Coal mining regions brim with folklore—especially ghosts in the mines. Drawing on newspaper accounts and tales elsewhere, I talk with Matt Maris of Local Historia about stories shaped by ever-present death and grief in Pennsylvania and beyond. Check Local Historia’s tours and programs. Read the full story and watch the video!
Folklorist George Korson roamed Pennsylvania’s Coal Region in the 1920s and 1930s, capturing stories born of mysterious knockings, spirits of miners killed in disasters, and minds disturbed after fatal accidents. From Avondale’s haunted chambers to a peddler’s wailing rock and the unrecovered dead of the Woodward Colliery - these tales reveal miners’ fears and folklore. Read the full story.
Discover a ghostly tale from Pottsville, Pennsylvania, as recorded in the Miners' Journal in 1865. This eerie account describes a mysterious apparition seen near Charles Baber Cemetery on Market Street, leaving locals both intrigued and terrified. Explore the spine-chilling details of this Civil War-era haunting.