THE SCHUYLKILL REGION, In point of prominence and present development the Schuylkill region is the most important, and has more claims to the attention of the historian than either of those before mentioned, since in connection we must also include the history of the Mahanoy region, as an off-shoot or consequent result of the development of this. But in a consecutive detail of events it is of course best and proper to relate them in the order of their occur rence, as we have attempted to do, and thus for the first time presented to our readers a reliable historical account of the order in which our coal fields have been developed.
The first traditional account we have of the discovery of coal in the Schuylkill region is about 1790, when Nicho Allen, a noted hunter and somewhat notorious character, who lived on the Broad. Mountain at the " Black Cabin" or Big Spring, discovered stone-coal at the foot of the Broad Mountain about the period of which we write. No written account of his discovery has ever come to our notice, though we have often heard the traditional account. Some ten years ago we commenced to gather material for a work of the kind we are now writing, though circumstances prevented their use at the time, but we find them now available.
We will be as brief as possible, though we have no doubt our readers will be interested to know every incident and event relating to the early discovery and development of our celebrated and invaluable coal-fields.
Tradition says that Nicho Allen, alias the " Black Yankee," discovered stone-coal during one of his hunting expeditions, in the following manner. Allen had camped for the night, which he frequently did, under the shelter of some overhanging rocks and trees, the precise locality of which is not mentioned ; but, having built a fire on some fallen rocks, he stretched himself to sleep as near it as was safe. Some time during the night, when the wood should have been burned to embers, leaving the fire low, Nicho was surprised to be awakened by more heat about his legs than was comfortable; but he was astonished, on rubbing his eyes and his shins, to find the rocks a glowing mass of fire, and the mountain, as he supposed, in danger of being consumed.
This appears to have been Allen's first experience with stone-coal. In
the morning he found the rocks were black and shining, and corresponding to the description he had heard of stone-coal; he consequently congratu lated himself on his discovery, having such ocular demonstrations of its value as a fuel, and during the many years that followed, before the virtue of anthracite was fully recognized by the doubtful and unappreciative public, Nicho Allen was its firm and steadfast advocate. But, like most of those early pioneers, he did not appear to have profited much by discovery or experience.
The last we heard of him was on the occasion of his death; which, if we mistake not, was in an attempt to cross the Mahanoy on a slender foot bridge or log, during a heavy flood, when he fell off and was drowned before assistance could reach him.
He had removed back to his native State in New England, in disgust with his success at coal-mining; but, having acquired a property in the Mahanoy Valley, the accident we have just related occurred while he was on a temporary visit here to look after it.
Such, we believe, were the facts, as correctly as they are generally given by tradition. Several versions of the same story were told by the associates of Allen, but they are all substantially the same. We have no doubt but this incident attracted attention at the time, and was the first information we possess of the discovery of anthracite coal in the mountains of the Schuylkill, which led to practical results.
The next notice we find of the use or existence of anthracite coal in the Schuylkill region is in the Transactions of the "Coal Mining Association of Schuylkill County," in which it is stated that a blacksmith, by the name of Whetstone, used it in his smithery about the year 1795. His success induced several others to dig for coal, and, when found, to attempt to burn it; but the difficulty was so great, they gave up in disgust. We have no doubt, as before stated, that one chief cause of their failure was owing to their ignorance of the difference between coal and slate. It is reasonable to suppose that our primitive miners (?) had but small experience in this matter, and that they dug' all their coal from the imperfect outcrops of the seams.