coalwood Today  -  the remaining buildings

Only a few hundred people live in Coalwood today.  Many people left after the mines shut down in the late 1980s.  Several devastating floods destroyed or severely damaged many of the homes in town.  Some of the significant buildings from the coal mining days still remain.  They are in various stages of disrepair and disintegration.

All the public buildings in town have always been owned by the company.  The current owners do  some maintenance on some of the buildings, but for the most part, Coalwood Main is slowly deteriorating.  Many of the residents are interested in preserving what is left of this historically significant town, but without site control, they have not yet been able to mount a historic preservation effort. 

Here are some photos of the remaining buildings in town.  These structures are significant to the history of coal mining in West Virginia as well as an important part of Homer Hickam’s Coalwood books and the movie October Sky.  They need to be preserved. 

For more information, contact: 

Cape Coalwood Restoration Association

HC31   Box 82

Welch, West Virginia  24801