Annesburg

## Introduction

**Annesburg** is a mining town in the Roanoke Ridge region of the New Hanover territory in the State of Odessa.

## History

Annesburg is a mining town in New Hanover, which has been mining coal for nearly a century. It is the most modernized and largest settlement in New Hanover, being larger in size than Valentine and the nearby Van Horn Trading Post. The town is constantly covered in a thick, dark blanket of fog from the coal, and large chimneys pump black smoke into the air. The surrounding water beside Annesburg has an oily sheen from the large amounts of pollution, with many oil barrels and large quantities of garbage seen littered around the river bank.

Freight trains regularly pass through Annesburg, delivering and collecting goods. Most of the settlement's population either work in the mine or live with somebody who does. The workers of the mine live in rows of identical, grey wooden huts, running along the side of the hill. Stairways and paths connect this housing area to the mine and the main street running through the town at the base of the hill.

At the top of the hill is the mine itself. The mine features a railway system for mine-carts, which deliver coal around the settlement. The mine and its surroundings are protected by guards, who become hostile if the player enters restricted territory. The area is loud, busy and dirty, and seems to be very dangerous. Health hazards are abundant around the Annesburg mine, which may be why so many workers have lost their lives here. Scattered around the top of the hill are wooden planks and tree logs, which, seeing as many tree stumps surround Annesburg, have been gathered from the nearby forests of Roanoke Ridge.

## Facts

* Annesburg was likely one of the first permanent settlements in New Hanover.
* Due to almost a century of mining in the town, the waters of the Lannahechee River around the town has an oily sheen and appears to be heavily polluted.
* In addition to the river being polluted all fish near the town are mutated.
* The original settlers of Annesburg were of German descent, and many buildings in the town are designed in a German colonial style. Several people in the town even speak with German accents. Also, the name of the state is the same as the German city, Hanover.
* Annesburg is a coal town, which at the time was a type of company town. Company towns were a popular phenomenon of 1890s American life, not only in the East but also in the Midwest and Upper South. At locations such as railroad construction sites, lumber camps, or coal mines, work often existed far from established towns. As a pragmatic solution, employers sometimes developed a company town, where an individual company owned all the buildings and businesses.

**Territories:**

Ambarino • Lemoyne • New Austin • New Hanover • West Elizabeth

**Settlements:**

**Annesburg** • Armadillo • Blackwater • Colter • Gaptooth Breech • Lagras • Rhodes • Saint Denis • Strawberry • Thieves' Landing • Tumbleweed • Valentine • Van Horn • Wapiti Reservation

**Forts:**

Fort Brennand • Fort Mercer • Fort Riggs • Fort Wallace • Sisika Penitentiary

**Farms:**

Emerald Ranch • MacFarlane's Ranch • Ridgewood Farm

**Rivers:**

Dakota River • Hawks Eye Creek • Kamassa River • Lannahechee River • Lower Montana River • Upper Montana River • Quaker's Cove • San Luis River

**Lakes:**

Donner Falls • Elysian Pool • Flat Iron Lake • Sea of Coronado • Owanjila

**Train Stations:**

Bacchus Station • Riggs Station • Wallace Station