Daughters of Coal Miners!!: Beverly McCall's Memories of her Dad

Daughters of Coal Miners!!: Beverly McCall's Memories of her Dad: Beverly McCall’s memories of her Dad, Raymond McCall’s 17 years in the mines…. When I was 4-5, I can remember my Dad coming home from...

Beverly McCall's Memories of her Dad

Beverly McCall’s memories of her Dad, Raymond McCall’s 17 years in the mines….

When I was 4-5, I can remember my Dad coming home from the Mines covered in black coal dust.  He would strip down to his one piece long johns on the porch and wash his face and hands outside so he did not bring the dirt in the house.  My Mother, Alice, packed my Dad a bucket every day.  They were called Coal Miner Buckets and you could place water at the bottom and food on the top. 

The fun part of Dad coming home was always looking to see what food was left in his bucket.  As I got older, I remember my Dad telling me stories of how they crawled through the mines on their bellies to dig for coal and many times they had to eat in that position.  The only light they had at times to see with was the light on their hat.  Where we grew up, the row of houses called Tow Row or #9 Road in Spangler, Pennsylvania, were built for the coal miner.  At the end of the road was the #9 Coal Mine built before I was born.  This mine stretched for miles under our homes and we didn’t even know it at the time. 

Our Mothers shopped at the Barnes & Tucker Coal Mine Company store for our food and clothes.  It was said that shopping at the coal miner store made it easier for the families but also made sure the miners always went back to work to pay for the goods.  Dena remembers her mom telling her about her Dad, William Joseph McCall who would walk five miles a day to the mines in all kinds of weather conditions and seasons.  Wow, this must have been so hard since he would have had a lot of clothes on to keep warm underground and had to carry his bucket as well.   

I love these coal miner stories and memories of our parents.  Keep ‘um coming please.  Thanks Bev for sharing.  Blessings and Prayers for those who spent their working years underground to provide for their families.  You are all greatly missed by many.  Dena

A Miners Favorite: Sixteen Tons by Tennessee ernie Ford (Lyrics on Screen) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkRYuMqw-B0

Sister Kay and Mary Maslonik tell their stories...

Kay and Mary (my Mom Kay and Aunt Mary) have a lot of good coal miner stories.  They also were daughters of a coal miner.  Aunt Mary brought over a book to share today called, "Out of the Dark 2 Mining Folk," from Northern Cambria High School Copyright 1977.  So let's hear some of their stories now.

Mining was a dirty job.  The day was long for Father, starting at 6 am to 5 pm.  Barnes & Tucker #6 Mine in Elmore, PA is where their Dad worked for 40 years after coming to America from Europe.  The ladies said that they would have to haul the water from the pump outside, heat it on the stove and empty it in tubs when Dad came home from the mines.  She would wash his back and then let him finish.    Kay did most of the cooking since Mary was too small and Sister Ann left home early.  There was also a large pot of coffee on the stove all day. The mining cloths had too have the dust shaken out of them before they could be washed by hand or in the washer and hung up to dry.

The kids had to go to the mine and rack up coal that fell off the coal flats and bring it home in a wagon for the fire.  A stove in the middle room kept the downstairs warm and a hole in the ceiling heated the 2 bedrooms upstairs.  At night the fire would go out and the house would get cold.  Sometimes Father would sleep downstairs to keep the fire going. In the morning, the kids would fight to get the warmest spot around the stove.  Most miners in the 30s, walked to work -- no cars or trucks!

http://archives.lib.cua.edu/coalbib.cfm
http://www.amazon.com/Out-Darkness-Mine-Workers-Story/dp/B000000MQV
http://www.lib.iup.edu/spec_coll/mg81.html

America was built on the backs of coal miners!

My dear friend Sue, of more than 20 years has a lot of coal miners in her life.  Her wonderful husband, Bart, worked as a construction equipment operator, and he's to be admired also now. See Sue's note below:

Norma Sue Burchett Adkins Hey Dena, My dad worked in a coal mine, but only for a short time and Bart's dad was a coal miner also. I think this country was built on the backs of coal miners.

Yesterday at 6:23pm

Coal Miners are Like War Veterans...

My Coal Miner Daughter Friend, Sharon wrote below:

Sharon Walsh Michny Coal miners are like war veterans--they have a job to do and each other as their family coz no one else understands what they are going thru.

Loretta Lynn's Favorite Song: Coal Miners Daughter

A close high school friend, Carol wrote to Sharon and I and shared her favorite classic country song.  See for your self!

Carol Carnevali You don't know Loretta Lynn's "Coal Miners Daughter" song?? It's one of my all time favorite classic country songs. Here's the link to it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bp7bZbRYfkQ

One of these days, I'm gonna sing Karaoke to it! lol

3 hours ago ·

Introduction to Daughters of Coal Miners

As my friend, Sharon, and I sat together today and laughed about our days of growing up as grade school friends, we thought of our Dad's and how hard they worked to keep food on the table and shoes on our feet.  Our Dads, and many other Dads, went underground for hours and chip away at the rock and coal to fill the buggles to make a day's wages.  Millions of home kept warm with the coal mined in our town of Spanger, PA  We are very proud to be "Coal Miner's Daughters," and invite anyone who is a daughter of a coal miner to share your thoughts with us.