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Itinerary by Dr. Geoffrey Buckley:

Is there a better way to learn about a place than experiencing it firsthand?  Southeastern Ohio – or Appalachian Ohio as it is sometimes called – has a rich and colorful past. Today’s trip takes us into the heart of southeastern Ohio’s historic mining district.  Among other things, we’ll see remnants of past mining operations, including drift mines and “company” towns.  We’ll learn how two sites – the Majestic Mine and Essex Mine complexes – have been restored. We’ll tour a theatre in the process of restoration and hike to Robinson Cave, where miners first hatched the plan to form the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA).  Time permitting, we’ll also view some abandoned surface mine operations.  I hope you enjoy this all-too-brief tour of our area’s physical and cultural landscapes!

As we head west on Route 33, we will pass the new headquarters of the Wayne National Forest.  Notice the building’s design – modeled after a coal tipple.  It reminds us of the critical role resource extraction (especially coal mining) has played in the region’s economy.  We’ll also pass very close to the Eclipse company town, out the window to our left.  Our first stop will be the Majestic Mine complex.  Abandoned more than seventy years ago, this mine contributes significant amounts of acid mine drainage to Monday Creek just one half mile from its confluence with the Hocking River.  Although the company town associated with this mine, Floodwood, is long since gone, the Majestic Mine complex remains a wonderful example of an early twentieth century drift mine operation. Here, Pam Stachler of the USDA Forest Service will tell us a bit about the history of this site and on-going efforts to restore it. Turning east on Route 78, we’ll pass through the region’s “Little Cities of Black Diamonds.”  Buchtel, Shawnee, Glouster, New Straitsville, and Murray City (to name but a few) were important coal-mining towns during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.  All were once linked to the railroad, a key outlet not only for coal but also the bricks that were manufactured in southeastern Ohio.

In Murray City we’ll pick up Route 216 and head toward New Straitsville.  Our next stop is the Essex Mine complex.  The Essex Mine is another good example of a drift mine, which describes the way miners entered the coal seam.  Notice the milky white water emanating from the mine. As Pam will explain, here it is aluminum, and not iron, that is influencing the color. The mine water at this site is being treated by a limestone “doser,” which you can inspect when we return to the bus.  From here it is on to New Straitsville where we will meet Cheryl Blosser.  Cheryl will give us a tour of Robinson Cave and tell us all about the area’s labor history.  We’ll then board the bus and take a short trip up the road to the intersection of 155 and 93, where we will stop to inspect the false-fronted buildings and second-story porches that have made the town of Shawnee a national landmark.  In addition to telling us about this company town’s past – and its unique architecture – we are very fortunate to have John Winnenburg on hand to give us a tour of the old Tecumseh Theatre.

At this point, we will head back to New Straitsville where we will pick up Route 595.  Although we do not have time to visit Glouster, Millfield, Corning, and Rendville, note that they’re not too far away.  Located just a few miles south of Glouster, Millfield was the site of Ohio’s worst mine disaster.  An explosion here on November 5, 1930 killed 82 men employed by the Sunday Creek Coal Company. Remains of the power plant and various out buildings can still be seen. (Note: The worst explosion on record in the U.S. killed at least 362 miners back in 1907 in Monongah, West Virginia.)

Proceeding west on 595, our next stop today is Haydenville. Just after crossing over Route 33 but before entering town, notice the lock and ditch for the Hocking and Columbus Canal. The canal and, later, the railroad, were absolutely critical to the region’s economic development.  All of the little mining towns we’ve driven through this morning were once linked to the railroad, a key outlet not only for coal but also the bricks that were manufactured in southeastern Ohio.  Haydenville was a company town until 1964, making it the last of the company towns in Ohio.  Many of the buildings in this town are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  In addition to the linear design, Haydenville conformed to the stereotypic company town image in other ways as well.  This is especially true with respect to segregation according to ethnicity and economic class.

Turning east on Route 33 we will, if time permits, turn right on Route 691. Out the right side of the bus, we’ll see more evidence of past mining, including another abandoned drift mine. Much of this coal was mined in the 1950s and 1960s. As we wind around on Route 691, I’ll point out areas where strip mining occurred about forty years ago. We’ll make a brief stop near the old landfill – a spot where we can scramble up a small embankment and gaze down at a “high wall” that has now filled with water.  We’ll pick up Poston Station Road, pass the site of an old power plant, and then pop out on Route 682 in the Plains. Then it’s back to Athens and OU!