Millions of years ago the plants that would eventually become the fossil fuel, coal, died and were eventually buried deep underground.
History of Coal
This is a brief history of coal mining in Kentucky.
In the beginning...
In Kentucky
1750 The use of coal in Kentucky was discovered by Dr. Thomas Walker (Kentucky Foundation, 2008).
Quiz
How is coal normally transported (Kentucky Foundation, 2008)?
- Plane
- Train
- By hand
- Trucks
1872 The first train took a trip on the Big Sandy Line in Lexington, Kentucky (Kentucky Foundation, 2008).
1963 More than 100 tons of coal was produced in Kentucky (Kentucky Foundation, 2008).
Modern Day Now, there are many laws and regulations determining how it should be mined. Coal mining is still a dangerous and difficult job.
Busnik, T. (2014, October 9). Autumn decay [photo]. Retrieved from
https://www.flickr.com/photos/sjekkiebunzing/15390280917/in/photolist-
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Claxon, C. (2016, July 6). CSX coal train on the big sandy [photo]. Retrieved from
https://www.flickr.com/photos/coryclaxon/28165179276/in/photolist-nbDrnA-
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Kentucky Foundation. (2008). Kentucky Coal Heritage timeline of Kentucky coal.
Retrieved from http://www.coaleducation.org/coalhistory/timeline.htm
Kentucky Photo File. (2010, September 15). Coal [photo]. Retrieved from
https://www.flickr.com/photos/kyphotofile/4996583149/in/photolist-8BwN6k-
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Lee, J. (2010, December 16). The coal miner song - Jimmy Joe Lee [video].
Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hyK5MErw3r4
Student Energy. (2015, May 17). Fossil fuels 101 [video]. Retrieved from