There was a Friedens, Pennsylvania, many years before there was a coal mine there. The mine and coal company town, sometimes known as "Waterloo," were opened in 1917 by the Madeira Hill Smithing Company. A later operator was Vulcan Smithing Coal Co. The mine was closed circa 1940.
Apr. 2018 image by author
General view of the remaining coal company houses.
Apr. 2018 image by author
By the time this community was constructed by the coal company in 1917, "model" company towns were the hot ticket. This is reflected by the alternating pattern of front- and side-gabled houses, rather than just one repetitive pattern of uniform roofs. Actually, since these are on "Vulcan Street," they may have been built by Vulcan Smithing Coal Co. in the late 1920s.
Apr. 2018 image by author
These large multi-family company homes were built at a 45-degree angle to the rest of the town. I noticed that they are on "Waterloo Street." Perhaps these are the original company houses built in 1917. According to a 1937 aerial image of the town, there were originally ten of these.
Apr. 2018 image by author
Another view of these multi-family apartments.
Apr. 2018 image by author
Sources:
Summers, Patrica, editor. Somerset County, Pennsylvania; An Inventory of Historic Engineering and Industrial Sites. 1994.
