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Coal calendars are available

To the editor:

The 2018 Harrison Coal and Reclamation Historical Park calendars feature Hanna’s second No. 5561 Marion Power Shovel, nicknamed the “Green Hornet,” that was assembled in late 1946 near Georgetown, Ohio. Why the nickname? It was originally painted green. The shovel had a 35-cubic-yard bucket, went to a 40-cubic-yard bucket in the 1950s and then had a 46-cubic-yard bucket. It worked in several areas of Harrison County, and had an accident in 1964, when it was located behind the Harrison County Home. By 1981, it was working off state Route 519 near New Athens when the boom and stick were damaged. Consol replaced those from its sister shovel, the “Ground Hog,” which had been idled in 1979. The Green Hornet came to rest near Route 519 and U.S. Route 22 and was scrapped in 1989.

The park board meets at 6:30 p.m. the first Tuesday of every month in the Cadiz Visitor Center. The park itself is located just west of New Athens, next to the Stumptown area. Our membership dues come due the first of every year, and are $10 for a single, $15 for a family and $50 for a business. Persons interested in purchasing this latest in a series of calendars can contact our vice president, Dale Davis, at 456 Park Ave., Cadiz, OH, 43907, and enclose a check or money order for each calendar for $10, plus a $3 fee per calendar for shipping and handling. He can be reached by phone at (740) 391-4135. If you are in Cadiz, you can pick one up at the visitors center, which is located next to the courthouse, or at the Puskarich Public Library, which is on Market Street, two blocks from the square.

There is a series of coal park calendars that go back to 2011 and feature the Mountaineer, the Silver Spade, the G.E.M. of Egypt and others. Contact Davis for information. Many of the photographs are in black and white because that was what was available at the time. These machines are all gone now, and most pictures are no longer available. This is a money-making project for the park, as well as an opportunity to preserve the coal history in this region.

As president of this organization, I have come to know our history better from the wonderful contacts and friends I have made during the years. Coal mining was, and still is, important to our economy and to the hard-working men and women who live here and who have earned a place in our history, so I say thank you to all who have helped and supported us since 1992.

This past year was a very rough one for my health and the death of my husband, Roy, in September, but I’m back now and looking forward to coming events in the next few years. Special thanks everyone who helps with the Ohio Valley Chapter of the HCEA.

Claren Blackburn

President,

Harrison Coal and

Reclamation Historical

Park Inc.

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