Coal, Guns, and Dynamite: The West Virginian Mine Wars
Think labor disputes are just picket lines and chants? Meet the West Virginian Mine Wars, where early 20th-century coal miners traded slogans for dynamite. Tired of dangerous conditions, poverty wages, and being paid in company scrip only usable at overpriced company stores, miners turned to unions. The coal barons’ response? Private detectives with guns and evictions at gunpoint.
One flashpoint was the 1920 Battle of Matewan, a Western-style shootout where miners, led by Sid Hatfield, clashed with hired thugs. Things escalated to the 1921 Battle of Blair Mountain, where 10,000 armed miners faced off against coal company forces, private planes dropping bombs, and federal troops. The miners lost, and many were charged with treason for daring to want fair wages.
Though the Mine Wars didn’t bring immediate change, they laid the groundwork for future labor victories. So next time you enjoy PTO, thank those miners who fought with rifles and guts so you wouldn’t have to.
Sources:
Books:
The Battle of Blair Mountain: The Story Of America's Largest Labor Uprising - by Robert Shogan
Thunder In the Mountains: The West Virginia Mine War, 1920–21 - by Lon Savage
Articles: -
https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/introduction-to-the-west-virginia-mine-wars.htm
https://wvminewars.org/what-were-the-mine-wars
Documentary:
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/theminewars/
https://youtu.be/GnVOYOW8s5c?si=1HSm2XpoZ0nitFee
LA Fire Charities:
https://www.redcross.org/about-us/our-work/disaster-relief/wildfire-relief.html
