West Virginia History Comes to Life!

What was life like one hundred years ago for coal mining families in Tucker County, West Virginia?

In 1967, a 26-year-old history student at West Virginia University named John Stealey tape-recorded interviews with more than seventy retired coal miners and their families in North Central West Virginia.

The miners had worked during the pick-and-shovel “hand-loading era” -- roughly 1880 to 1930. Their voices and stories, preserved on reels of magnetic tape, have been stored in an archive for nearly sixty years, unknown and unheard by the miners’ families and community.

Now, thanks in part to digital technology, these “Early Mining Voices” are being brought to life!

On Saturday, November 2, 2024, more than 200 people attended a free program at Blackwater Falls State Park Lodge to hear and honor these “Early Mining Voices.” The audience heard actual interview excerpts and dramatic readings from this newly-discovered a treasure trove of exciting historical source material.

We’ll have more links to “Early Mining Voices” transcripts and videos posted in the coming months.