I took the drone out to the old historic town of Nuttalburg and captured some of the rich history found there. This is my first attempt of a voice over so bear with me on that. Hope you enjoy the video.
The coal seams of the New River Gorge (and Glade Creek, Piney Creek, etc.) were all of the "easiest" seams to get at using drift or auger mining, hence the first seams to be mined out. I think back as a kid in the early 70s wandering around these areas and there was little trace of the mining. Even where they had stripped, the high walls had been covered over by trees and vegetation. By the age of the trees, I would guess the last mining for all intents and purposes was done probably around the late 30s.
1) the two primary seams in the gorge were the Sewell and the Fire Creek, named after those two locations in the gorge! 2) The mining started just after the Civil War. These were not the easiest, because the rank of the coal meant they were very gassy. The real reason they were mined first was the new railroad. 3) The last two major mines were Layland no 3 (as I recall) where the Fire Creek was mined (I collected samples in that mine) and a small mine across Marr’s Branch from county route 82 in the Sewell. Both were active while the bridge was being built. I was chief of a field party from the West Virginia Geological and Economic Survey Coal Resources and Pollution Potential Program during most of that time in the 1970s and watched the bridge being built from start to dedication.
@@wowbagger3505 There might have been a few small, "independent" mining companies doing some work during the high coal prices of the 70s but no large production by the big players.
