Changing shifts at the mine portal in the afternoon
9/23/1946
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Original Caption: "Changing shifts at the mine portal in the afternoon. Inland Steel Company, Wheelwright #1 & 2 Mines, Wheelwright, Floyd County, Kentucky."
In 1946, noted photographer Russell Lee was hired by the Solid Fuels Administration for War, a Federal agency, to take photographs for a survey of medical, health and housing conditions in coal communities around the country.
Located in remote areas and patrolled by mine company guards during times of labor unrest, coal communities were normally inaccessible to outsiders. But government seizure of the mines from private operators gave Lee an unprecedented view into coal fields from Pennsylvania to Wyoming.
Russell Lee took more than 2,000 photographs of the miners in their homes, workplaces, and communities.
In 1946, noted photographer Russell Lee was hired by the Solid Fuels Administration for War, a Federal agency, to take photographs for a survey of medical, health and housing conditions in coal communities around the country.
Located in remote areas and patrolled by mine company guards during times of labor unrest, coal communities were normally inaccessible to outsiders. But government seizure of the mines from private operators gave Lee an unprecedented view into coal fields from Pennsylvania to Wyoming.
Russell Lee took more than 2,000 photographs of the miners in their homes, workplaces, and communities.
This primary source comes from the Records of the Solid Fuels Administration for War.
National Archives Identifier: 541450
Full Citation: 245-MS-3156L; Changing shifts at the mine portal in the afternoon; 9/23/1946; Photographs of the Medical Survey of the Bituminous Coal Industry, 1946–1947; Records of the Solid Fuels Administration for War, Record Group 245; National Archives at College Park, College Park, MD. [Online Version, https://docsteach.org/documents/document/changing-shifts-at-the-mine-portal-in-the-afternoon, October 13, 2024]Rights: Public Domain, Free of Known Copyright Restrictions. Learn more on our privacy and legal page.