Mechanization

Richard Sutcliffe invented the first conveyor belt for use in coal mines in the early 1900s. Within the first forty years of the 20th century, there was an increase of over sixty percent in the amount of coal that was loaded mechanically rather than by man power1. Over time, less and less manual labour would be needed in the industry.
As this trend continued, the labor-intensive coal-mining methods that supported the miners declined. As the miners saw their livelihood taken away, resistance to mechanization grew. As noted in historian Keith Dix’s article, “What’s a Coal Miner to Do?” one of the first machines to arrive at West Virginia’s Kanawha field had to be escorted by armed guards. Dix also writes that “The same machine introduced at a mine in Illinois was operated at a slow speed because the superintendent feared labor troubles.” 1
Despite resistance, mechanization replaced more and more laborers. By 1940, almost seventy percent of coal loaded in West Virginia, one of the largest coal producing states, was done by machine.[1] With the increase of mechanization came hard times for the former miners and their families. Many miners moved to the cities to find work.