minewar.org documenting the 1930's Illinois Mine War
Who Sees Dead People?
Earlier I wrote about Blair Mountain, West Virginia, its historical importance, and the effort to preserve it. (here & here.) Recently Jeff Biggers offered an updateon the bizarre actions of the West Virginia Historic Preservation Office. Biggers reports: “On December 30, 2009, the historic Blair Mountain Battlefield was removed from the National Register by the […]
From the Mt. Olive Public Library
Here’s an image from the collection of the Mt. Olive, IL Public Library. Mt. Olive is also the home of the Union Miners Cemetery, the final resting place of Mother Jones. PMA Local 35, led by Joe Ozanic spearheaded the effort to erect the Mother Jones Monument which was dedicated October 11, 1936. Thanks to […]
Christmas Eve, 1932 ~ Tragedy in Moweaqua
Coal mining was an extremely hazardous job in the U.S. during the first half of the 20th century. The Christmas holiday marked a dark day for Illinois mining in 1932. On the morning of Christmas Eve, an underground methane gas explosion took the lives of 54 miners. The Moweaqua Mine was among those newly organized […]
Freeman United Coal Company Accused of Repeated Clean Water Act Violations
Here’s a link to an article by Jeff Biggers at Huffington Post on the effort of central Illinois environmentalists to hold Freemen United Coal Company accountable for violations of the Clean Water Act. According to the article, whether or not the company is responsible for the mess isn’t in question. The Heart of Illinois Group […]
The BBC Reports on Clean Coal
Here’s the link to a new report from the BBC – Clean Coal: Fool’s Gold or the Bright Future? The story raises a number of important issues. First, the costs to implement carbon capture may make coal prohibitively expensive – that is if it works. Further, industry representatives and Energy Department acknowledge that widespread use […]
Mine War Site ~ Superior No. 4
Former site of Superior Mine No. 4 in Wilsonville, IL. On May 21, 1937, 540 PMA miners called an underground sit-down strike. The week-long strike was called to protect “share of time” provisions. The striking miners demanded the right to protect one another from the loss of jobs caused by mechanization. If full-time workers could […]