Coal mining came to West Virginia in the Mid-1800's. By the early 1900s, Coal was fueling close to 60% of all railroads, streetcars, and heating many people’s homes. But as more and more coal was consumed, they needed more mined to keep up. So, they started working their miners close to 15 hours a day for almost nothing. To make matters all the worse, they were not being paid in actual money, but in something called "Scrips." These were only worth something because the towns that the miners lived in were completely owned by the coal companies, everything from the churches to the dollar store. Because the company owned everything that the miners and their families used, they could complain about the terrible conditions. Miners were dying from explosions, inhaling to much rock dust, and many other accidents that could easily be prevented. But the main thing that was keeping the miners from unionizing and trying to get better conditions were the “Yellow Dog Contracts” that they were forced to sign. These contacts said that if you were associated with anyone in a union or joined a union, the company could take everything away since they owned it and kick you out without warning. Even with all these strict contracts in the way and the risk of loosing all that the miners had, they still tried to unionize and get better working conditions.
To deal with this the companies did the most reasonable thing they could think of and hire a detective agency to investigate each miner and if they were thought to be in a union, to kill them. They were known to spray bullets into miners’ houses and then check if it was the right person afterwards. This put the miners and their families at risk. But in the spring of 1920 a gunfight broke out between the detective agencies agents and a pro union group, which just so happened to include the west Virginia police chief, ten people were killed in the fight. Less then a year later while the police chief was walking out of a court room with his deputy, the agency shot him and his deputy down on the courthouse stairs. The death of the union loving police chief brought the miners to the edge, and they went over, preparing for a war. The miners, union supporters, and even eventually some state troopers started fighting against the detective agency and the coal companies. Many fights broke out throughout the state, but none as famous as Blair Mountain.
Even though the Miners outnumbered the agents 10:1, they were winning Blair Mountain because of the high ground and superior weapons. Eventually, the man who started the uprising, Bill Blizard, Called the men to stand down and head home due to loss of life. Over two hundred men died in that fight alone, and many were sent to prison for murder and treason. Even though the miners lost the battle, they won the war. It brought awareness to the awful conditions that they worked in and resulted in a stronger union and a change in the labor laws.
Do you think that the government should have helped the miners more?
Should the miners have kept pushing up Blair Mountain?
Was the end result worth the loss of life and the money lost?
Replies
I think that the government should help these workers bc their job isn't easy. They spend hours hitting rocks and getting very dirty. I don't think they should its not worth what we could find up there. No, it was not worth it these workers have families they go home too.
I think that the government should have helped the coal miners. I have seen many clips of coal miners working on their jobs sites. That line of work is not the most clean, nor safe. I think that it was not worth the huge loss of life and loss of money.
I mean I think today miners have an extra responsibility But they do invest a lot. I think they should keep pushing up Blair mountian Because the miners get poor wages and poor treatment I'm not sure to be honest but they did an overwhelming victory for coal industry owners and management.
I think that the government should have helped the miners out more because they work very hard. Working for 15 hours is way too much for a person physically and mentally. It takes a very big toll on a person and if it is hurting the miners, then they don't get the best resources.
I think the government should have help the miners more. I think the conditions the coal miners lived in were horrible, and government support would have made the situation better. I don't think the end result was worth so many losses.
I think the government should have helped the miners more especially with the kind of dangerous work that they do. I don't think it was worth it for the miners to have to push all the way up Blair Mountain, but it was a good victory for them. However, I don't think the amount of deaths, money, or resources wasted were worth it.
I think that the government should've helped them more, if they wanted to stay safe then no, I dont think it was worth it
I think that the government should have helped the miners more becuase they are hard more then some people do. I just wish the goverment would help miners more then helping with dumb stuff.
With the govemrents I do think they should have helped the miners with other things they they needed for toher things to do with it, Also the miners they probbly wanted to go and stay safe for awlie.
I think the government should have helped the miners more because of everything the miners did. If the miners wanted to stay safe they shouldn't have kept pushing. I don't think the end result was worth everything.
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