The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1879-09-03
BURNING FOR FORTY.FIvE YEARS.

One of the most interesting and extern
sive fires ever known in this country has
been raging in a colliery in Schuykill
county for nearly torty-five years. Thou
sands of dollars have been spent in vain
! endeavors 20 extinguish the fire, but at
last the idea was abandoned, and since
the beginning of the war nothing has
been done to subdue the conhagration,
which RACES withoutIinterruption. The
history of this mine is very interesting,
and, strange to say, though hundreds of
travellers visit the coal-fields Of this and
adjoining counties every year, hardly any
of them hear of this great curiosity. The
vein that is burning is called the Jugu-
lar" and the surface crop was first
worked in 1888 by Lewis E. Dougherty,
at place called Coal Castle, one and a
half miles west of what is known as
Mount Laffee. The coal taken out was
of excellent quality and the mine very
productive. When a drift is worked
above water level it is the custom to
keep huge CRATE filled with burning
coal just outside the mouth to prevent
the water in the cutters from freezing.
per drift of Mr.. Dougherty's mine in the
winter of 1885. One Saturday night the
CRATE was filed with an unusually large
quantity of COAL and the miners went to
their homes. On the following Monday
morning when the mine was visited it
was found to be filled with flames. It
is supposed that the fire in the CRATE be-
came communicated to the timbers, and
moving along the upper drift was, by
means of an air-hole, carried into the
lower drift. At any rate, the coal in
both drifts was on fire when the men
came to work on Monday morning, and
two of the miners recklessly went in to
save their tools and never returned.
Efforts were made to extinguish the
fire, but, after working for several weeks,
NJ. Dougherty gave UP all hopes. and,
abandoning the place, opened another
colliery about half mile west of it.
During the winter of 1867, Mr.. John
McGinnis. of Pottsville, heard of the
large body of coal that lay near the
abandoned mine and concluded that
some of it could be got out without
reaching the fire. He put in a slope on
the east side of the vein and below the
water level. The work, however, pro-
gressed slowly, and owing to heavy
masses of rock encountered was very eX-
pensive. He was finally rewarded by
striking the "Jugular" vein at a point
where there was a deposit of coal so
thick that two or three miners could
keep the breaker going, and although it
was worked for months, they never sue
ceeded in getting through it. The coal
proved to be first-class, and four hun
dred yards of gangway had been driven
when the miners began to complain of
excessive heat, and then Mr.. McGinnis
knew that they were approaching the
fire in the mine Dougherty had aban-
doned. This was about year after the
slope had been started, and Mr.. McGin-
mis- saw that it would be necessary to
open an air-hole. This work began
at once, but after driving twenty
or thirty yards the heat became
most suffocated, and many of them re-
fused to continue. By paying double
wages a number Of men were found will.
ing to work in the air-hole; some idea
of the Intense heat may be had when it
is stated that the men worked perfectly
naked, and were relieved every ten min
utes. After the air-hole had been opened
about fifty yards the heat became unbear-
able, and the men tainted when exposed
to it minute OF two. Seeing that it
was impossible to complete the air-hole,
work in it was given up, and at a fortu-
nate time. for it was afterward discov-
cred that if the hole had been carried up
few yards further it would have struck
|
every one in the mine. About this time
the miners noticed that when shot
was fired, and the coal came rolling
down in huge masses, it was so warm
that it could not be conf Ortnbly handled
Every day the miners expected to Sc.
, fire break out, and at last, when comine
to work one morning, they found tg
gangway filled with smoke and fiamhe
, As this was expected to happen sOoneres
{ later, preparations had been made to OF
tinguish the fire, and the mine was sex
!, filled with water. This treatment oon
the desired effect, and when the whad
was pumped out work was resumed. .atel
From this time forward it was almost
continual fight with fire, and no less
than eight times was the colliery filled
with water and pumped dry again. The
ninth time the mine was filled with water
| the machinery got out of order and the
pump refused to work AS Mr.. McGin.
g mis- had sunk all his capital and could
t not raise enough money to purchase new
f machinery, the mine was abandoned in
? the winter of 1859. The fire continued
j to burn until the barriers between the
mine were consumed, and the timbers il
| Mr.. McGinnis' mine gradually rotteC
} away, and finally the slope caved in
| From that time until now the fire hai
continued without interruption, and th'
g coal has been consumed for half mill
in every direction. The ground ha!
S oaved in in many places, leaving great
t chasms that vary from fifty to one hun
S dred feet in depth. Travel over thu
: burned district is exceedingly dangerous
: TO any one not familiar with the coun
' try, for in many places great holes arr
E only covered by shell of burned eartl
a three or four feet thick. Mr.. McGinnii
e states that even as familiar as he is will
b. the locality, he came very near losinl
e his life there a few years ago by falling
e through the crust. He was crossing
e portion of the burnt field when he fel
y the earth giving way under his feet, anC
on starting to run for firmer ground h
sank up to his armpits in dry ashes ant
burned earth. Fortunately he managed
v with the assistanca Of n friend IN extri