Coal Miner Tribute 2015

A TRIBUTE TO OUR
MINING INDUSTRY
A supplement to:
The Independent Herald
The Gilbert Times
Coal Valley News
Williamson Daily News
The Logan Banner
Coalfield Connection
Photo by Brittany Ferrell Photography
344DFAM
Photo - Rylee Lester, the daughter of
Jamey and Amanda Lester of Gilbert,
WV. Jamey is employed with Alpha
Natural Resources.
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
2 Friday, July 31, 2015
Miners honored during memorial service
3 miners lost in state in
the last year remembered
[email protected]
MADISON – In June,
the West Virginia Coal
Festival brought hundreds to the area for fun
and festive activities,
but a ceremony remembering those lost to coal
mining tragedies in the
state since the last festival was also part of the
festival’s events.
The “2015 WV Coal
Festival Miners Memorial Service” was held on
the front steps and lawn
of the Boone County
Courthouse in Madison
and included music,
patriotic ceremonies
and a remembrance ceremony for the three coal
miners that have died in
West Virginia in the past
year, as well as all miners lost worldwide.
The Woman’s Auxillary of the Veterans of
Foreign Wars (VFW)
Post 5578 hung the
Coal Festival Flag and
the Madison VFW Post
5578 posted the colors.
Speakers included
Festival President Joy
Underwood, Festival
Vice President Delores
Cook, festival board
member Jimbo Clendenen and speaker Joe
Carter, United Mine
Workers of America
(UMWA) International
vice president District
17.
There was a musical
performance by soloist
Tim Spratt of Van.
“We are here today
to remember and honor
these brave miners and
to say that we will never
forget them,” Carter
said.
“This ceremony is in
memory of West Virginia
greatest heroes, our coal
miners,” Cook said. “We
honor and salute them
so they will never be for-
gotten.”
Cook read the name of
the deceased, and current and former UMWA
miners carried crosses
for each miner to the
foot of the Coal Miners’
Statue on the front lawn
of the courthouse.
They miners honored
and remembered included: Raymond Scott
Savage, 49, with Red
Bone Mining Company
in Monongalia County
who was fatally injured
on Nov. 10, 2014 after
being struck by rock
while operating a roof
bolting machine; John
M. Garloch, 45, with
McElroy Coal Company
in Marshall County who
was fatally injured on
Photos/Fred Pace
Current and former UMWA miners carried crosses for each miner to the foot of the Coal Miners’ Statue on the front lawn of the courthouse.
March 8, 2015, after
being struck by a fall
of face and rib while
shoveling between the
longwall face and panline; and Von Edwards
Bower, 52, with Rogers
Petroleum Service, Inc.,
Republic Energy Mine in
UMWA’s
Kanawha County, who
Joe
was fatally injured on
Carter
March 17, 2015, when
placed
as a fuel truck driver his
the
truck overtunred on a
“Miners
surface mine haul road.
Memorial
Also remembered
Weath”
at the
and honored were well
foot of
known Madison comthe Coal
munity and civic leadMiners’
ers Renee Hager and
Statue.
R.B. Foster. Both were
supporters of the coal
industry and the West
Virginia Coal Festival.
The ceremony concluded with the audience participating
in singing “Amazing
Grace” and a benediction from Rev. Ruth Ann
Delong with the Church
of Nazarene in Madison.
Fred Pace is an editor for Civitas
Media. He can be reached at 304369-1165, ext. 1661, in Madison; at
304-752-6950, ext. 1729 in Logan;
by email at fpace@civitasmedia.
com or @fcpace62 on Twitter.
There was a musical performance by soloist Tim Spratt of Van.
The flame at the Coal Miners’ Statue burns throughout the festival.
R. E. Rogers
FunERal HomE
Freddie McCoy
Owner
Post Office Box 190
Belfry, Kentucky 41514
(606) 353-7212 • (606) 353-7211
1-800-981-7681• FAX (606) 353-0705
60597366
Tanning Beds
Fill: Helium Balloons
• Propane
• Oxygen
Local Bill Pay Center
Hatfield Sports Club
Freddies’ Floral
60597425
Duba Wrecker
& Service Center
•
•
•
•
•
New & Used Tires
Custom Exhaust Work
Lock Out Service
Brakes, Tune-Ups, Oil Changes
Front & Rear Alignments
C&W
Carpet House
(606) 237-1008
Best Duba
Dogs Around!
(Free Coffee While You Wait)
304-235-6781
Route 1, Box 205-B
Williamson, WV 25661
60597434
835 Central Avenue
South Williamson, KY 41503
60597358
Belfry, Ky
606-353-7237
60597364
By Fred Pace
PIZZAMINGO
304-664-3205
Gilbert WV
2 Large
1 Topping Pizzas
only
$19.99 Plus Tax
60597397
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
Friday, July 31, 2015 3
Another day of ‘running’ coal
By William Plaster
[email protected]
FREEBURN, Ky. — On a
beautiful July morning on
a bench tucked way back in
the depths of Appalachia, old
friends gather to keep the fire
stoked and burning under the
memories that made them who
they are.
Forty years ago Herman
McCoy, 85, and Billy Rodger
Bentley, 74, started their days
off in a similar but different
way. Herman and Billy would
get dressed, grab their lunch
buckets, and head off to the
mines for another long shift of
“running” coal. They worked
long shifts in hard conditions
to provide a good life for their
families and coal to the nation.
Today Herman and Billy still
run coal but in a different way.
Today the two friends wake up,
got dressed, and drive down
to the Phelps Senior Citizen
facility for another day of
“running” coal. The coal they
mine today still fuels the steam
boats on the Ohio River, it still
melts the steel in Pittsburgh,
and it still makes the smoke
that bellows out of the northbound locomotive, but only
nostalgically in the picture
their stories create.
Herman McCoy began working in the coal mines back in
1950, he has worked at numerous job sites and in numerous
positions, if you want to talk
about coal Herman is the
man to talk to. Herman and
his brothers founded the coal
company McCoy-Elkhorn back
in 1991. Herman has seen
the industry evolve from its
primitive beginnings, to the
High-Tech money machine it
became, to the controversial
topic it is today.
Billy Rodger Bentley started
as an Auger operator back in
1964. Bentley has also worked
several positions and at several
locations. Bentley remarked
that when he began working
he only made $16 dollars a
William Plaster/WDN
Former coal miners get together about every day to talk about the old days of mining coal in the area. Many retired miners
remember the days they spent underground mining “black gold.”
day except back then that was
good money. “We used to run
between 600 and 800 tons of
coal in an 8 hours shift,” said
Bentley. Today coal companies
can produce massive amounts
of product with the assistance
of highly specialized and developed machinery.
Herman explained that
before the continuous miner
was brought into operation
they used to use a cutting
machine. This machine would
cut into the coal seams on the
bottom and on the sides. The
holes for blasting would be
drilled into the side cuts and
the bottom cut would allow
room for the coal to break
properly once the blast detonated. “It took a lot more work
to get the coal back then but
we didn’t mind it that much,”
said Herman.
The two friends are always
joined throughout the day by
other retired miners who stick
to the routine. Kurt Mayhorn,
another retiree showed up for
his shift of “running coal” and
quickly added to the discus-
sion. Mayhorn said “I got one
for ya, I worked up there on
that job driving a truck for 8
years, and I only broke down
one time in 8 years.” The others agreed it was impressive.
The tales began to roll off the
tongue with ease; the stories
were growing as high as a
stock pile of coal. They talked
about old bosses and friends,
they remembered the names
of companies that had come
and went, they detailed certain
mines they had worked in and
equipment they had operated,
but the narrative never turned,
it was always about coal. The
men were still “running coal.”
Both Herman and Billy grew
up and worked in the Freeburn
and Phelps areas of Kentucky.
Herman said “back around
1900 there was a prospector
who traveled through and took
a sample of the Peter Creek
seam; he said it was the best
coal he had ever seen in the
nation.” Bentley said, “Freeburn used to be a booming
town, we had the old Freeburn
mines, we had a movie theatre,
bank, skating rink, stores, a
school, it was a great community to live and work in.”
The Railroad Bridge that still
straddles the river between
Freeburn and Edgarton, W.Va.,
is all that remains from the
Freeburn Coal Company.
“That Railroad Bridge was
built in 1907 by the company and the mines started in
1908,” said Bentley. “The work
was a lot harder back then, all
the coal was loaded by hand
with shovels, Freeburn Coal
had 165 hand loaders at one
time and produced 50,000 tons
of coal a month, now that was
a lot of coal,” added Herman.
The work wasn’t all that was
difficult back then the two men
explained. Herman said “Back
then nobody drove to work, we
walked just about everywhere
we went, the man trip was on a
rail system that led from deep
inside the mines to around the
mountain, we would usually
have to walk a mile around the
hill to get to the man trip.”
The man trip was a cart system on rails designed to trans-
port miners from their working
area inside the mines to the
outside or vice-versa. “We had
about 8 cars on that man trip
and the walk to get to it was
long and steep, you just hoped
that you never missed it or you
had a long way to go to get to
work,” Bentley added.
The conversation took a serious turn when the men were
asked about how much safer
the mines are today compared
to the conditions they used to
work in. “Back in the 20’s and
30’s there used be 2-3 men die
a week at the Freeburn Mine,
there was no such thing as
roof bolting back then,” said
the men. Talk became hushed
as their minds began to think
about friends and family that
had been lost in the mines.
It was made clear that it was
time to move onto a new subject.
“I used to work with guy
at my first job, he turned and
looked at me one day and said,
one day they are gonna level
off these mountains to get to
that coal. I thought there was
no way but boy was I wrong on
that one,” said Bentley.
The men gathered and more
joined in, they talked about
how much unused land is available now because of the strip
mining operations of the past.
The men were leaning into a
topic that most people wonder
about themselves, what will be
done with all of the cleared off
land we have now?
The shift finished easily with
joking and laughter, enough
coal had been run for the day.
The group split ways and carried on to other things, however, without a word spoken they
all silently knew that tomorrow
they would get out of bed, get
dressed and head on down to
the bench for another shift of
“running coal.”
William Plaster is the sports reporter at the
Williamson Daily News, he can be reached
at 304-235-4242 ext. 2274 or at wplaster@
civitasmedia.com or on twitter @sidplaster
ULTIMATE PAWN
BUY, SELL, TRADE & PAWN
PAYING TOP PRICE FOR GOLD & SILVER!
GOLD (10K, 14K, 18K, 20K, 22K, 24K)
JEWELRY (NEW, USED, BROKEN OR DAMAGED), BULLION, WATCHES, DENTAL GOLD
(CROWNS)
GOLD FILLED (1/10TH, 1/12TH, 1/20TH, 10K, 14K, 18K)
ANTIQUE JEWELRY, VINTAGE JEWELRY, AWARD PINS
STERLING FLATWARE (.800, .900, .925, STERLING)
FORKS, KNIVES, SPOONS, PITCHERS, PLATTERS
STERLING JEWELRY (.925, MEXICO)
USED, NEW OR BROKEN
90% SILVER AMERICAN COINS
PRE-1965 AMERICAN DIMES, QUARTERS, HALVES, MORGAN AND PEACE DOLLARS,
MODERN COMMEMORATIVES
40% SILVER COINS
1965-1970 AMERICAN HALVES, EISENHOWER PROOF SETS, MODERN
COMMEMORATIVES
.999 SILVER
BULLION, COINS, BARS, ROUNDS, SILVER EAGLES AND CANADIAN MAPLE LEAVES
GOLD BULLION & COINS
PRE-1933 LIBERTY HEADS, ST. GAUDENS, MODERN U.S. GOLD, BRITISH SOVEREIGNS,
SWISS FRANCS, AMERICAN EAGLES, BUFFALOS, PHILHARMONIC, INDIANS, CANADIAN
MAPLE LEAVES, MEXICAN PESOS
PLATINUM
BULLION, JEWELRY OR COINS
DIAMONDS
LOOSE OR IN JEWELRY. WE WILL BUY YOUR SCRAP AND PAY YOU FOR THE DIAMONDS
IN IT. BUY ALL CERTIFIED DIAMONDS, (GIA, EGL USA, IGI, AGS) AND ALL NONCERTIFIED
121 LOGAN ST. • KERMIT, WV
(304) 393-9200
60597416
Ci
r
ai
ty
p
Re V
to W
u
A n, 0
& so 013
re m Ti llia 235
ty i
Ci W 304
So
60597413
Ti
re
&
A
Lo uto
30 g R
4- an ep
75 , W a
ir
290 V of
Lo
90
ga
n
ir
a
ep
ut
hs
id
So e T
i
60 uth re &
6- sid A
23 e u
7- M to
11 al Re
12 l
p
R
o
t
Au KY
& le, 140
re il 9
Ti kev 37y
le Pi 6-6
r
Fa
60
ai
r
Our Family Taking Care Of Your Family
60597409
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
4 Friday, July 31, 2015
Beauty shop tip led Elkins to mine career
By John Conley
[email protected]
Not many miners can say
thier careers were launched
by suggestions from a beauty
parlor.
That’s what happened to
James Elkins, 71, of Mullens.
“I had jobs where I was
excited to go to work and I
had jobs where I didn’t want
to go to work,” recalled Elkins,
known to friends as “Ham” or
“Hamfat.”
“All in all, it was a pretty
good run for me,” he commented.
Elkins got his first mining
job from a tip at a beauty shop.
“My sister-in-law ran a beauty shop,” he said. “And some
ladies from Otsego said they
needed people for the night
shift. My brother-in-law, Don
Neely, knew some people up
there and took me there.”
He was hired and his first
mining job involved loading
supplies in cars and belt work.
“It took me a while to learn
how to do anything,” he stated.
Elkins worked the midnight
shift and lost 35 pounds in his
first month on the job.
“You just don’t know when
to eat,” he remembered. “I was
pretty fit there for a while.”
“I worked there two and a
half years, and then I knew
that’s what I was going to be
doing,” Elkins said.
His next job was at Tralee,
where he timbered and became
a roof bolter.
“I worked the evening shift
through the late 60s,” he
stated.
“There were five us on the
team, and we were just doing
what we were trained to do.
We just had to keep going until
we got done.”
Eventually, in 1979, Elkins
was part of a national champion mine rescue team while
working for the Shannon Pocahontas Mining Company.
Mining, he says, “is not as
complicated as people think it
is. A coal mine is laid out like
the streets of a large city. When
I worked at Capels, we had 18
miles of usable track.
“You ride to your section,
work 7 or 8 hours, operate your
equipment and go home,” he
added.
He worked at Tralee for 20
years, most of it under Allied
Chemical Corp.
After that mine closed in the
“I missed the sex and drugs
revolution,” he quipped.
He joined the mine rescue
team at Tralee in 1968.
As time went on he, he
obtained a fireman’s certificate
and a mine foreman’s certificate.
In 1973 or ‘74 they asked me
to fill in for a section foreman
who was off sick,” said Elkins.
“He never came back to work.”
Just prior to that, Elkins
was part of the rescue team
which went into Itmann No. 3
after an explosion in late 1972.
Five men lost their lives in the
explosion.
“It was a week or so before
Christmas,” he recalled. “It was
the hardest work I ever did in
my life.
“We worked about 12 hours
underground,” Elkins noted.
Building Omar’s coalfield
mid-80s, he moved on to other
mines, including Marianna,
Maben Energy at Wyco and
others.
He was working at the Skeens Bottom mine at Herndon
when he was injured in 1995.
“When I got hurt, that was
my last day of work,” Elkins
said. “I never went back.”
None of the mines where
Elkins worked are in operation
today.
“I had a wonderful time,”
he stated. “I met a lot of good
people and made friends.”
Elkins and his wife, Trish,
have been married 53 years.
They have two children and
five grandchildren and are
members of the Mullens United Methodist Church.
John Conley can be reached at 304-7326060 or on Twitter @PIHnews.
Beginning of Holden 22
Courtesy photo
Courtesy photo
Individuals in this 1915 setting—miners and developers—were responsible for opening up the Omar
coalfields. Shown, from left to right, front row, are Kelley Barker, John Easley, Mr. Hopkins, H.C. Dudley,
Bill Jones, Mr. Stidle, Mr. Browning, and Mr. Greshman. In the back row are Johnny Mosko, unknown,
Henry Crickman, Mr. Finger, Jim Montgomery, unknown, Ray Barlow, A.J. Dalton, Abe Wood, Cap Dower,
Tennis Hatfield (son of Devil Anse Hatfield), and Bob French. — Submitted by F. Keith Davis, from
Images of America: Logan County (Arcadia Publishing).
The newspaper, The Logan County Banner, of March 25, 1927, contained an article telling about
Island Creek Coal Company’s plan to create a community and coalmine to be called Holden 22, which
would soon be a major employer in the region. This photograph depicts the opening day of the mine
and nearby coalcamp, attended by several Island Creek Coal Company officials. In later years, the
newspaper described the same mine as the site of “a dark chronicle of great loss for Logan County.”
It was here on March 8, 1960 that one of the worst mining accidents in county history took place.
Eighteen men perished—asphyxiated during a deadly blaze—in the deep mine. The fire is believed
to have initially started when a slate fall snapped a high voltage trolley-cable, which in turn ignited
timbers supporting the roof. The event is still remembered locally as the “Holden 22 Mine Disaster.”
The workers who perished collectively left behind 16 widows and 77 children. — Submitted by F. Keith
Davis, from Images of America: Logan County (Arcadia Publishing).
GET NOTICED!
GEORGE D. POOLE, III
Blankenship
Advertise in your local newspaper!
City Insurance Agency, INC.
TONY’S
Insurance - Real Estate
Tire Service
BODY SHOP
Tony Carrico
909 Interstate Highway
Hanover, WV 24839
Est. 1980
100 Logan Street • P.O. Box 1598
185 Radio Hill St.
McCarr, KY 41544
Williamson, WV 25661
Telephone: 304-235-2100
Fax: 304-235-2105
Cell: 304-784-5400
Email: [email protected]
60597398
60597357
304-664-8259
or 1-800-499-8259
- Owner
606-427-7424
[email protected]
60597431
ATTENTION: MINERS!
NOW ACCEPTING JOB APPLICATIONS
Rick’s
GLOBAL ENERGY RESOURCES, LLC
Accepting applications for
ALL SURFACE AND UNDERGOUND
MINING POSITIONS
AUTO
PARTS
When applying, be sure to have current mining/training certification
information available
APPLY IN PERSON:
Gilbert, WV - Office of Cline Business Services
101 Eureka Drive
Gilbert, WV 25621
Call for directions: 304-664-9639
Beckley, WV - Office of Custom Business Solutions
313 Market Rd.
Beckley, WV 25801
Phone: 681-238-5732
APPLY ONLINE:
www.proenergypower.com
Corporate address: PO Box 1021
Gilbert, WV 25621
Corporate Phone: 304-664-9639
Corporate Fax: 304-664-9721
60597374
304-664-3331
Gilbert, WV
60597433
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
Friday, July 31, 2015 5
My second shift life as a coal miner
By Cindy Moore
[email protected]
LENORE, W.Va. — Jeff
Ferris, 60-years-old of
Lenore, has only known
one job for the majority
of his life — coal mining.
He has worked a total of
40 years in numerous different coal mines around
the region.
Ferris began to work as
a coal miner at the young
age of 19 when he got
his first job on October
22, 1974 at Piston Coal
Company, L.K. Mining
in Man, W.Va. He was a
shuttle car operator and
a roof bolter at that mine
for four years. He said he
figured out really quick
that coal mining was
where the money was at.
“I knew I would be
marrying and wanted a
job that could provide for
a family. I will never forget it, I made $30 a day
and thought I was a rich
man,” stated Ferris. “It
was lowest pay one could
get at that time but I was
happy with it.”
In December of 1978
Ferris was laid off at Piston Coal and then went
to work for a sister mine
in Stone Coal, W.Va.
“I worked there from
December 1978 until
April 1982 in low 29 inch
coal; 32 inches is considered to be high coal
but even that is really
low,” said Ferris. “It was
scarey, no doubt.”
Jobs were plentiful but
didn’t seem to last very
long before miners were
transferred from place to
place. The mine in Stone
Coal, where Ferris was
employed, eventually shut
down in 1982 and Ferris
was forced to relocate to
a new job at another mine
again. He was hired on
at a family owned mine
in Martin County, Ky.,
called Amber Mining. He
stayed at that mine for
only one year before he
was transferred to a sister
mine in Johnson County,
Ky. After another year
passed he was moved
again to Pike County, Ky.,
then a year later moved
to Wolf Creek, Ky., where
he pumped water out of
the mines for only another year.
Finally, in July of 1989,
Ferris landed a job at
Marrowbone Development where he was a
shuttle car operator.
“I stayed at that mine
longer than any other.
They shut down in March
2004 and I was forced to
find another job again,”
said Ferris. “I got a job at
Argus Energy in Harts,
W.Va. as a belt examiner.
That job lasted about two
years.”
His last and final job
in the coal mines was at
Coal River Energy when
he was hired there in
2005. Ferris remained
there until that mine, like
many others, shut down
as well in October 2014.
“I’ve decided that I’m
finally done with coal
mining, although I have
been very fortunate and
blessed to be able to
keep a mining job for
40 years,” said Ferris. “I
think it’s time to retire.”
Throughout his coal
mining career, Ferris said
he has seen and heard
many scary things. He
has witnessed accidents
and fatalities that made
him question several
times if he wanted to continue on as a coal miner
or go elsewhere.
“Every time there was
an accident it made me
consider what I was
doing. It made me think
long and hard about
hanging coal mining up,”
stated Ferris. “There was
so many times I wanted
to do something else but
Cindy Moore/WDN
Jeff Ferris
there was nothing else
out there that paid like a
coal miner’s pay.”
With all the years
and all the different
coal mines that Ferris
worked, he worked the
second shift at each one
and was never able to
transfer to first or third
shift. Because of this, it
made things difficult for
him to watch his children
grow up and to teach
them things that a father
should have been teaching them.
“Working second shift
my entire life caused me
to miss out on a lot with
my wife and children. I
didn’t get to be with them
the way I wanted to,”
said Ferris. “I was never
able to get on a different
shift.”
Ferris said that his children didn’t understand
why he never attended
their sporting events or
taught them how to fish
and hunt. “I didn’t know
how to explain it to my
children really. I told
them that mommy has to
take care of it because I
have to work this shift to
make sure they have full
bellies, clothes on their
backs and a roof over
their heads.”
As his children grew
into working adults themselves, they finally did
realize and understand
why their daddy wasn’t
around much as they
were growing up.
“My children, when
they got older, started
writing me letters, letters
that I would find placed
on my nightstand or my
pillow. They then began
to tell me they were
proud of me for working
as hard as I did for them
and they didn’t realize
then but they can see
now why daddy couldn’t
be at the ball games or
to take them camping,”
added Ferris. “Nothing
makes up for the time
I lost with my two children, by no means, but
now that I’ve decided to
go ahead and retire I’m
getting plenty of Grandpa
time with my grandchildren and I hope to be
able to do for them like I
wish I could have for my
own children.”
Time on the weekends
was even a problem
for Ferris, as he was
required to work even
most Saturdays. He said
that, because Sundays
were usually his only day
off, he was so tired from
working long hard hours
that he never felt like
doing much more than
playing in the yard on
that one day off.
“Coal mining is hard on
your body and you have
to find time to rest as
well as find time for your
family,” said Ferris.
When one works second shift, it seems that
they are at work more
than they are at home,
so you tend to develop a
family-like relationship
with the people you work
with.
“Working in the mines
with so many people, you
get close to your co-workers. They’re like your
second family since you
actually spend more time
with them than you do at
home. There are so many
that I got close to that I’ll
South WilliamSon
(606) 237-6355
HOURS: 8-5 Mon. - Sat.
never forget for as long
as I live,” said Ferris. “I
trained a lot of young redhats and I treated them
just as I would if they
were my child.”
Ferris said that most
of his co-workers even
functioned like a family,
like a brotherhood, as
they assembled together
to have prayer together at
dinnertime or even came
to each other for brotherly advise.
“I’ve seen many of
these men who came to
me as a brother or that
I went to as a brother,
pass away from coal mining related illnesses. It’s
so sad to see them go
because they really are
like my family,” stated
Ferris.
Cindy Moore is a reporter for the
Williamson Daily News. To contact
Cindy by phone please call 304235-4242 ext. 2278 or by email at
[email protected].
inez Ky.
(606) 208-0764
HOURS: 9-5 Mon. - Fri., 9-3 Sat.
PiKeville Ky. (606) 437-1471
HOURS: 8-6 Mon. - Sat.
60597380
Prescription
Compounding
Specialists
“Caring Like Never Before”
Your
Problem-Solving
Pharmacy
Proudly Supports
The Mining Industry.
In every field of medicine, there are some patients
who don’t respond to traditional treatments.
Whether they require medicine at strengths customized to their
body types, better-tasting medicine, or a different way of ingesting
a medication, pharmacy compounding can meet their needs. We
even can formulate medications that are free of sugar, gluten,
casein, soy, or dyes. If you have medication problems, we can help
find a solution.
304-831-1101
• Accounts Payable
• Auxiliary Desk - 1st Floor
• Auxiliary Desk - 4th Floor
• Cancer Center
• Cardiac Rehab
• Central Scheduling
• Dietician
• Education
• Emergency Service Center
• Financial Services (Self Pay)
• Financial Services (Insurance)
Ask your healthcare
provider for
more information
about pharmacy
compounding, or
call us today!
Proudly Supports the Mining Industry.
Now offering convenient pick up at 2 locations!
831-1235
831-1348
831-1389
831-2500
831-1572
831-1928
831-1853
831-1556
831-1360
831-1921
831-1923
• Gift Shop
• Human Resources
• Inpatient Rehab
• Jobline
• Medical Records
• Outpatient Surgery
• Registration
• Social Services
• TDD Hearing Impaired Line
• Women’s Center
831-1221
831-1190
831-1245
831-1329
831-1266
831-1369
831-1223
831-1698
831-1488
831-1245
20 Hospital Drive • Logan, WV 25601
www.LoganRegionalMedicalCenter.com
Chapmanville Pharmacy or
Chapmanville Speciality Pharmacy Across form LB&T
Chapmanville Pharmacy
53 1/2 Crawley Creek Road
Chapmanville WV
304.855.9502
60596151
60596140
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
6 Friday, July 31, 2015
Company stores: A community center
By Dwight Williamson
Contributing Writer
There was a time not
that long ago when nearly
every Logan County community had its own version of today’s Walmart.
To the mining camp souls
who usually lived near
the establishments, they
were simply known as the
“Company Stores.”
Although the discovery of coal in West
Virginia happened in
Boone County a few
years before the start of
the Civil War, it wasn’t
until the early 1900’s that
coal mining was being
visualized by the “few”
as a certain means to
become wealthy. Most of
the lands of the county
were owned by a handful
of people, many of whom
had “seen their better
days” and most had
already earned their mark
in the timbering business. Farming was about
the only other alternative
for what I shall term the
“Loganites”, a mixture of
mostly raw boned Scotch
-Irish, English, German
and Welsh peoples; very
independent descendants
of those adventurers who
had traversed the hills
and valleys of the Carolinas, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Ohio and most
certainly “Old” Virginia
to settle near the waters
of the Guyandotte and in
the fertile valleys of the
region.
Gone were the so
called “savages” who
once hunted, trapped
and fished in territories
the Indian tribes rightfully claimed, victims
of the white man’s push
westward — a push for
some, but not all, to get
away from the government’s tax on whiskey
brought on by the “Whiskey Rebellion” of years
before. Some had been
classified as murderers,
but most Indians who
had survived the white
man’s disease of smallpox
became the “murdered”.
Even their final resting places, sacred only
to them, soon would
become the white man’s
domain. Structures in
Lawnsville, now known
as Logan, and Buffalo
City, today known as the
town of Man, cover what
scattered remains that
have not been removed.
Perhaps it was “subconscious guilt” which
caused the early townsfolk to change the town’s
name to first Aracoma
and in 1907 to Logan;
two local historical Indian names still honored
today in the summer productions of The Aracoma
Story held at Chief Logan
State Park. The reasoning for the names really
doesn’t matter.
What we do know is
that properties were sold
and leased to large outof-state companies and
these companies needed
workers and, there were
few to be found in the
then isolated region.
Surveys and core samples
had been completed and
experts knew the mighty
black gold was there for
the taking. Advertising in
foreign countries, where
people suffered far rougher economic and social
wrongs than America,
companies began seek-
Courtesy photo
Island Creek Coal Company’s No. 16 store was located where D&S Machine Shop is now just above the Verdunville Post Office. The center
of a coal camp, company stores were busy except on Sunday’s when they were closed. It is believed that this photo was taken on a Sunday
since there are no vehicles or customers.
ing employees. Some
companies even paid for
the means of travel to the
“land of the free” and the
various nationalities were
met by company workers
as they arrived by boat to
escort them to our hills.
The travel bill would be
taken from the soon to be
coal miners’ pay. Negroes
were recruited from the
still very prejudicial south
from the likes of Alabama
and Georgia, places many
were glad to be leaving.
Mines and railroads
were opened in nearly
every hollow, so homes
were built by the various
companies to accommodate the many workers
and their families, many
of whom spoke little
English; their heritage
being a mix of Italian,
Hungarian, Czech and
other languages from far
off places. They, along
with the black employees,
soon would become the
backbone of the economy
of the county and arguably the great state of
West Virginia. It remains
the same today.
While the town of
Logan grew seemingly
overnight from 400 to
many thousands in just
10 years, likewise grew
the entire county.
Travel was limited from
one hollow to the next
and roads were few and
rough, to say the least.
Therefore, stores were
needed to supply food
as well as goods for its
employees. For years,
different companies supplied its own form of
money known as script
which could only be
spent at the company
store and was useless
anywhere else. Prices
were set by the companies and when miners did
get meager wage increases, it is said the stores
raised their prices.
It is the simple truth
which the past unveils,
and that is: the “Matewan Massacre,’’ the
“Blair Mountain War”
and finally unionization
brought about changes
to the industry both
financially and in terms
of lives. Perhaps it is
because of these changes,
long before this writer’s
time, that I have a “good”
perspective in terms of
the “Company Store.”
Gone were the “script
days” when I sprouted
into youth hood.
Growing up in various company houses but
the coal hollow where he
was raised in McDowell
County.
Our store featured grocery isles, a section for
clothing, jewelry, etc., a
hardware area which also
had new Maytag washers,
Kelvinator cooking stoves
and many appliances; all
of which could be delivered. There also was a
single gas pump for those
families fortunate enough
to possess an automobile. We were “top shelf”
because we even had
a butcher, and not all
stores did. Our butcher
was special. It was said
he could cut part of his
finger off, wrap it quickly,
and never get a drop of
his blood in the hamburger he was grinding
fresh for someone. Sadly,
our butcher (Don Moore)
passed within the past
month at about 80. His
legacy as the company
store butcher with the
friendly smile lives on,
as do the memories of
those employees who left
before him. One such person was the store manager, Dow Thompson. If
Dow, as we all called him,
was supposed to possess
the “company man” mentality, he did not.
During times of strife,
and there were many, as
strikes often took their
toll and layoffs could be
frequent, local families
often did without and
could not charge at the
store. However, I fervently remember him always
making sure around holidays, particularly Thanksgiving and Christmas,
that needy families got a
turkey or ham. Children
never missed out on
candy and other goodies,
thanks to the store manager. Since most of the
neighborhood fit into the
same category, I imagine
this was a chore for him,
perhaps even paying for
it himself.
The two-story structure served as a community center for all of
Mud Fork, as two other
stores on the creek (Nos.
15 and 17) had long been
closed. The time period
I am referring to is the
late 1950’s and early 60’s.
There were dances held
regularly upstairs. In
addition, the Boy Scouts
of the late Troop Leader
Grady Nelson (State
Senator Art Kirkendoll’s
father-in-law) had weekly
meetings there. It was
also the home of the Ver-
Cook & Cook Law Firm
Local: (304) 369-0110
Toll Free: (888) 370-9736
60596613
PROUDLY SERVING THE COAL INDUSTRY
98 Dingess Street
Logan, WV
304-752-2739
nearly always within a
stone’s throw (and I possessed what some said
was a “good” throwing
arm) from Island Creek
Coal Company’s No. 16
store on Mud Fork, all
my memories surrounding the store are nothing
but good natured. So it
is, I believe, with many
others of the time period,
whether in company
store neighborhoods
like Holden, Omar, Mallory, Lundale, Shamrock,
Whitman, Chauncey,
Sharples, Dehue, Amherstdale, Monaville or
any of the many other
such locations scattered
throughout the county
and other parts of the
state.
Stores varied in size
from neighborhood to
neighborhood and were
numbered to match the
nearby mine’s number.
Island Creek owned many
such places, most notably
the four-story Holden
No. 22 location which
still stands today. One
of very few brick stores
built, it today serves a
righteous purpose as the
“Dream Center” for the
Verdunville Church of
God. It opened October
10, 1936, probably replacing a smaller store. The
Logan Banner’s headline
of the day read: “New No.
21 Store at Holden Opens
Most Auspiciously”.
There were various forms
of entertainment that day
as the Banner proclaimed
the store “presents a
most pleasing appearance” and presented “the
latest equipment and
merchandising ideas to
aid and make shopping a
delightful pleasure.”
Well now, at the 16
store, probably like other
locations, our “delightful
shopping experience”
consisted of a small coke,
a moon pie or oatmeal
cake and a bag of DanDee potato chips for
a quarter; not that we
didn’t have to take a store
order for our parents or
grandparents upon occasions. We were mostly
“kids” and you could
have called us the “porch
sitters”. Day or night,
it seemed there was
always someone sitting
on the concrete porch
just watching the cars
go by or perhaps staring
at the sky in wonderment. I suspect Homer
Hickam, noted author of
“The Rocket Boys”, fits
into this category from
www.cookandcookwv.com
60597440
dunville Woman’s Club.
The names of people
like Mona Hall, Florence
Baisden and Mrs. Ted
Hale, immediately come
to mind when thinking
of the club. Since courthouse records show all
of the coal camp houses
being built about 1920,
it is probable the store
came to be in the same
time frame.
My group of “porch
sitters” were a little too
young for most of these
activities and stuck to
sock hops and Fall Festivals at the grade school
located not far away, and
today still stands upon
the site where No. 16 coal
mine operated. It was in
the 16 mine two brotherin-laws of mine lost their
father Bill McCallister
in a slate fall when they
were infants. In the same
tragedy, another great
man, my now deceased
neighbor, Neil Meade,
lost his dad while he too
was very young. Such
was the case around the
county as thousands
paid the price of mining
coal. Death and loss of
limb were rampant, particularly in the early days.
Loss of a father naturally
meant unusual hardships
for spouses trying to raise
a house full of children.
Other family and coal
mining neighbors helped
every way possible. It
was the rightly coal camp
thing to do. Of course,
churches availed themselves as well.
Our family home still
stands. But, at one time
my great-uncle Albert
resided next door. He lost
one leg and several fingers in a mining accident.
On the other side of our
house lived John Evans.
He was called Peg-Leg
John for good reason. A
friendly man, John supposedly lost a leg and
fingers while trying to
hop a coal train. I never
knew the truth because
he enjoyed joking with
us younger folk. I guess
I should have asked his
daughter (Kathy Manley)
a long-time teacher and
fellow Logan High School
graduate of mine know
residing at Chapmanville.
My father, Carlos, my
grandfather Amos, my
uncles Lowell Williamson
and Willard “Junior” Burton and Henry Bowers
were all coal miners. In
fact, nearly everybody in
the neighborhood either
was or had been a coal
miner. My father, who
worked for Youngstown
Steel at Dehue, said he
mined coal under the
Guyandotte River, often
working in water over his
waist. “Don’t ever go into
the coal mines,’’ he once
cautioned me. “It’s no
place you want to work.’’
And, I never have.
So, the “Porch Sitters”,
sometimes late at night
with a transistor radio
to our heads listening to
far-off radio stations like
WOWO and WLS of Chicago or WCAU of Philadelphia, thought we were
keeping pace with the
times. During days and
early evenings we listed
to local stations and the
Cincinnatti Reds. And,
then came The Beatles,
the Rolling Stones, Jimi
Hendrix, Creedence
Clearwater Revival; all
this, coupled with the
likes of Johnny Cash,
Mearle Haggard, George
Jones and Tammy Wynette — well , no wonder
we even today sometimes
get funny looks.
While some of the sitters enjoyed passing time
filing down pennies to
fit the phone in a booth
located behind us on the
porch, others mastered
the art of pitching pennies on that same porch.
After all, we really had no
one to call.
The basketball rim we
had erected near the store
kept us busy during the
proper sporting season.
During days of baseball,
softball or football we
always afterwards ended
up on that same porch
— still watching the cars
go by and staring at the
moonlit sky. The “porch
sitters” always knew we
could reach the moon.
It is said that “poor
people have poor ways”
— and we most certainly
did.
Ah, but don’t ever be
fooled. While some may
come and some may go,
the “richness” of the
“porch sitters” shall live
on.
Dwight Williamson is a contributing
writer and a former reporter for The
Logan Banner. He currently serves
as a Logan County Magistrate.
Kellie Wooten-Willis
CPA
On Your Side Certified
Agent
Wooten-Willis Insurance, LLC
Nationwide Insurance
Serving the CoalfieldS
103 Dingess Street Logan, WV 25601
Tel: 304-752-1390 | Tel: 888-752-1390
Fax: 304-752-6690
[email protected]
60596154
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
Friday, July 31, 2015 7
Being a coal miner’s daughter
By Deloris Murray
Contributing Writer
As Loretta Lynn’s song
goes, I’m proud to be a coal
miner’s daughter. That’s
how I feel about my dad,
Opie Bias, to this day.
Dad started working in
the coal mines at fourteen
to help support his mom
and sister. Dad met Mother soon after her mother
passed away; it was love
at first sight. Mother was
sixteen when they met and
fell in love and married.
Soon after the first of ten
children came, they moved
from Amherstdale after six
years. The next move was
to Monclo to work at Sharples Coal for the next forty
years until he retired.
Dad was president of
Local Union 2935. He was
known to voice loud and
clear his opinion when
something wasn’t right
about the miners. The
company would allow two
dollars a day when there
was a wildcat strike.
Dad was a brakeman and
he kept the tonnage sheets
everyday to show the men
how much coal they had
mined the day before.
He had six to eight large
tonnage sheets where he
would add the tonnage of
each section of the mines.
He amazed me how fast
Dad could count those tonnage sheets in his head.
He only went to the eighth
grade. Dad was very intelligent in my mind.
The song Ernie Ford
sang, “Sixteen Tons,”
about miners owing their
soul to the company store
was true. Miners didn’t
draw much pay. The coal
company took out for food,
housing, electric and cash
advances if you needed
money before payday for
Courtesy photo
Opie and Gertrude Bias were the parents of ten children. Mr. Bias began working in the coal mines at the age of 14, and retired with 40 years of service from Sharples
Coal Company.
something unexpected that
would arrive. If the miners
went on a wildcat strike,
they would allow each
miner two dollars a day
from the company store.
The garden Dad raised
was a perfect picture garden. If he worked the night
shift, he would garden
early in the morning and
if he worked the day shift,
he would garden after he
came home. He loved the
animals he had — two
horses, chickens, geese,
ducks, turkeys dogs, cats
and a pet duck named
Paula that followed him
around.
The funniest thing I
remember about Dad
was him taking his horse,
Prince, and letting him
stick his head in the window of the church Mother
attended. The window was
open and everyone — but
mother — got a big kick
out of it.
After Dad retired, he
would cook breakfast on
Saturdays to let Mother
have a rest. When he finished, he would say “get
up, breakfast is getting
cold.” You didn’t talk back
in those days.
Dad is surely missed on
Father’s Day by all of us.
Memories of Dad
Dad was super in
my eyes,
Where many fond
memories now lie.
There wasn’t a
thing he couldn’t do,
Fix your bike or
mend your shoe.
His good he did outweighed the bad,
This special person
I called my Dad.
He worked in the
mines and on the
tipple,
His back and
hands were bent and
crippled.
Growing up there
was no generation
gap,
You talked about
everything from trees
to sap.
He love spring,
summer, winter and
fall,
And he loved to
garden most of all.
The garden I vision
in my mind,
You neatly worked
by hands.
Dad always liked
this time of year,
To cultivate the
land.
As days go by
our hearts are less
harden,
For we know he’s
in God’s heavenly
garden.
I said, build a
mansion with lots of
room,
For the other eleven
will be there soon.
WE ARE BUSTING
OUT OF THE BUILDING!!!
55 RollS of NEw CARPET INvENToRY jUST ARRIvED,
PlUS ovER 20 RollS of vINYl IN SToCK!
BUY ToDAY AND INSTAllED IN 48 hoURS GUARANTEED!
ESTIMATES ARE ALWAYS FREE
50-80oz.
RUG IN
SToCK & READY
To Go
Suggested
Retail Price
$
46.99
You Pay
19.99
Logan Carpet Shop
75 2nd Ave, West Logan, WV 25601
(304) 752-4341
Please see store for details.
60595221
$
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
8 Friday, July 31, 2015
Mine disasters and the people of Appalachia
By Owen Wells
[email protected]
Throughout much of
the relatively short history
of West Virginia, resource
extraction has been at the
center of economic activity. In the preindustrial
era, economies of abundance in game and timber
drew mountaineers into
the rugged hills of the
land that would eventually
become West Virginia.
When the rapid changes
associated with the industrial era began shaping
the American economy
into a robust economic
machine that could support a superpower, economies of abundance in
salt, oil and coal in West
Virginia accommodated
businesses both directly
involved with and ancillary to resource extraction.
Coal mining and its
related activities have
been the rare economic
stepping stone for the
area of southern West
Virginia that very few
other economic activities have been able to
match. The American
Dream of prosperity
through hard work can be
attained through working in or around mines,
and the opportunity to be
able work to provide an
elevated lifestyle for families and communities has
been taken by many hardworking people. With
every economic opportunity, however, there are
risks, and the physical and
geological realities of mining coal increases certain
risks for both miners and
the communities in which
they live.
Throughout the
decades that make up
Logan Banner file photo
This image taken from Logan Banner microfilm was published in the Sept. 4, 1936 edition following the first MacBeth mine explosion. The caption reads “While rescue crews
worked heroically to bring to the surface the miners trapped by a terrific explosion in the MacBeth coal mine at Logan, W.Va., the miner pictured above sadly awaited news of
his ill-fated comrades. In the car shown beyond him, which operates on a 670-foot incline, six scared bodies already had been taken from the mine. At this entrance, ironically,
a Safety First warning may be seen. Heedless of steady drizzle that soaked them through, friends and relatives of the victims waited near the mine entrance, as shown below,
while the rescue work went on. Soon after these scenes were photographed, bodies of all remaining victims were brought from the wrecked shaft.”
the history of mining in
the coalfields of southern
West Virginia, there have
been many reminders of
Imagine...
Your office is the open road and you
take a vacation every weekend!
Get Your CDL License in 5 weeks at the
Boone County Truck Driving Academy
UMWA Approved
Call 304-855-5045
the risks that are taken by
miners in order to earn a
living, and, over time, the
trauma and loss that come
out of mining disasters
have etched their fatalistic
mark onto the social and
psychological identities of
Appalachians.
An explosion at the
Hutchinson Coal Company’s Macbeth mine killed
10 men Sept. 2, 1936 in
what is considered by
some to be the first major
mining disaster in Logan
County. Over 100 people
were working in the mine
that day, and miners
attributed to the explosion to a spark from a
motor. It reportedly took
24 hours of digging to
recover the fallen miners.
Only six months later
in March 1937, workers
their families at the Macbeth mine suffered another disaster when a second
explosion rocked through
its deep, dark passages.
Eighteen men would
parish from what miners
on the scene reportedly
called a much stronger
explosion than the first.
In March 1960, a slate
fall reportedly started
a coal fire at the Island
Creek Coal Company
mine at 22 Holden. Twenty men were trapped by
the slate fall, but cold
temperatures on the surface hampered efforts to
extinguish the flames so
rescuers could start digging the men out. Two
miners, Kyle Blair and
Willis Carter were reportedly with the group of 20
miners and decided to
crawl through a narrow
passage to try to find a
way out. Eight days after
the slate fall and resulting fire, the bodies of the
remaining 18 men were
found. Carbon monoxide
gas had overtaken the
18 men leaving another
disastrous mark on coal
mining in Logan County.
The date Feb. 26, 1972,
will always hold a certain level of emotion in
Logan County. The pain,
memories, and feelings
associated with the Buffalo Creek Disaster are,
for some, still vivid and
visceral. When the slurry
pond gave way at Buffalo Creek a wall of water
washed through the valley
destroying homes and killing scores.
The numbers associated with the disaster are
staggering — 130 million
gallons of mining wastewater destroyed around
5,000 homes leaving over
4,000 people homeless,
over 1,000 injured and
125 dead.
In the devastation left
after the flood, thick,
slurry-laden mud coated
the area. Rescuers immediately set upon the area
looking for survivors
when they reportedly
heard a mewing sound
coming from the muck.
One rescuer spotted what
was initially believed to
be a doll’s leg, but, upon
inspection, it was the leg
of a small child. When
the child was pulled from
the mud, his mouth was
full of sludge. After rescuers cleared his airway,
the “miracle baby” Kerry
Albright began breathing. Albright’s mother
and brother had died
when the sludge came
racing down their hollow,
but Albright was seemingly fated to live on as a
reminder of the hope that
survives in Appalachian
communities.
Through repeated
cycles of boom and bust,
the coal industry in southern West Virginia has
given the mountaineers
of these rugged hills a
way to earn a living for
their families. Through
repeated blows and
exploitation, the people
of southern West Virginia
have developed a certain
fatalism; regardless of the
danger, there is real pride
in continuing the mining
tradition in Appalachia.
While many people carry
the weight of mining
disasters in their hearts,
many people also carry
the hope surrounding the
miracle baby and Blair
and Carter. The dichotomous nature of life in the
coalfields elicits pride and
sorrow in its people — a
people ready to get the
job done.
Owen Wells is a reporter for Civitas
Media. He can be reached at 304752-6950 ext. 1729 or by email at
[email protected]
160 Madison Ave, Madison, WV
Debbie Peters, Broker/Owner.....687-1431 Vicky Adkins ...............................524-2311
Karen Music................................601-1120 Tammy Cook...............................993-1505
Nick Cabell .................................784-1750 Sharon Mullins .................... 304-928-3128
3505 Daniel Boone Pkwy, Danville, WV 25053
(304) 369-4585
60596326
60596320
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
Friday, July 31, 2015 9
ARMCO employees
Courtesy Photo
Pictured are the day and night shift employees from September 18, 1940 of the ARMCO Nellis mine located in Boone County.
Early mine rescue
An early mine rescue team from the Bureau of
Mines. The Bureau was founded in 1910 to deal with
a wave of catastrophic mine disasters. Large cages
(shown at right) were used to transport canaries in
rescue vehicles. Canaries were used to detect for
methane gas. Circa 1915.
Photos/www.msha.gov
Transporting coal
Courtesy photos
Still a common site in Logan County is car after car of bituminous coal being transported
through the winding coalfields. These wooden cars are from the 1940s-era, at Holden;
however trains and train cars much like this have been responsible for transporting “black
gold” ever since locomotives first arrived at the cradle of the Appalachian Mountain range.
Submitted by F. Keith Davis, from Images of America: Logan County (Arcadia Publishing).
We Are proud to
Support Our
Coal Mines.
This 1908 photograph, taken in the community of Holden, is of one of the first steam engines traveling through
the county. At the time, the community of Holden was less than five years old, and the railroad system, in its
earliest stages, was transforming the coal and timber industry in southern West Virginia. The first train began
running through Logan County on the Guyandotte Valley Railway lines in 1903. — Submitted by F. Keith Davis, from
Images of America: Logan County (Arcadia Publishing).
C&W DISCOUNT
FURNITURE CO.
Proudly Supports
The Mining industry.
Dean’s
Carpet
Jack Calandros | Jerry Calandros
OWNERS
Carpets by Shaw Industries
Vinyls by Mannington,
Armstrong, & Tarkett
Mike Richards, Agent
302 Main Street
Madison, WV
P.O. Box 276 • Stollings, WV 25646
304.752.3802 • 304.752.3803
304-369-1158
[email protected]
mikerichardssf.com
60596319
NO INTEREST
UP TO 24 MONTHS TO PAY
FREE DELIVERY
22-C Avenue
Madison, WV
60596153
304-369-0115
60595908
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
10 Friday, July 31, 2015
Logan Coal Company
In 1913, these
coalminers
stand at the
portal of Logan
Coal Company,
at Ethel. The
employees
include, left
to right, Mr.
Richardson,
carman; Cleve
Craddock,
carpenter;
C.W. Small,
motorman;
Lou Davis,
mine foreman;
Asbury
Stidham,
blacksmith; and
Jerry Stidham,
brakeman. —
Submitted by
F. Keith Davis,
from Images
of America:
Logan County
(Arcadia
Publishing).
Courtesy photo
Working in the mines
Photo/Library of Congress
Coal miners at work in a coal mine, circa 1906.
Mules in the mines
Boone-Madison
Public Library
Madison
375 Main Street,Madison, WV 25130
(304) 369-7842
Barrett-Wharton
PO Box 189
Wharton, WV 25208
(304) 247-6530
Coal River
494 John Slack Circle
Racine, WV 25165
Phone/Fax (304) 837-8437
Whitesville Public Library
38175 Coal River Rd.
P.O. Box 747
Whitesville, WV 25209
Phone/Fax (304) 854-0196
Sign Up for Our Fall Programs
Signups Starting in August
Quilting Class
Creative Writing
Genealogy Class
Story Time
Call Us About Our Programs
60597441
http://boone.lib.wv.us/
Courtesy photo
It was a difficult way of life. Local miners are pictured at a coal tipple at the community of Landville, in
the early-1900s, when pickaxes and stout mules were used inside the mine and at the outside tipple.
Coalminers, shown on work mules, from left to right, are Cum Workman, Charlie Mullins, and Bob
Blankenship. Miners depicted in the background are Everette Hager, William Toler, and an unidentified
worker. — Submitted by F. Keith Davis, from Images of America: Logan County (Arcadia Publishing).
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
Friday, July 31, 2015 11
Child Miners
Lewis Hines Collection
In the early years of the 20th century, children as young as eight years old worked in the coal mines. Pictured, children coal miners who were drivers of the mules in a Gary, W.Va. underground coal mine in 1908.
Today’s COAL Miners
Jeremy Crabtree and his son, Ian.
Courtesy Photos
Danny Wells, 1976 at Chafin No. 6 mine at Rich Creek.
Pictured is Zach Preece and Scott Mounts who are both buggy men at Buffalo Bill Patrick, an electrician at Rockhouse Creek
Development.
Energy.
Proudly
Serving the
Coalfields!
Man Clothing & Jewelry
Serving the Coal Fields
for over 80 Years!
PIC • PAC
Your
Hometown Clothing
Store Since 1934.
(304)583-2999
Man, WV
- Clothing
- Furniture
- Jewelry
- Bedding
304-583-7051
60595219
Easy Credit
Terms-Free
Delivery
Give us a try,
we're worth the drive!
60596543
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
12 Friday, July 31, 2015
Today’s COAL Miners
Pictured is Devin May, who was
employed by Rockhouse Creek
Development in Gilbert, W.Va.,
as a roof bolter.
James Bryant was an electrician
at Coal River Energy since 2009.
Courtesy Photos
Pictured is Jamey Lester of Gilbert, WV when he was employed at
Rockhouse Creek Developement in Man as a section boss.
Rodney Blankenship has worked at Greenbrier Minerals for over 30
years in the mines as a scoop operator and a certified electrician.
Pictured is Cody Gearles, an electrician, and John Marcum, a roof
Brian Freshour, a roof bolter for Alpha Natural Resources.
bolter, for Excel Mining in Pike County, Ky.
Bobby Blackburn, a miner operator at Rockhouse Creek
Development, Mine No. 8
T he Cure for
High Prices...
FREE DELIVERY!!!!
Lazy Boy, Cat Napper,
England, Broy Hill, LG
Television, Appliances
(General Electric, Speed Queen)
Much much more.
Come in to
See us today!
FuLL SERVICE
DEPaRtMEnt FoR
aPPLIanCES!
PInEVILLE FuRnItuRE
No Tricks-No Gimmicks
304-732-7931
Main Street, Pineville WV
60597378
Riverside Pharmacy
and Gift Shop
Gilbert, WV
304-664-3343
Cameron Hatfield, Pharmacist/Owner
Monday -Friday 9:00A.M. till 6:00P.M.
Saturday & Sunday CLOSED
60597422
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
Friday, July 31, 2015 13
Today’s COAL Miners
Ride with
the #1 car
insurer in
West Virginia.
Courtesy photos
Jarrett Marsingill was a foreman at Daniel’s Branch Coal Company.
tin Brown, Agent
oute 52/ROUTE 80
bert, WV 25621
s: 304-664-8589
[email protected]
Pictured is Timmy Butcher who is employed by Alpha at Highland
Mines.
Ride
Ride
Ride
withwith
with
With
competitive
ratescar
and
the
the
the
#1#1
car
#1
car
personal
service,
it’s noin
insurer
insurer
insurer
in
in
wonder more drivers trust
West
West
West
Virginia.
Virginia.
State
Farm
. Virginia.
Like a good neighbor,
State
Farm
isratesthere.
Justin Brown,
Justin
Justin
Brown,
Agent
Brown,
Agent Agent
With
With
competitive
competitive
With competitive
and rates
rates
and
and
®
Serving the Coal Fields Since 1903!
68 East, 2nd Avenue
Williamson, WV 25661
(304) 235-5300
Hours:
Mon - Thur 9:00 to 3:00
Friday 9:00 to 5:00
Saturday Closed
*ATM Available
4th Avenue & Logan St.
Williamson, WV 25661
(304) 235-1920
Lobby Hours:
Mon-Fri 9:00 to 6:00
Saturday 9:00 to 12:00
Drive Thru:
Mon-Fri 8:00 to 6:00
Saturday 8:00 to 12:00
109 Prater Place, Suite 100
Pikeville, KY 41501
(606) 432-5340
Lobby Hours:
Mon-Fri 9:00 to 6:00
Saturday 9:00 to 12:00
Drive Thru:
Mon-Fri 8:00 to 7:00
Saturday 8:00 to 12:00
*ATM Available
®
CALL FOR A QUOTE 24/7.
Us Route 52/ROUTE
UsUs
Route
Route
52/ROUTE
52/ROUTE
80 80
80
personal
personal
service,
personal
service,
it’s no
service,
it’sit’s
nono
Gilbert, WV
Gilbert,
Gilbert,
25621
WV 25621
WV 25621
Bus: 304-664-8589
Bus:
Bus:
304-664-8589
304-664-8589
wonder
wonder
more
wonder
drivers
more
more
trust
drivers
drivers
trust
trust
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
®
®
®
01142.1
Pictured is Shannon Gartin who is employed by Blackhawk Mining in
Kentucky on the move crew.
State
State
FarmState
Farm
Farm
.
.
.
Like
Like
a good
a
Like
good
neighbor,
a good
neighbor,
neighbor,
State
State
Farm
State
Farm
is there.
Farm
is there.
is there.
®
®
®
CALL
CALL
FOR
CALL
FOR
A QUOTE
FOR
A 24/7.
QUOTE
A QUOTE24/7.
24/7.
1001142.1
1001142.1
Changing
jobs or
retiring?
Changing
Changing
jobs
or
jobs
or
retiring?
retiring?
State Farm
State Farm
Mutual
State
MutualFarm
Automobile
Automobile
Mutual
Insurance
Automobile
Insurance
CompanyInsurance
Company
Company
State
StateFarm
Farm Indemnity
State
Indemnity
Farm
Company
Indemnity
Company
Company
Bloomington,
Bloomington, ILBloomington,
IL
IL
State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company
State Farm Indemnity Company
Bloomington, IL
George Swain, Agent
22 W 2nd Avenue
Williamson, WV 25661
Bus: 304-235-3290
[email protected]
60597322
Take your retirement
savings with you.
Rolling over your 401(k) to a
State Farm® IRA is easy. I can
George Swain, Agent
George Swain, Agent Take your retirement
Take your retirement
22 W 2nd Avenue 22 W 2nd Avenue take care of the paperwork while
savings
with with
you.you.
Williamson, WV 25661 savings
Williamson, WV 25661Bus: 304-235-3290 helping you with a retirement
Rolling
over
your 401(k)
Rolling over your 401(k)
to a to a
Bus: 304-235-3290
[email protected]
plan
that
meets
your
needs.
State
Farm
IRA
is
easy.
I can
George Swain, Agent
[email protected]
Stateyour
Farm®
IRA is easy. I can
Take
retirement
take
care
of
the
paperwork
22 W 2nd Avenue
Like
good
neighbor,
takeacare
of the
paperwork whilewhile
savings
with
you.
helping
you
with a® retirement
Williamson, WV 25661
State
Farm
is there.
helping
youthat
with
a retirement
Bus: 304-235-3290
plan
meets
your needs.
Rolling
over
youryour
401(k)
[email protected]
CALL
TODAY.
plan ME
that
meets
needs.to a
Like
a good
neighbor,
®
State
IRA
isis easy.
there. I can
Like Farm
aState
goodFarm
neighbor,
®
CALL
take
care
of ME
the
paperwork
while
State
Farm
is TODAY.
there.
helping
youTODAY.
with a retirement
CALL ME
plan that meets your needs.
Like a good neighbor,
State Farm is there.®
CALL
ME
1001136.1
State Farm, Home
Office,
Bloomington,
IL
1001136.1
State
Farm,
Home
Office, TODAY.
Bloomington,
IL
60597421
RR 1 BOX 206A • CHATTAROY, WV 25661
PHONE: 304-235-3884
84 Lumber has been helping do-it-yourselfers and homeowners handle their remodeling and construction projects since 1956.
Now’s the time to get that spring project done and save up to 16% off retail prices through April 11, 2015.
®
®
60597344
1001136.1
UMWA members save 16% on any purchase, and all homeowners save 10%
on all in-stock and special order products up to $5,000.00!
Regardless of your project – decks, storage sheds, garages, gazebos, windows, roofing, siding – save up to 16%
now through April 11, 2015.
Check out 84 Lumber’s complete packages for decks, sheds, garages and more!
TO RECEIVE 16% UMWA DISCOUNT CUSTOMER MUST PRESENT VALID UMWA ACTIVE OR RETIRED MEMBERSHIP CARD. OFFER AVAILABLE AT 84 LUMBER CHATTAROY ONLY.
DISCOUNT IS NOT VALID ON PRIOR PURCHASES OR SPECIAL ORDERS AND CANNOT BE COMBINED WITH ANY OTHER OFFERS, OR MILITARY DISCOUNT. THIS OFFER IS AVAILABLE TO RETAIL CONSUMERS ONLY AND IS NOT VALID ON AR ACCOUNTS,
OR CONTRACTOR SALES. ON SPECIAL ORDERS DISCOUNT IS ONLY APPLIED TO THE AMOUNT PAID WHEN ORDERING. CASH OR CHECK ONLY. DISCOUNT DOES NOT APPLY TO LABOR OR DELIVERY SERVICES.
MAXIMUM DISCOUNT IS $800.00 PER PURCHASE. AVAILABLE ONLY AT PARTICIPATING 84 LUMBER STORES. SALE OFFER IS VALID THROUGH APRIL 11th, 2015. LIMIT ONE COUPON PER PURCHASE. VALID ON RETAIL PRODUCT PRICE ONLY.
60597412
State Farm, Home Office, Bloomington, IL
60597399
14 Friday, July 31, 2015
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
Today’s COAL Miners
Jonathan Sparks,
coal loader at
Black Castle,
Alpha Natural
Resources, and his
son, Cooper.
Dean Sparks,
retired from
Eastern
Associated Coal.
Courtesy photos
From left, Patrick Sparks, Charles Sparks, Alan Sparks and Dwight Vance. Alan is a third generation miner; Patrick and Charles, son of Alan,
are fourth generation miners, and Alan’s son-in-law Dwight is second generation miner.
Pictured
is a coal
miner
from
many
years
back,
Andy
Gilman,
who was
employed
by Island
Creek
Mining.
Pictured is Jordan Collins, Mike Lockhart and Dave Parillo standing outside the Bluestone Pay Car mine
after a long shift of mining coal.
John Patrick, of Delbarton, W.Va., was a
boss in the Waco Mines for 34 years.
Twisted Gun
Golf Course
Open year rOund!
Under new ManageMent
Rough is now 2.5 inches
8:00 am- dusk
Twilight hours 3:00 pm- dusk
Saturday auguSt 1St, 2015
8:00 am to Dusk
18 Holes of Golf $20.00
Free Hot Dogs and Cokes 11:00 am- 3:00 pm
60597390
60597390
GRAND OPENING
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
Friday, July 31, 2015 15
Today’s COAL Miners
Pictured is
Dustin May who
was employed
by Rockhouse
Creek
Development in
Gilbert, W.Va.,
as a buggy
man.
Courtesy Photo
Stafford
Courtesy Photo
Pictured is Mike Hall of Justice, WV. Hall is employed by Greenbrier Minerals as a roof bolter and scoop
operator.
Family Funeral Home, Inc.
Jerry R. Stafford
Licensed Funeral Director in Charge
Where Commitment to Family Values,
Quality Service and Affordability come First.
143 Clear Fork Rd. Lynco, WV
PO Box 249 Oceana, WV 24870
60597345
Phone: (304) 682-4455
Fax: (304) 682-4457
E-mail: [email protected]
www.staffordfamilyfuneralhome.com
60597426
We are proud to serve the coalfields.
Prescription
Compounding
Specialists
Your
Problem Solving
Pharmacy
S
outhern
homeS, inc.
Located at the intersection of route 10 and route 97 - Pineville, WV
Visit our Website at www.southernhomesofpineville.com
“Southern West Virginia’s Best of Singlewides, Doublewides and Modular Homes”
In every field of
medicine, there
are some patients
who don’t respond
to traditional
treatments.
Whether they require medicine at strengths customized to their
body types, better-tasting medicine, or different way or ingesting a
medication, pharmacy compounding can meet their needs. We even
can formulate medications that are free of sugar, gluten, casein,
soy, or dyes. If you have medication problems, we can help find a
solution.
$55,900
Ask your healthcare
provider for
more information
about pharmacy
compounding, or call
us today!
Maria Hatfield,
Pharmacist
304-855-1300
304-855-1314
68 Boise St., P.O. Box 4205
Chapmanville, WV 25508
[email protected]
60596148
732-6661
60597372
Chapmanville
Specialty Pharmacy
24’ x 54’
Spacious Home
Featuring...
• Glamour Bath
• Thermal Windows
• Dry Wall
• Built-In Entertainment Center
• 8’ Flat Ceiling
and Many More Outstanding Features
COAL MINER TRIBUTE
16 Friday, July 31, 2015
Today’s COAL Miners
Courtesy Photo
Pictured is Jody Walls who is employed by Alpha Natural Resources
as a scoop man.
Pictured is Kirk Cline of Gilbert, W.Va., who works in a coal mine at
Lower War Eagle on the move crew.
Josh Wolford is a dozer operator
Howard Slate of Lenore
at Highlands Surface Mines.
Jeremy Crabtree, right, and Dewey Robinson Jr. at Highland Surface high wall.
Courtesy photo
Steel Mill Jobs
Come to Work for a Plant with a Future
Steel Mill Jobs
Come to Work for a Plant with a Future
Steel of West Virginia, Inc. is a steel mill with a future. Over 55 million dollars was invested in our plant since 2008. We offer competitive pay, cash profit
sharing (averaged about $8500 per year for the last four years); excellent health care (at $80 per month premium for family coverage); and automatic company
pay into 401(k) plan.
Steel of West Virginia, Inc. is such an excellent place to work that our employees spend their careers with us. We offer the opportunity to work in manufacturing
and live in a college town (we are right across the street from Marshall University) with all the activities that has to offer. We have an immediate need for the
following four positions:
st Virginia, Inc. is a steel mill with a future. Over 55 million dollars was invested in our plant since 2
titive pay, cash profit sharing (averaged about $8500 per year for the last four years); excellent he
nth premium
for family
coverage);
and automatic company pay into 401(k) plan.
Electrician,
Millwright
and Machinist
Pay after a brief probationary period for the electricians, millwrights, machinist is $21.90 per hour for the first 40 hours; $32.85 for hours over 40; and $43.80
for work on a seventh consecutive day.
st Virginia, Inc. is such an excellent place to work that our employees spend their careers with us.
Electrician candidates must possess industrial experience and be able to demonstrate successful electrical troubleshooting experience, including
o workinstrumentation
in manufacturing
live in a college town (we are right across the street from Marshall U
and AC/DC motorand
controls.
activities
that has to offer. We have an immediate need for the following four positions:
Millwright (who are Mechanics/Welders) candidates must have experience diagnosing, repairing, installing and maintaining industrial equipment and be
able to demonstrate required skills through testing.
Electrician, Millwright and Machinist
Machinist candidates must have five years’ experience doing your own set-ups, running conventional lathes, mills, and surface grinders and be able to make
complex parts from prints.
Submit your resume for electrician, millwright or machinist stating for which job you are applying to one of the following - (Do Not send resumes for production candidates directly to Company; see website address below for Production).
brief probationary period for the electricians, millwrights, machinist is $21.90 per hour for the first 4
ours over
$43.80 for work on a seventh consecutive day.
Email: 40; and
[email protected]
Fax:
Mail:
(304) 529-1479
SWVA, INC.
17th Street and 2nd Avenue
Huntington, West Virginia 25703
candidates must possess industrial experience and be able to demonstrate successful electrical
ting experience, including instrumentation and AC/DC motor controls.
Production Workers
We also
have an immediate need for Production
Workers. Production
Worker
Entry experience
Level Pay is $14.28 per
hour. Good pay increases
pay after completion
who are
Mechanics/Welders)
candidates
must
have
diagnosing,
repairing,
installing a
of third year of employment of $20.90 per hour for the first 40 hours; $31.35 for hours over 40; and $41.80 per hour for work on a seventh consecutive day.
industrial
equipment
andrecycle
bescrap
able
demonstrate
Production
Workers at our plant
steelto
in electric
arc furnaces then required
continuously castskills
billets ofthrough
steel which aretesting.
hot rolled on one of our two rolling
mills. Production Workers at our finishing lines then custom finish structural beams, channels, and special shape steel sections to customer specifications.
You must -- (1) be able to do physically demanding work at extremes of heat and cold; (2) possess a high school diploma or GED; (3) and be drug free.
You must apply through the website www.jobsatswva.com for production job. Accordingly, do not submit information or contact Steel of West Virginia, Inc.
directly regarding Production Worker job. It will not be helpful to your effort to gain employment as a Production Worker for you to send a resume directly
to or call Steel of West Virginia.
andidates must have five years’ experience doing your own set-ups, running conventional lathes,
ders and be able to make complex parts from prints.
Steel of West Virginia, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer.
resume for electrician, millwright or machinist stating for which job you are applying to one of the
send resumes for production candidates directly to Company; see website address below for prod