released under light bail.
John Pashuta was forcibly taken off the pavement on Ridge Street, Lansford, and marched down the valley toward Tamaqua. He was beaten, kicked and dragged by his heels, and left for dead by the roadside. He was disabled through the severe treatment given him, and the doctors say his injuries are permanent. Chief of Police Chester and Assistant Superintendent Snyder, in endeavoring to rescue Pashuta were surrounded by the mob, thrown to the ground, jumped upon, and robbed of their revolvers. July 5th. At the Baseball Park in Lansford, stones were wedged in the guardrail of the trolley road. The same place was blocked a number of times afterwards. July 7th. William Black, a workman at Summit Hill while coming out of the hall of the P. O. S. of A. was surrounded by strikers and marched to Coaldale. There by the order of the secretary of the Coaldale local, he was taken to a clubroom where he was abused and obliged to swear that he would not go to work again. After he had taken the oath, the officers discovered that it would not be safe to let him get in the hands of the mob outside of the building, so he was finally taken out the back way by some of the prominent strikers and given his liberty.
The following day, Elmer McCready and Samuel Nevins, Jr., two young men working at Colliery No. 4, were assaulted and beaten by a body of strikers. Eight to ten of the strikers being known by the young men, were arrested but the justice, putting them under light bail released them.
July 9th. M.B. Weidleich, a coal and iron policeman, was surrounded by strikers on a street of Lansford, at dusk, and marched to Coaldale, beaten, shamefully abused and stripped of all his clothing, but his drawers. In this condition he walked to his home, a distance of several miles, which he reached in an exhausted condition. He was confined to bed for several weeks by his injuries. The following day, James Snyrle, a brakeman, living in Summit Hill, just as he was leaving his home in the morning, was captured by a mob of strikers and marched to Coaldale. He was badly beaten, and had his nose broken and was near stripped nude. He reached him home without shoes and little clothing. Smyrle was laid up for a week or more on account of his injures.
July 10th. The sheriff of Carbon County applied for troops, and to impress the governor with the great need of them sent a committee of Lansford citizens to Harrisburg. He made a personal appeal to the governor that he should send troops to the Panther Creek Valley to protect life and property, and which at that time the governor refused to does this.
July 13th. Samuel Meese, a stableman at Nesquehoning, was chased by an angry mob of strikers. To escape them he took refuge in the home of a friend. The following day, Harry Hornsberger, a coal and iron policeman stationed at Lansford shops, while going to work and still within 40 feet of his home, was assaulted by strikers and threatened with death if he did not desert his post. Hornsberger had one of the assailants; Daniel S. Lewis arrested and put under bail.
July 26th. John Heugle, a brakeman working for the company and living at Hauto, was captured by his neighbors, strikers, and marched toward Nesquehoning. Word being phoned to the Lansford office of the kidnapping of Heugle, a force of policemen boarded an engine, overtook the mob and rounded up forty-seven of them. All were brought to Lansford and put in the lockup. Later in the evening, when the door of the lockup was opened to take the prisoners to the squire for a hearing, with the aid of a lot of Lansford strikers the greater number escaped. However, all were finally put under bail to appear at court. July 26th. The wife of Heugle while trying to help her husband escape from the mob was knocked down and jumped upon by George Jyumber, a striker.
Jyumber was arrested and put under bail. In the evening, Arlington switch was half thrown open and blocked with stones and iron. This was discovered by a motorman just in time to prevent a serious accident. August 4th. During rioting at Summit Hill, a number of workmen were beaten and a trolley car was held up. August 11th. Thomas Reeves, a conductor, was pulled off his car at Summit Hill by a mob of strikers. August 18th. William Ronemus, whom he was assaulted, killed pay Sharpe at Nesquehoning. Troops were again asked for, and a battalion of the Twelfth Regiment arrived at Lansford the next morning. During the day, they located permanently at Manila Grove. August 23rd. Rails on the trolley road and the Coaldale grade were greased. A Hungarian was abused and assaulted by strikers on the pike leading to the Lansford office.
The following day, a guardrail on a curve at the Baseball Park was filled up with stones and blocked. August 25th. Peter King, a non-union man was robbed by strikers on Center Street, Lansford while on his way to work. To avoid being mobbed, he went to his home one day a week.
William Henry was not allowed to leave his house by a mob of strikers, and was kept in until August 27th. August 26th. Thomas Barr and Edwin Fritz coal and iron policeman was badly beaten by a mob of strikers in Coaldale; 17 strikers were arrested for this offense. Strikers abused Mrs. Samuel Pollock, a wife of a workman, and her clothes were torn off her while on the streets of Lansford. A Hungarian, named Shoemaker, was badly beaten by strikers in Lansford. August 27th. A bullet was fired by strikers into the home of W.C. Henry. The next day a detachment of soldiers was sent to guard the house of Henry. They remained on duty the entire night. Strikers started two cars of railroad sills down the Summit Hill grade. The cars derailed near the No. 4 breaker and were completely destroyed. The lock and chain on a switch was taken off and thrown away. August 29th. Strikers in early morning, at Lansford Opera House, jeered and hooted the soldiers. The soldiers making a charge on the strikers drove about forty of them into the Opera House. Many of the men in their haste, broke windows to get in.
John Kelly and Frank and John King, strikers, while insulting soldiers, were captured and put in the guardhouse. August 30th. W.C. Henry, being surrounded by a mob, drew his revolver to defend himself. September 4, the trolley track to the car barn was blocked once again with stones, sills and beer kegs, requiring ten minutes to clear away the obstructions. September 12th. A Hungarian, working at No. 4 was caught by strikers near Lansford shops and terribly beaten about the head. In a semiconscious state, he wandered to the camp at the Manila Grove, where the soldiers dressed his wounds Two other Hungarians were assaulted by strikers in Lansford and badly beaten. September 13th. Through the accidental discharge of a carbine, a Hungarian laborer was killed at No. 4 Colliery. September 16th. The behavior of the strikers, who interfered with the funeral of the Hungarian accidentally killed at Colliery No 4, which took place from his boarding house on West Bertsch Street, Lansford was most disgraceful.
The strikers held up the funeral for an hour and a quarter, insulting the preacher of the Lutheran Church to which the Hungarian belonged, while conducting the services, and threatening the pallbearers with severe punishment if they attempted to remove the corpse from the house. At the graveyard a mob of about 1,000 gathered to hoot and jeer, and when the grave was partly filled up, they desecrated it. September 17th. Thomas Richards, serving as a coal and iron policeman, in order to escape neighbors who were persecuting him and his family, moved to a quieter part of Lansford. His moving was greatly interfered with by the strikers. The following day, Charles Loftus, another coal and iron policeman, while moving to another part of town was interfered with by the strikers. His family was offered all sorts of insults, by hooting, jeering and dancing around the wagon and by prodding the team of mules, which caused a runaway, with the result that a piano on the wagon was dumped off onto the street and badly damaged. Not satisfied with this, the strikers further damaged the piano by throwing stones at it.
September 27th. Strikers surrounded the house of John Hunsicker, living in Summit Hill, and to keep him from going to work threw stones at the house, breaking in the windows. A detachment of soldiers was sent to protect him on his way to work. September 30th. Archie and James McMichael, while taking a boy to work at the Lansford shops, they were surrounded by a mob of strikers, who were throwing stones. Archie McMichael with his revolver dispersed the mob.
September 30th. W.C. Henry to have peace was obliged to move out of his own home into one he rented in the East Ward of Lansford. Crowds of strikers congregated a the corner of Bertsch and Center Streets and the corner of Ridge and Center Street in Lansford, waiting to interfere with workmen going home from work. Soldiers sent for that purpose dispersed these strikers. October 1st. A train of coal cars was derailed at No. 9 switch. The strikers learning of the derailment assembled in large numbers, and in various ways interfered with the railroad men in getting the cars back on the track. The mob became so violent that a detachment of soldiers was called for to disperse it. Mrs. Bristricke was cook in the No. 10 stockade during the strike. Before going to the stockade she lived with Mike Nickles, and left all her belongings in his house excepting what she needed at the Colliery. Nickles and his wife also took work at the colliery and while employed locked up their house.
Upon return from he Colliery, they found their home had been entered, and the contents destroyed. The legs of beds and tables were sawed off, trunks were broken beyond repair to get at the contents, and the bedding was ripped to pieces and the clothing belonging to Nickles and his family. The sleeves of coats and legs of trousers were cut off. Skirts torn apart, furs cut to pieces and certain portions were all burned up by building a fire in the middle of one of the rooms on the first floor, which burned a large hole in the floor. To protect property and workmen, to keep the pumps running, and to load and prepare coal, 323 men were kept in stockades and boarded and lodged. The greater number of these men didn't get away from the stockades for months.
In addition to the above, there were five cases of kidnapping, many riots, cases of assaults and battery, and any number of cases of intimidations.
Author’s thoughts:
What I am writing is something that no writer has ever written or dared to mention. I do wonder when the strike was over, if all the workers that were beaten, harassed and ridiculed by their neighbors or fellow workers, if they let bygones, be bygones. If they just shrugged off all the torment and humiliations that they went through, or did they even the score down the line. I wonder how many vendettas came out of this strike. Somehow, I think the score was evened out, one way or another. In Lansford, my own mother and father told stories of where certain buddies of some workers ended up getting killed by a so-called premature firing of a charge. The company thought of it as suspicious, but no one could prove otherwise.
Commission established, thus ending the strike:
To settle this strike a commission was established and after long hearings it came down to the final summations for both sides. Clarence Darrow, the famous "attorney for the damned," led the miners' team; former U.S. attorney general Wayne MacVeagh, the operators' group.
Darrow, with his dramatic flair and florid phrases sought to win his audience by reaching into their hearts. Gentlemen, addressing the opposition, "this was an industrial war, you on your side were fighting 147,000 men with their wives and children, and the weapons you used were hunger and want. You thought to bring them to terms by the most cruel and deadly weapon that any oppressor has ever used to bring men to his terms, hunger and want. Darrow spoke for a total of eight hours without using a single note. At the conclusion of Darrow's summation, the overflow crowd in the Philadelphia courtroom gave him a standing ovation that lasted for more than five minutes.
On March 22, 1903, the commission announced its findings and awarded the miners a 10 percent pay increase, a sliding wage scale and an eight-hour day for several types of work, and weighing men, to be paid by the miners. Also a board was set up to adjudicate all disputes arising between the miners and their employers. The commission also prohibited discrimination against union workers and criticized the employment of children. By this strike, all sides benefited. But in his final speech before the Anthracite Coal strike Commission, Attorney Darrow described better than anyone what the Anthracite Miners had really won in their Great Strike of 1902. In his mind it was a primarily a spiritual victory. The blunders are theirs, and the victories have been ours. The blunders are theirs because, in this old, old strife, they are fighting for slavery, while we are fighting for freedom. They are fighting for the rule of man over man, for despotism, for darkness, for the past. We are striving to build up man. We are working for democracy, for humanity, for the future, for the day that will come too late for us to see it or know it or receive its benefits, but which will come, and will remember our struggles, our triumphs, our defeats, and the words, which we spoke.
Sept. 10, 1997, was the 100th year anniversary of the Lattimer Mine Massacre. The one-thing historians do agree on is that the Lattimer Massacre was the stimulus for miners and other workers to unionize. This intolerable act against the miners certainly worked against the large mine owners. Public sympathy fell upon the side of the miners and one thing is for certain, the Lattimer incident is one of the most important labor events in the history of the working men or women throughout our great nation¼especially here in the Anthracite Coal fields of Pennsylvania.
In the earlier years, the miners were mostly English, Welsh and German. Around 1846, the Irish started migrating to the coal fields of Pennsylvania. The Irish seemed to get all the work that the other ethnic groups didn't want to do. In the early 1880s, the Slavs started migrating to the coal fields. Most of the Slavs were of Polish decent and Hungarians, Slovaks and Rusyns from what was originally named Austria/Hungary, which later became Czechoslovakia and now the Slovak Republic. When the Irish started getting better paying jobs, the Slavs filled in on all the hard, dangerous and low paying jobs that the Irish once had. At this point of time the Slavs became the minority workers. In the early years, the Irish distanced themselves from the Slavs, being that the Slavs talked, dressed and acted differently than the Irish. In all reality, each group kept to themselves. I would think that the Massacre at Lattimer helped unite the Irish and the Slavic people into what became the largest most powerful labor organization, at that time.
The problems started near the end of the summer of 1897, when the large mine owners insisted the miners take a wage reduction and were also asked to take on added responsibilities. In those days, the miners would get together and march from mine to mine to ask the other miners to shut down the mining operations and join them in their march (strike). The mine operators notified the local Sheriff by the name of Martin to stop this march and get the situation under control. The mine owners said that if the situation gets out of hand, all the blame would be put on his shoulders. The Sheriff organized a posse of men to work with him to stop the marchers. He deputized 87 men. These men were in all reality mine company men with junior executive standings. The mine owners supplied them with guns and a trolley to move the posse from mine to mine. Up at Hazelton, the Pardee family owned two such mines. The miners thought by getting the workers to walk out of both mines and close them down some amicable agreement could be reached. At that point of the march, the march had accumulated about 300 strikers. The marchers left Harwood and headed toward Lattimer Mines. The marchers carried no weapons, just an American flag. When they approached Hazleton, the local police chief asked them to march around the town and not through it. The marchers agreed. When they reached Lattimer the marching strikers group had grown to about 400 people. The Sheriff and his posse met them at the entrance to the Lattimer Mine. Words were exchanged; someone took away the flag from the marchers and within minutes shooting started.
When the smoke cleared 38 defenseless miners were injured. Nineteen died on the scene and six others perished later. This was a total of 25 miners dying for a cause. Most were shot in the back.
In this day and age, it would be considered a battle of the haves and the have-nots. The have-nots were the victims. They were the economically deprived mine workers. The offenders or the killers, were the elite. They were the company owners and company personnel. The public was outraged at what had happened. The sheriff and his deputies were arrested and charged with murder. The trial in February 1898 drew national and international attention. The trial only lasted five weeks, with the sheriff and his deputies found not guilty. Killing 25 people by shooting them in the back in this day and age would have found a completely different verdict. The Lattimer Massacre certainly brought the workers together and stimulated the labor organization's growth. The Irish found that with accepting the Slavs into their organization as they were a force of people to reckon with.
Mine owners also learned several important lessons. They knew that they had to talk with the miners and come to certain agreements. They knew they couldn't take matters into their own hands. They also realized that the National Guard rather, than the local sheriff, should be called upon when there was any labor unrest. In 1902, the National Guard was called out when a large five-month strike was in progress. Here in the Panther Valley area, a group of National Guard
set up camp, west of Coaldale at the Manila Grove. Even with the National Guard on hand, there was still plenty of violence. The Lattimer incident is an event that should never be forgotten. Each year, a ceremony is held at the Lattimer mines to remember the massacre and honor those who were lost. Without the sacrifices that our forefathers made to improve wages and working conditions for the common man or women, this country would have never become the mighty nation that it has become.
In the 1700's, certain gases or the lack of oxygen were detected with various hit and miss types of detection. The candles on miners caps, or if carried by the miner, would either go out from the lack of oxygen or the flame would get larger with a different coloring of the flame if certain gases were in the area. Of course, in some instances these open flames caused fires or explosions. By 1815, the Davey's Safety Lamp came into use in the mines. This certainly changed the way for miners to check for certain gases. One of the earliest ways of detecting certain gases such as Methane, Carbon Monoxide or the lack of oxygen was the use of birds such as the Canary. Stories of the use of canaries in the mines have been passed down from generation to generation. Even as a child I remember my father mentioning the use of canaries in the mines, but he, nor his father, ever saw them used in the mines, and my grandfather was working in the mines in the early 1900's. Up to this year, I have never read nor seen any documentation as to their use, just hear-say!
The Lehigh Coal & Navigational Company was incorporated in 1820. Checking with a well-versed historian at their archives where most of the LC&N Company's records are kept, he well assured me that there is no mention of any use of canaries in the LC&N mines. We can assume that small independent mines in those early years that contracted for the mining of coal on their property might have used canaries for their mine work. The Lehigh Coal & Navigational Company did have good investors with a lot of capital so it is more then likely that they had Davey's Safety Lamps and any other technical means for checking oxygen or certain gases at the earliest of times. To clarify the use of canaries in the mines, I started sending inquires over the Internet to find out just how prevalent was the use of these small fragile birds. I was surprised to hear that some countries, like the United Kingdom and Australia used them right up to more modern times. The last documentation was in the 1970's when they passed laws against the use of birds in the mines. In later years, canaries were certainly used in collieries in the United Kingdom, but not on a daily basis. They were used following the "William Pit Explosion," in 1947, but to detect foul air for the rescue party. The lead man had a cage fastened to the top of his breathing apparatus, so that the man behind him could see when they had entered the "styth" or after-damp area. They then knew where they needed to start trying to restore the "coursing" of the air-flow, to direct fresh air into that area. Rescue teams kept a number of canaries on hand, but, it wasn't as cruel as you might think because once removed back to fresh air, most canaries recovered to be used again!
Many mines used canaries to detect Carbon Monoxide and not Methane because their heart rate is so high they die or pass-out very quickly before a man could accumulate the gas in his blood stream to any harmful degree. Because of the high heart rate of the canary, it was convenient for the job, but notnecessarily too great for the poor canary! In more modern times they had special birdcages made of Perspex, which had holes drilled into it for ventilation on the forth side. When the bird fell off of the perch they closed an airtight door over the side with the ventilation holes and would revive the bird with oxygen so it could be used again. I also have read where some miners carried small vials of oxygen and they let the bird breathe this to save the bird's life. Many of the mining companies in the United Kingdom, would buy their birds from private breeders, pet shops or have an aviary built right in a part of the mine offices where they would breed the birds for use in the mines. Most of the canaries used were of bad coloring, or some type of imperfection, which weren't good for public sale. Also, the female canaries weren't too good for singing so they would be sold cheaper for mine use. Mine canaries were also used in the Southern Bituminous Coal Fields of the United States up to the late 1890's. I would also have to assume that some of the smaller independent or "boot-leg" mines used the canaries in the early years because of the expense of a "Davey's Safety Lamp." Taking air samples in the early days was time consuming and had to be handled in special labs.
In later years, a Methanometer was used in the mines which detected methane gases and oxygen levels. The safest mines have good ventilation systems with huge fans, airways and proper doors and brattice's to control the airflow. Many modern mines have electrical sensors built right in the mines. In my limited mining, I have seen where there was methane in the escape way that we were driving after sitting idle for a week. With a small fan and ventilation pipe, the methane or foul air was dissipated very quickly. So, the "Mine Canary," is now history, but I'm more than sure the stories of their use will be passed on to future generations.
Mine Mules
by, David Kuchta
I think most people would find the subject of Mine Mules intriguing. They are part of the long history of the mining industry. In the 16th through the 18th century in the United Kingdom, the mine industry used humans as a beast of burden. Most times, it was children and women who carried or dragged the baskets of coal or rock to the main shafts. In 1842, the United Kingdom passed laws against girls and women working in the mines. Then in time they used small ponies to do the job. Later, the United Kingdom passed laws against ponies in the mines but for a short while they used boys to pull the cars to the shaft. In the United States, some of the oldest mines used oxen and then mules to pull the coal cars inside and outside the mines. Here in the Panther Valley, the Lehigh Coal & Navigational Company used mules right up to the period of shutting down most of the mine operations in the early to mid 1950s. They kept the last mules probably more as a memento to the past but the company also utilized them in areas where the electric mine motors might cause certain problems. In some areas there might have been a minor gas problem and an overhead electric trolley line could spark an explosion so they utilized the mules. Mules are very smart and along with that, they could be very thick-headed. They know what they can do and would never do any thing they couldn't or would not want to do. Mules were known to pull at least three full mine cars full of coal. If you hooked up a fourth car they would balk at any commands and just stand there. No way would they pull the fourth car! Some mule drivers figured that the mules were counting the cars as they were hooked up with the chains. So when it came to the fourth car, they did it real quiet and discreet. The mules pulled the fourth car, unknowingly, without any problems.
In the early years when the coal companies had canals they tried using horses to pull the barges of coal. They soon found that on a hot day, the horses would want to take a dip in the canal to cool off, often dragging a young mule driver into the water which could end up with some of the drivers getting drowned. Horses are also known to pull more then they could handle and they literally would work to their death. They found out that the mule didn't like water and would never work himself into the ground like a horse. With this experience, the job of pulling the barges on the canals was eventually turned over to mules. A good mule driver knew that treating the mules with kindness got better results then mistreatment. Some drivers were mean and ruthless and if the mule didn't want to pull any mine cars they would hit them with the wooden sprags that were throughout the mines. The sprags are a piece of wood that you jammed in the openings of the wheels to brake the cars. When mules were mistreated they often got even. Many a miner or driver was killed by mules, by getting kicked in the chest or head. Another favorite way of evening up the score with a mule driver was to squeeze him against the rib (wall) of the mine. Most drivers kept away from any squeeze points and just treated their mules with respect. In the same case, mules were just plain cantankerous and ill mannered. Some mules wouldn't work with any driver. The company had to find someone who the mule would work with. Yes, some mules were just like humans and just didn't want to work. Mules also liked to get treats such as apples, carrots and believe it or not, chewing tobacco.
In the No. 9 Mine Museum in Lansford, Pennsylvania they have a death certificate for two mules that died in 1913. Their value was placed at $200 a mule. Most mining companies valued the mules life over that of a common mine labor. The Coal Companies also did not take lightly any mistreatment of mules. If a miner decided to kill a mule, he had a good chance of being fired. Many people think that the mules were never taken out of the mines and were blind. Not so! Mule stables in the mines were usually lit up with electric lights (after 1920 or so.) Mules were also taken outside to a mule barn when the miners went on strike or during a vacation period. If any mine mule was hurt or sick they would bring him out for recuperation. When the mules were brought out of the mines they would romp and run around the area. They would like to roll on their backs and just kick up their heels. Mules enjoyed getting out of the mines every so often. They often walked the mules from one mine to another such as from Spring Tunnel or No. 9 Mine to No. 6 at the other end of Lansford. Around 1964, the government passed laws outlawing the use of any animals, as beasts of burden, in any mines. It was at this time that the illustrious career of the "Mine Mule" came to an end.
A mule named "Major" was used as a hostage in a strike or "stay down," as it was called. The strike was an unauthorized strike, which means the union didn't sanction it and also none of the union officials would back the men. Miners lived underground for seven days and seven nights. The sit down strike was called the "Strike of the Month," in the newspapers and on radio. The sit down strike was held at the bottom level of Number 8 mine in Coaldale, PA. The Number 8 Mine is a sister mine to the nearby Number 9 mine. At the time they were engaged in opening up a new deep level in their mine and they wanted to be paid on a contract basis at 12 to 15 dollars a day instead of the $6.78 wage they were getting. The miners certainly picked the worst place to declare their intentions. The miners stayed in a chamber that was located in their new level 1,230 feet underground. They remained unmoved by the pleas of their families and of their United Mine Worker leaders, who deplored their contract breaking.
On the fourth day of the strike 7,500 other employees of the coal company went on strike in sympathy with their co-workers. Three days later, Governor George Earl arrived into town with a tentative agreement, went down the shaft, talked to the stay-downers and persuaded them to come back up to the surface. At the time, the men insisted that the Company should supply the mules with water, straw and hay. The miners who also made beds from the straw that they brought down for the mules also used the water. It's more than likely that the miners who brought down the water, hay and straw for Major the mule, probably smuggled food for the miners. They probably hid it inside the bales of straw. The miners played both Pinochle and darts which was very popular at that time.
The rest of the union miners had a large rally up at the Lansford High School stadium. There they hung effigies of the union officials. The effigies were of the Labor Relations Director, the District President and two organizers of the United Mine Workers of America's Union who had refused to sanction the strike, or stay down, as some people called it. There is one thing that everyone has to admit, and that is that the United Mine Workers stuck together like no other Union in the country. Major was then used at the Number 9 Mine where later, he was hit by a loaded mine car inside the mine. Being he received a broken hip he had to be put away by the Company Veterinarian, Dr. Weaver of Andreas.
Mine Timbering:
During the early 1900's, good mine timber was getting hard to obtain. This was one of the many problems that confronted the mine management. With every passing year this problem became greater and more difficult to solve. Not may years before this time, the initial cost of opening an anthracitecolliery was deemed a serious obstacle to the undertaking; the great cost of keeping the mines free from water was another annoying and expensive feature, but the timber problem now overshadows all others. This is a phase of the mining business that the general public knows little about and yet the timbered gangways and drifts cover a vast extent. In the anthracite region, the Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Company has more than 800 miles of gangways and there is a total of 2,000 miles of these underground ways in the Schuylkill region. Owing to the large amount of timber used and its growing scarcity, a great deal of attention has been given in recent years to methods for its preservation. It has been demonstrated that by proper preliminary treatment the life of the timber can be greatly increased. It is also claimed that the use of a preservative will permit a cheaper grade of timber being used. Some of the large operators have established working plants for the preservation of the timber used inside the mines. While the lengthening of the life of the timber and the ability to use cheaper grades reduce the cost somewhat, the demand is nevertheless so great that at times it is difficult to obtain an adequate supply.
Most of the timber now used in the anthracite mines is yellow pine from the south, and one of the large anthracite companies, owing to the great demand and the impossibility of getting timber in the north, has been sending its own cars south to expedite shipments. Herewith is given a brief account of the preservation tests made by the Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Company. Early in 1906, the Philadelphia and Reading Coal and Iron Company commenced a series of investigations to determine the economy and practicability of preserving Mine Timbers from decay. The tests were undertaken because of the increased cost, and decrease in the supply, of timber suitable for mining purposes. It was desired to determine the most effective an economical method of preserving the timber for service in the mines to increase its durability and period of usefulness. Various tests were made to determine the most favorable season of the year for cutting the timber and to see any advantages of peeling timber, before putting it into use. To ascertain what extent the life of a mine timber was, timbers were treated with chemical preservatives in the form of oils and solutions of various salts. In the course of this work, special attention was given to mine timber and props, as well as the lumber used in the mines. These tests were conducted on a scale large enough to be of practical value in furnishing conclusive results. Timber treated with the various preservatives was placed in all parts of the mines, especially where the conditions for decay were most prevalent. As the work was experimental, a small upright cylinder was erected at Silver Creek Colliery, where from three to four props were treated each day. Well-seasoned loblolly pine was given very efficient treatment with Creosote Oil and Zinc Chloride solution in four to five hours' time, but little or no penetration could be secured by the Zinc Chloride solution with green timber.
A penetration from one to two inches was obtained by boiling green timber four to five hours in Creosote Oil heated to 240 degrees and then allowing it to cool for a period of six to eight hours.Seasoned timber was also treated with common salt and salt with Magnesium Chloride. A thorough penetration was secured by boiling the timber four to six hours and allowing it to cool from ten to twelve hours. For about two years timber treated by this method, as well as timber that was brush treated with Creosote and Carbolineum, was placed in various parts of the mine. A record was kept for each set, showing the kind and method of treatment, the time it was placed and its location in various gangways. After two years of work along this experimental line, the efficiency of the various treatments was determined such that it was thought advisable to increase the supply of treated timber A non-pressure plant with a cylinder six feet in diameter and thirty-two feet long was installed. In the latter part of 1908, the new plant was placed in operation and twenty-four sets of gangway timber have since been treated daily. Shortly thereafter there were several thousand sets of treated timber in the mines, and also an equal number of untreated sets for comparison. The results show that brush treatments are effective and economical when the amount of timber to be treated will not warrant the erection of an open tank or pressure plant.
All tank treated timber that was sufficiently seasoned to insure a penetration of from one and one half to three inches is an excellent state of preservation, and it is impossible at this time to determine which of the preservatives used in the tank treatment show the greatest efficiency. In addition to the timber treated at Silver Creek Colliery, several consignments of Creosote and Zinc Chloride pressure treated timber were purchased from a wood preserving company in Texas, and placed in the mines in 1906. These timbers are now after seven years in a perfect state of preservation. Timber treated with Creosote and Zinc Chloride have thus far shown an average increased life of about 300 percent, while the cost of such treatments adds about 12 and 20 per cent, to the cost respectively. Peeled timber in some locations has shown a slight advantage over un-peeled timber; more especially timber cut in the winter months. The natural durability of the timber depends not only upon the greater or less density, but also upon the pressure of certain chemical constituents in the wood. During the growing season or summer months, wood contains more sulfuric acid and potassium than in the winter season. The presence of these two chemical substances during this period constitutes the chief factor in dissolving the natural preservatives within the wood, thus making it more susceptible to the attacks of wood destroying fungi.
Timber cut during the winter may be seasoned for several months without deteriorating, but summer cut timber, more especially Loblolly pine which is practically all sapwood and contains only a small amount of gum and resin, will become sap-stained within six to eight weeks. Sap staining or the fermentation of the sugars and starch in the sapwood is in reality the first stage of decay, and mine composition that follows causes the timber to lose its fibrous nature and consequently its life in the mines is greatly reduced. The lack of supply of the more dense and better grades of timber makes it necessary to use some of the faster growing or inferior species. Therefore, greater attention must be given to the time of cutting timber to obtain its greatest maximum life.
When you read, "Robbing Coal Mine Pillars," most will think of some type of coal mining done illegally. Not so. It is just another method of mining coal, which was done down through the years and therefore, I will start at the beginning to give everyone a better perspective of what it is all about.
A coal pillar is coal that is left standing to help support or stabilize the top and bottom rock. As I did research on this subject I found that there are various ways of robbing the existing pillars. For those who aren't familiar with the terms of top and bottom rock, I will give an explanation. The top and bottom rock is the rock on either side of the existing veins of coal. If you make a double (parallel) 45-degree line, the bottom line would be bottom rock, in between the two lines would be the coal and the top line would be top rock. If you remove the coal from between the top and bottom rock, without leaving a pillar of coal every so often, layers of the top rock could start peeling away and would fall into the void. The pillars are left there while mining is going on to stabilize the rock or ground above the top rock. Since I have also lived most of my life in the Southern Anthracite Coal Regions of Pennsylvania, I have seen the results (subsidence on the surface of the ground) from miners robbing the coal pillars through the years. In Coaldale, Pennsylvania, some homes started settling and foundations cracked at the first hint of mining under their properties. In time, some of the homes started settling into the open voids that were formed from miners removing coal below their homes. More than likely, these were mine workings where the pillars were removed (Robbed.) It is illegal to rob pillars under towns, cemeteries, or even main roads or highways. Robbing pillars is perfectly legal if done in a safe, ethical way and it is something that many mines rely upon to make money.
Miners will drive the main tunnel or gangway, as it is called in my area, as far as the veins run, or as far as the leases of the mineral rights allow. These main gangways are usually, but not always, driven through rock. Some small independent mines will drive their main gangway in a vein of coal. In the gangways that are driven through rock, they will drive chutes up through the rock strata into the coal veins. In my area of Pennsylvania, the veins of coal are usually about an eighty plus degree pitch and could be from a few feet to 60 or more feet wide. Where there are certain faults or folds, some areas could be over 100 feet wide. We have very few horizontal veins of coal in the Southern Anthracite Coal Regions. Usually two miners will drive the chute, which is approximately 60 feet away from another working (Mine) chute. They will leave a section of coal between the two workings to support the area being mined. This is called a pillar. About 30 feet above the gangways, an airway will be driven. In our area these airways or small tunnels are called "Monkeys." This is for air ventilation of the chutes. The sizes of the airway or "monkey," will be about six feet high by six feet wide. They will run parallel with the gangway. The pillars which remain could be about 30 feet wide by 30 feet high. When the miners drive their chute another 30 feet, another header or airway will be driven and that will run parallel the original "Monkey." In time the coal companies will do what is called a second mining of the area. Some miners might split the coal pillar to make a chute up the middle of the existing coal pillar. Most of the time, two miners might work two chutes at the same time by making a 45 degree cut on the bottom so that all the coal will flow toward each of the two chutes and down into their batteries.
When the first mining is accomplished, they will reverse the process and start mining back to where the original chutes were driven. This mining is usually done with one or two pillars at a time. This time they will go up into the chutes and long hole the veins of coal to drill as far as 90 feet long to set off charges. They use enough powder to break up the coal into smaller sizes so that all of it will fall down into the chutes and batteries of the miners. From here the coal is loaded into mine cars which are located down in the gangways. Sometimes when things go right, the miners will fill their quota of mine cars for weeks, if not months, without any further drilling, timbering or other work. These chutes are called, "Glory Chutes." When you have these "Glory Chutes," you could come into work in the morning and either you or the loaders can place the coal into mine cars. Within a short period of time, you are on the way home, with the potential of making big money. When working in the biggest Anthracite Coal veins, which is call the Mammoth Vein, and when they pull all the coal down, the empty chamber could be as large as an underground football field. Generally, they won't go back up into the chute where they long holed the shot because of safety reasons. But, some miners will take that chance and put off shaker shots to bring down any loose or extra coal still hanging up in the chamber. This would be an illegal and very unsafe practice but at times was done. Once something like this is undertaken, the area is vacated and they move on to the next section. In time, if this was completed on the first and second level, you will see the surface of the ground subside (settle) down into the earth. There can be a long pit (east to west or the direction of which the veins of coal run) between the bottom and top rock. In the coal regions we call this fall-ins or cave-ins. When this robbing of pillars is done, all mining in this area (particular vein of coal) is finished and is usually closed off in some manner. Some of these old gangways are bratticed or boarded shut and sealed so that it won't interfere with existing air ventilation.
When there was a fatality or injury during the years 1820 to 1869, the final conclusion was that it was the fault of "The Careless Miner." Deaths or injuries were seldom blamed on the bosses or coal operators. Certainly, the early German, Italian, Irish, or in the latter part of the 1800s, the Slavic immigrants didn't read or understand the English language. Because of not understanding what a boss was trying to explain to them, many of the new immigrants just answered yes, but really didn't know what the bosses were saying. Because of this, many of the newer immigrants caused injury to themselves or other mine workers in the area. I have researched coal mining from the 16th century in the United Kingdom up to recent times in the US. I have come to the conclusion that many of the accidents in the mines were also the fault of the mine bosses or the mine operators themselves.
Many of the new coal operators invested large sums of money opening the mines and also building the coal preparation plants. It is only fair that these people who invested money into these early collieries also turned over a profit, but sometimes it was at the cost of the miner's life. In the early 1800's the coal owners profits after paying the miners, processing the coal and transportation to the city markets was very little. It is reported that they made ten cents on every ton of coal sent to market. In those days, laborers received about five cents an hour while the miners might have earned 10 cents per hour. Many of the miners also had large deductions from his pay, for timbers, supplies and powder. In many cases, the miner also paid the mine labor that worked with him out of his own salary. The more down time that was involved with timbering, driving air ways, putting up brattices, etc., meant less production of coal which meant less profits for the mine operators. So, this prompted the bosses to drive the coal miners into working in more dangerous conditions. There are cases where miners worked in areas that had higher percentages of mine gases then the laws allowed. Sometimes they got away with it, other times it ended in disaster. The mine operators pushed the mine bosses to have higher production. This led to taking more chances with the miner's lives.
During the early to the latter years of the 1800's, the open flame was used for lighting purposes. These open flames were very dangerous in gaseous areas or working around powder. The Davey's Safety Lamp was first used around 1815. The mine bosses would check out conditions inside the work area before the miners started their shift. Many times, there was minimal gas inside the work area and the miners were notified to use the Davey's Safety Lamp while in the area. Good mine ventilation was the answer to safe mines. Airways, and in the early days, furnaces built at the bottom of ventilating shafts helped expel the fowl or gaseous air. There were times that the miners worked in areas that had small amount of mine gases, and were told not to use their open flame for lighting but to rely on only the light from a Davey's Safety Lamp. The illumination from the safety lamp was very minimal. Some of the miners learned that if they removed the safety mesh shield that surrounds the open flame in the lamp, they could see better. This at times, proved to be fatal. If they were lucky there was only a flash fire and they would get some burns over their body. Other times it ignited the gas into a major explosion where not only did they get killed but workers within several hundred feet also were killed at times. Why these miners took chances varies. In some cases it was the insistence of his bosses to produce more coal. Other times, it was the miners who just disregarded some of the safety rules. There were times that the new immigrant miner just didn't realize the danger of doing certain things.
It wasn't until 1869-1870 that the State Mine Inspectors started to do more inspections and also to fill out reports on how any fatalities or bad injuries happened. From this point on, all deaths or injuries that made a miner lose his life or a couple weeks of work were written up in a yearly State Mine Inspectors Journal. Through the first 50 years of the Anthracite Coal mining, the miners deaths or injuries were always blamed on "The Careless Miner." It was always his fault! If the coal operators had the bosses push the workers to take chances in unsafe work areas, they were never prosecuted or punished for any deaths or injuries even if they knew the area was too dangerous to work. During the early years, the miners had very few safety laws and if they refused to work in dangerous areas, they could find themselves out of a job or sent home without pay. It's kind of hard just to blame the operators because during the time between 1820 and 1850, over 90 percent of all mine operations in certain counties failed. So anyone investing large sums of money into a mine, had to produce coal one way or the other. Most of the coal operators leased the coal lands from the coal barons who owned large tracts of land. Each lessee put money into improving the mines or driving rock gangways toward veins of coal. In the end, the mines became very productive and also earned money for the lessee and of course the landowners received royalties for every ton of coal marketed. Hard coal mining was a very dangerous profession. Between the late 1800' up to the present, over 31,000 hard coal miners were killed with hundreds to thousands left injured or disabled. Only God knows how many died between 1820 and 1870 when better records were finally kept. So to claim that deaths or injuries occurred only because of "Careless Miners," would be very unfair to our forefathers who gave their lives, mining the "Black Diamonds" that helped fuel the industrial revolution in our country.
1
2
3
Here in the Panther Valley and most of Carbon and Schuylkill County we have all read and were taught in school that Anthracite Coal was first discovered here in Summit Hill in 1791. That fact is correct as far as Anthracite Coal being discovered in the southern hard coal fields, but Anthracite Coal was already discovered in parts of Lackawanna and Wyoming County here in Pennsylvania. Some over enthusiastic historians have described this event as the first discovery of Anthracite Coal in Pennsylvania, but researchers claim otherwise. Even the very stories about Philip Ginder's life are erroneous. As early as 1826, a Quaker physician by the name of Dr. Thomas C. James read a paper about a brief account of the discovery of Anthracite Coal, before a Historical Society of Pennsylvania, in the city of Philadelphia. Even as he made his speech, he apologized for his problem of forgetfulness, because of aging. It seems from that time on the story that the good Doctor gave was the accepted version. Even Philip Ginder's name was misspelled. That is why all the stories and statues show the name Philip Ginter instead of Ginder.
Yes, Philip Ginder discovered Anthracite in 1791, but it was already discovered in Wyoming County, many, many years before. The earliest reports of anyone knowing about the existence of coal beds in Pennsylvania, was by the Indians, 75 years before the Revolutionary war, according to a William Griffith, Geologist and Mining Engineer from Scranton, Pa. In 1710, Indians knew of the existence of anthracite coal beds in the Wyoming Valley area. On July 11, 1754, Lackawanna and Wyoming Valley coal regions were included in the sale of property by the Five Nations Indian Tribe to the Susquehanna Connecticut Co. The purchase price of the entire property was about $10,000. In 1762, the first Connecticut settlers, after camping at the mouth of Mill Creek, above Wilkes-Barre, and after several days of cutting hay on Jacob's Plains returned to Connecticut and reported the discovery of anthracite coal. In 1763, Indians from that locality visiting the Governor of Pennsylvania and complained of being robbed of a mine by whites. This mine was believed to have been a coal mine.
If you really give this a lot of thought, Indians were the first people who officially mined anthracite coal here in Pennsylvania. Without written reports or proof of this happening, the Indians once again will receive no credit, where credit is due. In a letter from James Tilghman of Philadelphia to the Proprietaries, Thomas and Richard Penn, Spring Garden, London, it is stated that a Colonel Francis had found a very great find of coal at Wyoming, in the hills that surround a very fine and extensive belief. "This coal," says the letter, "is thought to be very fine". With his compliments, Colonel Francis sends you a piece of coal. This bed of coal situates as it is on this side of the river, and may at some future time or other may be a thing of great value. In 1768, Charles Stewart surveyed Sunbury, and on maps indicated the presence of "stone coal" at Ross Hill, now Edwardsville. Around 1750, Anthracite was supposedly discovered in East Central Pennsylvania, but it seems to center around a legend or folklore. It is a known fact that Indians were using stone coal many years before the White Man settled in Pennsylvania. They didn't use it for fuel but for other purposes.
Another story was about some Indians seeking the services of a gunsmith to repair their flintlocks.
The gunsmith told the Indians that he had run out of charcoal and couldn't fire up his forge. The Indians supposedly left in a hurry, only to return a few hours later with a bag of what appeared as "black stones." By using a wood fire, the Indians ignited the "black stones," in the blacksmiths forge. The fire was so intense that the blacksmith was able to do his metal repairs. The Indians wouldn't relinquish any information as to the source of this mystifying fuel. Like I said, This story is based on a legend. From what I have researched, I think this story is true. On August 14, 1766, a resident of Wyoming Valley mentions in a letter an abundance of coarse, combustible material, which was, called Anthracite coal. The word Anthracite comes form the Greek word, "Anthrakitis." In 1769, two blacksmiths by the name of Obadiah and Daniel Gore of Wilkes-Barre obtained the location of a deposit of "black stones," from some Indians. In time they learned to use and maintain an on going fire, in their forges. In 1775, coal was being mined on the banks of the Susquehanna River, near Pittston. By 1775, the news of this new heat generating substance spread to other Pennsylvania settlements and finally to the city of Philadelphia.
In 1776, two Durham boats located down the Susquehanna River, came up to the Wyoming Valley for coal. The coal was purchased from R. Geer, who had a mine opening about the mouth of Mill Creek. There are also reports that some Anthracite coal was used to help make arms for the Continental Army, in the governmental arsenal at Carlisle, Pa. in 1775. In the next 30 years, various experiments with the black stone were done but very little attention was achieved. At that time the use of coal was quite limited. In 1788, John Schopf, in a book named "Travels," mentions a visit he made in that year to a bed of brilliant black coal, a mile above Wyoming, which on handling leaves no taint and burns without emitting an offensive odor. Judge Jesse Fell, of Wilkes-Barre, Pa, made nails in 1788, with the use of anthracite. In 1790, coal was known to be plentiful in Schuylkill County, but was not mined because of a lack of demand. In the fall of 1791, Philip Ginder discovered coal on Sharp Mountain near Summit Hill. Although little was known about this black rock that burns, Ginder had heard stories about it. The stories that said, Ginder was a poor trapper and hunter are false. Actually Ginder was a Miller and had built his own gristmill. This is the reason he was in the vicinity of Summit Hill. He was looking for sandstone conglomerate to make milling stones. In the process he came upon the so-called stone coal that he had heard about.
To satisfy his curiosity he took a couple of pieces to his friend, Joe Neyer that lived in the Mahoning Valley. Neyer was a blacksmith and was also inquisitive about this coal stone and threw several lumps on his charcoal fire to see what would happen. At first it didn't burn, but in time it ignited. Ginder's accidental discovery along with a successful experiment in Neyer's black- smith hearth became well known throughout the area. It was also reported that coal was discovered in the area of Room Run, south east of present day Nesquehoning, before Ginder even found the coal on Sharp mountain. This discovery at Room Run led to the future development of that area in Nesquehoning, PA. After Ginder realized you could burn the stone coal, he carried several lumps to Colonel Jacob Weiss. Weiss then took a couple saddlebags of this stone coal to Philadelphia were he offered the find to a few prominent Philadelphians. These men then contacted experts who gave their opinions on the value of the coal as a mineral and its commercial potential. They found that they did have trouble keeping the coal burning, but after some experimenting they realized the value of this new fuel. Colonel Jacob Weiss, along with Michael Hillegas, John Nicholson and Charles Cist, all of Philadelphia eventually purchased 10,000 acres of land were Ginter had first discovered the coal. They then formed the first coal mining enterprise in America, The Lehigh Coal Mining Company in 1792. All this land that was purchased took in the area of where Lansford and the Number 9 mine is located. On February 11, 1808 Judge Jesse Fell made an experiment in the bar room of his hotel at the corner of Washington and Northampton Street and on the flyleaves of a book entitled, "The Free Mason's Monitor,"and made the following memorandum. "February 11th, of Masonry 5808, made the experiments of burning the common stone-coal of the valley on a grate, in a common fire-place in my house, and find it will answer the purpose of fuel, making it a clearer and better fire, and less expense, than burning wood in the common way."
This experiment excited great interest and people came from far and near to watch further experiments, which were made in a grate of iron, and soon there were dozens of similar grates being constructed and put into use. From this point on, the use of anthracite coal took on a whole new prospective as another type of fuel to be used in forges, industry, and in homes. In 1817, an engineer by the name of Isaac Able Chapman was hired by the state to do land mapping of certain regions. Along with his regular work he also marked down various outcrops of coal veins in, which later became, Carbon County. This is the same Chapman who drove the Hackelbernie Tunnel and may have been involved with the down track of the first gravity railroad which later was known as the Switchback Railroad that ran from Mauch Chunk to Summit Hill. Isaac Able Chapman also became the first engineer hired by the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company.
First Mining in the Southern Coal Fields:
In 1814, Miners, Cist & Robinson made their first shipment of coal to Philadelphia near Mauch Chunk. Two boatloads arrived at Philadelphia and were largely purchase by White & Hazard for $21 per ton and used in the first successful effort to utilize anthracite in the iron industry at their wire mills at the fall of the Schuylkill. In 1815, being firmly convinced of the value of the coal, White, Hazard and Hauto set about securing a lease on the Lehigh Coal Mine Company land near Mauch Chunk, for 10,000 acres for 20 years, for "one ear of corn per year, if demanded." In 1819, a coal quarry, which became known as "The Old Mine," in the Summit Hill area was started. This Quarry was located in the area of the "Mammoth Vein." This large Mammoth bed of coal got to be known as the most important of all Anthracite deposits. In 1822 the Coal Company became incorporated under the name of Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company. As early as 1814, two prominent businessmen or entrepreneurs, by the names of Josiah White and Erskine Hazard were starting to get involved with Anthracite Coal. These men were very interested in promoting and marketing this new fuel. Because of them the building of the Lehigh Canal system came about. Also they were instrumental in building the first gravity railroad and the development of the vast coal lands between Tamaqua and Mauch Chunk. Their accomplishments could fill volumes of reading material.
During 1820, The Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company began mining and shipping coal. The price for a ton of coal at Philadelphia was $8.40. Shipment that year was 365 tons. 1829 opened The Lehigh Canal from Mauch Chunk clear down to Easton. In 1837, Lehigh River navigation to White Haven was opened. In 1831 the Nesquehoning Railroad and plane was built. By 1849, the quarry in Summit Hill had to be abandoned because of flooding waters. At that period of time, they didn't have the high volume water pumps and couldn't remove the water to keep the quarry operable. In view of some coal workings being soon worked out and also the large quarry being flooded, it was decided to drive a tunnel on a level with the bottom of the Panther Creek Valley into the large (mammoth vein) on the south sided of the valley. At this point, we can use the dates of 1844-45 as the time of the No. 9 Mines conception. Around 1845, plans for the No. 9 Mine were on the drawing board. Two attempts to drive the mine, back in 1851 and 1853, were unsuccessful. In 1851 the Company set its goal to drive in around 800 yards to the mammoth vein of coal. On January 14, 1852, a proposal was accepted from Daniel Bertsch to drive the No.9 tunnel, a distance of, "about seven hundred yards."
On March 26th of that year, the contract with Daniel Bertsch for driving the tunnel No.9 was ordered to be executed under Corporate Seal. In that year the tunnel was driven forward 166 lineal yards at a cost of $6,228.74. In the Annual Company Report in 1853 "But little progress has been made in driving forward the No.9 Tunnel, since my last Annual Report. It seems that after driving in about 195 yards, the rock suddenly dipped down below the bottom of the tunnel, leaving a bed of quicksand to contend with. After several attempts to secure it with timber, it was given up as impracticable, without incurring a large and unjustifiable expense. As a final resort, it was concluded to make an open cut, about 150 feet in length and 70 feet in depth, which will require three or four months to complete. There has been expended on this project, $9,807.81." By January 1, 1856, Tunnel No.9 had been driven forward 1119 feet without striking any coal. This project took three or four months to complete this work. In time they also found that part way in the tunnel of this mine there was an area know as a "squeeze area," During the early years this had to be heavily timbered.
During 1855 and 1856, driving in the #9 mine had begun in earnest. The miners had reached the large mammoth vein of coal, on December 25, 1857. The miners had driven 2,283 feet to accomplish their goals. On January 30, 1858, a proposal for mining coal from the No. 9 Tunnel came from Daniel Bertsch for the years 1858 through 1860 for 90,000 tons of coal per year and was accepted by the Company. This led to the first mining contract for this particular tunnel. On March 31, 1858, the mining contract with Daniel Bertsch was ordered to be executed under Corporate Seal. This mine was finally closed down to mining in 1972. At that time it was the oldest continually operated mine in the world. Hopefully in late summer of 1999, it will be open to tourists.
The Grim Face of Labor
America's working stiffs included men, women and children
by, Harold Evans - U.S. News & World Report - October 12, 1998
America’s growing strength was rooted in 1910 in the skill and energies of 37 million workers, 7 million of them women and millions no more than children. Ninety-five percent had no union. In the early years of the century, none had legal protection to limit working hours, set minimum wages, or compensate them for accidents. Of the major nations, America was alone in having no workers’ compensation, yet it had the world’s highest accident rate. Some 30,000 workers were killed each year and half a million injured.
The commonplace freedoms of labor today—to organize, to bargain, to strike and picket—were claimed at the risk of violence at the hands of employers’ goon squads, private armies that had no parallel in other countries. England, France, Canada, and Germany could not compete with America in the bloodiness of labor confrontations. Business was impatient with anything that got in the way of making America richer faster. The middle class resented immigrants and feared "socialism?’ The press reflected and reinforced these emotions. There was no one in the White House to offer a different vision.
Among the workers were at least 2 million children under the age of 15. Edwin Markham in Cosmopolitan described a visit to a cigarette factory: "One face followed me still, the gaunt face of a boy crouched like a caryatid, pasting tiny labels on the margins of cigarette boxes. All day long he stuck little oblongs of paper marked with the runic words: ‘Cork tips ‘Cork tips; ‘Cork tips.’ That was his message to the world. His pay was 25 cents a thousand, and he sat there, growing bent and haggard, and spending all his energies to promulgate to humanity this news about cork tips."
This is part of a series of excerpts and photographs from The American Century by Harold Evans
"Elves." A Pennsylvania coal company employed these "breaker boys" in 1911. Nationwide, some 15,000 children under 16 worked as coal miners, picking slate out of coal. Mill owners put a cheerful light on kids toiling 10 hours a day. "The work of these lively elves," remarked a textile owner, "seemed to resemble a sport in which habitat gave them a pleasing dexterity." U.S. News & World Report - October 12, 1998
Article is researched from a reprint of Joseph Henry Zerbey, History of Pottsville and Schuylkill County and from the Republican Paper, March 1-12, 1934.
The beginning of Coaldale (Coal Dale) dates back to the year 1827, when John Moser and his wife settled there. Moser was born on May 24, 1805, in Tamaqua and was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Burkart Moser, the original settlers of Tamaqua. Upon arriving at Coaldale, John Moser built a log cabin on the north side of what was known as the Manila Grove Park. At present, the Coaldale Hospital is located on this very site. After building the cabin, Moser cleared the land for the purpose of raising products for his own use. His principal occupation was hauling coal and timber to Tamaqua. This he continued until about 1887 when he vacated his farm due to the fact that a coal company possessed his land and began the building of a breaker for the purpose of preparing coal. This breaker was known as the Number 12 and was owned by the Lehigh Navigation & Coal Co. He made his next home with his grandson John Barrett and during his stay with his grandson he went into the dairy business.
In the year 1888, he was appointed as the first tax collector of Rahn Township, Coaldale at that time being a part of the township. At that time it was the duty of the tax collector to go to the homes of the taxpayers to collect the taxes. Along with his dairy he kept this tax collector position until his death in 1895. He was interred in St. John's Lutheran Cemetery in Tamaqua, which was the first cemetery in the vicinity and is now know as Dutch Hill. John Moser had four daughters; and holds the distinction of being the father of the first white child born in Coaldale. Before becoming a borough, Coaldale belonged to Rahn Township. At that time it included the area of Coal Dale, Owl Creek, Number Eleven, and Seek.. In 1906, the prominent men of Coaldale held a meeting for the purpose of organizing a borough. The borough was organized in June of 1906, and Dr. C. C. Gallagher was elected the first Chief Burgess. Rahn Township at that time was almost exclusively coal lands although some attempts had been made at farming in the Owl Creek Valley. This township was greatly reduced in size, population and importance by the incorporation of the Borough of Coaldale.
Rahn Township included Coaldale, Tamaqua and Seek Villages. Coal was mined in this township as early as 1858, but up to 1860 the output was small. Chas. F. Shoener and Wm. Carter purchased the Greenwood Breaker property and commenced extensive developments. Mr. Shoner soon bought his partner's interest and invested a million dollars in perfecting the improvements, which subsequently became very valuable. During the first year the property yielded an income of $50,000 a month. It was then sold. The breaker was burned in 1874 and in 1878 the Lehigh Navigation and Coal Co. purchased this property. The villages formerly in Rahn Township were; Bull Run, which is now included in Coaldale as one of its streets and Gearytown, which is now Miner St. and Greenwood St. Centerville was located on the south side of Coaldale but had been abandoned because it was under mined. Most of all the buildings of the mining villages were principally frame. The first houses were erected during 1864 in what was known as Bugtown, which is located along the main highway directly below the Coaldale State Hospital. Two years later, houses were built at old Coaldale, which was located on the eastern part, now the eastward.
New Coaldale, which is now the middle ward, was begun in about 1849. New Coaldale or New Wales began to attract attention in 1868 and buildings were erected on the line between Schuylkill and Carbon Counties in 1870. Gearytown was named in honor of Governor John W. Geary. Its first dwelling was erected in 1866 and was occupied by Richard Boyd. The village of Coaldale had a population of 1,849 in 1890. Before the advent of the railroads, stagecoaches were the principal means of transportation. On these coaches they transported food as well as passengers. A stagecoach ran through town twice daily, and the fee for people riding on this coach was fifty cents from Coaldale to Tamaqua. After the stagecoach went out of existence, the streetcar came into use. In the fall of 1897 the road opened from Lansford to Mauch Chunk, and later it extended from Lansford to Tamaqua then to Middleport. The first dirt road that passed through Coaldale was built between the years of 1815 to 1819. This road started at Dutch Hill (Tamaqua) and came east along the side of the mountain at No.10 Colliery and passed through what is now the No. 10 Culm Bank. It then turned south and branched out, one part going up through No. 11 and it passed by the mouth of the tunnel and then went up over the mountain into Owl Creek.
Another road also led from what is now Second St. in Coaldale, formerly called Thompson Street, continued south to its connection with the Tamaqua-Summit Hill stage coach road and continued over the mountain into Owl Creek Valley. Another trail, which was used to a great extent is still in existence (1934). It started from the old Moser's Farm, situated at the base of the Broad Mountain directly north of what is now Railroad St. and continued to the No.12 and over the Mountain into Greenwood. The first railroads built through Coaldale were those for the accommodation of the coal trade. The cars were drawn by horses, usually in a forty-inch gauge track. The rails were made of four by six-inch rod timber. The ties were notched to receive the rails. The notches were 2 inches wider than the rail and wooden keys were used to maintain the proper gauge and prevent the rails from spreading. There was a flat iron bar from one half inch to two and a half inches wide on top of the rail to obviate the wearing of the wood by the friction of the car wheels and contribute to the ease of draft. Lateral roads of this character were established at an early date to connect the mine with those which conveyed the coal to the canal. They continued to the year 1934 as auxiliaries to the steam railroads.
The route of this railroad that first ran through Coaldale started at Spring Tunnel. From Spring Tunnel it continued to the east of Centerville.(Skin Town) It then ran into Carbon County to a small village called Sayersville. (No. 3 Area or No. 9 Mine Shaft) From this point it continued northward into what is now called No. 7. (Lansford) There was also a railroad, which carried coal from one of the premier mines called Foster's Tunnel. This railroad started from Foster's Tunnel, continued up Kline's plane, which is now called the first plane, and met the first railroad at Spring Tunnel. The Nesquehoning Railroad was chartered April 12, 1861. The line was built from Carbon County through Coaldale to Tamaqua and radiated to coal lands in the vicinity. It was leased and operated the Lehigh Coal Co. who subsequently leased it to the Central Railroad Company of New Jersey.
In the years between 1850 to the 1890's, life in the hard and soft coal mines was very hard and indeed dangerous. To some who worked in the mines life was indeed short. Regardless of age or what ethnic group one belonged to, death was always a present specter for deep coal miners. Over the years, over 31,000 workers were killed while working in or around the mines. There were hundred of thousands of injuries along with the deaths. When the early Slavs (Slovaks as well as Rusyns) came to work in the mines, it wasn't all that uncommon to have the Coal Collieries employing children as youn
