History
Crews to start search for mine disaster survivors
Thu, 2010-04-08 09:36 | by adminMONTCOAL, W.Va. — Rescue crews planned to start the hourslong five-mile trek into a West Virginia coal mine Thursday to find signs of possible survivors of the worst U.S. mining disaster in a generation.
Last-Ditch Mine Rescue Attempt
Wed, 2010-04-07 07:31 | by adminDrilling begins into coal mine; governor holds 'a sliver of hope'
Wed, 2010-04-07 05:47 | by adminMontcoal, West Virginia (CNN) -- Rescue workers began drilling a hole Tuesday toward where they believe four miners may be located more than a day after a blast killed 25 others in a coal mine here.
"There's a sliver of hope, but we know that the odds are not in our favor," West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin told CNN.
"Everyone's going to cling to the hope of a miracle," he told reporters. "That is the true agony of this."
We Mourn the Miners
Wed, 2010-04-07 05:34 | by adminWe Mourn the Miners
All of us at the Natural Resources Defense Council join our nation in mourning the miners tragically kille
Mine deaths spark criticism of operator's record
Wed, 2010-04-07 05:32 | by admin(CNN) -- The deaths of at least 25 workers in a West Virginia coal mine this week have turned a harsh spotlight on the safety record of the mine's owner, which has paid record fines for safety and environmental violations.
History of West Virginia Mineral Industries - Coal
In 1742, John Peter Salley took an exploratory trip across the Allegheny Mountains and reported an outcropping of coal along a tributary of the Kanawha River. He and his companions named this tributary the Coal River, and his report became the first reference to coal in what is today West Virginia.
1886 Preston County
The 1886 Preston County Coal Mine Disaster
by Robert M. Moore
On 21 January 1886, 39 coal miners lost their lives at the Orrel Coal Company in Newburg, Preston Co. WV. At 2:45 that Thursday afternoon an explosion of a gas called fire damp, resulted in the worst disaster in Preston County history.
The following is an extraction of the names of the victims as well as other useful genealogical information taken from the Preston County Journal of January 28, February 4 and 11 of 1886.
BUFFALO CREEK (1972)
THE BUFFALO CREEK FLOOD DISASTER, FEBRUARY 26, 1972
Buffalo Creek consists of about 16 small communities. A few of them are Lorado, Becco, Latrobe, Saunders, Pardee, Stowe, Crites, Kistler, Braeholm....... Buffalo Creek winds it way down thru these communities and empties into the Guyandotte River at the edge of the town of Man.
On a rainy Saturday morning, February 26, 1972, 125 people; men, women and children lost their lives in the Buffalo Creek Flood Disaster. About 1,000 homes were destroyed and 4,000 people were left homeless.
EDWIGHT - Recalling a Coal River Company Town
By Johnny M Vergis
Special Thanks to Goldenseal Magazine
Let me take you to my hometown, Edwight, Raleigh County, back in the 1940's when I was growing up there. Let's look down from Turkey Rock on the mountain above town. There are coal miners walking to and from between the bathhouse and the company store, children playing, and womenfolk moving about. What a bustlng place my town is.
The Beginnings of Coal Development
The Beginnings of Coal Development
Photo of Early Coal Fleet
From the Semi-Centennial History of West Virginia, by James Callahan, 1913.
Notes on Coal, Oil and Gas Development By the Editor.
The coal mining industry in West Virginia Is still in its infancy. Many pioneer miners, who have watched it grow and expand from very small beginnings, are still living. There was no mining on an extensive scale before the civil war.
