A photograph showing the water-level tunnel entrance of the Centralia Colliery as it appeared in the 1890s.
From a series of articles that appeared in the Pottsville Republican and Herald in 1998:
Located in Columbia County in the borough of Centralia, the Centralia Colliery was opened by a slope sunk 350 feet on the South Dip Mammoth Vein by J. M. Freck, Blankson & Company in 1862.
The first coal shipment of 401 tons was made during the same year. in 1863, the shipments had increased to 19,278 tons and 67,138 tons in 1864.
The company mined the first level 1,600 feet east and 3,600 feet west, and in about 1868 it extended the slope to the basin a total length of 960 feet.
The mining of the lower level continued until November 1870, when the breaker was destroyed by fire. In 1872, after shipping 69 tons of coal, the company retired from the business of mining and the colliery was allowed to fill with water.
In 1873, Dr. Provost leased the colliery and drove a water-level tunnel 760 feet north to the Buck Mountain, from which gangways were driven east and west at 170 feet.
West of the tunnel, a slope was sunk 180 feet to the tunnel level, for the purpose of hoisting the coal from the tunnel gangways to the level of the breaker.
In 1876, Dr. Provost pumped the water out of the Mammoth Slope workings and mining was resumed in the lower level. A gangway was 700 feet west of the bottom of the slope was driven across the basin into the Hazel Dell North Dip Workings, thereby connecting the two collieries.
In 1879, a new slope was sunk on the South Dip Buck Mountain Vein when the breaker was destroyed, and the lower levels of the colliery were again filled with water.
Dr. Provost sold his interests to Lewis A. Riley & Company in 1880. Riley & Company took possession of the colliery and extended the Buck Mountain Slope to a depth of 512 feet and mined the upper level of the Mammoth and Buck Mountain veins.
In 1890, miners drove a drainage tunnel from the ravine at Big Mine Run Creek into the mine workings of Hazel Dell and Centralia collieries that would drain the water from all collieries of the basin.
In 1907, a tender slope was sunk on the seven-foot vein.
The Lehigh Valley Coal Company mined extensively to 1927, when the colliery was suspended, but resumed mining in 1928.
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Article by Frank Blase, Historian, Reading Anthracite Company Historical Library, Pottsville Republican & Herald, February 7, 1998. Obtained from Newspapers.com.
Corrections and additional information should be added as comments to this post.