Schuylkill County
‘Brownie' John Brown (58), mine owner and Independent Miners Association President,Alfred Brown Mine Silver Creek, Pennsylvania, August 2019
"I used to have six full time workers at this mine with me. I had to let them go. And now when I go past them in the town I can’t even look them in the eye. It just kills me."
Minersville, Pennsylvania, July 2019.
(L) AL Reber (81), Paula Klinger (65), Keith Nugent (71), John Brown (58), Bob Pencorski (72), Rick Bender (60) Independent Miners Association monthly meeting Tremont, Pennsylvania, August 2019
Coal Preperation Plant Reading Anthracite St Nicholas, Pennsylvania, July 2019
Ed Williams (64) Coal Mine Mechanic for 42 years, Saint Keirns anthracite mine Minersville, Pennsylvania, August 2019
"It’s a job, that’s all it is. One more year then I get full benefits."
Ashland, PA, August 2019, Pennsylvania, August 2019
Chris Campbell (46), one month as a breaker operator, Superior Coal Preparation Plant, Hegins, Pennsylvania, August 2019.
"This is the best-paying job I’ve ever had.
I was a hairdresser, I worked at a school, at a factory, a grocery store, I’ve done catering, worked on a farm, milked cows, helped farm, helped combine. I’ve never liked anybody to say that I can’t do something because I’m a girl. So if they said you can’t do that, I’ll do that just to prove them wrong."
(front L) Laury Bender (57) & Rick Bender (60) Owner Operators, Superior Coal Preparation Plant Hegins, Pennsylvania, August 2019
"We have hopes that maybe we have a couple good years yet. That might depend a lot on the next election. Anybody knows that if the Democrats get in then we’re pretty much a done deal. We’re going to hang on as long as we can because basically as much as I don’t want to admit it we love the coal industry." - Laury
Ted Lindenmuth (66) with 44 years as a mine operator, works as a drag line operator at Mt Carmel Strip Mine Centralia, Pennsylvania, July 2019
"There’s a lot of coal here if we ever get to it. Right now we’re waiting for a shot so we can dig down deeper, we have thirty to fifty-five feet of coal in this area which is a very large vein. Some coal burns faster with less heat, this coal burns slow with more heat, each vein’s different. This vein we’re in is the best in Pennsylvania."
Jarrod Gieniec (39), 6 months as an underground miner, Alfred Brown Mine Silver Creek, Pennsylvania, August 2019.
(L) Buck Bender (51), after 31 years mining he is now the deep mine foreman at Little Buck Coal Company Tremont, Pennsylvania, August 2019.
"The hardest person working in this mine is my wife. All the paperwork she has to do to keep this place going is crazy."
‘Chip’ Charles Eichenberg (71) Drag Line Operator, 48 years Saint Keirns Anthracite Mine Minersville, Pennsylvania, July 2019
"Natural gas is the problem with the coal industry. The power plants that were coal are changing over to natural gas. And they’re pushing wind and solar power.
The people in Washington gotta quit arguing amongst themselves and sit down and try to find a solution. This country would be a lot better off. This election will tell the tale of what’s going to happen to the coal industry. I hope these young guys still have jobs, but it ain’t looking good."
‘Brownie' John Brown (58), mine owner and Independent Miners Association President,Alfred Brown Mine Silver Creek, Pennsylvania, August 2019
Larry Greblick (80) owner of Larry's sport shop, Frackville, Pennsylvania, August 2019.
Al Reber (81) IMA Secretary, 69 years mining experience Independent Miners Association, Tremont, Pennsylvania, August 2019
"When I was younger there were two-hundred-and-fifty-something deep mines. Today there’s twelve. Some are part time, only two or three are working full time."
Bernie Ruts (70) Owner / Cook Ruts Cafe Mahanoy City, Pennsylvania, July 2019
"We’ve been open eighty one years, I’ve run it for forty three years, you can’t just throw that away. There’s no business anymore, the bar’s empty. The shoe repair place, that’s been closed for ages. No work around here since the mines and the clothing factories closed. Our kids had to move away to get work. I wouldn’t want to have grown up anywhere else, but everyone had jobs back then."
Superior Coal Preparation Plant Hegins, Pennsylvania, August 2019.
Frank Kelly (60) Level II Mechanic, 25 years at the Gilberton coal-fired power plant, Gilberton, Pennsylvania, August 2019.
"When I’m not here I do ballroom dancing."
Alfred brown mine, Silver Creek, Pennsylvania, August 2019.
Matt Ward (26), two years as a heist operator, Alfred Brown Mine Silver Creek, Pennsylvania, August 2019.
"I’ve been coming out here since I was twelve. If its still here I’d love to do this for the rest of my life."
Ed Williams (64) & Joanne Williams (64) Potsville, PA, August 2019, Pennsylvania, August 2019
"The last time we had a picture together was our wedding.
When I met Eddie he was laid off and he couldn’t even think about working anywhere else. He loved his job and couldn’t wait to be called back to work. I wonder if he remembers that now. I’d say Eddie you can do just about anything. Why don’t you...you know!? But he’s not the kind of guy that could work in a factory or a shop, he likes to go and I think that was the main attraction of that job, he could go all over the place. There was never a routine."
Buck Bender (72) Owner / Heist Operator, 32 years Little Buck Coal Company Tremont, Pennsylvania, August 2019.
“Since Trump got in, he helped us. He cut down on reclamation and also black lung. Black lung was a dollar ten cents a ton all these years, but he reduced it down to 50 cents a ton. So you save a lot of money on that there.”