The Coal Industry
West Virginia is vastly known for the beauty, mountains, and wilderness, but most of all for it's coal.
In the 1800s and early 1900s coal mines were the largest employers. The miners worked twelve or more hours underground. They earned 25 cents per carload of coal. The mining conditions were unsafe. Explosions, slate falls, gas-filled mines, and small working areas. In other words a miners life is hard.
The owners of the mines had full control of the workers. Workers had little power. But when workers all came together against the owner they were very powerful. In January 1880, the miners working near Hawks Nest, went on strike. Like most strikes it was ended by the West Virginia militia. The United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) was started in 1890 in Ohio. The organization was especially interested in West Virginia mine workers. The UMWA won some agreements for miners. In 1897 Harewood contract had only five parts and was less than a page long. According to the contract, wages would be 2.25 cents for every bushel of 1.5- inch screened coal; union workers would be returned to their old jobs. The workers were very pleased.
In April 1912 coal companies on Paint Creek in Kanawha County refused to renew the 1902 union contract. This produced musch chaos among miners. They went on strike, the demanded a nine hour work day. The owners, in revenge, evicted the miners and their families fron their company homes. The miners still wouldn't give up they put uo tents along roads and continued the strike. Mining companies worried about their property and hired armed guards. The miners were also armed the two groups didn't last to long in peace. The fighting started on July 25, 1912 before the day was out hundreds and possibly thousands of shots had been fired. The fighting ended September 2 when Govenor William Glasscock declared that the militia move in and collect all of the miners guns. Miners arrested by the militia were tried mot by a jury and judge but by a military comission, which sentenced hundreds of miners to jail. The strike continued into 1913. Mohter Jones returned to the coalfield and encouraged miners to fight back.
Papers across the U.S carried news of the mine wars. Many people were appalled. On March 4, 1913 Govenor Glasscock's term of office ended. Henry Hatfield took him out of office and inherited the responsibility for ending the strike that had been happening for over a year. Governor Hatfield's plan for peace worked on May 1, 1913. There were other feuds too in Mingo and Marshall County.
The coal industry as you can see has had its ups and downs, but is still a major industry in West Virginia today.