My Dad was a coal miner. For 30 years !! I highly. Respect. All those. Men. !!

My mom and all her 14 siblings were born and raised in WV. But as many others, most of them left and went North to work in the 40's and 50's instead of working in the mines as their dad did. I was born in Ohio but mom moved back home when I was one year old, I've been here ever since, 55 years. So I attended and graduated from WV schools, I fondly remember that we had a West Virginia history class. That was back in the late 70's. The biggest mistake was taking that class off the list of required courses, that's where I first discovered my love of history, especially our states history. If ever there's been a time that it should be brought back it's now. Love ya'lls videos!! I just discovered your channel a few of days ago so I've been binge watching and enjoying every minute! I don't subscribe to many channels but your channel was a must for me! 👍👍

My great grandfather was killed in this disaster. Charlie Porter. Had 17 children but 6 were at home at this time. He is buried beside his wife, Martha, on Tick Ridge in Dunlow WV.

Heather you brought them to life once more by naming them. It is said we die twice. The second time is when no one any longer mentions your name.

Just came across this video, I was in Kermit this past weekend. My mother was the youngest of Tom Moores children, she past a few weeks back and wanted her ashes spread on the grave site. Thank you for keeping my grandfather, uncle and the others story alive.

My “second daddy” was crushed and killed by a rock fall at Keystone mine in McDowell Co., WV 1970. I was in the car when my dad took us up to the mine where they were just loading Dock’s body in an ambulance. My “second brother” in the back seat said to me “Dad’s not coming home no more” I can still remember that day and hear it in my mind as if it were yesterday. It was awful. My good friend in elementary school lost her brother same way, he was 18. Tho our precious little town was like “Mayberry RFD,” the mines and tragedy was a big part of the culture. My little town is dilapidated and impoverished today since the mines closed.

I was shocked when you said the widows were not compensated...and they were evicted...rotten thing to do to these poor people grieving,,

My husband 's step daddy (only dad he knew) was killed in a coal mine when he was about 11. A slab of rock fell on him, it cracked his helmet. Thank you for researching and visiting the cemetery for these men.

My Dad worked underground for 38 years. He never breathed a well breath after he retired. He died when he was 70.

Thomas Moore was my grandfather I never met him as I was born 11 years after the accident. My mom I believe is the little girl standing in front of her father in the picture. She is still alive today. Thank you for your time and efforts for this video as I never got a chance to see my grandpa's grave before. Douglas J Pemberton

Thank you both for remembering these people in such a special way! They deserve it!

My grandfather worked in the coal mines of Pennsylvania ,he came down with black lung like a lot of coal miners do, respirators were not big back then some just didnt use anything. Some finally got together to sue the coal mines and were awarded a certain amount of money, but most were deceased by then.

You should research the Fraterville Coal Mine Explosion of Tennessee

My late husbands daddy starlin lee worked the # 7. I think in Stearn KY. He walked 5 miles to work and 5miles home everyday in the 40's he died of black lung. They never cared about those men or their families

That small entrance that was gated could have been a ventilation shaft it looks like it was filled in personally before the steel gating was installed. Remember that old truck mine that you took us to that was gated and full of beer cans, many of the abandoned mines up here in Michigan are gate in the same manner if it a tunner type entrance in the side of a bluff that could have been a haulage ventilation and drainage of water from the mine, many of the deep vertical shafts are covered with welded rail road tracks and then some a Steel concrete cap over them, but most of them are still open with only a barbed-wire fence around with a sign warning you not to entry them, a very informative video and I believe after this happened most of the mining companies would not allow family members to work on the same shift, and split them up between the shifts and surface workers,

Thank you heather I enjoyed this .The poor families who suffered this tragedy. God bless all the families and I am sorry for their losses., I, live in Upstate NY in the Mohawk Valley, I am heartbroken by this video. Thank you for remembering the victims and families .

Thank you for this great video telling the story.

Thank y’all can’t wait to come down for a ride

Thank you for another great piece of history Heather. This video was excellent as usual.

Thank you, Leo and Heather, for telling this story, thank you. I knew that being a miner was not a great job, but I had no idea that miners were treated THAT badly! How the victims families were treated later was pure bull s@#t! I truly hope that miners have better working conditions today. The cemetery looks to be in fairly decent condition, it could probably use a little TLC when the weather improves. Are all of the victims buried there? Why does it rain 🌧 😑 half of the time when you two do a walking 🚶‍♂️ tour 🤔? Thank you again, Leo and Heather, take care.

I so enjoy your videos. I am looking forward to the video on Jim Vance! Thank you!

Another good one thanks

Such an awful way of life. My life has not always been easy but compared to coal miners my life has been a walk in the park. How inhumanely those people were treated. What kind of greed & evil had to exist in the owners to treat their employees like that. A wise very elderly woman once said to me about bad people "Kim God has a payday & it's not Friday". I hope those mine owners got theirs.

My Pop's worked in Mines and seen many loose their lives...My Grampa was crushed in a Mines..that belonged to him and his Brother....My dad worked there also....was mined with Welch ponies and carts....One of my Dad's best friends and our shared trout fishing buddy lost his Life by sitting on a gas pocket during lunch break.... afterwards lighting a cigarette and burned him up almost completely the gas had saturated his clothes during the break....My Pops tried putting him out....later in years he said... Pops was never the same....

I am really loving this channel.

this is just heartbreaking!

Dear God😢 I’m literally sick to my stomach! At this time I do not want to say anything, cause I’m really upset anything comes out of my mouth right now well not be good, Lord blessed the victims and their families 🙏😔💐💐💐💐💐💐💐💐💐💐💐

Deepest sympathy to the miners family 👪 worthwhile endeavor lady perciate it stay healthy safe travels.....Miners roll the dice every time. Difficult occupation Men cut from granite every one can't do it.....still the same been going on since Rome.

I grew up n southeastern KY. Was raised by my grandparents and my papaw was a 2nd generation coal miner. He worked n the mines over 50yrs. Black lung took him out.

Great vid! Thanks for sharing their story. It’s sad corporations don’t give a $€!¥ about their people only the money they make or lose. May they rest in peace…….

Very well done, much enjoyed! Thank you

Love this channel..i mention you on my other fav channel faces of the forgotten. You should get together with Ron .I, love your channel and I am grateful the common folk are remembered. Sending you many thanks for all you and heather do. God Bless you both❤️❤️

There is a small mining town in Iowa called Mystic Iowa and that town is almost abandoned but the roads there are gravel and dirt as well. They have the entrance to the mine open I would never want to go down there though.

Great story telling of such a disaster.

My family were miners dad came out to Washington before I was born they were from The Delbarton area, My cousin Joe is Sheriff of Mingo county.

So sad, god bless the working man.

My step father was a coal miner when he married my mother but gradually found a better paying and safer job.

You need to visit the Farmington West Virginia mine disaster.. and you need to redo some of your older mine related videos and this time include Danny, with his background in mining he can give them a whole totally New perspective. It makes you wonder honestly considering how the coal miners were treated how they can even get anyone now to work in the coal mining industry. It was how the big copper boron's treated the miners up here in Michigan's upper peninsula along with all of the strikes that contributed very much in the decline in copper production in Michigan which now is only down to the eagle mine and their copper use only a by-product, honestly you would think with all of the opportunities available now as far as education and career opportunities and the past that's hanging over the coal-mining industry from the human perspective alone you shouldn't be able to get anyone to go underground for any price.

Excellent narration.

Life was so cruel back in the day, and yet could be so fun at other times.

Can you please do a video on Centralia PA the burning town? A coal fire burns for decades now underground in a coal mine there

The sky is weeping. The injustice.

With regards to corporations treating their workers like their own personal property, nothing much has changed. We see small changes, but overall, money talks and we all die.

It's a shame that our government can't or won't step in to take care of the old cemeterys

So sad. These miners really lived a hardscrabble hand-to-mouth existence. A lot of times the town sprang up around the mines (built by the coal mining company) to provide housing for the miners who worked for them and instead of the miners being paid with real money, they were paid in company “script” that they would have to spend in the company store. In a way, if you went to work for these mining companies, you really did figuratively sell your soul because everything that you had was owned and/or controlled by the mining company you worked for.

Leo i remember when that happened

RIP to all those men that died that day.

Not like that today, now the coal mines do take care of the family members that lose their loved ones in a mine disaster. Of course regulations are a lot stricter now.

Both my grandpa's were killed in coal mine accidents one was a slate fall and that's all i known about it but the other one was know as the island creek NO.22 mine disaster in Holden WV 18 men lost their lives due to a fire they died from the toxic gas from the fire

Hauled a lot of coal through Kermit

This so sad. At the same time the coal miners left no man behind just like the marines.

This is the truest report on this incident that has been published, sigh, pretty sad it's not published by the ones who actually caused it.

So sad. 😭

These disasters are so bad and the loved ones that are left behind, and are left nothing and kicked out of their homes this was wrong.😢

Charlie Porter was my grandpa.

Does anyone know the names of the men who did not go in?

Awful just awful! R.I.P 🙏🙏🙏

I didn't like the smoking speculation no doubt they were wearing carbide lights that's literally a flame on your head what would a cigarette do they don't have the heat to light gas people say that to put the blame on the crew makes me sick and it's regular people who do that every time not inspectors or company men by the way you could smoke until the 80s

SAD

Charlie Sparks was my grandfather. He had 5 children. His oldest son was Proctor who was also killed. My mother was his only daughter. She was pregnant with my brother (her first child) at the time of the explosion. Proctor had two daughters. Father and son are both buried on Yellow Creek in Lawrence County KY at the Sparks family cemetery.

It's a shame that our government can't or won't step in to take care of the old cemeterys