Coalcracker Culture: Work and Values in Pennsylvania Anthracite, 1835-1935
Coalcracker Culture traces the evolution of a distinct regional culture in the anthracite coal fields of Pennsylvania. The study begins by establishing the region's industrial and social contexts. With a handful of companies controlling over ninety percent of total production, the anthracite industry was one of the most formidable cartels in American history. Overcapitalization, first in the form of excess plant and, later, as a large bonded debt, forced the cartel to maintain low labor costs and high profit margins. It secured the surplus of workers required by its labor policy by recruiting immigrants; as many as twenty-six languages were spoken in the area at one time. As a result, coal region society fractured as each ethnic group strove to preserve its identity and project its influence in the larger community. Recognizing that work provided a diverse population with its only shared set of experiences, Aurand traces the development of anthracite deep mining. He discovers that
Absolutely stunning and flawless. Promoted to one of my all-time favorite books. I've no clue how the author wrote this, but it is absolutely incredible.