On February 18, 1969, a group of miners at the East Gulf Mine in Raleigh County, West Virginia, walked off the job. Their demand? Compensation for black lung disease—a debilitating
On February 13, 1913, in the midst of the West Virginia Mine Wars, labor leader Mother Jones stood before a mass meeting in Smithers. She, along with two striking coal
On February 7, 1913, a brutal act of violence occurred that sparked the beginning of the West Virginia Mine Wars, a conflict between the coal barons and the miners in
In the late 1920s and early 30s, the coal fields of Harlan County, Kentucky, became the backdrop for one of the darkest chapters in labor history. Known as Bloody Harlan,
We have a mid-week extra podcast episode for you, available ONLY on our podcast YouTube channel, Stories of Appalachia Podcast. It’s our story of the Battle of Blair Mountain, the
In 1902 coal miners struck the mines along the New River, seeking better wages and better working conditions. The strike continued until February 25, 1903, when a massive gun battle
Our story of the West Virginia Mine Wars continues at Matewan, West Virginia, where a famous gun battle left several mine company hired guards dead, along with the town mayor,
For a century and a half the king of central Appalachia has been coal. That mineral powered the industrial revolution in America, made some men and corporations very wealthy and
One hundred years ago an anthracite coal strike was in full force in the Pennsylvania coal fields, after coal operators in the state rejected UMW demands on wage rates, hours,
During the Great Depression of the 1930s coal miners in Harlan County, Kentucky, struck against the coal operators for better pay and better working conditions. These strikes often turned violent