The Avondale Hill community was the site of the deadliest mine disaster in Anthracite coal mining history. On September 6, 1869, 110 men and boys perished in the mine where they were trapped by a suspect fire which began in the mine shaft.

After the disaster, relief funds were taken for the families of the dead miners and many laws were passed for mine safety to prevent disasters of this size from occurring again. Since then the Avondale site has become almost forgotten.

All that stands there now is a small historical marker, a circular raised bed garden along State Route 11, and the colliery ruins of the old patch town buildings which have become overgrown by shrubbery, thickets, and invasive plants in the floodplain.

Today there are a few organizations that still look after the site and are trying to preserve its history. EPCAMR is one of these organizations. They are trying to complete projects at the site to revitalize it.

A few community organizations have been trying to change the image and memory of the disaster location for several years now so that its history can be told and the site can be visited.

EPCAMR and the Anthracite Living History Group have coordinated dozens of volunteer efforts with community partners such as the Wilkes-Barre Area Vo-Tech Machine Shop & Horticulture Class, and several local Boy Scout troops to revitalize the site along the Susquehanna Warrior Trail, which was once the active Delaware, Lackawanna, & Western Railroad.

One such project includes cleaning up the illegal dumping that is currently taking place at Avondale.

EPCAMR received a $22,000 Illegal Dump grant from the Department of Environmental Protection’s Bureau of Waste Management to do cleanups throughout the Wyoming Valley at 5 locations over the next year, Avondale included.

The work will require tire removal, dumpsters, and volunteers to pick up the trash. EPCAMR also received antigraffiti paint and rollers donated by PennDOT thanks to Keep PA Beautiful Coordinator Dave Rinehimer.

The paint will be rolled in several coats that may be necessary to remove the unsightly graffiti, possible gang-related tags, and vulgarities that are on the underpass near Avondale and also the foundation walls at the site where several raised bed gardens are under construction, the engine house that parallels State Route 11 before you enter the Avondale Hill community, and several other buildings dating back to the Avondale Colliery.

The paint will also make future cleanup of any additional graffiti tags by young ignorant youth easier to remove.

Two of EPCAMR’s interns, Kyra Norton and Shawn Jones have jumped at the opportunity to assist with the project before they head back to college in mid-August to help EPCAMR finish the beautification project along the underpass and at several other locations within the next two weeks.

The Department of Transportation has provided us with 10 gallons of paint, and several rollers to start off. Once the State budget is passed, they will be able to provide us with additional anti-graffiti paint, rollers, and brushes.

Once all the cleanup work is done, EPCAMR will place gardens near the foundation wall that will be planted with native species of wildflowers and shrubs. Constructions of the raised beds are in place and some additional work and funds need to be generated to complete the work at the site. There will also be tables and benches at the site for people to use to sit and rest or have picnics.

Two message-post kiosks will be placed at the site so passer-bys can pick up some educational material about the history of the site and will show various interpretations and vantage points of the old historical structures and the mine shaft.

There is also hope of placing a nature trail around the wetlands near the site which will hopefully be linked to the Susquehanna Warrior Trail in the future. EPCAMR hopes to make this project a success by having community involvement in the site preparation process and planting of the gardens.

The community will also be called upon for the light maintenance and upkeep of the site after its revitalization.

Robert Hughes, Executive Director for EPCAMR, and Avondale Hill resident, emphatically stated, “For too many years now after having put in hundreds of volunteer hours alongside of Plymouth Township residents and like-minded historical preservation folks who want to see the Avondale Mine site properly remembered, it’s time to take back our community’s heritage and sense of pride. We have the location of the most significant Anthracite Mining Disaster in U.S. history, right in our backyard, and I guarantee you that many of our children don’t know about it, many residents don’t know about it, and thousands of tourists and outdoor recreationists would love to hear about it.”

For more information, visit the Eastern Coalition for Abandoned Mine Reclamation website.