If you are from the Eastern Panhandle, you may not know about how important coal is to West Virginia. Coal is a fossil fuel - that means it is formed over millions of years from living things that have decomposed (passed on). It is a fuel because it is used to provide energy for homes, businesses, and equipment. Coal is a non-renewable energy source, because it takes so long for it to form again. It is black, and looks like a very dark rock. If you touch it, you may get it all over your hands. Coal is mined from beneath the Earth's surface. The coal mining industry (a way that people have jobs and earn a living) is important to many families in southern West Virginia - which is why, before Mrs. Sponaugle and I left Raleigh County, we visited an Exhibition Coal Mine.
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| Where's Berkeley? |
It is called an exhibition coal mine, because this mine, The Slab Fork Coal Company, is no longer in use for mining. It is just used to teach people, especially students, about the coal mining industry in West Virginia. Not only do they have a mine, but they have a little town set up of buildings you would have found in a coal mining town. They were moved from different towns in West Virginia, restored, and made to feel like you were stepping back in time when you enter them! Since I am a West Virginia bear, this field trip was very important - and exciting - for me!
After we paid for our ticket, we boarded a car called a mantrip to head into the mine with some students from Amstead Elementary in Fayette County! Those students were very happy to be on a field trip, but they were also on their best behavior. The mantrip is what the coal miners have to ride on together to go into the mine. When we were all safely seated in the car, the mantrip started moving into the mine. It got very dark and chilly quickly!
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| This was our tour guide. He is wearing a special hat with a light on it that would help a coal miner see in the mine while working. |
I guess I was a little too excited because guess what - I almost had a little accident. You see, it's hard to sit on those slippery smooth seats on the mantrip when you are as furry as me. Faster than Mrs. Sponaugle could blink, I had slid off the seat - and almost into the deep, dark coal mine! She grabbed my paw just in time. It was a little scary, so I sat very still the rest of our time in the mine, especially when the mantrip was moving.
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| Here I am on the mantrip, seated safe and sound! My goodness, it was as dark as my fur in the mine! |
Once we were in the mine, our wonderful tour guide told us many things about what it was like to be a coal miner. He showed us how they would use the tools to get the coal out of the sides of the mine, and the ways they could see in the dark. I was very surprised to learn that, back in the day, coal miners were only paid 20 cents for each ton of coal they mined! A ton is very heavy, and a long time for someone to be on their hands and knees picking for coal. You may earn more than 20 cents for doing some chores around your house!
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| This is a cage for a canary (a small, yellow bird). Miners would take canaries into the mines. If the canary stopped singing or died, then the miner would know there were dangerous gases in the mine - and to get out NOW. |
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| This was a light that the miners could also use to see if there were dangerous gasses in the mine. |
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| It would be difficult to stand up straight in the mine. Our tour guide is showing us how you would pick for coal all day long. |
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| Some tools used to help remove the coal. |
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| This is the ceiling of the coal mine. There are bolts in the ceiling to keep it strong and prevent it from caving in on the miners. Mining coal could be very dangerous work. |
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| Here are some more hand tools used by miners. |
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| It's not a very good picture (because it was so dark), but that is a scooter! Miners would sit or kneel on scooters to get around the mine as they worked. |
I learned so much, and it was so interesting, that I almost forgot about nearly falling off the mantrip by the time we were out of the mine. Next, we visited the museum to learn more about coal mining and see some artifacts (actual items from a time period long ago)!
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| This is the front of the museum (and gift shop). The town store was a very important part of life in a coal mining town, It was the only place where you could buy and order what you needed - no other stores in town! |
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| Here is a (little bit) clearer picture of a miner's scooter. |
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| If you were a coal miner, you would carry your lunch into the mines each day in a metal pail like these. |
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| A collection of hard hats and lanterns used by miners. |
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| Every miner wore their ID tag and number into the mine. |
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| Some tools to remove coal from the mines |
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| The unions work to make sure coal miners had safe and fair working conditions. |
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| Our tour guide told us all about these! This is a kettle bottom! It's a name for petrified (hardened) wood that would be found in the mines. It could really hurt you if you hit your head or tripped on it. |
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| A cash register from the company store |
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| A telephone you might see in the company store - and some information about scrip. Many times, coal miners were paid in this instead of real money! They would then have to use their town's scrip at the company store. |
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| This is what scrip looked like. |
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| The superintendent of the mine was in charge of making sure everything was working properly and that the mine was making money. This is what his desk may have looked like. |
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| Here I am with the safe used in the company store. |
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| The coal towns would often have their own baseball teams! |
Well, after visiting that museum I just couldn't wait to go look at the coal mining town! How interesting it is to learn how people lived long ago! In my next post, I will take you all though the coal mine town.
Until next time...
