The Mine Wars: The Bloody Fight for Workers' Rights in the West Virginia Coalfields

by Steve Watkins

Overview

For fans of Steve Sheinkin and Deb Heiligman, a riveting true story of the West Virginia coal miners who ignited the largest labor uprising in American history.

In May of 1920, in a small town in the mountains of West Virginia, a dozen coal miners took a stand. They were sick of the low pay in the mines. The unsafe conditions. The brutal treatment they endured from mine owners and operators. The scrip they were paid-instead of cash-that could only be used at the company store.

They had tried to unionize, but the mine owners dug in. On that fateful day in May 1920, tensions boiled over and a gunfight erupted-beginning a yearlong standoff between workers and owners.

The miners pleaded, then protested, then went on strike; the owners retaliated with spying, bribery, and threats. Violence escalated on both sides, culminating in the 1921 Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest labor uprising in United States history.

In this gripping narrative nonfiction book, meet the resolute and spirited people who fought for the rights of coal miners, and discover how the West Virginia Mine Wars paved the way for vital worker protections nationwide. More than a century later, this overlooked story of the labor movement remains urgently relevant.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781547612192
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	05/14/2024
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	272
File size:	41 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	10 - 14 Years

About the Author

Steve Watkins is an award-winning author of twelve books for young readers, including Down Sand Mountain, which won the 2009 Golden Kite Award for young adult fiction. He also writes books for grown-ups, and won a Pushcart Prize for one of the stories in his collection My Chaos Theory. He is co-editor of the online ideas and features magazine Pie&Chai, a former English professor at the University of Mary Washington, a longtime yoga instructor, and father of four daughters. He and his family live in Fredericksburg, VA.
stevewatkinsbooks.com

Editorial Reviews

02/26/2024

The Great West Virginia Mine Wars of 1920 are unknown to most Americans, according to Watkins (Stolen by Night) in this relevant and enlightening read. Forced to work 10- to 12-hour days in unsafe conditions under the brutal treatment of a violent guard system for credits, or scrip pay only usable at their employer’s store, West Virginia miners attempted to unionize. The mine owners and state government responded by hiring local lawmen and “gun thugs” from Baldwin-Felts Detective Agency, the mine guard company, to union-bust by terrorizing the workers; the gun thugs beat the employees and destroyed their homes, and the owners brought in hundreds of scabs to work the dormant mines. But the striking miners fought back, “igniting the greatest armed insurrection in America since the Civil War,” a yearlong conflict that only ended when federal troops were sent in. In spare and honest text, Watkins explains that the Mine Wars were a part of history that was not just overlooked but intentionally buried by “the powers that be in West Virginia, the coal owners and their politicians, ran a deliberate disinformation campaign.” Archival b&w photographs, newspaper clippings, and political cartoons throughout illustrate the miners’ hazardous working conditions, prominent figures, and common sentiments during this period. Sources, end notes and more conclude. Ages 10–14. Agent: Kelly Sonnack, Andrea Brown Literary. (May)

Publishers Weekly

A well-researched account of an essential historical account of the U.S. labor movement. Highly recommended for middle school readers and beyond.” —School Library Journal, starred review

“[A] Relevant and enlightening read.” —Publishers Weekly

“Readers will likely never have heard of this piece of union history—the telling of it for a teen audience is long overdue, and it is unfortunate that it remains sharply relevant today.” —BCCB

“A gritty, bloody tour of American history that's absent from most students' textbooks . . . Compelling.” —Booklist

“In this meticulously researched treatise, Watkins compellingly details the struggles for union recognition—as well as violent battles, courtroom dramas, near-victories, and devastating losses—while providing clear, detailed information about people on both sides and using photos, newspaper articles, and quotes to great advantage. . . Fascinating and powerful.” —Kirkus Review

From the Publisher

★ 05/03/2024

Gr 5 Up—Watkins tackles narrative nonfiction with a sobering account of the mine wars in Mingo County, WV, in the early 1920s. While mine workers in other parts of the country had successfully unionized with the United Mine Workers of America, those in western West Virginia had been unsuccessful. Watkins begins the book with the story of the Matewan Massacre, as unemployed miners revolted against mine owners and their hired men whose job it was to keep order. "Order" meant firing, attacking, or killing workers who even appeared to sow the seeds of union organization. Subsequent chapters highlight the harsh living and working conditions of the miners and their families, including details of fatal accidents and the practice of child labor. The rest of the book describes the increasingly volatile clashes between the United Mine Workers and mine owners, culminating in the Battle of Blair Mountain in the fall of 1921. Rich in primary source content, this volume has the photographs, maps, and firsthand accounts to give readers a thorough description of the actual coal mining process and the skirmishes between the two parties. Watkins likewise explores the current state of mining. The book is written in language appropriate for young readers and offers definitions of less-familiar terms, but the language is also passionate, demonstrating clear sympathy for the mine workers and union organizers. A complete bibliography and original source citations are appended. Violence is a major part of this work with some descriptions of beatings and killings; librarians and teachers should preview before giving it to younger readers. VERDICT A well-researched account of an essential historical account of the U.S. labor movement. Highly recommended for middle school readers and beyond.—Anne Jung-Mathews

School Library Journal

2024-02-17
In 1920, a group of West Virginia coal miners, previously fired for being union members, faced off against ruthless enforcers and mine guards.

In the battle that followed against the Stone Mountain Coal Company, several men were killed. This was not the first incident in what was a decadeslong struggle spearheaded by the United Mine Workers of America to unionize the state’s coal fields. The mine owners and operators had complete control of every aspect of miners’ lives; they had no regard for job safety and used unscrupulous practices to cheat the miners at every turn. The miners were paid in scrip that they could only use at company stores, and rent for company housing was deducted from their pay. They faced poverty, brutality, and political corruption. In this meticulously researched treatise, Watkins compellingly details the struggles for union recognition—as well as violent battles, courtroom dramas, near-victories, and devastating losses—while providing clear, detailed information about people on both sides and using photos, newspaper articles, and quotes to great advantage. The exploration of relationships between white, Black, and European immigrant miners is fascinating; mine owners hoped to “divide and conquer,” but the men who worked together eventually “became friends aboveground,” finding a common cause. Watkins calls out politicians and mining companies for deliberately quashing mention of this history in school curricula and even presenting a false narrative in a book that remains on classroom and library shelves in West Virginia to this day.

Fascinating and powerful. (map, sources, photo credits, endnotes, index) (Nonfiction. 10-14)

Kirkus Reviews