TRS Event 2026 Fall Colors Campout

[sgtsandman]

The mine tour. It was not very long or did it go as deep in as the one we did in Colorado but it was very informative and the guide was very entertaining.

Miners were expected to do 10 of these or 5 of the 2 ton cars in a tunnel the size of the hole behind the 2 ton car. And see the rock in the 2 ton car? That got deducted from your pay if was there when it got to the surface and weighed. I believe the guide said it was $0.20 a ton and you were expected to dig out 10 tons in a day for a total of $2.00.

Not real clear in this picture but the cage is what the miners kept a Canary in. If the Canary was on it's back with it's legs up, it was time to get out and get out now. The methane build up was getting deadly. On the bar was also a Kerosene helmet light and an acetylene lantern that the miners used when the mine was open.

Hand tool s the miners used and a retention bolt and plate that holds the wall in place.

The fire boss plaque is a daily inspection certification that the mine is safe from collapse and methane gas. Also in the picture is an old communication set and another retention bolt and plate.

The location that Brad Paisley did a music video in the mine.

I think that is a supply track.

Mining machinery that came later.

The guide didn't describe what a rock duster is but the machine in the picture used to install roof bolts.

The machine in the back replaced miners needing to use a pick to make the undercut before blasting the coal. The cut is the width of the tunnel, four feet deep. I forget how high. It gave the coal a place to fall when blasting insead of blowing out into the tunnel.

Not clear in the picture, but this is also where the guide talked about petrified stumps, sulfur balls, red dogs, and other items that could at any time drop out of the ceiling and kill a man. They were all called widow makers.

A 2 ton car out side that was on the way back to where we started the tour.

With the pay the miners got in company script, which could only be spent at the company store at whatever rate the company chose to sell the items at, the miners were in debt to the company. They could go nowhere else since they weren't paid in money and even if they were, they were miles away from any town other than the one the company had built to house them. Thus why songs like this came about:

 

[sgtsandman]

Now for the picture heavy one. This may need to be broken into multiple posts. The upstairs of the main building is the museum. Most everything is placarded. So, they should be self explanatory.

 

[sgtsandman]

 

[sgtsandman]

 

[Jim Oaks]

When I was a kid there used to be a pouch in my grandmothers' kitchen that had an anemometer in it for measuring the airflow in coal mines similar to the one below. I used to take it out and set it on the windowsill and watch it spin. It probably belonged to my grandfather who was a miner. I really wish I had it. If I went into her old house there's a chance that it's still sitting in her kitchen, but that house has been empty for a long time and about ready to fall down.

Great pics. Thanks for sharing.

 

[sgtsandman]

I forget the name they gave it. So, I'm calling it Log town. It was a precursor to the more modern Mining Camp town.

Store

Stable

Garden and harvest equipment

Moonshine Shed

Two story home. They cut away part of the second story so people could see up there with out climbing the steep and narrow stairs.

Aside from the normal cast iron iron used to iron cloths, there is one that coals from the fire can be put in to do the same thing and stay hot longer. It also is easier to work with since it is heavier, not requiring to be pressed down to flatten the clothing like the more conventional iron would need.

 

[sgtsandman]

The shop where they made cloth

Tool shed and chicken coup

The Blacksmith Shop

The School House

 

[sgtsandman]

I think that covers everything I have. Everyone else will need to fill in the gaps.

 

[sgtsandman]

When I was a kid there used to be a pouch in my grandmothers' kitchen that had an anemometer in it for measuring the airflow in coal mines similar to the one below. I used to take it out and set it on the windowsill and watch it spin. It probably belonged to my grandfather who was a miner. I really wish I had it. If I went into her old house there's a chance that it's still sitting in her kitchen, but that house has been empty for a long time and about ready to fall down.

Great pics. Thanks for sharing.

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That is neat!

I forgot how much of a pain in the butt making posts like these are. Granted, it isn't a how to on how to change a timing belt with torque specs, the tools needed, and using MS paint to circle parts and make arrows pointing at things, but still a PITA.