Posted in West Virginia Fun Facts April 14, 2015 by

Did You Know All Of This About Coal In West Virginia? Most Don’t.

Here in West Virginia, we love our coal miners! This line of work has been around for quite some time, and it isn’t for the weak. Men and women work hard to help produce coal from our West Virginia mines everyday. And they definitely don’t get enough appreciation for it! Here’s to you, West Virginia coal miners!

1) West Virginia is the second most producing coal state in the nation, next to Wyoming.
J. Stephen Conn Flickr
2) The Coal House, located in Williamson, WV, is a building made of coal masonry. It was the only of its kind when it was built in 1933, but in 1959 there was a second coal house built in Lewisburg.
Jimmy Emerson, DVM Flickr
In 2010, the Williamson Coal House actually caught fire (Who would have thought?) but ended up only suffering minimal damage to the outside structure. It reopened in September of 2011.
3) West Virginia leads the nation in underground coal production.
Dennis Church Flickr
4) Exhibition Coal Mine, located in Beckley, WV, offers underground coal mining tours by veteran coal miners.
Emily Hoyer Flickr
5) Coal can be found in almost every county in West Virginia.
Wigwam Jones Flickr
McDowell County produces more coal than any other county in WV.
6) In 2009 alone, West Virginia mines produced over 144 million tons of coal.
Frank Kehren Flickr
Thurmond, WV, is an old coal town which is practically abandoned now.
7) More than half of our nation's electricity comes from coal.
buttersweet Flickr
So if you don't like it... turn off your lights!

Isn’t it just amazing what coal can do? It can be in the shape of a house or it can completely power one! Our coal miners work hard every single day to make sure that our lights stay on and they really deserve a lot more appreciation than they get.

I know that a lot of people have a lot of negative things to say about coal mining, but it has come a long way! There is no denying that West Virginia has definitely made a name for itself in the coal business.

What is something that you are proud of about West Virginia? Comment below!

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