Publishing Paige(TM)

My mother was born in 1944 in Cannel City, Kentucky.  Her father was a coal miner, and she lived in coal camp housing (called shotgun houses) until she was three.  As I'm researching her history for my memoir, I'm uncovering some fascinating tidbits about life in Kentucky during the 1900's to 1950's.  I'll be posting highlights here. 

Cannel Coal Mines, Morgan County, Kentucky, early 1900's.  This is the town my family is from.

1945:  My mother was one year old, and living in a coal camp during this time.  It was a hard life for families in the camps.  There was no running water, no electricity, and no indoor plumbing of any kind in the 2-3 room camp company houses.  Photo from Roger Philpot.

Scene from the Barthell mine No. 1 Camp.  My family was not from this area, which is in the southern part of the state near the Tennessee border, but you can still tour this coal camp today.  

Coal Mining During World War I:  Mine More Coal!

WWI: Coal mining was considered essential for the war effort, and the US Fuel Administration undertook an extensive "marketing" campaign to encourage Americans to help support the war by increasing coal production, which was essential for manufacturing warplanes and ships. Kentucky was producing about 20 million tons of coal during this time, and my great grandfather was a coal miner in Eastern Kentucky.    

For More Information

There are several great resources online for researching Kentucky history, coal camps, and life in the Appalachian region during this time.  Here are a few that I've frequented and reposted photos from: 

Kentuckiana Digital Library

Kentucky Coal Education

Kentucky Coal Miners

Roger's World:  Coal Miners, Where They Worked and Lived

Ghost Town:  Cannel City, Kentucky

 

Typical "shotgun houses" in Kentucky Coal Camps.

photo from Roger Philpot
 

Coal miners at work: Ages Ridge Coal company, Ages, Kentucky. 

Coal Camp Image from Kentuckiana Digital Library

WWI poster encouraging increased coal production.