American Industrial Mining
Company Museum
Preserving Our Mining and Industrial Heritage
A 501(c)(3) Non-profit preservation, restorations and education organization

Shoaf Coal and Coke Works

  1. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf had 300 bee hive ovens of which many are still in great shape today considering they haven't been fired for almost 40 years.
  2. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The bee hive ovens would be sealed up with brick and a clay morter to bake the coal. The bricks would be removed and the mechanical coke drawing machine would extract the coke.
  3. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The charging hole where the coal would be loaded from the Larry Car
  4. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Lined up to take coal near the former coal bunker.
  5. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The coal and coke environments are very acidic near the coke batteries causing steel to deteriorate at a faster then normal rate.
  6. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    This is the Larry Car that American Industrial Mining team will be preserving.
  7. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The coal would exit the Larry cars down this chute into the top charging hole.
  8. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The Larry Car level used stone foundations to support the railway across the top of the coke battery.
  9. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Larry Car railway.
  10. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    An overhead trolley fitting that used to hold up the trolley wire that would provide the electricity for the larry cars.
  11. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    This elevated railway structure connected the 2 sets of batteries together and allowed both batteries to use the same coal bunker.
  12. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The 2 tracks join just north of the coke batteries.
  13. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The connection to the coal bunker. Many of the trolley poles are still standing.
  14. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The elevated railway structure near the coal bunker.
  15. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The mechanical coke drawing machine. This piece of equipment would remove the coke after the coking cycle and load it into coal cars that would deliver it to the steel mills.
  16. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The size degradation of the coke was not a major quality concern back then as it is today.
  17. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The coke would travel through this machine then out the conveyor to the left and load directly into the coal cars.
  18. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    A Baltimore & Ohio coal car still remains near the coke batteries.
  19. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The electrical controls for the coke drawing machine.
  20. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The builders plate still remains for one of the larry cars. Built in 1942.

Shoaf Coal and Coke Works
Powerhouse & Coal Mine

  1. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The powerhouse was built in 1905.
  2. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The powerhouse still has the original rotary converters intact built by the General Electric Co. These would convert the power from AC to the necessary DC power required for the mine & coke works.
  3. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The switch boards still mounted to slate as built in 1905.
  4. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The rear of the switch boards.
  5. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    A sign still remains from the H.C. Frick Coke Company.
  6. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    A glass bottle of coke remains on the floor of the powerhouse.
  7. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The coal mine was almost directly behind the powerhouse. You can clearly see where the belt left the slope and went to the former Anthracite Coal Breaker.
  8. Shoaf Coal & Coke
    Shoaf Coal & Coke
    The Page dragline was brought in to strip the coal in later years and the underground mine was closed.