Second Industrial Revolution In America

The Second Industrial Revolution in America, though beneficial to the growth of our nation, was built by the blood and sweat of overworked coal miners between the late 1890s and the turn of the century. Coal became an essential part of life for the average family, for it fueled the industry which people worked (i.e. factories and mills), and gave warmth and a cooking stove to their homes. One would think that those working in the dangerous mines—for such a public necessity—would be compensated fairly for their work, unfortunately the opposite was occurring. Large, privately owned, coal operators, such as those in Kanawha County, West Virginia, allowed greed to override their common decency, as they took advantage of the uneducated, and desperate workers. After many attempts of an amicable resolution to unwavering private operators, a tipping point shifted the balance for the coal miners, and a strike was inevitable.

A perfect concoction of newly acquired territories, natural resources, and willing foreign immigrants / emancipated migrants, created a perfect scenario for major coal industries. As the States evolved from being agriculturally centered, to industrial, the need of coal exponentially grew. As a result, large private coal companies opened coal camps, where miner families could live and work. Thousands flocked to the coal camps, for illusions of good wages and decent company houses paved the