Deadly 1921 coal miner revolt in West Virginia remembered
CHARLESTON, W.Va. Fed up with the deadly work and poor wages and living conditions, thousands of coal miners marched to unionize in West Virginia a century ago, resulting in a deadly clash and the largest U.S. armed uprising since the Civil War.
On Friday, some of their descendants joined others in retracing the steps that led to the 12-day Battle of Blair Mountain. Multiple events are planned looking back at the fight, highlighted by the 45-mile march over three days.
Every step you take, you just think about what kind of courage that took, said United Mine Workers international President Cecil Roberts, whose great-uncle, Bill Blizzard, was a leader of the 1921 march as a union subdistrict state organizer.
The miners whites, Blacks, and European immigrants banded together, bent on doing something about their treatment by coal operators. They became known as the Red Neck Army for the distinctive bandannas around their necks.
Read more: https://www.post-gazette.com/local/region/2021/09/03/Deadly-1921-coal-miner-revolt-in-West-Virginia-remembered-1/stories/202109030167