The Work of Women In Coal Country
by Andy McAllister, Watershed Coordinator
After the civil rights and affirmative action movements of the 1960’s and 1970’s, the number of women actually working in the mines increased dramatically throughout the U.S. from zero to over 3,000 in the 1980’s. However, in the early days of American coal mining, women were not even considered for mining jobs. In fact, their mere presence in a mine was often seen as unlucky.
With coal taking on increasing importance in fueling of our nation’s economy during the mid-19th Century, women’s roles in coal field communities were largely dictated by the cultural mores of the time. Miner’s wives took care of the children, tended the garden and what animals they had, and managed the household while their husbands labored deep below the ground. Although the women of the day did not work in the mines they, like their husbands, suffered with the dirty conditions, coal dust, insecurity of housing, and the politics of the company store.
As strikes for better wages and safer working conditions became more commonplace in the late 19th Century, women took on a more active role fighting for the rights and safety of their family members. The successes of women in standing up for their own rights by organizing strikes in the textile industry energized coal field women to support the actions of the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA).
During that time, Mother Jones, a leading historical figure of women’s roles in unions and a child labor opponent, once stated, “No strike was ever won without the support of the womenfolk”. Mother Jones who was commonly known as the “Miner’s Angel”, proved to the establishment of the time that women were just as dedicated as men in fighting for miner’s rights. In the textile industry as well as in the coal fields, women stood up for justice and equality and played a vital role in improving working conditions around the country.
The job of the coal miner’s wife from the 19th Century to more recent times was to be as creative as possible using as little as possible in order to provide for the entire family. An example of this creativity can be found in the use of “Mine muslin”.
Mine muslin was the fabric used to block off unused areas within the mine and was widely used by women to create everything from curtains to clothing to rugs.
This frugal attitude, born out of extreme necessity, came into play more prominently during the Great Depression. During that time, very few families had enough money to buy anything, let alone a new article of clothing at the company store. Mothers mended socks and sewed patches over holes in clothes and feed sacks were transformed, almost miraculously, into all manner of garments for the family. Many families even saved and used the string which sewed the sack together.
Widely used in the 1930’s and 40’s by farm families across the country, flour or animal feed sacks often came in a patterned material as a sales incentive. It was often difficult to match sack patterns. Stores would get a truck load which might sell out quickly before customers had an opportunity to get the sacks they needed to finish a quilt or an article of clothing.
With disposable items rapidly gaining popularity in the late 1950’s, the production of cloth sacks dropped sharply and almost without anyone realizing it, the era of feed sack clothing in the mining and farming communities was over.
For more information:
Women coal miners of Southeastern Kentucky
December 13th, 2008 at 12:53 pm
Very interesting read. I occassionally like to read articles that give you a glismpe into a period of our history that helps you to understand the plight of certain group of people. The plight of coal workers and their families given the recent light shed on them from current events make this article relevant and timely. I’ve often heard of ’sack cloth’ clothes, but never knew the origins.
I learned something today.