Pig Iron Dave

This video explores the Kaymoor No. 1 mine site in the New River Gorge, recorded October 24, 2019. Kaymoor was founded in 1899 by the Low Moor Iron Company to supply coal and coke to its iron smelting operations in Low Moor, VA. The New River and Pocahontas Consolidated Coal and Coke Company purchased the site in 1925 and made extensive modifications and improvements, including a new tipple to replace the original which had burned down in the previous year. From 1900 to 1962, Kaymoor's miners produced 16,904,321 tons of coal, not including the coal produced at the short-lived Kaymoor #2 mine, which was located a short distance upriver. The New River Company shut down operations in 1962. Remnants of the powerhouse, tipple, processing plant, and coke ovens are near the bottom of the gorge, which can be reached via a 821-step wooden staircase built by the National Park Service. The structures visible in this video are located roughly midway between the top and bottom of the gorge. I plan to post more videos of Kaymoor, a site that continues to fascinate me.

This video is a slow walk through America's first railroad tunnel, the Staple Bend Tunnel. This tunnel is located about 4 miles east of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, in a town called Mineral Point and was constructed between 1831 and 1834 for the Allegheny Portage Railroad. Construction began on April 12, 1831. The tunnel is 901 feet in length and is now owned by the National Park Service.