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Alaska Miners Association Phone: 907-563-9229 Fax: 907-563-9225 ama@alaskaminers.org www.alaskaminers.org American Exploration and Mining Assn. Phone: 509-624-1158 Fax: 509-623-1241 info@miningamerica.org www.miningamerica.org WorldWide Drilling Resource ® is proud to be a member of these mining associations. Women in Mining 866-537-9694 wim@womeninmining.org www.womeninmining.org 53 WorldWide Drilling Resource ® MAY 2015 North Dakota Coal Mines by Harry W. Short Engineering Geologist I recently found an old photograph in my wife’s family collection that was captioned “The Milk River Coal Mine”, dated August 1, 1942. This captured my imagination, and I found out there really was an old mine by that name in northwestern North Dakota. Next, I found an old report by E. J. Babcock The First North Dakota Biennial Report, 1901 about early coal mining in the state. It finally dawned on me that Babcock Hall where I took many geology classes at the University of North Dakota was named after him. At one time, it was estimated west- ern North Dakota contained the single largest deposit of 351 billion tons of lig- nite coal and 25 billion tons of econom- ical mineable coal. Supposedly, this was enough coal to last for over 800 years at a rate of 32 million tons per year. It’s unknown if this estimate held true. The recorded history of lignite mining dates to 1873, when many small mines became active along the state’s main transporta- tion routes. By 1900, seventy-three mines were operational in the state. Many were small seasonal mines that simply removed coal from outcrops, which may have been for personal use or sale. Thus, the term “wagon mines” evolved. I learned while working in the West Virginia coal dis- tricts this type of mine was called a “poke mine”. There were also many larger mines in the area at this time which employed hundreds of men who worked extensively with underground mines. By the 1920s, there were approxi- mately 250 mines operating in the state that had an equal number of surface, strip, and underground mines. Many of the underground mines had geotechni- cal problems, such as the collapse of drifts and shafts, and the development of sinkholes. The state was very con- cerned about these problems which abated when the steam shovels arrived in the mining industry. We burned lignite (soft coal) and anthracite (hard coal) together to keep the fuel cost down. The lignite was cheap in contrast to the anthracite. The soft coal was started on fire first, and fired the hard coal which gave off more heat. These coals were not clean burning, there were odors, soot, and lots of ash to be shoveled out of the basement for disposal. Loretta Lynn, the “Coal Miner’s Daughter”, had it better than us Nodaks, she didn’t have to shovel four to five feet of snow in the winter to store the coal in the basement. I remember one January, when I was in college, the temperature never got above -30ºF (-34ºC). The windchill was unknown at the time, but would it have made a difference? I still had to walk two miles, take a bus, or hitchhike to the University. Were those the good ole days? Harry Harry Short may be contacted via e-mail at michele@ worldwidedrillingresource.com Minas de Carbón en Dakota del Norte por Harry W. Short Ingeniería Geológica Hace poco me en- contré una vieja foto- grafía en la colección University of North Dakota bus. Babcock Hall. Hector Leos Translator Short trans. cont’d on page 54.