Interview with Isaac Congleton, February 22, 1989

Interview Summary

Isaac Congleton is a native of Owsley County, Kentucky where his father worked in the timber business and farmed. His father eventually sold the farm for a coal mine in Knox County starting the mine and coal camp at Brush Creek in the early 1920s. Congleton describes his father's work establishing the mine and moving from jackhammers to machine-cut coal. He learned to mine coal by trying all the jobs in the mines and he remembers selling the coal they produced. Congleton pays some attention to the evolution of mining techniques, expresses judgment about the adequacy of present strip mining laws and makes a recommendation. He discusses the causes of mine accidents, whether politics affects coal mining in his section, how he went about selecting foremen, and what he expected of his workers. He discusses briefly how they operated a coal camp and the company store as well as how they dealt with changes in mine operations.

Interview Keyword

Artemus Brush Creek causes of accidents coal camp Coal Operators Congleton deep mining Knox County labor organization marketing of coal mine safety surface mining the Whitfields training of miners

Interview LC Subject

Appalachian Region Coal miners Coal mines and mining--Appalachian Region Congleton, Isaac Congleton, Isaac--Interviews

Interview Rights

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Interview Usage

Interviews may be reproduced with permission from Louie B. Nunn Center for Oral History, Special Collections, University of Kentucky Libraries.