by Andy McAllister, Watershed Coordinator
In this new series at Abandoned Mine Posts, we take a fascinating journey back through time. It’s a journey of discovery and a journey of connections. It’s the story of how coal came to be part of Western Pennsylvania life and the story of the coal connections that would shape our future.
Part 2: Necessity is the Mother of Invention
Although Anthracite coal was found in Eastern Pennsylvania in the early 1700s, the problem associated with getting it from where it was found to where it would be used was one of the biggest obstacles preventing its widespread use—not to mention it was really, really difficult to ignite. So as a result, charcoal remained the fuel of choice for iron making in Pennsylvania throughout the period. But while the folks in Penn’s Woods were plodding along with charcoal and limited supplies of imported coal, back in England, the ever-increasing need for coal would result in something big, really big, that would change the course of civilization forever.
By the late 1600s in England, coal usage had certainly caught on. This was mostly due to the previous widespread deforestation which led to a drastic shortage of charcoal. Of course, by that time, underground mining was a staple in England, Scotland, and Wales due to the depletion of surface outcrops. But there was a slight problem, water. You see, as the miners went ever deeper in search of their quarry, the surrounding groundwater seeped into the tunnels and as a result, miners had to work in very damp conditions to say the least. To add additional problems to this burgeoning industry, the simple method of using man (or mule) powered pulleys to get the coal up to the surface really wasn’t keeping up with production. Both man and mule were getting rather tired and the coal was backing up—so was the water. There had to be a better way.
In walks a Mr. Thomas Savery. Mr. Savery had for many years, been interested in engineering for use in naval applications—the paddle wheel and so forth. However, hanging out at the local pubs, he heard all about the problems the mining industry was having. He saw the need for something “mechanical” which could help the coal mining industry with their water problem. So, Mr. Savery set out to invent something that could help. He knew of something called a “wind ball” invented by Heron, an ancient Greek geometer and engineer from Alexandria in the first century AD. Heron was the first to invent the steam engine, oddly enough, as a toy. This early Greek toy is the first known device to transform steam power into rotary motion. Armed with this knowledge, Savery set his sights on creating a steam –powered device to pump water out of the coal mines.
Once Mr. Savery finally patented his steam engine in 1698 and put it to use powering pumps at some of the coal mines, things began to look up and production started to get back on schedule. However, after a time, it was found that this device really didn’t have the power to pump enough water. By the early 1700s, a Mr. Newcomen decided there had to be a better way and set about to improve Savery’s crude device. Mr. Newcomen’s improvements to the primitive steam engine led to more water being pumped out of the mines, which led to more coal being produced. The Newcomen engine remained relatively unchanged for the next fifty years or so but during that time, the coal industry grew. More coal meant more and deeper mines which meant more water to be pumped out and more coal to be winched up. Newcomen’s engine started to become obsolete.
The Newcomen Steam Engine
By the mid 1700s a Scottish inventor and engineer by the name of Mr. James Watt, saw the inefficiency of the Newcomen engine and began working to improve it. You see, the main problem with Newcomen’s design was that when the water sprayed into the cylinder to condense the steam, it also cooled the cylinder. Efficiency of subsequent strokes was then reduced because it took forever to heat the cylinder up again—not a good thing when you have water backing up in the mines.
Watt added a second cylinder, a condenser, which allowed the main cylinder to run at a reasonably hot temperature without cooling off and pre-condensing the steam. He also used bored cylinders which sealed better and so produced better vacuums than the old cast ones. Watt’s improvements to the steam engine by 1781 would start to lead to even more inventions that would increase not only mining efficiency but the demand for coal itself. It was the beginning of the Industrial Age.
In the meantime, while news of those wondrous contraptions being invented back in England reached America, Anthracite coal in Eastern Pennsylvania was quite literally going nowhere—well, almost nowhere. Apparently, enough of those barges were able to make the trip down the river and a few people decided to give this Anthracite coal a try. But, igniting the stuff was difficult and few really wanted to give anthracite the time of day. Those few customers who did purchase this unknown type of coal became incensed when it wouldn’t ignite. They hurled the hard coal at the peddlers, calling them crooks and running them out of town. It was a trying time. But through it all, the idea of using Anthracite as a reliable fuel source hung on.
One of the challenges for Anthracite was that Pennsylvania was still hooked on charcoal and to some extent, imported coal from England. The charcoal addiction in particular leads us back to a problem that we’ve seen elsewhere. Sound familiar? Penn’s Woods was rapidly becoming Penn’s “Farmland” and trees were becoming increasingly scarce. Folks in Pennsylvania finally started realizing that their dependence on dwindling supplies of charcoal and expensive imported coal was the only thing keeping them afloat. If they were to get anywhere,they had to find a good, abundant, reliable fuel source. Anthracite was poised to fill that void. But, while all of this was going on in the East, settlers in the wilds of Western Pennsylvania would discover something that would eventually add another level of complexity to the situation.
By the turn of the 19th century in Eastern Pennsylvania, things were beginning to look up for the fledgling Anthracite industry. In 1808, a determined businessman, Mr. Jesse Fell from Wilkes Barre, invented a fireplace grate that would foster the use of anthracite to heat homes. This was a fortunate breakthrough because by 1812, things really started heating up. The supply of coal from England to America was about to be interrupted.
