1998

The girl's 1913 basketball team took a train to Palmerton to play for the championship. Because it was too late to return home after the game they stayed in Palmerton until the next day. When they arrived at Nesquehoning's train station many fans were waiting to congratulate them on their victory. From left - Jo Barry McCullian - Bessie Campbell - Mildred McGorry - Violet Watt Thomas and Edna ?????. Their coach was Harry Miller.

On February 17, 1953, Kaijay Pants Company factory located at 44 W. Catawissa St. was gutted by fire. The complete interior and rear of the building, formerly the Newton Movie Theatre, was ravished by flames. The fire started at 2:30 p.m. in the rear of the building and took firemen from six Carbon County communities to extinguish the stubborn blaze. It was estimated that machinery worth $20,000 was destroyed and 10,000 garments consisting of slacks and shorts were consumed by the fire. The factory employed seventy five women. There was extensive damage to adjoining business places - The Newton Drug Store which is immediately adjoining the factory and three other business places, a novelty shop owned by Laura Watkins, a restaurant conducted by Bill Stevenson and Shutack's Drug Store. Harry Koplan, proprietor of Kaijay suffered from shock and necessitated medical attention by Nesquehoning physician, Dr. Albert N. Redeline. Charles Bonner, the Nesquehoning fire chief was threatened with injury while fighting the blaze when his leg crashed through the roof. Fellow firemen however, succeeded in freeing him.

This1886 photo shows workers at Nesquehoning's new breaker. This new breaker was needed to replace the one that burned to the ground earlier that year. Hundreds of mules were used to provide motive power at the collieries. Large stables were built to accommodate the animals, some stables were underground. The mules were taken down the shaft upon a cage and would spend the rest of their lives there. If they were ill or suffered an injury they were brought to the surface and allowed to roam in the corral until they recovered. Men, called mule drivers were responsible for the safety of all animals in his custody. If a driver lost a mule through carelessness or negligence or abused a mule, he was fired immediately. A mule had an uncanny memory and resented abuse in many ways. In a moment of anger, he would strike at you with his forelegs or tramp on your feet. If a mule "lowered his ears" the driver knew there was trouble brewing. Many mule drivers pampered their animals by feeding them sweets such as candy, lump sugar, apples and cookies. Some taught their mules to chew tobacco, especially plug tobacco. Another driver had a different method of displaying kindness to his mule. He come to work with two bottles of beer, one for himself and the other for his "buddy." Mules were taught four commands: gee meant to turn right; wah-haw, turn to the left; whoa meant to stop and giddyap meant to go. The Lehigh Coal & Navigation Co. kept accurate records concerning each mine mule the firm owned, including "mule death certificates." The following are from death certificates of Nesquehoning mules. Hero and Spring were ordered put to death on June 16, 1913, with nor reason listed. Sept. 30, 1913, Dewey and Charlie were seriously injured and both had to be shot. November 15, 1913, Tinker, Major and Taps were injured in #2 shaft and had to be shot. March 20, 1914, Frank, 16 years old died from injuries at #2 shaft. Sept. 1915, 10 year old Jennie died of heart failure. On Feb. 15, 1916, Colonel, 12 years old was squeezed between two mine cars and killed. Another mule named Dick died when his spine became paralyzed. Miss Eva met her death when she got rammed by a pair of mine cars. Gus died of natural causes and was sold to Reichard Hide and Tallow Co. of Ashland for one dollar.

The children from Nesquehoning were treated to this Easter egg hunt in April 1938. It was held at the CCC camp at the East End of town. The location of the CCC camp would later become a roadside rest and is now the site of the Nesquehoning Hose Co. #1. After the stock market crash in 1929 the Country fell into a great depression. Many people were without jobs. President Franklin D. Roosevelt started the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps). People were offered an opportunity to engage in healthful, outdoor work on forest, park and soil conservation projects. They were paid $30 per month, the workers were allowed to keep $5 and the remaining $25 was sent home to their families. Company 3308CCC was made up of all black ex-soldiers, except for one or two white officers. The original company strength was 187 enrollees and three officers. They built barracks, mess hall, recreation building, tool shop, office, black smith shop, a garage to fix their vehicles and Captain Lockridge’s quarters where he and his wife and two children lived. Using picks, shovels and wheelbarrows these men built fire roads through the mountain, a fire tower and cleaned out streams at Farm Run and Shady Rest. They also did work in the four hollows – like building rustic bridges across streams out of white birch, cutting the under brush along the streams and roads, putting out brush fires and cutting forage for deer to eat. Around 1940 the horrors of WWII were raging in Europe and the camp got orders to disband and to tear down all the buildings, piece by piece. All material was trucked to Camp Hill to be used soon again by the Seabees, a branch of the armed forces.

The large wooden building, desolate and black, looked like medieval castles with their many windows throwing back the reflection of the sun. A coal breaker like an iceberg, is the portion of a colliery that strikes the eye. The remaining 75% are shaft and slope sinking, haulage roads, mines and planes. Unfortunately everything coming out of a mine is not coal, it is a mixture of coal, rock, slate and other foreign matter, and the breaker is for separating the black wealth, This is a picture of the Nesquehoning breaker built in 1908. It was steam powered until 1918 when it was electrified. In 1908 there were 796 employees inside the mines and 259 employees outside the mines. The total production of coal that year was 381,422 tons, and was sold for $2,288,532. In 1909 this breaker processed more than 502,000 tons and 712,000 tons in 1910. Weight was measured in long tons of 2,240. There was 1,420 mine cars loaded at this breaker during a single day in August 1911. The coal mined in Nesquehoning and processed at this breaker had the distinction of being the highest quality anthracite coal ever found. It was abandoned Dec. 31, 1947 and on July 28, 1848 the breaker was sold for scrap.

This turn of the century photo shows workers ready to shovel culm into coal cars at Nesquehoning, Many years ago when coal was first discovered here, the Coal Company only mined large lump coal. This was broken up by men with hammers. At that time the company only had sale for large size coal, which they took in arks (boats) to Philadelphia. The smaller size coal had no value, so it had to be discarded somewhere out of the way. About 35% of the mine output was disposed of as refuse. Millions of tons of this refuse or culm was dumped between Nesquehoning and Hauto. In 1873 the company started to find uses for smaller size coal and built the Hauto Screen Building. Salvage of culm banks with yields from 15 to 60 percent in good pea and stove coal was considered a good investment. Over 1.1 million tons of culm were processed at Hauto in 1918. The Hauto washery was abandoned in 1924.

Around the turn of the century the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Co. built these houses across the creek from Nesquehoning and rented them to miners and their families. At first, the thirty double dwellings were called Newtown. The name was changed to Snyderville, in honor of the late Baird Snyder. In 1917 the name was changed again, this time it would be called New Columbus. On October 15, 1917 at 5:30 New Columbus had a great flag raising. Two tall poles, sixty feet high, were erected side by side and a flag was swung to the top of each amidst the firing of a salute and cheers of the crowd present. One was a large silk American flag and the other Italy's National banner. Many of these houses are in use today. Their are located on West Columbus Avenue.

During WWII the Country wanted everyone to conserve. Many products were rationed - even food. People were urged to save old tires, tin cans and plant gardens for Victory. This picture shows the vacant lot across from the American Legion that was used as a drop off site for metal that could be recycled. People in the picture are from left - Joe Kenny - Ed Mulligan - Bob Bamford - John Panko - Claude Redline - Jimmy Fauzio - Ed McGinley - Mark Davis and Police Chief Ed McGinley. Nesquehoning was one of the most patriotic towns in the Country. On a per capita basis, Nesquehoning had more people in the armed services than any other town in the whole United States, (over 1200 men and women.) One of the Countries first casualties in WWII was from Nesquehoning. Joseph Malatak was killed on Dec 7, 1941 at Pearl Harbor. Thirty-four people from Nesquehoning lost their lives in WWII.

The Grotto-Shrine, adjacent of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church, built in 1941, was dedicated to the memory of the hero dead of the nation and as a thanksgiving memento for the safe return home of members of the parish and their fellow service men to the nation after World War II on October 15, 1945. It took many hours of the spare time of a coal miner, Placido Guido LaRizzio, to alone build this unique memorial. Rocks, earth and other mementos from over 100 places in the world, make it a "miniature world" at which thousands of visitors have felt close to people of all nations as they came to New Columbus in the past years. Requests for prayers have come from throughout the whole country. Many sick and distressed people were blessed with water that flows from the rocks of the Grotto-Shrine.

This is a picture of the "Breaker Boys" and miners taken at Nesquehoning in 1890. A full measure of work was expected from every boy as from every man. Josiah White, manager of the Lehigh Coal & Navigation Co. Said, "a child must work to prepare for life. Work taught reliability, self dependence and skills to attain better jobs in manhood." Children as young as seven years old, sat in their positions near the chutes, always facing the endless stream of coal and removed slate, rock, slag, wood and other impurities mixed with the coal. It was monotonous, backbreaking work. The boys fingers developed "red tops" - when the outer skin was rubbed off to expose the red flesh underneath. Their fingers were very painful very minute of the day. The slate pickers boss always carried a stick and would whack a youngster for getting into mischief or falling asleep. Some of the slate pickers, victims of their own curiosity came to grief and filled early graves. Leaning out of the windows of the high wooden structures they topped to their death. Others lost limbs from unprotected revolving wheels, ropes, belts and scraper lines. Breaker Boys were paid 58 cents for a ten-hour day.

If you were traveling up the Broad Mountain in the 1920's, half way up, your car's radiator would start belching steam like Old Faithful. Like an oasis the Shady Rest comes into view. The sign says - Park Here For Good Things To Eat. What a strategic place for a restaurant and gas station. While the car's engine cooled, the driver and passengers would treat themselves to a hot dog and soda or maybe a large cone of Hazle Maid ice cream. Even cars coming down the mountain would stop at Shady Rest to let their brakes cool. The steepness and the seventeen curves made this highway the scene of many accidents.

This June 7, 1953 photo shows Kovatch's garage on the left and the erection of a $400,000 stainless steel company plant on the right. This building is now the world headquarters for the Kovatch Corporation. In 1996 they celebrated their 50th anniversary. They manufacture custom-built fire apparatus including pumpers, tankers, rescue vehicles and a complete line of aerial trucks. They are also the manufacturers of specialty vehicles, including fire apparatus and aircraft refuelers, for the federal, military and international marketplace. The photo also shows the new triangle entrance to the community, completed only a couple months before this picture was taken. Before the construction of this new road the main highway went up Allen Street. Originally the road went from Nesquehoning to Summit Hill. In 1922 a new highway was built to connect Nesquehoning and Lansford and the road to Summit Hill was abandoned.