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The Mine Wars were a series of violent events in southern West Virginia from 1912 to 1921. They included major conflicts like the Paint Creek-Cabin Creek Strike, the a daylight shootout at Matewan, and the Battle of Blair Mountain. Coal miners, fighting for better working conditions and the right to join unions, were led by labor organizer Mother Jones and local union leaders. They clashed with mine owners, detectives from the Baldwin-Felts Agency, and powerful local officials like Logan County Sheriff Don Chafin.
By 1912, miners in southern West Virginia were hoping the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) labor union, formed in 1890, would improve their lives. Earlier efforts to join the UMWA during strikes in 1897 and 1902 had little success, but the un...
A precursor to the later and larger events of the Mine Wars occurred at Stanaford (Raleigh County) in 1903. On February 25, 1903, a group of lawmen and Baldwin-Felts agents attacked striking miners in Stanaford, killing six men—three of them Black...
In April 1912, miners in Paint Creek and Cabin Creek, Kanawha County, went on strike to have their union recognized. This simple request would have ended the coal companies’ total control over workers' lives. The strike lasted a year and a half an...
The Bull Moose Special was an armored train used by coal companies during the Paint Creek-Cabin Creek Strike in Kanawha County in 1912–13. It had machine guns and was used to protect trains carrying nonunion workers. On February 7, 1913, after str...
During the Paint Creek-Cabin Creek Strike, two labor newspapers were shut down, and their editors were jailed. Governor Henry D. Hatfield (pictured) worked with both union and coal company leaders to end the strike by forcing a settlement on the m...
Mary Harris "Mother" Jones was one of the nation's most powerful labor leaders. She helped coal miners and other workers fight for better conditions. Born in Ireland around 1837, she moved to the U.S., faced personal tragedy, and later became a vo...
The Paint Creek-Cabin Creek Strike helped bring new leaders to power in the miners’ union, District 17. Many miners were unhappy with how the strike had ended, especially on Cabin Creek. In 1916, they elected workers from the mines as leaders, inc...
The Baldwin-Felts Detective Agency was a private police force hired by coal companies in southern West Virginia to stop miners from joining unions. The agents, often called “thugs” by miners, spied on workers, kicked union supporters out of coal c...
In January 1920, the United Mine Workers tried to organize coal miners in southern West Virginia. About 3,000 miners joined, but many were fired and kicked out of company-owned homes. On May 19, 1920, 13 Baldwin-Felts detectives came to Matewan to...
Sidney "Sid" Hatfield (1893-1921) was the police chief of Matewan, known as a hero to union coal miners. Born near Matewan, he worked in coal mines until becoming police chief in 1919. In 1920, he supported the United Mine Workers’ campaign to org...
From May 12–14, 1921, the Battle of the Tug (also called the Three Days Battle) broke out. Union miners fired from the hills onto coal towns, and nonunion miners and law enforcement fired back. Thousands of shots were exchanged, buildings were dam...
On August 1, 1921, Baldwin-Felts detectives shot and killed Sid Hatfield and his friend Ed Chambers as they were walking with their wives to the McDowell County Courthouse in Welch. Miners viewed this as an assassination and in response, thousands...
On August 7, 1921, about 5,000 miners met in Charleston to make demands to the governor. Led by union leader Frank Keeney, they gathered at Lens Creek, about 10 miles east of Charleston, that night to prepare for a march. Their goal was to end mar...
Union District 17 vice-president Bill Blizzard served as field commander for the armed march. World War I veterans among the miners helped organize the marchers along military lines. They used sentries, patrols, codes, and passwords, and had their...
On August 24, the march began. President Warren Harding sent Brig. Gen. Henry Bandholtz (pictured right) to evaluate the situation and issued an ultimatum telling the miners to end the march. The miners continued.
On August 25, 1921, miners reached Blair Mountain in Logan County, where they were met by Sheriff Don Chafin (pictured) and his armed anti-union forces. Chafin’s men had set up defenses with machine guns and explosives. When the miners heard that ...
By September 1, 1921, the miners had captured half of the 25-mile mountain ridge and were ready to descend upon Logan.
Governor Morgan sent the newly formed state police, militia, and coal company workers to stop the miners from entering Logan County. The two sides fought at Blair Mountain, and several people died, though the exact number is unknown.
Governor Morgan asked for help to stop the fighting, and President Harding sent 2,500 federal troops and airplanes led by General Billy Mitchell. With the arrival of the troops, the miners laid down their weapons and went home, ending the battle.
After the Battle of Blair Mountain, hundreds of miners and leaders were charged with crimes such as murder and treason. Most received light punishments. March leader Bill Blizzard faced serious charges of treason, but the jury acquitted him. The b...
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