Lewis Hine, photographer. “Mule Power and Motor Power. A Young Driver, Shaft #6, Pennsylvania Coal Company. Location: Pittston, Pennsylvania.” 1911.Miner working in coal mine, between 1909-1932.Lewis Hine, photographer. “Man digging coal by machinery low ceiling: scales off and drops.” 1908.Lewis Hine, photographer. “Boy braking on motor train 10 hrs. a day. Where mining, loading, ect. is done by machinery. Live wire above is sometimes not higher than a man’s head. Location: Gary, West Virginia.” 1908.“Three coal miners of the Lorain Coal & Dock Company, Lorado, West Virginia, 1918.”Lewis Hine, photographer. “Bank Boss, Turkey Knob Mine, Macdonald, W. Va., and a great fall of Slate that blocked entry. Witness E.N. Clopper.” 1908.Coal Miner, between 1915-1925.“Mr. A. Langerfeld and one of his machines for picking coal which does away completely with the use of breaker boys. The percent of slate that goes in with the coal separated by this machine is 1% to 2%, where the percent with the old primitive method of using boys is from 15% to 60%. This picture was taken at the breaker of the Spencer Coal Co., at Scranton, Pa., on March, 18, 1913. Location: Scranton, Pennsylvania.”
Coal miners worked long hours inside the mine, often traveling by elevator deep underground to extract coal from the coal seam. In the nineteenth century, miners worked largely by hand alongside animal labor. As new technology emerged, underground mining increasingly depended on heavy machinery.
In either case, the work was fraught with danger. Mines could collapse or explode, vents could close unexpectedly, and coal dust could cause serious respiratory problems, such as black lung disease. The harsh conditions led to constant conflicts over exploitative working conditions, but they also forged a powerful sense of pride among miners and their families.
What would it be like to work underground in a coal mine?
How do you think miners balanced their pride in their work with their feelings of exploitation by the coal companies?
Citation:
Photographs from the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.
