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Archeology and the Nomination - - - - - - - - - - - - - >
Blair Mountain Archeology
Charleston, WV
May 1, 2007
by Harvard Ayers
Over the spring, summer and fall of 2006, Appalachian State University under my direction conducted a field survey of archeological remains pertaining to the 1921 Battle of Blair Mountain, the largest event in the so-called Coal Field Wars. Based on our three weeks in the field and five in the archeology lab at Appalachian State, we were able to document fourteen archeological sites from one end to the other of the ten mile long battle front from the Blair Crests in the south to Mill Creek Gap in the north.
These sites ranged from huge sites with hundreds of artifacts to tiny sites that indicate where perhaps one combatant fired his rifle several times. The large majority of the artifactual evidence was in the form of shell casings from the rifles, pistols and even shotguns fired by the two sides. Less well-represented artifacts recovered by our survey included coins, batteries, and even a pistol.
The archeological study by and large confirmed the historical record to a “T.” History records that the two “hot-spots” over the several days of the battle were the area in and around the Blair Crests and the area near Crooked Creek Gap, which is in the center of the battle front. We documented hundreds of artifacts within a mile or so from each of these places. The major sites at the South and North Crests of Blair Mountain and the major sites above and in Crooked Creek Gap were impossible to study in their entirety in our time frame due to the massive areas covered by so many artifacts. Many more discoveries no doubt await future archeologists at Blair Mountain.
History also records that the entire 10 mile battlefront was defended by various numbers of fighters for the Logan forces or coal industry. We found sites several miles form the hot spots in both directions. These sites were typically smaller and obviously less well defended, but they span the full ten mile battle area and are critical to understanding the strategy of the defenders.
In addition to corroborating the historical record, the archeology found some fascinating evidence not a part of the documentary sources. By determining how hotly contested some sites were, we have been able to see where there was close-in fighting. Such is the case where besides the usual shell casings, presumably fired by the defenders, one finds a high proportion of incoming bullets, apparently fired by the attacking miners. In one particular case the firing must have been nearly point-blank as the weapons used were very short range and the incoming bullets, many. We feel this could indicate a place where the attackers broke through the defender’s line. Thus, such breeches may have been more numerous than originally thought- history records only one break-through, in Crooked Creek Gap- and the defender’s plight more precarious than the history books imply. Indeed history is usually written by the winners, in this case the defenders, bolstered in the end by Federal troops and the US Army Air Corps.
This newly discovered archeological evidence offers strong support for placing the entire ten mile battlefront on the National Register of Historic Places. Earlier attempts to get the battle area so designated have been based almost entirely on the historical record, which, while strong, is much stronger with on-the-ground evidence to back it up and even add considerably to it.
Before we did our work last year, incredibly, no archeological sites had been professionally recorded for the battlefront. Investigations in the 90’s by historians were tenuous at best, and investigators were usually accompanied by representatives of the coal industry. Basically, political constraints have been severe on any West Virginia professional archeologist trying to determine what happened based on on-the-ground evidence.
Much mythology has arisen over the years about the quality and quantity of archeological evidence of the battle. Much has been made of the disturbance of battle areas, such as the South Crest, and many areas along the Spruce Fork Ridge. Disturbance by artifact collectors, logging and gas roads, a fire lookout tower, and the Hatfield-McCoy Trail are all cited. But at every one of the fourteen sites we documented, there was sufficient intact evidence to understand the site. Indeed more than half of the sites studied to date had no subsequent disturbance at all. Over a thousand artifacts were found and documented by us that were as best we could tell, in the place where they fell to the ground in 1921. Contrary to the mythology, preservation of these sites is in most cases extraordinary.
The archeological evidence that we documented at the Battle of Blair Mountain in 2006 tells a fascinating story of this battle that is so important to labor history. From a historical/archeological perspective, it would be a travesty if this site were not preserved for posterity. Many archeological sites with considerably less archeological evidence and of considerably less importance in our country’s history are a part of the National Register. Does not the Blair Mountain battleground from one end to the other deserve such national acclaim? As a professional archeologist, I certainly think it does.