"We are like soldiers in the front of the battle." Weeks before the Avondale disaster killed 110 men and changed Coal Region history, a Boston reporter sat down on a log with two Welsh miners in Summit Hill, PA and asked them what their lives were actually like. They didn't hold back. Read the full story.
Two striking images reveal the anthracite industry’s decline in Lorraine, near St. Clair, Pennsylvania. By 1938, the once-thriving patch town had nearly vanished, leaving only two homes standing. Discover what happened to this lost community, echoing the fate of many others in the Coal Region. Read the full story.
The grave of Schuylkill County labor leader John Siney in St. Clair became a place of reflection for labor leaders in the decades following the Irish immigrant's death in 1880. This article explores how Coal Region labor leader Terence Powderly visited and reflected on leadership and the workingman at Siney's graveside.
Dr. Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and comedian Jim Gaffigan explored Gaffigan's family connection to the Coal Region on "Finding Your Roots"
A filmmaker recorded silent moving images of a strip mine in operation in Schuylkill County in December 1917.
In early October 1918, pandemic influenza descended on Schuylkill County and left thousands dead.
John Siney led one of the first successful unions in America, which briefly united mineworkers in the 1870s.
Schuylkill County was the graveyard of dreams in the 19th century. Failure stalked coal operators at their every move.
John Siney led the Workingmen's Benevolent Association in actions against coal operators in the 1860s and 1870s.
A visit to the Coal Region in the 19th century could be an overwhelming and memorable experience.