Let’s Talk Monongah

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I’ve mentioned this a few times in discussing my trip to West Virginia. It’s time to dig deeper into the worst mining disaster, not only in West Virginia history, but in American history: Monongah. The mine was located on the banks of the West Fork River. There were several parts to the mine (quite common, even now), so they were identified by numbers. The affected mines in question were no. 6 and no. 8. On December 6, 1907, at approximately 10:27 in the morning, an explosion ripped through the no. 8 mine. The speculation (they’re better at determining these things now than they were then) is that methane gas (common in mines) and coal dust (also common) were ignited by something. And, like those fuses in cartoons, once one lit up, it traveled quickly through the mine, quickly causing a second explosion in the no. 6 mine next door. To this day, nobody knows exactly how many people died. There’s a list of 362 names on the memorial (left), located at the St. Barbara’s Memorial Nursing Home. There’s also a threefold memorial in town, located on a corner. First is a bell, inscribed in English and Italian, gifted to the town from the region of Molise, Italy, to acknowledge the loss of a large number of Italian immigrants killed in the disaster. Second is the state historical marker, giving the basic details that’ll hopefully send people running to the library to do more digging. Finally, there’s a statue, called Monongah Heroine, paying homage to the hundreds of women who were left widows in the aftermath of the tragedy. Just a thought to explain the enormity of the disaster. The population of Monongah in 1907 (according to the 1900 census) was 1,786. With the official death toll of 362, that means that 20% of the town’s population died in one horrible moment. There’s more to discuss about these souls. For now, contemplate the photos, and listen to my all-time favorite song, Merle Travis’ “Dark As a Dungeon.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CP8FgkmBpA