SOUTHERN WEST VIRGINIA COALFIELDS TODAY

Modern coal mining is one of the last vestiges of the Industrial Revolution that started in Europe in the 1700s. Even though current coal extraction and processing methods are computerized and scientific, people still crawl underground and get coal dust all over them like their predecessors.

No one knows how much longer the coal industry will thrive in southern West Virginia. Millions of tons of coal remain in the ground, but left-wing political opposition to fossil fuels may destroy coal mining in America.

This is an incomplete mapping of currently active coal mines in the coalfields. You may want to witness an active working bituminous coal mine while you still can.