One of the things I love about working with the Federal disaster relief effort is the opportunity to see places and sites I probably would not have seen otherwise. One such place was the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine in Beckley, West Virginia, about an hour outside the capital of Charleston, where I was stationed.
It was a warm, humid July Sunday and a rare day off when I decided to jump into the air conditioned rental car and check this place out. I'd heard about it and, having never been inside a coal mine, decided it was the day's destination.
Arriving at the entrance, I was immediately transported to the early 1900s when the site was actually a working coal mine. The main building - with the look, feel, and inventory of an old-timey general store - was also the place to buy tickets for a 35-minute tour, which could go longer depending on how many stories your guide -- one of many retired coal miners in the area -- wants to tell. Ours went closer to an hour but was enjoyable the whole time.
Visitors buy their ticket then browse the general store, looking at the merchandise and the many coal mining exhibits -- and maybe grabbing a "Friends of Coal" sticker -- as they wait for the "Now boarding!" announcement before making their way to the shed that houses the train they'll be riding. Called a "man trip," the train holds about 35 people, so each tour group is of a manageable size.
The mine is a "drift mine" with the train following tracks that burrow into the nearby hills rather than descending well below ground level. And it's always 58 degrees inside the mine, making the tour a welcome respite on a hot, sticky West Virginia summer day.
As the story goes, the land where the coal mine sits was a family farm. The family discovered a patch of coal and began digging it out to warm their own home until they figured they could make more money by mining coal than raising crops. So the switch was made, and they worked the mine for about 20 years.
Our guide's stories started as we slipped into the mine and continued as he pointed out equipment the miners used and explained their functions. There was the 2-ton coal car, which had to weigh in at least 4,000 pounds or the miners wouldn't get paid. Most, we were told, would overload the car as much as possible to avoid being shorted. Apparently taking an underweight car back into the mine for topping off wasn't allowed. Our guide said this was one of many ways the coal companies took advantage of the miners.
Our guide told us about the "fire boss" who would be the first person into the mine in the morning with a lighted torch he would hold close to the ceiling. Methane gas, which is lighter than air and released from coal seams during the mining process, would collect near the ceiling and the torch would ignite the (hopefully small) amount that gathered overnight, removing the hazards of explosion or suffocation, at least for the moment.
There were also the stories about how mining companies would pay their miners with company "script" because U.S. currency was hard to get in sufficient quantities and transport to often-remote mining locations. This script was only redeemable at the company store, where prices for everything from daily necessities to little luxuries were said to be inflated.
It was a warm, humid July Sunday and a rare day off when I decided to jump into the air conditioned rental car and check this place out. I'd heard about it and, having never been inside a coal mine, decided it was the day's destination.
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| General Store and Entrance |
Arriving at the entrance, I was immediately transported to the early 1900s when the site was actually a working coal mine. The main building - with the look, feel, and inventory of an old-timey general store - was also the place to buy tickets for a 35-minute tour, which could go longer depending on how many stories your guide -- one of many retired coal miners in the area -- wants to tell. Ours went closer to an hour but was enjoyable the whole time.
 |
| Heading into the mine |
Visitors buy their ticket then browse the general store, looking at the merchandise and the many coal mining exhibits -- and maybe grabbing a "Friends of Coal" sticker -- as they wait for the "Now boarding!" announcement before making their way to the shed that houses the train they'll be riding. Called a "man trip," the train holds about 35 people, so each tour group is of a manageable size.
 |
| Two-ton coal car |
The mine is a "drift mine" with the train following tracks that burrow into the nearby hills rather than descending well below ground level. And it's always 58 degrees inside the mine, making the tour a welcome respite on a hot, sticky West Virginia summer day.
As the story goes, the land where the coal mine sits was a family farm. The family discovered a patch of coal and began digging it out to warm their own home until they figured they could make more money by mining coal than raising crops. So the switch was made, and they worked the mine for about 20 years.
 |
| The Coal Scoop made loading coal easier |
Our guide's stories started as we slipped into the mine and continued as he pointed out equipment the miners used and explained their functions. There was the 2-ton coal car, which had to weigh in at least 4,000 pounds or the miners wouldn't get paid. Most, we were told, would overload the car as much as possible to avoid being shorted. Apparently taking an underweight car back into the mine for topping off wasn't allowed. Our guide said this was one of many ways the coal companies took advantage of the miners.
Years after this mine closed, the coal scoop was developed by one miner to save the back-breaking work of shoveling coal.
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| Demonstrating what a "fire boss" would do each morning |
Our guide told us about the "fire boss" who would be the first person into the mine in the morning with a lighted torch he would hold close to the ceiling. Methane gas, which is lighter than air and released from coal seams during the mining process, would collect near the ceiling and the torch would ignite the (hopefully small) amount that gathered overnight, removing the hazards of explosion or suffocation, at least for the moment.
 |
| Roof bolter, used for bolting the large beams that would support the mine's roof. |
There were also the stories about how mining companies would pay their miners with company "script" because U.S. currency was hard to get in sufficient quantities and transport to often-remote mining locations. This script was only redeemable at the company store, where prices for everything from daily necessities to little luxuries were said to be inflated.
If a miner didn't have enough script to fully pay for his purchases, the store would allow him to run a tab. That debt ensured that the miner would keep working for that mine so he could pay off his tab, which our guide said generally grew instead of shrinking. That practice is what led to the immortal line in Tennessee Ernie Ford's song 16 Tons, "I owe my soul to the company store."
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| Emerging from the mine at the end of the tour |
Prices for the tour are pretty reasonable: $22 for adults, $12.50 for children and $16 for seniors. The Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine and the Youth Museum of Southern West Virginia next door are open from April 1 to November 2 this year, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.
If you're anywhere near Beckley during the months the mine is open, I highly recommend a visit!
Photos by Carl Dombek
Click on photos to view larger images
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Photos by Carl Dombek
Click on photos to view larger images
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