The Abandoned Town Of Coalwood, West Virginia Is A Remnant Of Mining History
By Jackie Ann|Published October 02, 2023
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Jackie Ann
Author
Louisiana native and LSU Alum (Geaux Tigers!), Jackie has lived in Louisiana for over three decades and currently lives in New Orleans. She's been writing for OnlyInYourState since 2016 and can often be found with a coffee at her side, dreaming of her next adventure.
For some reason, we’re always drawn to the abandoned places. They’re harsh reminders of a once-thriving space, now just slowly being reclaimed by Mother Nature. There are many abandoned places in West Virginia, but few can compare to Coalwood. Coalwood is an incorporated coal town in McDowell County that actually has a handful of residents still living there, but for the most part, it’s another abandoned place in West Virginia. Let’s take a look at the history of this coal mine town and what happened to it:
Highlighting the beautifully eerie work of Cleveland-based photographer Johnny Joo, discover more fascinating abandoned locations across America in our Vacant Series. These unique man-made structures have been left abandoned and are slowly being reclaimed by nature.
Editor’s Note: Due to the nature of abandoned destinations, many of the places featured in this series are off-limits to visitors or have actually been demolished. We do not condone trespassing and other illegal activity but rather encourage readers to enjoy learning about these fascinating destinations.
You may have heard of Coalwood before, as it's the location for NASA engineer Homer Hickam Jr.’s memoir, “October Sky,” which was originally published in 1998 as Rocket Boys.
The title was changed and republished to tie into the 1999 film adaptation. The success of the book and film breathed a new life into Coalwood, and an annual October Sky Festival was held until 2011. It briefly picked back up in Raleigh for a few years, but there hasn’t been a Rocket Boys/October Sky Festival since 2019.
Coalwood was founded in 1905 by George Lafayette Carter.
When he arrived in the area and saw many rich seams of coal, he knew it had potential, so he purchased 20,000 acres and constructed a mine.
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The mine was called Carter Coal Company, and he soon developed offices, homes, a company store, a church, and even a schoolhouse to establish the town and draw people in.
They recruited new employees and added a few new buildings, but it wasn’t enough. Carter ended up getting the mine back in 1933 after the Consolidation Coal Company defaulted on a few payments. Carter continued to run the mine until he died in 1936, at which time his son James took it over. James ran the mine until he sold it in 1947 to a group that changed the name to the Olga Coal Company.
Olga Coal Company also owned the nearby Caretta mine, and by 1956, both mines were connected.
By 1959, coal wasn’t being brought to the surface via Coalwood anymore, which led the Norfolk and Western Railway to pull up the tracks that led to the town. As we know all too well, when the railroad leaves, it won’t take long before the town shuts its doors for good.
The now combined Coalwood-Caretta mine continued to be successful until the Coalwood mine stopped coal mine production in 1982, and officially closed in 1986.
By this time, ownership changed hands one final time. LTV Corporation purchased it in 1980, but only produced coal for two years before stopping everything.
At its peak, Coalwood had a population of over 2,000 residents and helped bring McDowell County to the number one slot in the country for total coal production.
