17th century One of the earliest mentions that coal might be found in the
Pennsylvania area dates back to 1698, when Gabriel Thomas wrote an account dedicated to
William Penn. He notes the possibility of coal because the running water had the same coloring as the water in the coalmines in
Wales.
18th century The actual presence of coal is first recorded on a map made in 1753 by John Pattin, an Indian trader, although it is possible he did not detect the coal first hand, but rather heard about it from other traders. In 1754,
George Washington led an expedition across the
Allegheny Mountains, and his second-in-command wrote a letter detailing an abundance of natural luxuries including coal in
Western Pennsylvania. In 1761, the first actual Pennsylvania coal mine is recorded on the “Plan of Fort Pitts and Parts Adjacent” map. The bituminous mine was located in Fort Pitt near the top of Coal Hill, which is now
Downtown Pittsburgh. Anthracite coal was first found in 1762, and then was used for the first time around 1769 by Obadiah Gore and his brother in their blacksmith shop in Wilkes-Barre. However, coal usage was generally restricted to local consumption need until the industry began to expand at the turn of the 19th century. The Lehigh Coal Mine Company first used coal commercially in 1792. The company was founded after German immigrant Philip Ginder discovered beds of the anthracite “stone coal” near Summit Hill in 1791 while out hunting. A wealthy landowner, Jacob Weiss, and other
Philadelphia businessmen provided the capital to form the
Lehigh Coal Mine Company. The company had a slow start because of the difficulty in igniting anthracite coal and the inability to transfer the coal to urban markets. Judge Jesse Fell of
Wilkes-Barre discovered a solution to ignite anthracite in 1808 with the usage of an iron grate that allowed the coal to light and burn easier. Demand for the anthracite coal increased slightly. Brothers Abijah and John Smith were the first to successfully transport hard coal when they moved 50 tons on an ark down the
Susquehanna River to Columbia in 1807.
19th century In 1810, 350 tons of anthracite was mined in Pennsylvania. The use of anthracite coal was restricted due to the difficulties in transporting it efficiently, and the industry was still small and undeveloped. The
War of 1812 against
Great Britain increased the usage of anthracite coal. Prior to the war, citizens of the nation's urban centers such as New York and Philadelphia received most of their coal fuel needs from Britain and Virginia's bituminous coal supplies. During the war the British blockade of American ports severely limited the supply of British bituminous fuel reaching the US, and there was also a shortage in Virginia's supply resulting in a fuel crisis. Prior to the War of 1812, citizens did not like to use anthracite coal because it was difficult to ignite and maintain, but the wartime shortage forced them to start using anthracite. Jacob Cist of
Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania promoted the use of anthracite during and after the War of 1812. Jacob Cist's father was a major investor in the Lehigh Coal Mine Company, so Cist began to transport the company's coal to
Philadelphia by the
Lehigh and
Delaware rivers. Once in Philadelphia, he used testimonials and public demonstrations to negate the stereotype of anthracite and convince Philadelphia society that the hard coal could be used as a replacement for bituminous coal. Cist and other advocates including the Pennsylvania state legislature and government officials continued to promote the anthracite, and the War of 1812 was able to open the way for Pennsylvania anthracite coal to outdo
Virginia's bituminous share of the market. With the opening of the major canals Lehigh, Schuylkill, and Delaware & Hudson in addition to smaller ones such as the Delaware Division and Morris Canals, canal companies successfully provided urban markets for anthracite coal. The anthracite commercial market greatly expanded, and the hard coal was used as valuable fuel for heating and cooking domestically, as well as energy sources for small businesses such as blacksmiths, brewers, bakers, and manufacturers.
Lehigh Canal Josiah White and Erskine Hazard founded the Lehigh Navigation Company in 1818. They wanted to use rivers to more efficiently transport anthracite coal. After they were declined a charter to the
Schuylkill River, they tried to receive a charter for the
Lehigh River. The Lehigh River was located near the Summit Hill Mine, which was mined and operated by the Lehigh Coal Mine Company. Josiah White and Erskine Hazard made a partnership between their company and the Lehigh Coal Mine Company to form the
Lehigh Coal & Navigation Company, which was incorporated in 1822. They received a charter from the Pennsylvania legislature giving them the right to improve navigation on the Lehigh River, which effectively granted them a monopoly over the Lehigh. White and Hazard ordered the construction of a roadway to link the Summit Hill Mine and the Lehigh River, and then ordered the building of a canal. By 1840, over 250,000 tons of anthracite mined from the region annually reached
Philadelphia through White and Hazard's Lehigh River system.
Schuylkill Canal A group of
Germans wanted to seek the rights to the
Schuylkill River. They received a charter in 1815 to incorporate the Schuylkill Navigation Company, which would have control over the Schuylkill River. After receiving investors, the Schuylkill Navigation Company was able to finance a 108-mile long river and canal system that connected the
Pottsville area to Philadelphia that opened in 1825. By the early 1840s, some 500,000 tons of anthracite coal was being transported annually to Philadelphia using the Schuylkill River.
Delaware & Hudson Canal The Wurts brothers, William and Maurice, owned coalfields in the
Northeastern Pennsylvania anthracite region, but found an unresponsive market in Philadelphia, which was receiving coal from the Schuylkill and Lehigh routes. They saw business potential in finding a connection route between anthracite fields and the
New York City market, so they had the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company incorporated in 1823. The D&H Company built a canal system across parts of the Delaware and Hudson Rivers that stretched from
Honesdale, Pennsylvania to
Rondout, New York, which was completed in 1828. ==Railway==