Lynch, Kentucky

(Lynch, Ky. is just a few miles from the Virginia state line. Currently there's no direct evidence that the Crow Creek Lynches are related to the founders of Lynch, Ky. I'm currently researching that possibility. jlynch_home@yahoo.com.)

By Derrick McBreairty

Driving through Lynch and other parts of Harlan County, one can’t help but notice the rundown houses and abandoned buildings. And upon passing the first block, one might want to turn around—or even step on the gas pedal a little harder.

Once a heavily populated community, this area—during the first half of the 20th century—boasted a booming economy, among its many amenities. When looking around Lynch today, however, it’s hard to imagine that this town of around 990 citizens was once filled with about 10,000 people.

At one time, Lynch, Ky., had all the latest technology and advances; plus, the citizens during the first half of the century also enjoyed some of the latest conveniences. Things such as tennis courts, baseball fields, a shopping mall and a theater were here. Harlan County residents even enjoyed electricity here in the 1920s when places such as Louisville, Ky., didn’t get this modern convenience until the 1950s.

Lynch was founded in 1917 after the U.S. Steel and Coke Company found that beneath the mountain lay some of the most valuable coal. Through testing, they realized this coal was so rich that it was perfect for the production of their steel.

“At the time it was the largest coal camp in the world,” said Hugh “Gunner” Webb, a resident of Lynch and employee of the company for 37 years.

“The entire town was created before a shovel even touched the ground,” remarked Phyllis Sizemore, a lifelong resident of Harlan County and the assistant museum curator at the Benham Coal Mining Museum.

According to the area’s history, the company came in with the planning-before-building mindset. That is, the entire town was laid out and created, and then the

work force was created, Sizemore said.

From that point, though, the company needed workers. In turn, U.S. Steel sent representatives to Ellis Island, where mass numbers of immigrants were arriving. And they also sent representatives to the cotton fields, where many African Americans worked.

“At this time, there were thousands of people coming from Europe and other places that need work. It was the right place at the right time for the company to hire these immigrants,” Sizemore noted.

The workers recruited, she added, were people who already possessed the skills that were valuable to the mining production and the community.

Thanks to the Great Depression years, in the 1930s and through the early 1940s, hard times abounded and many miners worked only one or two days a week.

Perhaps more interesting, however, is that there was no real democracy in this area, observed Sizemore, who said U.S. Steel and Coke Co. owned it all―everything from the mines, the stores and buildings to the houses and even the police force. The company even had its own money called “scripts,” a currency that lasted until the 1950s when the Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional.

“The company ran this town like a fair dictatorship,” said Webb, who remembered paying $2 rent, $1.50 for water and 40 cents for four rooms to have

electricity during a time when most people in other parts of the country didn’t even have electricity.

It was in 1964, though, that things really started to change, and not for the better. It was at this time that it became less profitable for U.S. Steel to keep mining the coal in these deep mines.

“It got to the point to where it would take a miner almost two hours to get to the back of the mine, then start to work, take a break, and then work for a little while longer, and have to travel another two hours to get out,” Webb said. “The company had to pay for all that time that there was no production. It just wasn’t feasible to go that deep into the mountain.”

In 1966, the company sold all its houses to the residents; the coal camp was now a city. It was at this time, Webb said, that he bought his eight-room house for $1,450.

Then, in 1984, U.S. Steel bought out Marathon Oil Company, which decreased the company’s need for coal, while also adding to the mines closing.

Finally, in 1990, the mines in Lynch closed the gates for good.

Today, Lynch looks like a ghost town. Empty and dilapidated houses litter the foot of the mountain, while abandoned coal mines and vacant machinery buildings also are scattered alone the mountainside.

So what lies ahead for the citizens now?

Yes, there is still coal left in these mines, but finding a way to mine this resource efficiently remains an unanswered question. For now, the citizens of Lynch must commute to other areas for work.

Martin grew up here in the early ‘70s, and it’s a place where she has many fond memories.

She moved away in 1976, but moved back about three years ago, she said, and since then, she’s been shocked at the changes that occurred during the time she was gone.

“These days, it’s either ‘coal mine, moonshine or down the line,’” said Christine

Martin, regarding the town’s future.