Discharging and Storage Plant at Providence, Rhode Island
Description:
Seaconnet Coal Co., Sprague's New River Coal, discharging and storage plant at Providence, R.I. This plant covers between nine and ten acres and is directly connected by yard tracks with the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad and with all the trolley lines entering Providence, over which coal is carried to the suburban mills. At the pier is one of the White Oak Transportation Company's whaleback barges discharging New River Coal.
Group of men and child pose in front of train No. 122 at Lochgelly station. Left is the Lochgelly store which burned in 1941. Right is the Supply House which burned in 1917.
Construction Work on the Carters Branch Cut to Connection with the Virginia Railway
Date:
ca. 1908
Description:
Men and horses stand in cut in hillside. This construction work done by the White Oak Railway Co. was the Carter's Branch Cut to connection with the Virginia Railway.
Office of the New River Company, White Oak Coal Company
Date:
ca. 1920-1930
Description:
The headquarters of the White Oak Coal Co. are located at MacDonald, Fayette County, W. Va. The maintaining of the General Offices near the mines affords opportunity for closer supervision and better co-operation between all departments. The machine and repair shops and warehouse for merchandise and mine supplies is located immediately adjacent to the office. A private branch telephone exchange with private leased lines reach each mine, giving 24 hour service. A printer telegraph instrument furnishes prompt telegraph service. Mail is received and forwarded at either Macdonald or Mount Hope post offices.
The Summerlee Store at the Summerlee Mine of the New River Company. The people sitting in front of the store from right to left; Harry Stamper, Lola Lewis, A.R. Long, Delia Alexander, A.J. Bishop.
Sewall Coal Seam Worked by the New River Coal Company
Description:
'All white oak mines work the same seam of coal, viz: Sewall. THe face of one of the working places or rooms is shown in this picture. The coal averages about 48 to 50 inches in thickness. This working place is now ready to be cut by the undercutting machine, so it can be shot down be the miner and loaded into cars for transportation to the tipple. The white line on the roof in this picture is the center line of the room set by the engineers to guide the men operating the mining machine in driving the room straight.'
'Probably no phase of coal preparation requires the supervision and care that must be given to shooting practices. The type of explosive used is a safety powder known as "Duobel" and has been selected because it is most suitable for the coal mined in the White Oak Mines. Not only must the explosive be of the best quality and best suited for the work of breaking down the coal, but its use must be supervised and restricted. The proper amount to use; the size of the cartridge; the manner of tamping and many other details are looked after so that a maximum of lump and coarse coal is produced after shooting. This view shows the working place after the 'breaker shot' has been fired.'
'This miner has just completed loading a mine car of weighing net about two and one-half tons, and is waiting for a locomotive to come along and take it out and give him another empty car. An industrious miner will load about six and sometimes eight of these cars in one day. This is a wooden mine car that is now being rapidly replaced by steel mine car equipment. The number of post shown in this picture indicate again the immense amount of timber required to conduct operations in a safe manner.'
'White Oak preparation begins when the machine leaves and the miner is ready to shoot down his coal. The shooting inspector on the left has not only located the hole for the miner to drill, but instructed him as to what angle he must bore his hole to contain the necessary explosive used in dislodging the coal from the seam. The "kerf" made by cutting machine is plainly visible in this picture and you will note the cutting or "bug dust" have been removed before the coal is shot. The length of the auger used by the miner and the width of the bit which determines the size of the hole bored, is also carefully regulated.'
Steel Mine Car at One of the White Oak Shaft Mines
Description:
'All ready-Hoist! This is an end view of one of our new steel mine cars on a cage at one of the White Oak Shaft mines, and the signal has just been given to hoist it to the surface--450 feet up! These electric equipped hoists can hoist a car every twenty seconds and dump it! The cars are placed on the cages automatically by creeper chains and car stops. One man operates the signals and car stops and chains.'
'Coal at all White Oak shafts mines is handled on self dumping cages, which handle the coal uniformly and with a minimum of breakage. Note how evenly the coal is flowing from the mine car. Much more rapid of course than the picture indicates, but it shows how well designed the equipment must be to handle the coal in such splendid manner.'
New River Coal and Coke Company's International Mine Rescue Champions
Date:
1921
Description:
Group portrait of miners and rescue equipment. This group took first place at competitions St. Louis. From Left to Right: Frank Colline, Edward Graff, Howard Samuels, Andrew Lightfoot, R.P. Nicholls and Fred Lamb.
Miner sitting in between posts that hold the roof of the mine up. 'Safety First is stressed in every possible way at White Oak mines. Note the posts to protect this man at his labor. He is waiting for another mine car so he can clean up his working place and make it ready for the mining machine crew who will cut it during the night, ready for him to work tomorrow.'
New River Coal Company Safety Float at Mt. Hope, W. Va.
Date:
undated
Description:
Safety float of the New River Coal and Coke Co. on the Fourth of July. Floats with safety themes highlighted many parades in Fayette and Raleigh Counties.
Railroad Cars Filled with Domestic Mine Run Grade Coal at White Oak Coal Company's Cranberry No. 3 Mine
Description:
'The one grade White Oak is mighty proud of, is its Domestic Mine Run. Here yousee twenty-two cars of this grade at our Cranberry No. 3 Mine. This Mine Run is very coarse; free from impurities; has a bright shiny appearance and we ship a million tons of it every year. Just think of it, 20,000 cars of this fine fuel shipped to satisfied customers each year. We also want you to notice the background of the picture, showing the neat homes occupied by the men who mine White Oak coal. Notice also how neat the surroundings are. Houses are kept neatly painted; yards fensed; grounds kept clean and everything possible done to provide a nice place for employees to live.'
'All White Oak mines are electrically equipped and of course this mining machine is operated by electricity. The machine is mounted and transported on a specially designed truck and moves under its own power from one working place to another. It is taken from the truck by the machine operator and his helper and moved to the place of the coal and place in cutting position as you see it in this picture. The machine consists of an endless chain with 'bits' inserted, which act as cutters. The machine cuts a 'kerf' or hole along the bottom of the coal about 4 inches high and extending back six feet under the coal. The fine coal made by this machine is what is commonly known as 'bug dust.' Cutting machines are operated at night and each machine is capable of cutting twenty places on each shift. These machines are operated on tonnage basis and these operators earn high wages.'
'An Electric Locomotive: Good dependable motive power is just as necessary in a coal mine as on a railroad. This picture shows on of White Oak's ten ton electric locomotives used to haul loads and distrubute empties in our mines. A crew consists of a motorman and brakeman, or trip rider, who pull loads from the working places to convenient sidings where they are picked up by main line locomotives, who haul to the tipple or shaft bottom. A large producing mine uses fifteen and twenty locomotives and five hundred mine cars in maintaining production.'
'Coarse Lumpy Coal: This very coarse lumpy mine run coal is the result of proper shooting. The miner is paid on a tonnage basis for loading this coal into mine cars. He is required to watch his coal carefully as he loads it and she that no impurities become mixed with the coal.'
