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480:(This book consists of 135 historic Allegany County, Maryland coal mining and railroad related photographs. These are primarily from the early 1900s. Accompanying each depiction is an historical narrative with facts, figures, dates and other information. Included within this number are 23 "graveside" biographies (tombstones depicted) of individuals associated with the history of coal mining in the region.)
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system, in which miners were forced to purchase all their supplies and household needs from the mining company, was outlawed in
Maryland in 1868. A comparatively high proportion of miners were also homeowners, as local mining firms found it more profitable to sell houses to their miners, than
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A series of small mining towns were founded along the
Georges Creek Valley in the nineteenth century when coal was discovered in the region. This led mining companies in the valley to develop
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358:. Names of some of the first settlers were Dye, Duckworth, Green, Fazenbaker, Beeman, Grove, VanBuskirk, Knapp and Miller. The first stone house built in 1797 in
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remains as the last vestige of this once all-important industry. Coal trains once went through the valley every day, but now do so only once or twice a month.
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Heavy
Scottish heritage in the area give locals a dialect unique in the area. Many outsiders confuse the local dialect with that of
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307:, where the goods were unloaded, the boats broken up to sell as lumber, and the operators walked back to Westernport. The town of
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Most of the original settlers to the Valley came in response to the abundance of jobs available in the coal mines. Many were
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Since regional coal mines were constructed with horizontal shafts, they were far less dangerous than the
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291:: Westernport is the terminus of Georges Creek, where it empties into the North Branch of the
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just north of
Lonaconing was owned by Samuel VanBuskirk. The house still stands as of 2005.
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261:-filled air, which corroded the lungs over time, would lead to an early death.
124:. The Georges Creek Valley was once a major center for the US coal industry.
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458:, Brezinski, D.K., and Conkwright, Robert, 2013. Maryland Geological Survey
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Geologic map of
Garrett, Allegany, and western Washington counties, Maryland
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in the country lay within the hills and mountains of this region. After the
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Feldstein's
Historic Coal Mining and Railroads of Allegany County, Maryland
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for transporting the coal. Some of these railroads were merged into the
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Coal mining quickly became the most important industry in the
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Table of
Cumberland Coal Trade Production Levels 1842-1865
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System between 1853 and 1870. A competing railroad, the
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names also are found in the early records of the town.
418:by locals, though they pronounce other streams as
504:website whose contents are in the public domain.
43:but its sources remain unclear because it lacks
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496:Parts of this article are copied from the
74:Learn how and when to remove this message
303:at Westernport and floated down to near
472:, Publisher Albert L. Feldstein, 2000,
346:settlers in the late 18th century were
108:. The valley is rich in wide veins of
555:Landforms of Allegany County, Maryland
429:, Canada, which it closely resembles.
157:George's Creek and Cumberland Railroad
225:fleet, and was traded to buyers from
143:Map of the Georges Creek region, 1907
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197:. Some of the richest beds of soft,
153:Cumberland and Pennsylvania Railroad
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120:but is only mined today through
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242:establish "company" housing.
373:: Frostburg is the home of
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486:, DIANE Publishing, 1994,
375:Frostburg State University
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112:, known historically as "
102:Allegany County, Maryland
161:Western Maryland Railway
29:This article includes a
309:Piedmont, West Virginia
58:more precise citations.
414:is pronounced Georges
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526:39.57167°N 78.97722°W
502:National Park Service
468:Albert L. Feldstein,
305:Great Falls, Virginia
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550:Georges Creek Valley
247:vertical shaft mines
132:For other uses, see
98:Georges Creek Valley
91:Lonaconing, Maryland
565:Valleys of Maryland
560:Regions of Maryland
531:39.57167; -78.97722
522: /
484:State Coal Profiles
283:Towns in the Valley
498:Cumberland History
330:Barton-upon-Humber
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31:list of references
439:Maryland Route 36
382:Notable residents
342:: The first non-
299:were loaded onto
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317:: The Reverend
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221:as well as the
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64:December 2011
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390:- Lonaconing
319:William Shaw
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251:Pennsylvania
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114:The Big Vein
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50:Please help
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529: /
394:Leo Mazzone
388:Lefty Grove
289:Westernport
266:World War I
56:introducing
544:Categories
517:78°58′38″W
514:39°34′18″N
463:References
340:Lonaconing
211:steamships
104:along the
500:, a U.S.
371:Frostburg
348:explorers
323:Methodist
301:flatboats
215:Baltimore
203:Civil War
149:railroads
433:See also
402:- Barton
326:minister
176:Scottish
427:Ontario
366:Midland
356:farmers
352:hunters
334:England
223:US Navy
128:History
52:improve
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344:Indian
315:Barton
297:timber
264:After
259:carbon
231:Brazil
227:London
219:harbor
178:, and
172:German
170:, but
420:creek
416:crick
235:Egypt
180:Welsh
168:Irish
118:mines
37:, or
488:ISBN
474:ISBN
354:and
321:, a
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110:coal
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
