Short Mountain Colliery: Timeline 1900-1909
1900:
Placed set of rolls in Breaker to break down broken and egg coal.
Purchased Blake slush pump, 12” x 8” x 17.”
Trestle 40 feet high and 120 feet long built across Bear Creek to run cars with breaker rock to dumping ground.
December 20th, a 500 horsepower B & W boiler erected.
Purchased a Jeansville pump, 10” x 12” x 6.”
March 16th, No. 4 Slope flooded to a depth of 12 feet; idle 32 days.
Strike- 35 days, September 17 – October 29; 10% wage increase
1901:
Second pair of hoisting engines purchased for Short Mountain Slope, 30” x 48.” An 8” steam line was purchased from the Eagle Iron Works, Lykens, Pennsylvania. (Owner, Joseph Duncan)
Placed 12 jigs and rebuilt 4 breaker coal pockets.
Renewed half of Monabor dirt conveyor chain.
Bull boiler house contains 2044 horsepower B & W Boilers.
Boilers in service:
24 cylinder boilers in new boiler house; 12 cylinder boilers in Bull boiler house for an aggregate of 1800 horsepower
New steam way completed from the surface to the bottom of No. 4 Slope and an 8” wrought iron steam line relaid in it.
A single track slope started in the Lykens Valley Vein in Bear Gap Tunnel, to operate with compressed air, engine’s 14” x 24.” Also purchased a Norwalk air compressor.
1902:
Foundation for Short Mountain Washery started in December.
Laid 1800 feet of mine track at Millersburg to reclaim the old Short Mountain grading, which was loaded in railroad cars and sent to the McClellan Separator to be prepared for market.
Frame of separator rebuilt.
Two small locomotives torn down and rebuilt.
First set of B & W boilers, 500 horsepower, purchased for the new boiler house.
No. 4 Slope flooded, March 17th through June 9th, 82 feet vertical height, some of the water coming down from Williamstown Colliery.
Water tank put in service on Lykens Valley Slope to help the pumps.
Purchased 2 Jeansville pumps.
Strike from May 12th to October 26th, a total of 144 days. During the strike, 70% of working places closed.
1903:
Washery shipped the first coal in June.
Purchased second set of B & W boilers for the new boiler house.
Rebuilt Bull boiler house.
Purchased Baldwin No. 10 steam locomotive for No. 3 Level.
Started to store coal at McClellan.
Motor line in Lykens Valley Drift now a mile and one quarter long.
Drove Niagara steam-way near No. 2 fan.
Started to drive trial slope, No. 3 Level west.
1904:
Purchased second locomotive boiler for the Washery.
Washery worked the last day of the year only – no market.
All buildings but the breaker and separator painted.
Two steam locomotives, purchased 20 years ago, were repaired.
All cylinder boilers torn down.
Purchased two 12” Jeansville pumps and equipment.
Lykens Valley Drift reached boundary and is being robbed back.
Reopening Bear Gap Tunnel to White Ash Measures.
Driving No. 4 Slope extension.
1905:
Purchased slush mixer for washery.
Erected new pump house and boilers for washery.
Began building new car shed, near new boiler house.
Purchased new engine for separator.
Purchased third set of B & W boilers for new boiler house.
Erected slush trough trestle, 550 feet long and 90 feet high, from breaker to culm bank, south of washery.
Erected trestle in front of Bull boiler house to discard trestle over the boilers.
Purchased 2 Jeansville pumps.
Openings: Short Mountain Slope, Lykens Valley Slope, Whites Vein Drift- West, Lykens Valley Drift- East, and the Bear Gap Tunnel.
1906:
Erected new concrete locomotive house near general shop.
Purchased No. 12 Locomotive.
Erecting concrete electrical plant and air compressor building near Bear Creek, containing 2 Norwalk air compressors and one Ridway Engine and Dynamo, and also 1 Harrisburg Engine and Dynamo.
February 1st, started to use Lobdell car wheel, previously used Whiting wheel.
Purchased one self contained engine for construction work.
Purchased second Norwalk air compressor
February 25th, the blacksmith and carpenter shops burned.
April 18th, the locomotive house burned.
Erecting shop, near main building.
Finished sinking Bear Gap Slope.
April 1 to May 10 strike, called suspension. The colliery lost 36 days.
1907:
Bucket conveyor and pit installed at the washery.
Locomotive boiler purchased and installed at washery.
Purchased new set of broken coal rolls.
Finished the new shop.
Rebuilding part of Bull boiler house.
Purchased feed pump for new boiler house.
Erected concrete tank at the fresh water plant.
Purchased No. 10 White Ash Slope engine.
Purchased No. 5 General Electric locomotive.
Using first Red H dynamite for coal, previously used Black Powder.
Erected motor barn and tracks, Bear Gap Tunnel.
Strike 1 -7/9 days.
1908:
Laid water pipe for fire line from tanks to breaker.
Laid water pipe for fire line to shop.
Erected new oil house at breaker.
Erected trough for slushing dirt from breaker to bank.
Erecting rock and dirt plane on west wend of Big Lick Mountain.
Erecting chute to load “Franklin” coal in railroad cars.
Purchased 3 new circular water tanks and placed on west end of Big Lick Mountain.
Purchased No. 6 General Electric locomotive.
Built new mine cars, lower and wider, nicknamed the “Merry Widow.”
Electrified haulage No. 3 Level West Gangway, formerly handled by a steam locomotive.
Electrified haulage No. 1 Level.
Sinking No. 4 Slope extension and purchased engine.
1909:
Erecting stacks and making more flue space at Bull boiler house.
Enlarged fresh water pump’s plant.
Started to place electric lights around outside of colliery and inside of buildings.
Repaired water trough from tunnel to breaker.
Erected first bath house for miner’s near Bull boiler house.
Purchased Draeger Rescue Apparatus.
Builidng No. 4 electric locomotive.
Electrified haulage No. 2 counter, No. 3 Level.
Bear Gap engine, changed cylinders from 14” to 18.”
Purchased Goyne Compound Condensing Duplex Pumps for bottom of No. 4 Slope.
Suspension: 6 and 5/9 days
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Originally posted by Jake Wynn on PAHistorian Blog, 14 May 2013.
Picture from old postcard, “Companions at the Breaker, Lykens, Pennsylvania.”