Coaldale, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania
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Coaldale is a
borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...
in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, United States. Initially settled in 1827, it was incorporated in 1906 from part of the former Rahn Township; it is named for the coal industry—wherein, it was one of the principal early mining centers. Coaldale is in the southern Anthracite Coal region in the Panther Creek Valley, a tributary of the Little Schuylkill River, along which U.S. Route 209 was eventually built between the steep climb up Pisgah Mountain from Nesquehoning (easterly) and its outlet in Tamaqua, approximately five miles to the west. The town is virtually joined at the hip to nearby Lansford, to its immediate east—as both were founded as company towns on lands owned by and mined by the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company (LC&N) while technically ''on opposite sides of the county lines''. The history, business situation, and fortunes of not just the two, but of three towns, the third being the nearby Summit Hill, located a few thousand feet upslope, were tied in decades of co-development because the LC&N had built the western terminus of the nation's second railroad, the Summit Hill and Mauch Chunk Gravity Railway to ship coal out, and opened multiple mines throughout Coaldale and Lansford and the rest of the Panther Creek Valley in the days when railroads were coming into their own. The town has a bus stop with a mural on one side reading: "Everybody's Goal Is Mine More Coal" and the other side reading: "A Car More a Day Means More Pay". The area on the western border of the borough is known as Seek. There is a historical marker for Mother Jones located in Coaldale, as she organized many strikes and protests on behalf of coal miners around the country for improved pay, safer work environment and child labor laws. She organized a march for child workers that started in Coaldale and proceeded to McAdoo. At one trial for Mary Jones, a prosecution lawyer famously said, "there sits the most dangerous woman in America... to put down their tools and walk out". Herbert Whildin was elected mayor in 2017.


History

The origins of today's Coaldale have their beginnings in West Penn and Rahn townships. Rahn Township was formed from West Penn Township in 1860. Initially, the land was developed for its timber tracts, with only a few farms to indicate an attempt at agriculture. The beginnings of present-day Coaldale date from 1827, when John Moser and his wife settled there. Moser was born on May 24, 1805, in Tamaqua and was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Burkardt Moser, the original settlers of Tamaqua. Upon arriving at a site that is present day Coaldale, John Moser built a log cabin on the north side of what was known as the Manila Grove Park. Today, the St. Luke's Hospital is located on this site. Coaldale (alternatively known in the 19th century as Coal Dale) developed from scattered villages. The first dwelling houses (other than Moser's) were erected nearby in 1846 in what was known as Bugtown, located along the main road directly below the current St. Luke's Hospital. Houses were then erected in 1848 at old Coal Dale on the Summit Hill road.Munsell History Gearytown was established in 1866. That village was named in honor of the then Pennsylvania Governor, John W. Geary. Houses in Bull Run were erected in 1864 by the Greenwood Coal Co., run by Charles F. Shoener and William Carter (who purchased the nearby breaker of the same name). Shortly after the mines began working, the population increased, and many new dwellings were built, practically all by the company.History of Coaldale, Pa. 1827 New Wales, or New Coal Dale, began later in 1868 or 1869. Housing on the line of Schuylkill and
Carbon Carbon () is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalence, tetravalent—meaning that its atoms are able to form up to four covalent bonds due to its valence shell exhibiting 4 ...
counties were erected beginning in 1870. Centerville was located on the south side of Coaldale but was abandoned because of mines located beneath the surface. Coal Dale received a post office in 1871, thereby formalizing the name. The Greenwood breaker burned down in 1874 and in 1878 the Lehigh Navigation and Coal Co. purchased this property. Coaldale was in the midst of the following LC&N mines - Nos. 4–6, Lansford; Nos. 8, 9, 12, Coaldale; Nos. 10 and 15, Greenwood; No. 11, Rahn; and No. 14, Tamaqua. Coaldale was historically a coal-mining town, where the entire region was effectively the property of the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company. The mine, the railroads the LC&N put in and a small shirt factory were the main historic industries in Coaldale. Because of the adverse topology, the LC&N took several decades to survey and drive a railbed with a negotiable grade from Mauch Chunk through Nesquehoning, along the Nesquehoning ridge to Hometown, and then up the Panther Creek Valley from Tamaqua. Coaldale also became the site of a
State Hospital The State Hospital (also known as Carstairs Hospital, or simply Carstairs) is a psychiatric hospital located close to the villages of Carstairs and Carstairs Junction, in South Lanarkshire, Scotland. It provides care and treatment in conditions ...
that was established to take care of coal miners. During the early years of mining in the Panther Valley, badly injured miners were taken to Ashland or Pottsville. This took a great deal of time. In 1909, the miners of the valley volunteered a pay day for the construction of a hospital, while the LC&N donated a site for the building and matched every dollar donated. The area chosen for the hospital was Manila Grove, a park near where John Moser had built his first home. The hospital was completed on July 11, 1910. and exists today as St. Luke's Miners Memorial Medical Center. Some notable people come from here including: *Former pro football player Johnny Gildea * George Welsh, an all American quarterback at the US Naval Academy and successful college head coach at the US Naval Academy and the University of Virginia *Miner-musician Albert B. Morgan, who wrote and recorded his song Union Man in the Newkirk Tunnel in 1946 for George Korson of the Library of Congress compilation of Miner Songs.


Geography

Coaldale is located at (40.822234, -75.910115), which is (technically) one mile southwest of Lansford as both municipalities lie along the border of
Carbon Carbon () is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol, symbol C and atomic number 6. It is nonmetallic and tetravalence, tetravalent—meaning that its atoms are able to form up to four covalent bonds due to its valence shell exhibiting 4 ...
and Schuylkill Counties. It is also five miles northeast of Tamaqua, 27 miles northwest of Allentown, and nine miles south of Hazleton. It is located on the northwestern fringe of the
Lehigh Valley The Lehigh Valley () is a geography, geographic and urban area, metropolitan region formed by the Lehigh River in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, Lehigh and Northampton County, Pennsylvania, Northampton counties in eastern Pennsylvania. It is a co ...
and just two ridgelines away from the nearby Poconos, and drains to the
Delaware River The Delaware River is a major river in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States and is the longest free-flowing (undammed) river in the Eastern United States. From the meeting of its branches in Hancock, New York, the river flows for a ...
by way of Panther Creek, the Little Schuylkill River, and the
Schuylkill River The Schuylkill River ( , ) is a river in eastern Pennsylvania. It flows for U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map(). accessed April 1, 2011. from Pottsville, Pennsylvania, Pottsville ...
. Coaldale sits atop one of the richest coal seams in the eastern end of the southern
Coal Region The Coal Region is a region of Northeastern Pennsylvania. It is known for being home to the largest known deposits of anthracite, anthracite coal in the world with an estimated reserve of seven billion short tons. The region is typically defined ...
, which is still being exploited by a successor company of the LC&N (called the Old Company in the valley), the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company (or the New Company). Coaldale's elevation is 1050 feet above sea level. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the borough has a total area of , all land. Coaldale is served by U.S. Route 209, which runs through neighboring Lansford's business district, serving both municipalities as their main thoroughfare. The borough's terrain is mostly hilly, many of those ancient mine tailings or culm piles, and when not developed, its lands are mostly
forest A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense ecological community, community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, ...
ed.


Demographics

As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2000, there were 2,295 people, 1,046 households, and 606 families residing in the borough. The population density was . There were 1,209 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the borough was 98.34%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 0.31%
African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
, 0.04% Native American, 0.26% Asian, 0.57% from other races, and 0.48% from two or more races.
Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race were 1.13% of the population. There were 1,046 households, out of which 22.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.2% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 11.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.0% were non-families. 38.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 24.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the average family size was 2.84. In the borough the population was spread out, with 19.2% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 25.6% from 25 to 44, 19.6% from 45 to 64, and 28.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 87.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.3 males. The median income for a household in the borough was $23,362, and the median income for a family was $31,905. Males had a median income of $28,317 versus $18,083 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the borough was $14,021. About 8.3% of families and 13.2% of the population were below the
poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...
, including 23.7% of those under age 18 and 10.5% of those age 65 or over.


Architecture

Coaldale's combined town hall and fire department building was constructed in 1907 to the designs of the Wilkes-Barre architect, Owen McGlynn.


Gallery

File:Church on Ruddle St, Coaldale, Schuylkill County PA 01.JPG, Church on Ruddle St. File:Ruddle St, Coaldale, Schuylkill County PA.JPG, Ruddle St. File:Former Bank, Coaldale, Schuylkill County PA 01.JPG, Former bank, 1910 File:Post Office, Coaldale, Schuylkill County PA.JPG, Post Office File:Coaldale War Memorial, Schuylkill County PA.JPG, War Memorial


References


External links


Coaldale Borough
* {{authority control Populated places established in 1871 Municipalities of the Anthracite Coal Region of Pennsylvania Boroughs in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania 1871 establishments in Pennsylvania