Buck Mountain (also known as Bucks Mountain) is a

mountain A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited summit area, and is usually higher ...

in Columbia County and

Luzerne County Luzerne County is a county in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and is water. It is Northeastern Pennsylvania's second-largest county by total area. As of ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, in the United States. Its elevation is above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardis ...

. The mountain contains deposits of

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when ...

(specifically

anthracite Anthracite, also known as hard coal, and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a submetallic luster. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy density of all types of coal and is the hig ...

). Shale and conglomerate are also present. The coal on the mountain was historically mined, altering the landscape somewhat. The mountain is used by many species as a habitat. It is most likely named after Albert Ansbach.

Geography

Buck Mountain has an official elevation of , making it the fourth-highest mountain in Columbia County. Buck Mountain's official coordinates are in the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

quadrangle of Nuremberg. The mountain is located in southeastern Beaver Township, Columbia County. A stream known as Beaver Run flows between Buck Mountain and McCauley Mountain. Buck Mountain is on the border of the Beaver Valley, some distance north of the community of Shumans. Additionally,

Falls Run Falls Run is a tributary of Black Creek in Columbia County and Luzerne County, in Pennsylvania, in the United States. It is approximately long and flows through Beaver Township in Columbia County and Black Creek Township in Luzerne County. Th ...

, a tributary of Black Creek flows through Columbia County and Luzerne County, between the mountain and a

hill A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. It often has a distinct summit. Terminology The distinction between a hill and a mountain is unclear and largely subjective, but a hill is universally considered to be not a ...

known as Middle Hill. The mountain has a

spur A spur is a metal tool designed to be worn in pairs on the heels of riding boots for the purpose of directing a horse or other animal to move forward or laterally while riding. It is usually used to refine the riding aids (commands) and to ba ...

Geology

Buck Mountain contains deposits of

. Part of the landscape on Buck Mountain has been altered by mining in the past. There are beds of red

shale Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4) and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especiall ...

on Buck Mountain. This shale underlies

rock formation A rock formation is an isolated, scenic, or spectacular surface rock outcrop. Rock formations are usually the result of weathering and erosion sculpting the existing rock. The term ''rock formation'' can also refer to specific sedime ...

s of

conglomerate Conglomerate or conglomeration may refer to: * Conglomerate (company) * Conglomerate (geology) * Conglomerate (mathematics) In popular culture: * The Conglomerate (American group), a production crew and musical group founded by Busta Rhymes ** ...

. It also underlies beds of

on the mountain.

History and etymology

A prominent

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

owned by Adam Michael historically operated at the base of Buck Mountain for a long period of time. The hotel was opened in the early 1800s. The

Reading Railroad The Reading Company ( ) was a Philadelphia-headquartered railroad that provided passenger and commercial rail transport in eastern Pennsylvania and neighboring states that operated from 1924 until its 1976 acquisition by Conrail. Commonly call ...

historically had a

tunnel A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube cons ...

that passed through a spur of Buck Mountain.

Coal mining Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

has been done on Buck Mountain. Historically, it was done by the Buck Mountain Coal Company, but later, the mining was instead done by Coxe Brothers & Co. In the early 1900s, the mines were operated by the

Lehigh Valley Coal Company Lehigh may refer to: Places United States *Lehigh, Iowa *Lehigh, Kansas *Lehigh, Oklahoma *Lehigh, Barbour County, West Virginia *Lehigh, Wisconsin *Lehigh Acres, Florida *Lehigh Township (disambiguation) * Lehigh Valley, a region in eastern Penn ...

. In the early 1900s, the coal was sent to the community of Gowen. There, it was loaded onto

railroad car A railroad car, railcar (American and Canadian English), railway wagon, railway carriage, railway truck, railwagon, railcarriage or railtruck (British English and UIC), also called a train car, train wagon, train carriage or train truck, is a ...

s and sent to

Hazleton Hazleton may refer to: Places * Hazleton, British Columbia, Canada * Hazleton, Gloucestershire, a village in Gloucestershire, England ** Hazleton long barrows, Neolithic burial mounds at Hazleton, Gloucestershire, England ** Hazleton Abbey, a medi ...

, where it was put on the market. There are plans by several counties to construct a

wind farm A wind farm or wind park, also called a wind power station or wind power plant, is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electricity. Wind farms vary in size from a small number of turbines to several hundred wind turb ...

on Buck Mountain. Buck Mountain was added to the

Geographic Names Information System The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database of name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features throughout the United States and its territories, Antarctica, and the associated states of ...

on August 2, 1979. Its identifier in the Geographic Names Information System is 1170524. Buck Mountain is most likely named after

Albert Ansbach Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert (supermarket), a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street market in The Gambia * Albert Productions, a record label * Alber ...

, who was nicknamed "Buck". Ansbach was the owner of a nearby

colliery Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

. The name was bestowed upon the mountain in 1869 or 1870.

Biology

Numerous species use Buck Mountain as a habitat. However, the Columbia County Natural Areas Inventory states that surveys of the mountain have not been done.

References

{{coord, 40.9509, -76.2074, type:mountain_region:US-PA, format=dms, display=title Landforms of Columbia County, Pennsylvania Mountains of Pennsylvania

Geography

Geology

History and etymology

Biology

See also

References