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Knoebels Coal Mining Museum Provides Glimpse into Region’s Coal History
By: Lisa Z. Leighton
Previously printed in Lancaster Farming; reprinted with permission by the author.
Elysburg, Pa. – Visitors to Knoebels Amusement Resort may be surprised to learn that nestled into the back section of the park is a Coal Mining Museum that pays homage to the region’s coal mining history.
Like the rest of Knoebels, the admission to the Museum is free and as an indoor, air-conditioned facility, it can provide a welcome respite from the oppressive summer heat when visiting the park for fun, food, rides, and entertainment.
The Anthracite Mining Museum (aka Coal Mining Museum) opened in 1988, featuring artifacts from former mine inspector Clarence “Mooch” Kashner's personal collection. The building resembles a coal breaker and features an exhibit space and a gift shop. Just outside, visitors will find The Black Diamond, a dark thrill ride, and an area for children to pan for gems.
The museum features mine artifacts such as mining tools, safety handbooks, logs showing pay scales and accidents, a model of a bootleg mine, a display about the different sizes of coal, displays about mining methods and equipment used in the mines, and personal stories about mining and life in the coal region. There is also an informative video about the region’s extensive coal mining history and legacy, produced by WVIA.
Many of the artifacts are from the personal collection of Clarence “Mooch” Kashner, a retired Pennsylvania State Mine Inspector and former president of the Independent Miners, Breaker men, and Truckers union. Kashner asked Peter Knoebel to display the artifacts and memorabilia he’d acquired throughout his career.
One of the most interesting and interactive parts of the Museum is a searchable computer database of accident reports that occurred in Northumberland County between 1913 and 1936. The hand-written paper files of the accident reports are in neat binders as part of the display. The enormity of the files gives visitors an eerie reminder of the danger of the coal mining profession in the 1900s.
Another interesting display features types of mining helmets and their associated uses: leather turtle hats with battery pack lights, which were used when working around energized cables, search and rescue battery pack helmets with respirators, leather hats with kerosene lamps, used in the early 1900s and allowed the worker to adjust the wick length to give more or less light, and hard hats with battery packs. Antique coal mining lanterns are also on display throughout the Museum.
Yet another display centers around the importance of mules in the coal mines. The display indicates that horses were too large and expensive and oxen were too slow. Mules were sometimes given underground stables and many spent their entire lives working underground. They were a revered part of the team and ballads were even written about them.
The Coal Mining Museum is open when the park is open and there is no admission fee. For more information about Knoebels, go to Knoebels.com.