Part 1: The Virginian Piney Creek Extension: Pemberton, WV to Willibet, WV

1922 Map | 1934 Timetable

1926

1948

1958

Part 2: The Towns Along the Line

NOTE: A major source used in the creation of this page are the annual reports from the West Virginia Department of Mines. For the researcher, many of these early, pre-1925, reports follow the FISCAL year, meaning that these reports cover the time frame of June 30th, 19__ to June 30th, 19__. That means that while I may have a mine operating from 1913 to 1951 in my records, it may have actually begun operating as early as June 31st, 1912, or as late as June 30th, 1913. After 1925, it appears that the reports began following the typical Jan. 1st to Dec. 31st, year.

ALSO: For many of the early West Virginia Department of Mines reports, tonnage numbers were consolidated into a single mine "name" even when coal actually came from multiple different openings. For example, the Pawama Coal & Coke Company, which is discussed on the VGN Main line page, operated both the Pawama No. 1 and Pawama No. 2 mines, however their tonnage is often consolidated in the documents.

Pemberton, WV - MP 23.7

Taking a visit to Pemberton today reveals little truth on the rail activity that once occurred in the vicinity of this town. This location once featured an expansive yard, multiple coal operators, and a relatively large duel freight and passenger station. The Virginian Railway came from the south via the Winding Gulf Branch, while the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway came from the north via the Raleigh & Southwestern. The two railroads met at grade while also maintaining an interchange. This diamond still exists, although it hasn't been crossed in a number of years. Out of Pemberton, the Piney Creek Extension heads east following Piney Creek towards the termination point of Willibet, West Virginia. Interestingly, the Chesapeake & Ohio also maintained a line from Pemberton east, paralleling the Virginian line. The Chesapeake & Ohio built their line first, an extension of the Raleigh & Southwestern, to the community of Sullivan on Piney Creek. The C&O would eventually build another two miles, reaching the mines at Wood Peck. Unlike the Virginian's line, the C&O never built further south of Wood Peck. This doomed the line as when the last mine closed at Wood Peck in the 1940s, the C&O line was abandoned. The C&O route was built around 1909 and abandoned in segments. Wood Peck to Sullivan was scrapped in 1943. The rest of the line was removed sometime in the late 190s or early 1950s. The Virginian line was also built in 1909, a few months after the C&O completed their branch, and continued to be used into the mid 1990s. Today, some of the Virginian's Piney Creek Extension still exists, although the rails are buried under dirt and foliage. It is unlikely that any trains will ever run on this stretch of rail again.

The first coal operator to exist on the Piney Creek Extension at Pemberton was the Pemberton Fuel Company. The September 11th, 1911, edition of the Manufacturers' Record reported that the Pemberton Fuel Co. had been incorporated with an authorized capital stock of $10,000. Incorporators were listed as Prince E. Lilly and others. 150 acres of coal rich lands were controlled by the company upon incorporation. On August 17th, 1912, the Virginian Railway submitted a proposed track diagram serving the tipple of the Pemberton Fuel Co. Like many of the other tipples on the Piney Creek Extension between Pemberton and Wood Peck, the facility at Pemberton was served by both the Virginian and the Chesapeake & Ohio. In 1914, the first year of operation, 26,218 tons of coal were processed and shipped to market from the Pemberton mine. The 1916 edition of the Coal Field Directory reported that the directors of the company were as follows: Prince E. Lilly; President, General Manager, and General Superintendent, W. I. Smith; Purchasing Agent, Frank Beard; Mine Superintendent, John R. Hornbrook; Consulting Engineer, and Mining Engineer, K. E. Smith; Electric Engineer, and finally T. H. Wickham; Treasurer. Interestingly, by the time the 1920 edition of the Coal Field Directory was published, the entire executive board of the Pemberton Fuel Co. had changed. Prince Lilly must've sold out to other interest. In 1922, 75,300 tons of coal were extracted from the Pemberton property. 1925 was the company's most productive year, churning out 122,895 tons of coal. However, in November of 1925, the Pemberton Fuel Co. was purchased, along with five other coal firms, by the Massachusetts Gas Companies. This New England conglomerate was formed on September 25th, 1902, as an energy and transportation provider. This development would become incredibly impactful for the coal industry nationwide as this merger would eventually morph into the influential Koppers Coal Company. The transaction price paid was reported by The Iron Trade Review as approximately $13,000,000. The merger was official on January 1st, 1927. With this restructuring, the Pemberton property was transferred to the newly organized C. B. B. Smokeless Coal Company. This firm was a wholly owned subsidiary of the Massachusetts Gas Companies. In the 1927 fiscal year, the Pemberton No. 1 mine produced 144,579 tons of coal. In 1933, the last year operating under the C. B. B. Smokeless Coal name, Pemberton No. 1 produced 38,258 tons. In 1934, the assets of the C. B. B. Smokeless Coal Co. were transferred to another subsidiary of the newly created Eastern Gas & Fuel Associates, known as the Koppers Coal & Transportation Company. Eastern Gas & Fuel had been incorporated in 1929 when the Koppers Company in Pittsburgh and the Massachusetts Gas Companies established a corporate partnership to consolidate various energy related industries. The former Pemberton Fuel Co. properties were included in this agreement. Thus, the Pemberton No. 1 Mine ended up in the hands of the Koppers group in 1934. That year, the Pemberton No. 1 mine, along with the Pemberton No. 2 mine in Wood Peck, produced 104,425 tons of coal. The Pemberton No. 2 mine will be explored in depth on the Wood Peck page. In 1935, the Pemberton mines were transferred once again, this time to the new Koppers Coal Company. Unlike many of the other Koppers coal properties, which would become major producers in the coal fields, the Pemberton No. 1 mine was just about played out. 1938 would end up being the final fiscal year of operation, with the Pemberton No. 1 mine, along with the Pemberton No. 2 mine, churning out a combined 31,377 tons. According to a mine map from the final year of operation, the Pemberton No. 1 mine officially closed on April 1st, 1937. The Chesapeake & Ohio Railway retired their spur serving the Pemberton No. 1 plant on June 24th, 1938.

McVey, WV - MP 24.8

After leaving our starting point of Pemberton, we arrive into the small town of McVey. Also known as McVay in the records, this town takes its name from the McVey family that lived nearby. For being such a small town, two railroads served the community. The two lines paralleled each other, with the C&O Raleigh & Southwestern just north of the Virginian's Piney Creek Extension of the Winding Gulf Branch. A possible segment of the C&O branch survived long after the rest of the line was abandoned, serving the transload facility of Hercules, Incorporated. Today, little exists of the community, though the remains of the transload facility are still very apparent.

The first coal enterprise to operate in McVey was the Beard Smokeless Coal Company. The January 1st, 1918, edition of the Coal Trade Bulletin reported that the Beard Smokeless Coal Co. had been organized with an authorized capital stock of $100,000. Organizers were listed as Prince E. Lilly, John R. Hornbrook, C. E. Lilly, Frank Beard, and Estel Bryant. Get used to seeing Prince E. Lilly's name on this page, he was involved in numerous operations along this rail line. On April 10th, 1918, the surveyers of the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway submitted a proposal to serve the Beard Smokeless Coal Co. in McVey. Two years later, On May 29th, 1920, the Virginian Railway engineering team followed the C&O, submitting a proposal for a set of mine tracks to be constructed that would also serve the coal plant. These spur tracks were ultimately constructed soon after and the coal company began shipping upon completion. In the 1919 fiscal year, just before the Virginian railroad tracks were built, the Beard mine of the Beard Smokeless Coal Co. produced 6,407 tons of coal. The 1921 edition of the Coal Field Directory reported that the directors of the company were as follows: Prince E. Lilly; President, R. C. Hornbrook; Treasurer and Consulting Engineer, Frank Beard; General Manager, General Superintendent, and Purchasing Agent, and Fred Wilfong; Mining Engineer. This operation was not a large one, never mining more than 10,000 tons annually. In 1921, the firm processed and shipped 9,019 tons of coal to market. That year, the Beard Smokeless Coal Co. defaulted on its loans and came under the control of its creditors. These creditors were aligned with Prince E. Lilly, so the property was transferred to Lilly's Lillybrook Coal Company. It is likely that the Beard mine was consolidated into the Lillybrook No. 4 mine which had its tipple at the former Sullivan Coal & Coke Co. facility to the east of McVey. At the time of this restructuring, the property at McVey consisted of 500 acres and about $150,000 worth of development. It appears that no other coal was shipped out of McVey after 1922, as all coal was funneled to Sullivan for loading at the No. 4 Tipple. It is likely that the original Beard Mine played out in 1925 when the Lillybrook No. 4 shaft was built to reach the Fire Creek seam. Although no other coal mining firms would ship out of McVey after 1922, a rail served business would return half a century later.

Just wait a minute, there actually was another coal mining firm that shipped out of McVey after the closure of the Beard Smokeless Coal Company. This was the Manns Creek Coal Company. Incorporated on September 11th, 1943, this firm was created to develop various strip mines located in Fayette and Raleigh Counties. The first operations of the company were located near Clifftop, West Virginia, in Fayette County on Manns Creek, hence the name of the firm. 1948 was the first year the company operated in Raleigh County, although coal was trucked elsewhere and not shipped by the railroad. On April 14th, 1949, the Virginian Railway's surveying team submitted a schematic outlining the proposed rail spur serving the truck tipple of the Manns Creek Coal Company. Coincidently, in 1949, the Manns Creek Coal Co. began shipping via the Virginian Railway. That year, 23,738 tons of coal were shipped via the railroad while 21,043 tons of coal were shipped by truck. In 1950, 34,498 tons of Sewell seam coal were shipped by the company out of McVey. 1951 was the final year of operation, when 10,838 tons of Beckley seam coal were shipped out of McVey. The company surrendered its charter back to the state on May 10th, 1954. There is a very real chance that the tracks built to serve this operation were eventually repurposed to service the ANFO company explored in the paragraph below.

Although McVey was no longer hosting any sort of coal mining activity, there was still one company receiving rail service as late as 1995. This was Hercules, Incorporated, which operated a transload facility unloading ANFO explosives for large scale industrial mining. This operation existed as early as 1957, with an unloading apparatus located on the old Chesapeake & Ohio. The C&O line to Woodpeck, at one point part of the Raleigh & Southwestern, had long since been abandoned so a short spur was constructed from the Virginian main to the plant. This spur could have already been in existence, having served the truck tipple of the Manns Creek Coal Company. It is unconfirmed that the property was controlled by Hercules for its entire existence, although this company definitely owned the facility in the early 1970s. It is generally believed that the last move on the Piney River Extension was a local run to the Hercules plant in McVey.

Sullivan, WV - MP 25.7

After departing McVey, we reach the community of Sullivan. Named after J. C. Sullivan, prominent coal baron and president of the Sullivan Coal & Coke Co., this town would at one time contain a post office and house more than a thousand people. Although mining ceased early relative to other Winding Gulf coal towns, Sullivan stayed relevant as a headquarters for multiple coal barons in the area, including the aforementioned J. C. Sullivan. Unfortunately, like the story with all coal towns it seems, Sullivan eventually lost its post office and most of its population. 

The first coal enterprise to exist in Sullivan was the aptly named Sullivan Coal & Coke Company. The December 6th, 1906, edition of the Manufacturers' Record reported that the Sullivan Coal & Coke Co. had been incorporated with an authorized capital stock of $100,000. Incorporators were listed as John Anderson, J. A. Wood, J. C. Sullivan, W. S. Wood, W. G. Hubbard, J. F. Brown, and E. W. Knight. One of the earliest coal operators in the Winding Gulf coal field, this was the first of many operations controlled by noted coal barons J. C. Sullivan, and J. A. Wood. Although incorporated in 1906, the first ton of coal wouldn't be extracted until 1909 when the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway's Raleigh & Southwestern line reached the town. That year, 14,149 tons of coal were mined and shipped to market. When the Virginian Railway reached Sullivan a few months later, a short connecting track was constructed to reach the tipple up Take-In Holler. In 1911, the numerous Sullivan mines produced an aggregate total of 104,168 tons of coal. This firm was one of the earliest six figure shippers, however these tonnage numbers were not sustainable. 1916 was the last year when the company shipped upwards of 100,000 tons. In 1920, tonnage had dipped to just 38,082 tons of coal. The February 2nd, 1921, edition of the Coal Trade Journal reported that the Sullivan Coal & Coke Co. had been purchased by the Beckley Fire Creek Coal Company for $225,000. Directors of this new firm were listed as Prince E. Lilly; President, and R. C. Hornbrook; Secretary and Treasurer. Others interested included C. E. Lilly, John R. Hornbrook, T. H. Wickham, J. B. Clifton, and Ashton Fiel. The company was incorporated in 1921 with an authorized capital stock of $500,000. Unfortunately, the Sullivan properties were only operated for two years following the merger. In 1922, the last year of operation, 51,959 tons of coal were processed and shipped. The October 4th, 1923, edition of Coal Age reported that the Beckley Fire Creek Coal Co. had defaulted on its loans and gone bankrupt. However, similar to what had happened with the Beard Smokeless Coal Co. in neighboring McVey, the property of the Beckley Fire Creek Coal Co. was transferred by its creditors to Prince E. Lilly and his Lillybrook Coal Company. The facility was renamed Lillybrook No. 4 and restarted production immediately after exiting bankruptcy. From 1922 to 1925, coal from the Beckley seam that had been explored by both the Sullivan Coal & Coke Co. and the Beard Smokeless Coal Co. was processed and shipped from the No. 4 tipple. In 1922, the first fiscal year of operation under the Lillybrook Coal banner, the Lillybrook No. 4 facility produced 33,820 tons of coal. It should be noted that the Lillybrook Coal Co. was a subsidiary of the Raleigh Smokeless Fuel Company; this firm also served as the sales agent for the Lillybrook mines. The June 24th, 1925, edition of the Coal Trade Journal reported that the Lillybrook No. 4 deep shaft had been completed, reaching the valuable Fire Creek seam. Due to this investment, production surged in 1926, when 128,533 tons of coal were processed and shipped to market. The Lillybrook No. 4 operation would consistently post six digit tonnage numbers until 1932, when the mine closed. It appears that although the Lillybrook No. 4 Mine was no longer producing after 1932, coal continued to be shipped from the Sullivan tipple as late as 1934. In 1935, coal mining returned to Sullivan when the E. W. Meadows Coal Company opened the Meadows No. 1 Mine in the Beckley Seam. It is likely that coal was loaded at the old Lillybrook No. 4 tipple though this is not confirmed. This operation was rather small, producing 9,545 tons the first year of operation. The mine was only open a few years, shutting down for the final time in 1939.

Another mining firm that operated in the vicinity of Sullivan was the Beckley Vein Coal Company. Operated may not be the accurate term, as it appears that this firm may have never actually shipped any coal. However, enough sources exist covering this company, so I will include it regardless. The May 10th, 1917, edition of the Manufacturers' Record reported that the Beckley Vein Coal Co. had been incorporated with an authorized capital stock of $75,000. Incorporators were listed as James Halstead, Columbus M. Ward, Adney C. Sutphin, Joe L. Smith and G. C. Hedrick. It appears this company was controlled by the interests of W. E. Deegans, noted coal baron from Logan County. On July 31th, 1917, the surveying department of the Virginian Railway submitted a schematic illustrating the spur track needed to serve the tipple of the Beckley Vein Coal Company. It is likely that if this company did ever exist, it was served by both the Chesapeake & Ohio and Virginian. Although there are records of mine examinations occurring on the property, there are not any tonnage numbers relating to this company in the records. It is likely that the property was absorbed by Prince E. Lilly and the Lillybrook Coal Company, though this is not confirmed.

Wood Peck, WV - MP 26.6

Once through Sullivan, we enter into the community of Wood Peck. the name for this town is derived from the Wood Peck Coal Company which operated nearby. Wood Peck was the terminus for the Chesapeake & Ohio's Raleigh & Southwestern line. Although Wood Peck continues to show on modern maps, there appears to be one singular house in the vicinity of this ghost town. Interestingly, a small mining community known as Wiley, named after coal baron Lawrence Wiley, existed adjacent to Wood Peck, This town was eventually absorbed into Wood Peck.

One of the first coal companies to open on the entire Piney Creek Extension in Wood Peck was the Wood Peck Coal Company. The July 7th, 1910, edition of the Manufacturers' Record reported that the Wood Peck Coal Co. had been incorporated with an authorized capital stock of $35,000. Incorporators were listed as J. A. Wood, W. W. Koiner, G. G. Wood, L. M. Peck and Edward Hope. The same July 7th article reported that along with coal development, the Wood Peck Coal Co. was looking to establish a sawmill to harvest the surrounding timber. The first year of operation, the Wood Peck mine churned out 7,725 tons of coal. The first few years of operation, all coal from this mine was shipped by the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway. The 1915 edition of the Coal Field Directory reported that the directors of the Wood Peck Coal Co. were as follows: W. W. Koiner; President, Fred G. Wood; Treasurer, General Manager, Purchasing Agent, and Mining Engineer, R. L. Crews; Mine Superintendent, and William McClanahan; Store Manager. The August 30th, 1917, edition of the Raleigh Register newspaper reported that the Wood Peck Coal Co. was operating on 100 acres of coal rich land, producing about 250 tons of coal per day. The directors of the firm were listed as R. C. Jeffreds; President, J. D. Duval; Vice President and Secretary, W. W. Koiner; Treasurer and General Manager, R. L. Crews; Foreman. The June 24th, 1922, edition of the Black Diamond reported that the Wood Peck Coal Co. was actively working the Beckley seam, producing approximately 350 tons of coal per day. The article reports that 4,700 tons of coal had been produced solely in the month of January, 1922. By that date, the Wood Peck mine had produced an excess of 365,000 tons of coal. 28,615 tons of coal were processed and shipped in 1926, the last independent year for the Wood Peck Coal Co. In 1927, the property was purchased by the C. B. B. Smokeless Coal Company, a subsidiary of the Massachusetts Gas Companies. The Wood Peck operation was consolidated with the former Pemberton Fuel Co. operation in Pemberton to the north. Thus, the Wood Peck mine was renamed Pemberton No. 2. In the first year of operation under the C. B. B. Smokeless banner, 19,217 tons of coal were produced. Operations remained stable for the next couple of years, although the property only eclipsed 100,000 tons once, in 1929. From here on out, the ownership history of the Wood Peck property closely aligns with the history of the Pemberton Fuel Co. property to the north. In 1934, the Pemberton No. 2 mine was transfered to the Koppers Coal & Transportation Company. In 1935, the facility was once again transferred, this time to the Koppers Coal Company. Tonnage numbers were consolidated with the Pemberton No. 1 mine until 1938, when the Pemberton No. 1 mine closed. With this closure, Koppers Coal Co. decided to sell the Pemberton No. 2 mine. This mine had never been a major producer anyway. In 1939, the mine, tipple, and other adjacent properties were sold to the E. W. Meadows Coal Company. This firm had recently exhausted its holdings at the former Lillybrook No. 4 operation in Sullivan and was looking to expand operations further along Piney Creek. The first year under the E. W. Meadows flag, a mere 4,254 tons were shipped to market. Up until the end of operation, All coal produced by the E. W. Meadows Coal Co. in Wood Peck would be shipped by the Chesapeake & Ohio. With the Meadows No. 2 mine's eventual closure in 1942, the C&O decided to abandoned the 2.03 mile Wood Peck to Sullivan segment of their Raleigh & Southwestern line. With the closure of this mine, no other coal would ever be shipped out of Wood Peck again.

The other coal operator to ship coal out of Wood Peck was the Piney Creek Coal Company. Although I haven't been able to find any notice of incorporation in any magazines from the time, the company's first year of operation was 1918. That year, 20,178 tons of coal were produced. The Virginian Railway surveying team submitted a proposal for a mine track serving the tipple of the Piney Creek Coal Co. on September 29th, 1919. The official shipping point for this firm was known as Wiley, named after Lawrence Wiley, a major stockholder in the company. The 1920 edition of the Coal Field Directory repored that the directors of the company were as follows: H. C. Duncan Jr.; President, E. J. Adams; Vice President, G. J. Dickerson; Treasurer, M. M. Tyree; General Manager, General Superintendent, Purchasing Agent, Mining Engineer, and Sales Agent. Unlike the rest of the coal operations we have explored so far, the Piney Creek Coal Co. exclusively shipped via one railroad, that being the Virginian Railway. Like the Wood Peck Coal Co. which operated across the creek, the Piney Creek Coal Co. was never a high yielding operation. 1918, the first year of operation, would end up being the company's most productive year. 3,117 tons of coal were produced in 1924, the company's final year of operation. The August 6th, 1925, edition of Coal Age reported that the Piney Creek Coal Co. had officially filed for dissolution with the West Virginia secretary of state. Nothing survives of Wiley today.

Abney, WV - MP 27.6

After clearing Wood Peck, we approach the small hamlet of Abney. Originally named Phillips after a director of the Pemberton Coal & Coke Company, Abney was organized differently than most company towns. While the mine and tipple were in the valley adjacent to Piney Creek, the town itself was built at the top of the valley on a mountain outcrop. This small cluster of homes continues to exist into the modern day, housing people in many of the original company homes.

The first coal enterprise to operate in Abney was the Boone Smokeless Coal Company. The October 14th, 1915, edition of the Manufacturers' Record reported that the Boone Smokeless Coal Co. had been incorporated with an authorized capital stock of $75,000. Incorporators were listed as J. A. Boone, Tola A. Boone, Thomas A. Boone, Wheeler Boone, and C. W. Dillon. The May 26th, 1917, edition of Coal Age reported that Boone Smokeless Coal Co. was actively developing 500 acres of coal rich lands. The 1920 edition of the Coal Field Directory reported that the directors of the company were as follows: J. A. Boone; President and Treasurer, Thomas Boone; Vice President, Daniel Boone; General Manager, General Superintendent, and Purchasing Agent. This same document reported that 1,900 tons of coal were produced by the company's Boone No. 1 Mine in 1919. For whatever reason, no tonnage numbers were ever reported to the West Virginia Department of Mines from this company. This could have been because in 1920, as reported in the November 20th, 1920, edition of Saward's Journal, the assets of the Boone Smokeless Coal Co. were purchased by J. C. Sullivan and Prince E. Lilly. The property was thus transferred to Lilly's Pemberton Coal & Coke Company which operated at Affinity across the mountain. With this transfer, the Boone No. 1 Mine was renamed the Phillips Mine after W. A. Phillips, the president of the Pemberton Coal & Coke Co. For whatever reason, tonnage from all the mines operated by the Pemberton Coal & Coke Co. were always reported together by the West Virginia Department of Mines. This included the Big Stick, Affinity, Wat-Wise, and Phillips mines. Three tipples were operated by the company, one at Big Stick, another at Affinity, and finally the one focused on here at Abney. A steel tipple was built for the Wat-Wise Mine later in 1922. At the end of that fiscal year, the total tonnage from all four of these mines was reported as 257,352 tons of coal. The June 24th, 1922, edition of the Black Diamond reported that the Phillips Mine had produced an average annual tonnage of 120,000 tons since being purchased. This averaged out to about eight hopper cars loaded daily. 1926 was the final year the Phillips mine was listed an independent producer. It is likely that the mine was combined with the Affinity mine which bordered the acreage to the west. With mining operations consolidated with Affinity, the tipple at Abney was likely decommissioned and abandoned. This wouldn't be the last time coal would be shipped out of Abney. On September 5th, 1944, the Virginian Railway surveying team submitted a proposal seeking to construct new mine tracks at Abney. This trackage was planed to serve the new Lillybrook Coal Company Big Stick No. 2 operation. Mining in the Beckley Seam, this operation shipped its first ton of coal in 1944. In the 1945 fiscal year, 71,854 tons of coal were shipped out of Abney by way of the Virginian. Tonnage reports from this mine were consolidated with the output of the Lillybrook Coal Co. Ragland operation in Pemberton beginning in 1949. Both mines operated in the Beckley Seam although they shipped from different tipples. In 1951, a combined 80,629 tons of coal were shipped out of Big Stick No. 2 and Ragland. Unfortunately, the mine and tipple were temporarily closed in 1953. They were never reopened. The tipple was still standing in 1958, although from the aerial image it is apparent that no activity had occurred at the facility in quite some time. On September 22nd, 1959, the Virginian Railway officially retired the spur tracks at the plant.

Whitby, WV - MP 28.8

Once we pass through Abney, we enter the community of Whitby. One of the larger coal towns on the Piney Creek Extension, Whitby featured one of the most productive coal mines in the area. Before officially becoming Whitby, this location was known as Stahl, after C. R. Stahl, Vice President of the Bowyer Smokeless Coal Company. Stahl was later known as Bowyer after Bowyer Creek which splits from Piney Creek in the community. On December 26th, 1918, an application was submitted to the United States Post Office requesting the name of Whitby be made official for the town. There is a great website compiled by a Whitby local that covers the town's history in great detail. It can be found here. It should be mentioned that the actual town of Whitby was accessed via a short spur that diverged from the mainline just west of town. This spur served the two coal tipples explored below.

The first coal operation in Whitby was the Bowyer Smokeless Coal Company. The December 9th, 1916, edition of the Black Diamond reported that the Bowyer Smokeless Coal Co. had been incorporated with an authorized capital stock of $125,000. Incorporators were listed as L. J. Bumgardner, C. R. Stahl, E. B. Wray, A. C. Stahl, and R. F. Roth. This was planned to be a larger operation, with 1,200 acres leased from the Beaver Coal Company. The official lease was signed on March 10th, 1917. It should be noted that the Beaver Coal Co. was a land leasing company and didn't involve itself in mining. The company only produced 750 tons in 1917 but in 1918, 27,807 tons of coal were produced. The 1921 edition of the Coal Field Directory reported that the directors of the company were as follows: J. L. Bumgardner; President, C. R. Stahl; Vice President, R. F. Roth; Treasurer, J. E. Virgin; General Superintendent and Purchasing Agent, E. M. Merrill; Engineering Manager. The June 21st, 1922, edition of the Coal Review reported that the Bowyer Smokeless Coal Co. had been purchased by the Spencer Fork Coal Company. W. H. Ruby was listed as the driving force behind this acquisition. With this corporate transfer, Ruby and his associates allocated $50,000 to upgrade infrastructure at the plant. In 1923, 42,802 tons of coal were shipped from the Spencer Fork Coal Co.'s Bowyer properties. In 1925, the Spencer Fork Coal Co.'s last year of independent operation, only 33,836 tons of coal were processed and shipped to market. However, mining activity only ceased temporarily. In 1927, a new enterprise, known as the Sterling Smokeless Coal Company, opened the Sterling mine in the Fire Creek coal seam. This mine operated on the same property once explored by the Spencer Fork Coal Co. and the Bowyer Smokeless Coal Co. The first year of operation, the Sterling mine produced 72,713 tons of coal. This mine would end up being one of the largest single producers on the Piney Creek Extension. 1929 was the first year production eclipsed 100,000, with a total of 132,008 tons of coal shipped. The Sterling mine averaged upwards of 100,000 tons of coal produced for almost three decades. In 1960, the Sterling Smokeless Coal Co. divested of the Sterling mine after only producing 31,614 tons. Local landowners Robert Saye Sr. and Frieda Borne Saye purchased the Sterling mine, continuing to operate it until January of 1969. The mine operated under the company name R & F Coal Company. On December 13th, 1963, the original Sterling Smokeless Coal Co. tipple burned down, resulting in a total loss. A new tipple was constructed by the company, opening in May of 1964. During the 1950s and the 1960s, the Sterling Smokeless Coal Co. began shipping contractor, auger, and surface coal via the Whitby tipple. However, in 1966, the No. 10 mine opened, churning out 53,790 tons of coal in its inaugural year. This mine exploited the Pocahontas No. 4 seam. In 1974, the Sterling Smokeless Coal Co. opened another mine, also in the Pocahontas No. 4 seam. This was the No. 12 mine and would be the final producing mine for the company. In 1975, the No. 10 mine produced 108,027 tons of coal while the No. 12 mine produced 88,243 tons of coal. In the early 1980s, the writing was on the wall for this operation. At this point, it was officially the last coal shipper on the Piney Creek Extension. In 1980, the No. 10 mine closed after producing 21,646 tons of coal. The following year, the No. 12 mine closed after producing 44,222 tons of coal. The final shipment out of the Sterling Smokeless Coal Co. Whitby tipple was in January of 1982. After that date, the plant closed and today, all of the land has been reclaimed.

Although the Sterling Smokeless Coal Company was the dominating producer in Whitby, another, much smaller firm, shipped out of the town. Known as the Juliette Coal Company, information about this company is hard to find, as it probably only operated for a few years. The firm is noted as being owned by Juliette C. Margiotti. On October 31st, 1946, the surveying team for the Virginian Railway officially submitted a proposal for the construction of a spur track at Whitby to serve the Juliette Coal Co. This track was added on to the already existing tipple tracks of the Sterling Smokeless Coal Company. In 1947, 21,320 tons of Beckley seam coal were shipped from the truck tipple of the firm. It should be noted that this operation was listed in the Virginian Railway's 1948 directory of mines. That year, 56,049 tons of coal were mined and shipped by the Juliette Coal Company. After 1948, no further tonnage reports exist in regards to this company, so it is likely that the firm moved on to other holdings in other counties.

Battleship, WV - MP 29.4

South of Whitby, we enter into the interestingly named community of Battleship. This town was named after the Battleship Coal Company which operated nearby. For whatever reason, the tipple for this firm was located closer to Jonben, but for the sake of this presentation, I've included the history of this operation in this section. Like many company towns, when the Battleship Coal Co. sold out, the purchasing firm renamed Battleship to actively reflect the change in ownership. The new operator was the Raleigh Fire Creek Coal Company, one of the many firms controlled by J. C. Sullivan and his associates. The new ownership renamed Battleship to Ralco, which is how some people still refer to the town. However, on popular applications like Google Maps, the community is still labeled as Battleship.

The first mining operation in the vicinity of Battleship was the aptly named Battleship Coal Company. The March 9th, 1918, edition of Coal Age reported that the Battleship Coal Co. had been incorporated with an authorized capital stock of $150,000. Incorporators were listed as H. E. Hines; President, T. B. Beckwith; Vice President, and T. M. Fry; Secretary and Treasurer. The company was actively developing 500 acres of coal rich lands in the Jonben area, north of Fireco. Coal from the revered Fire Creek seam was to be mined by the firm. The 1920 edition of The Coal Catalog reported that the directors of the Battleship Coal Co. were as follows: H. E. Hines; President, General Manager, and Purchasing Agent, T. B. Beckwith; Vice President, T. M. Fry; Treasurer, and J. M. Hines; General Superintendent. In 1919, the first year of production, the Battleship Mine produced 7,500 tons of coal. The company operated independently for only a short time, being purchased in late 1920 by coal barons Prince E. Lilly and J. C. Sullivan. The Battleship property had never turned a profit under Hines, prompting the sale of the underdeveloped, but promising, operation. Two other nearby coal firms were included in this deal, the Sullivan Coal & Coke Company and the Hines Colliery Company. Lilly got the Sullivan Coal & Coke Co. while Sullivan got the Hines Colliery Co. and the Battleship Coal Co. Coinciding with the leadership change, the Battleship Coal Co. was renamed the Raleigh Fire Creek Coal Company. The community of Battleship was temporarily renamed Ralco to stay consistent with this change. This firm had been incorporated on December 24th, 1920, with an authorized capital stock of $1,500,000. Incorporators were listed as J. C. Sullivan, J. A. Wood, K. S. McClanahan, J. B. Frank, and F. J. Flanagan. The first year under the Raleigh Fire Creek Coal Co. banner, 13,286 tons of coal were produced. By 1925, another tipple had opened north of Battleship, known as Raleigh Fire Creek No. 2. Not much information regarding this plant has surfaced, but it is likely it processed coal from the same mine as the original tipple near Jonben. I guess the mine had gotten so big, it necessitated the construction of another tipple to limit travel time from one end of the mine to the other. J. C. Sullivan began consolidating many of his holdings in 1924, when the Sullivan Pocahontas Coal Company was established as a holding company for his many assets. The Raleigh Fire Creek Coal Co. was one such company included in this consolidation. In 1925, 67,572 tons of coal were processed and shipped from the Raleigh Fire Creek Coal Co.'s two tipples. The February 2nd, 1928, edition of the Manufacturers' Record reported that the assets of the Sullivan Pocahontas Coal Co., including the Raleigh Fire Creek Coal Co., had been purchased by George W. Hinkley, an invester from New York City. This transaction was made because J. C. Sullivan's empire had collapsed, forcing him to sell his assets to pay back debtors. Hinkley and his investment firm, Marshall, Wells, & Hinkley, formed a new company to operate the Raleigh Fire Creek Coal Co. and all other former Sullivan assets. This new firm was named the Comago Smokeless Fuel Company. The first year of operation under the Comago Smokeless Fuel Co. banner, 115,517 tons of coal were mined and shipped from the firm's two tipples. The 1930 edition of Moody's Industrial Manual reported that the Comago Smokeless Fule Co.'s Ralco Mine had been leased to the Douglas Coal Company. That year, 175,565 tons of coal were shipped out of the Ralco Mine under the Douglas Coal Co. banner. Even with tonnage totals nearing 200,000 annually, 1931 would be the final year for the Ralco Mine. That year, the Douglas Coal Co., which still controlled the lease, mined and shipped 152,717 tons of coal. The 1936 edition of Moody's Industrial Manual reported that, in a letter date July 12th, 1932, the Comago Smokeless Fuel Co.'s sublease of the Ralco property had not been renewed, ending operations after over twenty years of constant activity. Thus, the property was transferred back to the Beaver Coal Company, with all mining activity eventually reclaimed.

Hunter, WV - MP 

Battleship, the last town we visited on our little tour of the Piney Creek Extension, was an important junction on the line. The mainline, which continues down to Willibet, branches south, while the Bowyer Creek Branch, also known as the "Burma Road". branches east. Before venturing down the rest of the way to Willibet, I'd like to take a detour down the Burma Road. The first stop on our tour is the community of Hunter. A coal town in all the sense of the word, Hunter existed because of the Hunter No. 3 mine which operated nearby. This mine takes its name from Hunter Smith who owned property in the area.

The first operator shipping coal out of Hunter was the Standard Fire Creek Coal Company. This firm traces its origins to the Beelick Coal Company which operated near Meadow Bridge, West Virginia, in nearby Fayette County. The Standard Fire Creek Coal Co. expanded into Raleigh County in 1948 when the firm purchased the assets of the Fire Creek Fuel Company located in Jonben. Along with this purchase, On March 1st, 1948, the Standard Fire Creek Coal Co. purchased a large lease from the Beaver Coal Company alongside Bowyer Creek. This gave the firm one of the largest leases on Piney Creek. That same year, the Virginian Railway completed construction of the Bowyer Creek Branch down to the Beckley Smokeless Coal Company's Burma mine. On June 22nd, 1948, the Virginian Railway surveying team submitted a schematic illustrating the to be constructed mine tracks serving the Standard Fire Creek Coal Co.'s Hunter No. 3 mine located about two miles down the branch. The tracks were completed soon after and coal began shipping out of Hunter almost immediately. Interestingly enough, unlike a lot of coal companies who shipped to multiple customers, the Standard Fire Creek Coal Co. only ever shipped to one. The receiver of all Standard Fire Creek coal was the Republic Steel Corporation. Mines like Standard Fire Creek's Hunter No. 3 facility are known as "Captive" mines. There were a few other captive mines located in Raleigh County, the largest of which operated out of Montcoal and was owned by Armco Steel. The January 8th, 1948, edition of Iron Age reported that the aforementioned Republic Steel Corp, had officially purchased the Standard Fire Creek Coal Company a few days prior. In 1948, the first year of operation at Hunter, Standard Fire Creek's Hunter No. 3 and Hunter No. 2 mines produced a total of 31,628 tons of coal. It should be noted that the Hunter No. 2 mine shipped out of Jonben and will be explored in detail on the following page. All coal shipped out of Hunter was extracted from the Hunter No. 3 mine. In 1951, the first year tonnage from the Hunter No. 3 mine was reported independently, the facility produced 171,042 tons of coal. 1954 was the final year the mine operated under the Standard Fire Creek Coal Co. banner, with 37,437 tons of coal produced. After an apparent idle year in 1955, operations resumed under the Republic Steel Corporation name. In 1956, 68,344 tons of coal were produced at the Hunter No. 3 complex. Production remained relatively stable into the 1960s, when in 1961, the mine was transferred to the Smith & Stover Coal Company. This firm had operated the nearby Burma mine since 1955. The 1963 edition of the Keystone Coal Buyers Manual included a robust summary of the Hunter No. 3 property. During that year, K. W. Smith was the superintendent and Jesse Jones was the main foreman. K. W. Smith was also the secretary of the Smith & Stover Coal Co. with relative Hunter Smith as president. O. L. Stover was vice president of the firm, completing the name of the company. The Hunter No. 3 mine itself was operating in a 30" section of the Pocahontas No. 4 seam, averaging approximately 300 tons a day. 30 men were employed at the facility, and the mine was estimated to play out sometime in the next two years. This prediction was accurate as the following year after the publishing of this directory, the Hunter No. 3 mine produced 5,112 tons of coal before shutting down. With the closure of the mine, the Hunter No. 3 tipple closed, ending shipments at Hunter permanently. The tipple was still standing in 1967, but was gone by 1986.

Trico, WV - MP 

Less than a mile passed Hunter, we enter the coal village of Trico. Throughout my research, I have been unable to find the origin for this name, though I do know that Trico and Burma were named by the same individual. No major coal companies existed here, though a number of small strip mining operations shipped out of Trico. Today, nothing remains, not even the town name.

There are two small town operations known to have operated out of Trico. One of these companies was the H. C. M. Smokeless Coal Company. Preparations for the installment of tracks serving this firm were in the works soon after the Bowyer Creek Branch was completed in 1947. On October 6th, 1947, the Virginian Railway's surveying team submitted a proposal for the construction of a short spur serving the truck loadout of the H. C. M. Smokeless Coal Co. in Trico. On January 15th, 1948, the proposal was accepted and the greenlight was given for the construction of the short spur serving the new coal plant. This facility was built 2.15 miles east of Bowyer Creek Junction. In 1948, the only year tonnage was reported by the H. C. M. Smokeless Coal Co., 7,121 tons of coal were mined and shipped. No tonnage reports exist after this date, so the company presumably sold out or exhausted their holdings. 

The other coal mining firm that shipped out of Trico was the Fort Mason Coal Company. 2,501 tons of coal were mined from the company's strip mines and shipped out of Trico in 1951. This was the only year tonnage was reported by the company. However, the Fort Mason Coal Co. is mentioned in the 1948 edition of the Virginian Railway's directory of mines. I also found a preserved mine map outlining the lease of the Fort Mason Coal Co. dating from 1948. Many strip mines that operated on the Bowyer Creek Branch only operated a few years before their small lease was exhausted. The Fort Mason Coal Co. operated on land owned by Hunter Smith who was president of the Smith & Stover Coal Company. The spur to both the Fort Mason Coal Co.'s and the H. C. M. Smokeless Coal Co.'s truck loadouts were still in existence by 1958. The spur was not visible by 1967 and had presumably been removed.

Burma, WV - MP 

Once we pass through Trico, we reach the final point of interest on the Bowyer Creek Branch, the community of Burma. Burma was probably named after the Burma Smokeless Coal Company which operated strip mines in the area. Burma was the most productive location of any of the Bowyer Creek locations, shipping coal into the 1980s. Like Hunter and Trico, nothing remains of Burma today. The history of Burma is very similar to that of Trico, as both communities existed on land owned by Hunter Smith.

Only one underground mine ever shipped out of Burma, this was the Burma mine of the Beckley Smokeless Coal Company. This company had a long time relationship with the Virginian Railway, having been shipping coal via the railroad since 1917. The company originally shipped out of Besoco, West Virginia, on the Stone Coal Branch. The Burma mine was one of, if not the first, underground mine to ship on the Bowyer Creek Branch. On May 29th, 1947, the Virginian Railway surveying team submitted a proposal for the construction of mine tracks serving the Beckley Smokeless Coal Co.'s Burma tipple at the end of the Bowyer Creek Branch. Beckley seam coal from the mine was shipped out of the facility soon after the tracks were completed. A total of 7,727 tons of coal were shipped that fiscal year. The mine only operated for two years under the Beckley Smokeless Coal Co. banner. In 1948, the final year of operation before being idled, the Burma mine produced 44,621 tons of coal. I'm not sure what happened to the property between 1949 and 1954, though it is possible that the Burma tipple was processing coal from the many strip mines operating along Bowyer Creek. No tonnage reports exist under any company regarding the Burma mine until 1955. That year, the facility came under the ownership of the Smith & Stover Coal Company. This firm was controlled by Hunter Smith, a major landowner in the area and the namesake of the Hunter No. 3 mine operating just west of Burma. In 1955, 46,937 tons of coal were extracted from the Burma mine. The mine was not a large producer, never reporting tonnage numbers above 100,000. The most productive year was 1957, when 63,127 tons of coal were mined and shipped. 1963 was the last year the mine produced coal from the Beckley seam. In 1964, 52,384 tons of coal were extracted from the Pocahontas No. 2 seam. In 1965, the last gasp of the Burma mine, 7,490 tons of coal were mined and shipped from the Pocahontas No. 4 seam. That year, the Burma mine closed down, though mining wasn't quite finished on Bowyer Creek. The following year, the new Burma slope mine and respective tipple opened, producing 150,838 tons of coal. This mine would become the most productive operation on the Bowyer Creek Branch. In 1970, the mine produced 107,781 tons of coal. This was the last year the mine churned out more than 100,000 tons of coal. The mine consistently shipped upwards of 60,000 tons until 1982, when the mine finally closed after producing 26,705 tons of coal. It should be noted that in 1981, the Smith & Stover Coal Co. processed coal from at least two contractors. These firms were the RAL Coal Company and the Vandalia Mining Company. These company's only operated for a few years, with the RAL Coal Co. closing the following year and the Vandalia Mining Co. not surviving beyond 1981. Back to the Burma mine, the tipple was still standing in 1986, but was demolished sometime before 1996. Today, little remains of the operation, though the ruins of the slope conveyer still exist.

three tenths of a mile east of the original Beckley Smokeless Burma tipple, the Burma Smokeless Coal Company operated a small truck tipple loading coal from strip mines. It is likely this was the first company to operate out of Burma, being the namesake of the community. That being said, no tonnage reports exist in the archives of the West Virginia Department of Mines regarding this company. I was able to find a preserved mine map showing the holdings of the firm dating from 1948. The company is also listed as an active shipper in the 1948 edition of the Virginian Railway's directory of mines. Interestingly, records exist showing that the Burma Smokeless Coal Co. also operated strip mines around Terry, West Virginia. In one preserved map, the company is regarded as a contractor. Thus, operations could have centered around another aspect of coal mining, not operating the mine itself. This is unconfirmed, though as mentioned, no annual tonnage records exist for this firm. It is likely the company was no longer operating in the Burma area sometime during the early 1950s.

One tenth of a mile east of the Burma Smokeless Coal Co.'s truck tipple, Gunter Luney operated a small truck tipple exploiting various strip mines in the area. There wasn't much information I was able to find regarding this operation, though I was able to find one reference to Luney's coal facilities, that being a map of a strip mine operated by his firm that existed in Fayette County. Again, similar to the Burma Smokeless Coal Co., it is likely Gunter Luney was a small town strip mine contractor operating on behalf of Hunter Smith. Like the aforementioned company, Gunter Luney is mentioned in the 1948 directory of mines for the Virginian Railway. No tonnage reports for this operation appear to exist in the records of the West Virginia Department of Mines. Similar to the other strip mine operations on this page, Gunter Luney's operation presumably shut down sometime during the early 1950s.

Continuing to inch closer to the end of the Bowyer Creek Branch, one tenth of a mile beyond the operations of Gunter Luney, the Homer R. Curtis Coal Company had a tipple shipping strip mined coal. Another short term strip mining operation, there were a lot in the Burma area, the Homer R. Curtis Coal Co. operated at least one strip mine in the Ghent, West Virginia, just east of Burma. Mine No. 1 operated in the Sewell seam and was a surface stripping operation. Unfortunately, like many of the other stripping operations near Burma, the Homer R. Curtis Coal Co. does not appear in any of the records of the West Virginia Department of Mines. The company does exist in the 1948 edition of the Virginian Railway's directory of mines. A number of coal maps relating to this firm have also survived. The company is noted as having operated a second mine, also in Ghent, mining coal from the Beckley seam. Like many of the other strip mining operations in Burma, the company presumably winded down operations in the early 1950s.

Heading back west to the Burma tipple of the Beckley Smokeless Coal Co., the first coal stripping truck tipple to the east of the facility was owned by the Ted J. Lilly Construction Company. This tipple existed about a tenth of a mile east of the original Burma tipple. Thankfully, the Ted J. Lilly Construction Co. is well represented in the records of the West Virginia Department of Mines. 1946 was the first operating year for the company, with 16,105 tons produced at the firm's strip mines. Note that this was before the opening of the Bowyer Creek Branch, it is likely this coal was either stockpiled or shipped to the Hunter No. 2 tipple in Jonben for transport. Like many of the other Burma stripping operations, the Ted J. Lilly Construction Co. operated on a lease purchased from Hunter Smith. In 1947, 5,232 tons of coal were extracted from the Sewell seam contained in the land lease of the firm. Many of the Burma stripping operations mined coal from the Sewell seam as it was geographically located nearest to the surface of the mountains held in each respective lease. In 1948, only 816 tons of coal were shipped by the Ted J. Lilly Construction Company. Interestingly, it appears that by 1948, Ted Lilly took on a partner, that being F. H. Lynch. Lynch's name is featured alongside Lilly's name in the 1948 edition of the West Virginia Department of Mines annual report. No further reports regarding Ted J. Lilly or F. H. Lynch exist, so it is likely their lease was returned to Smith, ending operations.

One tenth of a mile east of the operation of Ted J. Lilly, and one tenth of a mile west of the Burma Smokeless Coal Company, existed the tipple of the Marietta Coal Company. This was the sister operation of the Juliette Coal Company operating in nearby Whitby. Although no tonnage reports exist for this company, it is likely any coal produced by this firm was reported under the Juliette Coal Co. name. Like the rest of the companies mentioned on this page, the Marietta Coal Co. was included in the 1948 edition of the Virginian Railway's directory of mines. It is likely that the strip mines exploited by the Marietta Coal Co. played out sometime in the early 1950s. One thing that should be mentioned in regards to the Marietta Coal Co. and the rest of the strip mine operators included on this page, is that these operations may have shipped their coal via the actual Burma tipple instead of from their own facilities. This would explain the odd production gap of the Burma tipple, where no coal was shipped between 1949 and 1954. This five year period was when the majority of the strip mine operators existed. I do not have confirmation for this, but it is a possibility.

Jonben, WV - MP 29.9

Returning back to the Piney Creek Extension mainline, the next town heading south beyond Battleship is the community of Jonben. Jonben was originally known as Bacontown after the Bacontown Coal Company which operated nearby. Jonben is named after two early settlers in the area, John Tolley and Benjamin Meadows. Tolley Road, one of the many country trails up the holler, aludes to this fact. Unlike a good number of coal towns on Piney Creek, Jonben continues to exist, with the community hosting a number of families and a small church.

The first coal operation to be built in the vicinity of Jonben was the Bacontown Coal Company. Although I was unable to discover a report covering the incorporation of this company, it is likely the firm was organized in mid to late 1917. Like many of the Piney Creek coal operations, this company was controlled by Prince E. Lilly and his associates. Lilly's son, C. E. Lilly, is noted as the president of the firm during its inception. On November 12th, 1917, the Virginian Railway officially submitted a schematic of the mine track layout serving the tipple of the Bacontown Coal Company. Interestingly, although a mine was developed, no tonnage reports regarding this company exist in the records of the West Virginia Department of Mines. The June 8th, 1918, edition of The Chronicle reported that the Bacontown Coal Co. was actively developing land on Piney Creek. Of note, two other relevant coal enterprises are listed in this report, those being the Hines Colliery Company of Battleship and the Piney Fire Creek Coal Company of Willibet. The Hines Colliery Co. existed adjacent to the Battleship Coal Co., with the property of both firms consolidated soon after the Hines Colliery Co.'s creation. The 1920 edition of the Coal Field Directory lists the directors of the Bacontown Coal Co. as follows: C. M. Lilly; President, General Manager, and General Superintendent, W. R. Gray; Vice President, W. I. Smith; Treasurer and Purchasing Agent, and N. P. Rhinehart; Mining Engineer. Note that many of these executives were the same people that controlled the High Knob Coal Company explored in detail below. The May 15th, 1920 edition of the Black Diamond reported that, around May 1st of that year, the Bacontown Coal Co. and the High Knob Coal Co. had been purchased by John W. Wilson and J. B. Clifton. Both men were influential coal barons, with Wilson involved with the Gulf Smokeless group in Tams, and Clifton head of the Raleigh Smokeless Fuel Company. The two men consolidated both properties under a new firm, known as the Wilton Smokeless Coal Company. Wilton being an amalgamation of John W. Wilson and J. B, Clifton. For this new firm, Wilson was elected president while Clifton served as the vice president. $350,000 of capital was raised to support the Wilton Smokeless Coal Company. 700 acres of coal rich lands were included in this purchase, being the combined acreage of the two predecessor companies. The June 24th, 1922, edition of The Black Diamond reported that the Bacontown mines of the Wilton Smokeless Coal Co. had been loading between five and six cars per day. Interestingly, according to a 1922 map covering the various coal shipment locations scattered throughout West Virginia, there are two tipples noted as being in active operation by the Wilton Smokeless Coal Company. It appears the No. 1 tipple loaded coal from the Bacontown mine while the No. 2 operation loaded coal from the planned High Knob Coal Co., which is explored in more depth below. It does not seem like the No. 2 tipple was in operation for more than a few years and was not operating prior to 1922. 1925 was the company's most productive year, when 106,704 tons coal were mined and shipped. The 1926 edition of the Coal Field Directory lists the directors of the firm as follows: J. B. Clifton; President, C. H. Meador; Vice President, H. R. Tribou; Treasurer, W. H. Ruby; General Manager, General Superintendent, and Purchasing Agent, and O. L. Collier; Mining Engineer. John W. Wilson was no longer listed as a director because he had passed away a few months earlier from an apparent heart attack. 8,482 tons of coal were shipped from the Wilton Smokeless Coal Co. in April of 1926. The total tonnage reported for that year was 84,517 tons. This was the last year the property was operated by the Wilton Smokeless Coal Company, although the plant continued to show up in the Coal Field Directory until at least 1928. After 1926, the property was apparently idled for four years, until being reopened by a new firm in 1930. That year, the Smith Smokeless Coal Company opened their new mine, named Piney Dale. This was a small drift mine operation, never producing more than 8,600 tons of coal. The general superintendent of this operation was Frank P. Smith, relative of Hunter Smith who would come to control the property in the coming years. 1936 was the last year the Piney Dale mine operated, producing a measly 1,548 tons of coal. Interestingly, beginning in 1935, it appears that two separate, though related companies, shipped out of Jonben, possibly via the same tipple. This other company that operated in tandem with the Smith Smokeless Coal Co. was the Conway Fire Creek Coal Company. This firm was run by the venerable Hunter Smith who would dominate coal mining in the Jonben area for the next several decades. In 1935, the Hunter No. 1 mine of the Conway Fire Creek Coal Co. produced 10,384 tons of coal. For some reason, the 1934 edition of the West Virginia Department of Mines lists the Conway Fire Creek Coal Co.'s Hunter No. 1 mine as a truck mine, although no tonnage is reported. In 1935, the first year tonnage is reported in the records, the Hunter No. 1 mine is listed as railroad served. By 1937, the Smith Smokeless Coal Co.'s Piney Dale mine had closed, but the Conway Fire Creek Coal Co. was operating full steam ahead. That year, the Hunter No. 1 mine shipped 17,720 tons of coal. Tonnage was down when compared to the 1936 total of 23,098 tons because the property was sold to a new firm halfway through the fiscal year. This new company was the Fire Creek Fuel Company. This enterprise had an existing mining facility in nearby Fayette County close the community of Meadow Bridge. In 1938, the Fire Creek Fuel Co. opened a new mine, also in the Fire Creek seam, known as the Hunter No. 2 mine. That year, the Hunter No. 1 and Hunter No. 2 mines produced a combined 48,050 tons of coal. In 1942, the Hunter No. 1 mine officially closed. In 1945, 51,022 tons of coal were shipped from the Hunter No. 2 mine. In 1948, the Fire Creek Fuel Co. was purchased by the Republic Steel Corporation. With this corporate restructuring, the Fire Creek Fuel Co. was renamed as the Standard Fire Creek Coal Company. Since the Jonben property was now wholly owned by a steel firm, the Hunter No. 2 mine became what is known as a "cative operation". This means that all coal from the Hunter No. 2 facility was destined for the steel mills of the Republic Steel Corporation. In 1948, with the completion of the Bowyer Creek Branch, the Standard Fire Creek Coal Co. opened the Hunter No. 3 mine and tipple. This facility was located on Bowyer Creek and is explored in detail on the Hunter, WV, page. This investment was made as the executives of the Standard Fire Creek Coal Co. knew that the old Hunter No. 2 property was just about played out. 1950 would end up being the final year of operation, when a combined 112,108 tons of coal were produced between the Hunter No. 2 and Hunter No. 3 properties. With the closure of this mine, no more coal would be shipped out of Jonben.

Venturing back to the origins of coal mining in Jonben, the second coal operation to exist in Jonben was the High Knob Coal Company. This firm was closely aligned with the Bacontown Coal Company, and operated adjacent to the aforementioned firm. The November 20th, 1919, edition of the Manufacturers' Record reported that the High Knob Coal Co. had been incorporated with an authorized capital stock of $75,000. Incorporators were listed as C. M. Lilly; President and General Manager, C. H. Meador; Vice President, W. I. Smith; Secretary and Treasurer. Others interested included W. H. Harlin, W. S. Smith, Rose Smith, and M. E. Lilly. It is likely that the various Smiths involved in this enterprise were related to Hunter Smith, who would eventually come to control the property. According to the same Manufacturers' Record report, the plant of the High Knob Coal Co. was planned to be constructed with an annual output of 75,000 tons. Like the Bacontown Coal Co., it does not appear that this operation ever shipped coal independently, as it was included in the sale that led to the founding of the Wilton Smokeless Coal Company in 1920. With the company's inclusion into the Wilton Smokeless Coal Co., all property was consolidated with the Bacontown Coal Co. operation. Coal may have eventually been shipped out of the property beginning in 1922 when the Bacontown No. 2 mine opened. It appears that the mine even had its own tipple, known as the Wilton Smokeless Coal Co. No. 2 tipple. It is likely that the mine and tipple only operated a few more years after 1922. This structure was located just south of the Jonben tipple, across the tracks from the original tipple.

Fireco, WV - MP 30.6

A little less than a mile south of Jonben, is the community of Fireco. Fireco was a company town in all the sense of the phrase, being the operation headquarters for the various Raleigh County mines owned by Col William Leckie. Col Leckie controlled the two dominating coal operations in town, these being the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company and the Douglas Coal Company. The Lillybrook Coal Company also had a tipple built near the southern part of the community. Unsurprisingly, the name Fireco comes from the Fire Creek coal seam exploited by Col Leckie's companies. Today, people still live in Fireco, although the town is a shell of its former self.

One of the earliest operations in the vicinity of Fireco was that of the Douglas Coal Company. The 1915 edition of the Standard Corporation Service reported that the Douglas Coal Co. had been incorporated on October 13th, 1915, with an authorized capital stock of $150,000. Incorporators were listed as Col. William Leckie, A. F. Leckie, W. B. Beale, J. H. Williams, A. E. Jennings. Mr. Beale was listed as the future superintendent of the company once operations commenced. The May 19th, 1917, edition of The Chronicle reported that the Douglas Coal Co. was actively developing 1,200 acres of coal rich lands in the vicinity of Fireco, a brand new community. This operation was planned on the Lampkin Branch of Piney Creek and required the construction of a short spur branching out of Jonben. However, before this spur was built, the Douglas Coal Co. constructed their temporary No. 1 tipple on the Fireco Spur, directly across from the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Co. temporary No. 1 tipple. This was a temporary arrangement, as the completion of the Lampkin Branch in late 1917 allowed for the construction of a new permanent tipple. However, it would still take some time before the permanent tipple was installed. In order to ship coal during this period, the Douglas Coal Co. opened another temporary tipple, known as the No. 2 tipple, on the Lampkin Branch. This tipple was decommissioned sometime around 1920 when the permanent tipple was completed. With the permanent Douglas Coal Co. tipple finished around 1920, the Lampkin Branch became the primary shipping point for coal from the Douglas Coal Co.'s mines. It is unknown when the Douglas Coal Co. temporary No. 1 tipple closed, but it was probably also sometime in the early 1920s. Shipments commenced from the property on November 1st, 1916. In 1917, the first fiscal year of operation, 14,300 tons of coal were mined and shipped from the Douglas No. 1 and Douglas No. 2 mines. Both openings exploited the valuable Fire Creek seam and shipped via the temporary No. 1 tipple on the Fireco Spur. The September 12th, 1918, edition of Coal Age includes a very informative piece on the Col. Leckie properties in the Fireco area. The article reports that a number of tipples were in operation at Fireco at the time journalists from the magazine visited. These were the Leckie Fire Creek No. 1 and No. 2 tipples as well as the Douglas No. 1 and No. 2 tipples. The Leckie No. 1, Douglas No. 1, and the Douglas No. 2 tipples were all temporary structures while the Leckie No. 2 tipple was permanent. By 1918, the Douglas Coal Co.'s permanent tipple was close to completion. The 1920 edition of the Coal Field Directory reported that the directors of the Douglas Coal Co. were as follows: Col. William Leckie; President and General Manager, W. B. Beale; Vice President, A. E. Jennings; Treasurer, A. F. Leckie; General Superintendent, and W. S. Morris; Purchasing Agent. In 1920, the Douglas Coal Co. was operating at full capacity, with 105,847 tons of coal being shipped by fiscal years end. For 1920, this was one of the most productive mines in all of Raleigh County. The June 24th, 1922, edition of The Black Diamond has a detailed article on the Leckie interests that dives into the operations of the Douglas Coal Company. The magazine notes that the annual output of the Douglas Coal Co. property was around 200,000 tons. This was a tad bit of an overestimate as the company only produced 200,000 tons or more one singular year, in 1925, when 238,565 tons were mined and shipped. The Virginian Railway's 1926 annual report noted that the Lampkin Branch was exactly 1.26 miles long, stretching from Fireco to the Douglas Coal Co.'s mine. The actual junction point from the branch was closer to Jonben, but Fireco was the more well known location on the railroad. The 1928 edition of the Coal Field Directory reported that W. B. Beale was still general manager of the property. William Bryant was the electrical engineer and William McPherson was the mine superintendent. The Douglas Mine was exploiting a 54 inch segment of the Fire Creek seam reached through a drift opening. The Douglas tipple was listed as having a max daily capacity of 1,000 tons. In 1930, 155,024 tons of coal were produced from the company's Douglas No. 5 mine. In reality, I believe the Douglas No. 5 mine was actually just the No. 5 entrance into one big mine. A majority of coal from the Douglas mine was extracted from the No. 5 entrance during the late 1920s and early 1930s. After a pair of idle years in 1932 and 1933, presumably due to the Great Depression, production resumed in 1934 with 47,137 tons mined and shipped. For the rest of the company's existence, tonnage numbers would never reach pre-idle levels. In 1941, the Douglas Coal Co.'s lease was just about worked out, with only 13,745 tons of coal shipped that year. No production numbers exist in the archives after 1941, so it is likely the Douglas Coal Co. closed that year. The Virginian Railway officially retired the Lampkin Branch, with the Douglas Coal Co. as the only customer, on December 12th, 1942. The January 2nd, 1943, edition of Railway Age reported that the Virginian Railway had abandoned their 1.26 mile Lampkin Branch.

The sister operation of the Douglas Coal Company, operating on the other side of Piney Creek's Lampkin Branch, was the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company. The October 18th, 1915, edition of the Standard Corporation Service magazine reported that the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Co. had been incorporated on October 13th, 1915 with an authorized capital stock of $250,000. Unsurprisingly, the incorporation date of the company was shared with the Douglas Coal Company. Incorporators were listed as Col. William Leckie, A. E. Jennings, I. H. Williams, A. F. Leckie, and W. B. Beale. The company planned to develop four coal mines, mainly exploiting the valuable Fire Creek seam, on a 2,500 acre tract. The first tipple, a temporary wooden structure located at the head of Piney Creek's Lampkin Branch, was constructed in 1916. To reach the tipple, the Virginian Railway constructed a short spur heading up the holler. The first schematic in the archives of the Virginian Railway illustrating this small spur was published on May 6th, 1916. This tipple, known as the original Leckie No. 1 tipple, processed its first ton of coal in late November or early December, 1916. The September, 1916, edition of The Coal Industry notes that the Leckie No. 1 tipple was a small temporary tipple built while the 2,000 ton a day tipple, pictured below, was still under construction. By 1920, the original tipple had been abandoned with all coal being loaded via the Leckie No. 2 tipple. Corresponding with this development, the 2,000 ton a day Leckie No. 2 tipple, now the only Leckie tipple in Fireco, was renamed the Leckie No. 1 tipple. Confusing, I know, but the early days of mining were chaotic. It should be noted that unlike the Douglas Coal Co. permanent tipple that ultimately replaced the two temporary tipples that preceded it, the temporary Leckie No. 1 tipple and the permanent Leckie No. 2 tipple operated in tandem up until about 1920. In 1917, the first fiscal year of operation, the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company produced 33,513 tons of coal. Interestingly, the West Virginia Department of Mines reported that the coal extracted by the company that year came from 10 individual mines. This is technically not the case, as these were 10 different openings all into the same mine. It should be noted, all coal from openings 1 to 5 shipped via the temporary Leckie No. 1 tipple, while all coal from openings 6 to 10 shipped from the Leckie No. 2 tipple. In 1918, things simplified, with a total of 99,845 tons shipped from a single entity, known as the Leckie Mine. Again, this was all coal that was extracted out of, now 11, different openings into the same mine. 1920 was the first year tonnage eclipsed 100,000 tons, with 118,193 tons produced that year. The 1920 edition of the Coal Field Directory lists the directors of the company as follows: Col. William Leckie; President and General Manager, W. B. Beale; Vice President and General Superintendent, M. S. Morris; Purchasing Agent, A. E. Jennings; Treasurer, and George Leckie; Mining Engineer. William McPherson was listed as the mine superintendent of the Leckie Mine. The December 2nd, 1920, edition of Coal Age reported on the death of Col. William Leckie, who had passed away on November 16th of that year. The obituary includes an interesting tidbit of Leckie's life. The article reports that Leckie, who grew up in Scotland, worked in the Eddlewood Colliery in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. This doesn't seem too interestingly, until it is told that one of Leckie's coworkers was Sir Harry Lauder, the great Scottish entertainer. It's always interesting to read about these unconventional connections scattered throughout history. Col. Leckie's son, Andrew F. Leckie, took over presidential duties of many of the Leckie interests, including the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company. This change is confirmed in the 1921 edition of the Coal Field Directory, when A. F. Leckie is listed as the president and general manager of the firm. The June 24th, 1922, edition of The Black Diamond magazine includes an interesting article on the operations of the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Co. in Fireco. It is important to note that this article confirms that the temporary tipple of the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Co. had closed, as the only tipple listed is the former No. 2 tipple. Anyway, the article reports that the Leckie Fire Creek No. 1 tipple has an annual capacity of 300,000 tons of coal. The tipple never shipped 300,000 tons, the closest number was 265,860 tons in 1925. There also is a chance some of the coal that year was produced from the Leckie No. 3 tipple in Willibet or the Leckie No. 4 tipple further up Lampkin Branch. The Leckie No. 4 tipple was located at the end of the Virginian Railway's Lampkin Branch and processed coal from the Leckie Fire Creek No. 4 mine. Unlike the majority of the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Co.'s mines, the Leckie No. 4 mine processed coal from the Sewell seam. The tipple only operated a few years, opening in 1925 and closing in 1927. 50 men were employed at the operation and the tipple had a daily capacity of 500 tons of coal. Unfortunately, tonnage from this facility was consolidated with the other mines of the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Co., so it is impossible to know the yearly output of this mine. The 1928 edition of the Coal Field Directory reported that W. B. Beale was still employed as the General Superintendent of the company, with William McPherson serving as the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Co. No. 1 mine superintendent. Robert Greer was the inside foreman of the mine, with Ed Rouak as the outside foreman. The mine was processing coal from both the Fire Creek and Sewell seams, possibly explaining the closure of the Leckie No. 4 tipple the year prior. Preparation of coal from the Leckie No. 4 mine, exploiting the Sewell seam, could possibly have been consolidated with the Leckie No. 1 tipple. This would have rendered the Leckie No. 4 tipple obsolete, leading to its closure. The Coal Field Directory notes that the Leckie No. 1 tipple had a daily capacity of 1,000 tons of coal. In 1928, 124,170 tons of coal were produced from the various Leckie mines in operation. According to a mine map of the Leckie No. 4 mine, tonnage continued to be exploited from this operation all the way into 1933. That year, 69,714 tons of coal were produced from the various Leckie mines. In 1934, tonnage skyrocketed to 166,015 tons thanks to the opening of the Leckie No. 9 mine. The Leckie No. 9 mine shipped out of Willibet and will be explored further on the following page. Going back to 1933, it appears this was the last year the various original Leckie mines shipping out of Fireco operated. It seems that the original Leckie No. 1 mine closed in 1930, while the Leckie No. 2 mine closed in 1933. No coal would be extracted from the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Co.'s properties in Fireco again until 1943, when the Leckie No. 2 mine reopened, this time working in the Pocahontas No. 4 seam. In 1945, the Leckie No. 2 mine produced 9,180 tons of coal. In 1946, the Leckie No. 1 mine also reopened, also exploiting coal from the Pocahontas No. 4 seam. That year, a total of 30,173 tons of coal were shipped from the two mines. The reopening of the Leckie No. 1 mine was short lived, as it once again closed after only a year of operation. In 1947, the only mine still producing under the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company name was the reopened Leckie No. 2 mine. That year, it produced 10,200 tons of coal before closing permanently. The April 6th, 1947 edition of the Raleigh Register local newspaper reported the bad news, stating that the entire property had been abandoned with all the former Leckie owned houses and buildings being purchased by the Lilly Land Company. Even with the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Co. being abandoned, coal mining wasn't finished in Fireco, as a number of local strip mine and deep mine operators were to continue mining over the next several years.

In 1947, the Sophia Coal Company purchased the lease of the former Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company in Fireco with the intention of extracting available Pocahontas No. 4 seam coal. Similar to the E. W. Meadows Coal Co. operation on the former property of the Lillybrook No. 2 mine, the Sophia Coal Co. existed to mine recoverable coal from the former Leckie No. 1 and Leckie No. 2 mines that had previously been uneconomical to mine. In 1947, 1,059 tons of coal were mined and shipped from the company's No. 1 mine. Interestingly, although the company had been operating for a number of years prior, the official incorporation announcement was reported in the February 6th, 1949, edition of the Raleigh Register. This article reported that the firm had been incorporated with an authorized capital stock of $25,000. Incorporators were listed as Frank J. Stokes Sr., Harley Eastman, and Paul J. Stokes. Frank J. Stokes Sr. was listed in the 1947 edition of the West Virginia Department of Mines as the general superintendent of the firm. In 1948, 3,272 tons of coal were produced and shipped. 1949 was the company's most productive year, with 9,995 tons of coal shipped to market. The following year would end up being the final year of operation, with 3,788 tons of coal produced before operations ceased.

Along with the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company, the other pioneering coal firm in Fireco was the Lillybrook Coal Company, specifically, their No. 2 operation. Although the company's main operation was located in Lillybrook, West Virginia, on the Stone Coal Branch to the west, a tipple and mine were also developed in Fireco. Interestingly, the June 24th, 1922, edition of The Black Diamond reported that the Lillybrook No. 2 mine in Fireco was the first of the many Lillybrook mines to ship coal. According to this article, the first ton of coal was shipped in January of 1917, while the first ton was shipped from the Lillybrook No. 1 operation on June 8th, 1917. That year, 13,680 tons of coal were shipped from the No. 2 mine. The Black Diamond also reported that the Lillybrook No. 2 tipple had a daily capacity of 1,000 tons. Surveyors employed by the Virginian Railway officially submitted a schematic for the planned construction of mine tracks serving the Lillybrook No. 2 tipple on November 23rd, 1916. The mine produced over 100,000 tons for the first time in 1920, when 104,400 tons of premium Fire Creek coal were processed and shipped. The 1920 edition of the Coal Field Directory reported that the directors of the Lillybrook Coal Co. were as follows: Prince E. Lilly; President and General Manager, W. W. Hunce; Vice President, Thomas H. Wickham; Treasurer, J. R. Hornbrook; General Superintendent, Ed F. Hornbrook; Purchasing Agent, D. A. Simmons; Mining Engineer, and C. A. Mahoney; Electrical Engineer. Clifford E. Lilly was reported as the mine superintendent of the Lillybrook No. 2 mine in Fireco, he was the son of Lillybrook Coal Co. owner and founder, Prince E. Lilly. The mine had its most productive year in 1925, when 189,328 tons of coal were processed and shipped from the No. 2 tipple. Unfortunately, after that year, productive would steadily decrease. In 1928, the Coal Field Directory lists Alfred Dorham as the mine superintendent and Ed Brewer as the Mine electrician. 75 men were employed at the mine and the tipple had an average daily capacity of 600 tons. This was in stark contrast to the 1,000 tons a day the tipple once averaged. Interestingly, a report in the July 26th, 1942, edition of the Raleigh Register newspaper states that the Lillybrook No. 2 mine closed in 1928. However, the records of the West Virginia Department of Mines show that tonnage reports continued from the mine until 1931. That final year, 17,470 tons of coal were process and shipped. The Virginian Railway officially retired the tracks serving the Lillybrook No. 2 tipple on October 4th, 1934. Although coal would never again be shipped out of the tipple of Lillybrook No. 2 mine, the mine itself would be reopening less than a decade later under the banner of the E. W. Meadows Coal Company.

The E. W. Meadows Coal Company should be a name that is familiar as this firm had multiple operations scattered along Piney Creek. Meadows No. 1 was located on the former property of the Sullivan Coal & Coke Company, later Lillybrook No. 4. Meadows No. 2, also known as the Wood Peck mine, and Meadows No. 3 were located on the former property of the Wood Peck Coal Company, later The Koppers Coal Company. The rest of the mines operated by the firm on Piney Creek were located in Fireco. These were mines No. 4 through No. 5. The July 26th, 1942, edition of the Raleigh Register reported that the E. W. Meadows Coal Co. was preparing to reopen portions of the long closed Lillybrook No. 2 mine to extract coal once impractical to remove. The firm reported that an estimated 125,000 to 150,000 of recoverable coal were available in the mine for extraction. In 1942, the first year of operation, 2,788 tons of premium Pocahontas No. 4 seam coal were processed and shipped. This initial mine, original called the Meadows No. 2 mine, would be presumably renamed the Meadows No. 4 mine in 1947. For whatever reason, the E. W. Meadows Coal Co. had two different Meadows No. 2 mines. The first was operated at Wood Peck and the second was located in Fireco. My belief is that the Meadows No. 2 mine in Wood Peck was the rightfully named mine. The reason the first mine at Fireco was named Meadows No. 2 was to mimic the former name of the property, that being the Lillybrook No. 2 mine. This is just an assumption, though it would make sense. In 1947, the Meadows No. 5 mine began production with 37,667 tons produced that year from both the Meadows No. 4 and No. 5 mines. The Meadows No. 4 mine closed in 1950, when 51,278 tons of coal were produced amongst the two Fireco mines. The Meadows No. 5 mine would be the sole producer for the E. W. Meadows Coal Co. in Fireco until the end of operations. 1958 would be the Fireco operation's most productive year, when 71,431 tons of coal were shipped from the Meadows No. 5 tipple. Production remained consistent into the early 1960s, when in 1961, due to depressed coal prices, the E. W. Meadows Coal Co. idled the Meadows No. 5 mine. Operations resumed the following year, with 5,272 tons produced and shipped. Production averaged around 30,000 tons annually until 1969, when after more than 25 years of operation, the E. W. Meadows Coal Co. ceased operations in Fireco. A small mine shipping out of Lillybrook, West Virginia, on the other side of the mountain would continue producing coal under the Meadows name until 1971. After that year, the E. W. Meadows Coal Co. officially shuttered all operations and faded into history.

The last major coal producer to operate in the vicinity of Fireco was the Farley & Wood Coal Company. Led by Mason Farley and Henry Wood, this was a small time operation mining coal from the Beckley seam. In 1949, operations began with 11,979 tons of coal being shipped. Although I haven't been able to find an exact location for the tipple, I believe it was built just south of the E. W. Meadows Coal Co. tipple heading south, towards Willibet. In 1950, the No. 1 mine of company produced 25,119 tons of coal. Operations ceased the following year, when 27,527 tons of coal were processed and shipped to market. Although there were a number of other firms linked to the property in the following years, it seems like mining was largely done in the area after the Farley & Wood Coal Co. called it quits.

Willibet, WV - MP 33.5

Well, we've finally made it. The final stop on our journey down the Virginian Railway's Piney Creek Extension. This is the community of Willibet, also spelled Willabet. Although the first coal enterprise in town existed as early as 1917, the community didn't receive its name until 1923 when the Bolen Coal Company moved in. Although there may have been a number of houses in town during the early years, by 1950, there was little evidence of any of those structures left. However, south of Willibet, mining would continue into the 1980s, although most workers lived in the nearby communities of Fireco or Odd. Today, little remains of the town, although the United Coal Company, which owns the Affinity Preparation Plant in nearby Affinity, West Virginia, holds a surface mining permit covering land adjacent to Willibet.

The first coal operation to exist in the vicinity of Willibet was the Piney Fire Creek Coal Company. This firm actually existed before Willibet was created, but for the sake of consistency, I'm including it here. The November 30th, 1916, edition of the Manufacturers' Record reported that the Piney Fire Creek Coal Co. had been incorporated with an authorized capital stock of $100,000. Incorporators were listed as J. E. Toliver; President, George Fordham; Vice President, and C. H. Meador; Secretary. Estimated daily capacity was listed at 1,000 tons. The company had purchased a coal lease of 999 acres with the intention of mining valuable Fire Creek seam coal. Why 999 acres? I'm not sure, possibly could have been a tax reason. Interestingly, the following coal company incorporation listed in this edition of the Manufacturers' Record was none other than the Bowyer Smokeless Coal Company formed in nearby Whitby. On May 26th, 1917, the surveying team of the Virginian Railway officially submitted a schematic showing the planned installation of various mine tracks serving the tipple of the Piney Fire Creek Coal Company just south of Fireco. This was the first railroad served operation planned south of Fireco, necessitating the construction of 2.40 miles of track from the Lillybrook No. 2 operation in Fireco down to the company's tipple further up the creek. The July 6th, 1918, edition of Coal Age reported that within a few weeks, the Piney Fire Creek Coal Co. was planning to ship its first ton of coal. The June 25th, 1921, edition of The Black Diamond reported that the Piney Fire Creek Coal Co.'s operation south of Fireco had been idled some time ago, though the reason for this is not mentioned. For whatever reason, no tonnage records exist in the West Virginia Department of Mines archives relating to the Piney Fire Creek Coal Company. It appears that the firm ran into financial issues before any coal was mined, with the charter being liquidated in 1926. It is possible, due to proximity, that the lease of the Piney Fire Creek Coal Co. was transferred to the Bolen Coal Company which would actually produce coal during the early to mid 1920s.

The first coal tipple that actually shipped out of Willibet was the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company's No. 3 operation. Unfortunately, coal output from this facility was always combined with that of the Leckie Fire Creek No. 1 and No. 2 operations in nearby Fireco, so it is impossible to know how much coal was shipped out of this location. On October 14th, 1920, the Virginian Railway surveying team officially submitted a schematic covering the mine tracks planned to be constructed serving the No. 3 tipple of the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company. To prevent any sort of confusion relating to the actual mines of the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Co., the No. 3 operation didn't necessarily process coal from the Leckie No. 3 mine. It appears that the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Co. generally numbered their mines based off of the coal seam exploited, not by actual openings into the ground. It should be noted that this was the philosophy only during the early years. The Leckie No. 1 mine operated in the Fire Creek seam, the Leckie No. 2 mine operated in the Beckley seam, the Leckie No. 4 mine operated in the Sewell seam. I have not been able to find any reference to the Leckie No. 3 mine in the records, but it appears that this mine was realistically another opening into the Fire Creek seam, also being developed by the Leckie No. 1 mine, exploiting coal held on the opposite end of the lease. I do not have confirmation on this, but it would make sense since tonnage from the No. 3 operation was never recorded independently in the records, presumably being combined into tonnage reports from the Leckie No. 1 mine which exploited coal in the same seam. Regardless, after being featured on a map of the coal fields produced in 1922, the Leckie No. 3 tipple was omitted from the next map I've found dating from 1926. However, I have been able to find mine maps covering the mine dating as a late as 1928. It is possible that the Leckie No. 3 tipple, which was probably a small temporary tipple, was removed when the Leckie No. 1 mine reached into the No. 3 mine, allowing for all coal from the former No. 3 mine to be transported under the mountain to the 1,000 ton a day permanent tipple in Fireco on the Lampkin Branch.

Located on the west side of the railroad tracks, across from the Leckie Fire Creek No. 3 tipple, was the facility of the Bolen Coal Company. The February 19th, 1925, edition of Coal Age reported that the Bolen Coal Co. had recently been organized by E. C. Minter, as president, and John Nesmith, as superintendent. No capital stock value is listed in any of the articles I found covering the origin of this firm. In 1925, the first fiscal year of operation, 9,222 tons of coal were mined and shipped from the company's Willabet mine. The following year would end up being the firm's most productive year, when 15,213 tons of coal were exploited from the Willabet mine. The July 7th, 1926, edition of the Coal & Coke Trade Journal reported that 985 tons of coal were processed in April of 1926 by the Bolen Coal Company. The 1926 edition of the Coal Field Directory reported that the directors of the firm were as follows: Claud Jarrett; President, J. F. Bolen; Vice President, John Nesmith; General Manager, General Superintendent, and Purchasing Agent. The Bolen mine tipple had a capacity of 200 tons a day. The company was never a large producer, utilizing archaic pick mining the entirety of its existence. 1927 was the final year of operation, with 10,382 tons of Fire Creek coal being shipped out of Willabet. No coal would be shipped by the firm again. The Virginian Railway officially retired the spur serving the plant on June 19th, 1933.  

The final, and largest, coal operator to ship out of Willibet was the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company, specifically, their No. 9 and No. 10 operations. This was the furthest tipple ever built down the Piney Creek Extension, being constructed just about at the head of Piney Creek. To reach the new tipple, the Virginian Railway extended the Piney Creek Extension about half a mile beyond the abandoned operations of the Bolen Coal Co. and the Leckie Fire Creek No. 3 tipple. On August 7th, 1933, the Virginian Railway's surveying team officially submitted a proposed schematic laying out the mine tracks serving the No. 9 tipple. In 1934, the first year fiscal year of operation, the Leckie Fire Creek No. 9 mine produced 166,015 tons of Beckley seam coal. The following year, the No. 9 mine churned out 186,466 tons of coal. This amount made the Leckie No. 9 tipple one of the most productive operations anywhere along the Piney Creek Extension. That year, T. F. Dolinger was listed as the superintendent, and the facility produced 1,002 tons on average per day. The Leckie No. 9 mine continued producing six digit tonnage numbers until 1938, when only 42,945 tons of coal were mined. The April 6th, 1938, edition of the Independent Herald, a Hinton, West Virginia, baced newspaper, reported the reason for this stark dropoff in production. Apparently, the Leckie No. 9 mine had been idled or a period of four months that year, putting 195 men out of work. This was a short term closure, probably caused by depressed coal prices. Tonnage rose back to historic numbers the following year, when 116,423 tons of coal were processed from the Leckie No. 9 mine. 1940 was the last year the Leckie No. 9 mine operated, when 109,802 tons of coal were processed and shipped. Even with the closure of this mine, coal would continued to be shipped out of Willibet by the company, this time from a new mine. Beginning in 1941, the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company opened the Leckie No. 10 mine, mining coal in the Pocahontas No. 4 seam. The first year, 72,340 tons of coal were extracted from the Leckie No. 10 opening. Burke Johnson was the first superintendent of the mine. The Leckie No. 10 mine was not as productive as the No. 9 mine, but it still had a few fruitful years of operation. 1946 was the final year the facility existed, with 55,625 tons of coal produced that year. In December of 1946, the Leckie No. 10 mine permanently closed, with 45 men losing their jobs. The Virginian Railway officially retired the turnouts serving the tipple on December 28th, 1949. This was the last major operation of the Leckie Fire Creek Coal Company to exist, although it wouldn't be the last time coal was shipped out of Willibet.

In August of 1955, tipple activity returned to the former Leckie No. 10 property in Willibet. That month, the Piney River Pocahontas Coal Company shipped their first ton of Pocahontas No. 4 seam coal. On October 25th, 1955, the Piney River Pocahontas Coal Co. was officially incorporated under the laws of the state of West Virginia. The 1955 edition of the Coal Field Directory lists the directors of the company as follows: Lewis Meadows; President and General Manager, and E. W. Meadows; Vice President. Yes, that is the same E. W. Meadows whose namesake serves as the title for the E. W. Meadows Coal Company which was actively operating in nearby Fireco. For whatever reason, no tonnage reports exist for this company in the archives of the West Virginia Department of Mines. Regardless, the company operated the Willabet No. 1 mine in the Pocahontas No. 4 seam. John Wells was the mine foreman and the Willabet tipple had an average daily capacity of 400 tons. Most of the facts I've found regarding this operation are found in the annual reports from the Coal Field Directory and its successive installments. Interestingly, the E. W. Meadows Coal Co. is not listed in these books. However, it does appear that these two operations were different, although they were owned and operated by the same people. That may explain why I haven't been able to find explicit tonnage reports for the Piney River Pocahontas Coal Co., as those numbers could have been added to the tonnage reports from other Meadows owned properties. Although this is not confirmed, it would make sense. Regardless, the Willabet No. 1 mine continued shipping coal into the 1960s, closing in 1964. The Piney River Pocahontas Coal Co. surrendered its charter back to the state on April 28th, 1966. Once again, this closure did not spell the end of mining in Willibet. In 1964, operations resumed under the Flat Top Colliery Corporation banner. Incorporated on August 5th, 1963, This company would end up operating a number of mines located east of the former Piney River Pocahontas tipple. In 1964, the first fiscal year of operation, the Flat Top Colliery Corp, extracted coal from three mines. The Flat Top #1 mine produced 7,933 tons of coal, the Flat Top #2 mine produced 10,786 tons of coal, and the Flat Top #3 mine produced 21,778 tons of coal. Although tonnage numbers fluctuated between each of the mines, production from the Flat Top #3 mine stayed relatively consistent for a number of years. In 1966, the company produced over 150,000 tons of coal between three different mines. The Flat Top #3 mine was the most productive, churning out 91,811 tons of coal, followed by the Flat Top #5 mine at 56,701 tons, and finally the Flat Top #4 mine at 5,526 tons. After 1969, the primary mine supplying coal to the Willibet tipple was the aforementioned Flat Top #3 mine exploiting the Pocahontas No. 4 seam. 1970 was the mine's most productive year, when 110,222 tons of coal were extracted from the property. In 1979, after 15 years of operation, the Flat Top #3 mine closed. Mining persevered however, with the Flat Top Colliery Corp. opening the Flat Top #6 mine. This operation was not nearly as productive as the closed Flat Top #3 mine, never producing more than 17,680 tons of coal, which it met in 1981. The mine closed in 1982, when only 8,630 tons of coal were mined and shipped. Thus ending more than 60 years of coal mining in Willibet. Interestingly, the Flat Top Colliery Corporation didn't surrender its charter until December 7th, 2001.