Hooked on History: Goshen Township coal mine was cursed with bad luck


Jon Baker, The Times-Reporter
Mon, February 21, 2022

The New Castle Mine was one the earliest coal mines in Tuscarawas County.

The mines at New Castle were among the earliest and most profitable of the coal mines which once dotted Tuscarawas County and provided employment to hundreds.

The mines, located along what is now state Route 416 between New Philadelphia and Goshen, opened shortly after the Ohio & Erie Canal was completed through Tuscarawas County. The mines were next to the canal.

Coal was first discovered in the county in 1755 near Bolivar because a vein was seen on fire.

One of the earliest references to the mines at New Castle can be found in the journals of Prince Maximilian of Wied, a German nobleman who toured North America between 1832 and 1834.

In his journal, he wrote, "A few hours later, we reached the coal mines near New Castle, where a lock is located. Here, too, mine cars were run (on top of) scaffolding and unloaded at the end. The coal falls down (in a) heap right at the bank (where it is) loaded on boats at once and transported farther.

"New Castle is a new place, not listed in the Ohio Gazetteer for 1833. Rubus odoratus (flowering raspberry) grows in the picturesque rocks nearby and in front of the lock."

There was a strong market in Cleveland for New Castle coal, which had a reputation as being "strong" coal, well suited for the generation of steam. But it had too much sulfur to be used in the manufacturing of iron.

The principal mine at New Castle was owned by Judge Jacob Blickensderfer of Dover. The Geological Survey of the State of Ohio, published in 1836, said the mine "is worked with more judgment and vigor than any in the county. The coal is well known in market, and if I am correctly informed, is considered superior to that of many localities."

The mines operated successfully for many years, shipping coal to Cleveland by canal boat. It maintained its place of prominence as long as the canal was the only way to transport coal out of Tuscarawas County. With the coming of the railroads, New Castle declined in prominence, eclipsed by the new mines opened in Pike Run City (now Barnhill).

In the late 1890s, the New Castle Coal Co., based in New Philadelphia, made an attempt to open a mine there.

According to the 1898 Ohio Bureau of Mines report, it was a drift mine, an underground mine in which the entry or access is above water level and generally on the slope of a hill, driven horizontally into the ore seam. The mine employed 22 miners and four day hands.

But as local newspapers noted, the mine was cursed by bad luck.

On March 17, 1901, Frank Stowe, a plumber from New Philadelphia, was called to the mine to repair the gasoline engine used to pump water out of the mine.

The pump was a considerable distance inside the mine. Stowe was accompanied by John S. Kollar, a co-owner of the mine, Arthur Hill and Sam Carlisle, a 16-year-old boy, according to the Uhrichsville-Dennison News-Democrat newspaper.

After Stowe repaired the engine, he told the others, "I am getting sick." They started to leave, but Stowe became dazed and fell to the ground. Kollar turned to shut off the engine and collapsed. Soon after, Hill was also overcome.

Carlisle, who was in advance of the others, ran to the mouth of the mine to get help. Two miners, James and Robert Carlisle, risked their lives to bring the three men out.

Doctors soon arrived on the scene to provide medical assistance. They were able to revive Kollar and Hill.

"But with Stowe the vital spark had fled, and though they persisted in their efforts, ever after hope had fled, no signs of returning animation rewarded their efforts," the paper said.

Stowe, "one of the most genial and best liked men in New Philadelphia," was a member of the New Philadelphia Fire Department and the Knights of Pythias.

Five years later, the company had changed its name to the North Newcastle Coal Co., and Kollar was now partners with Thomas Quinn.

In February 1906, Quinn brought suit against Kollar, seeking a dissolution of the partnership, an accounting of the business since Aug. 25, 1904, and the appointment of a receiver to close out the firm's business.

The records of the canal toll collector's office showed that 143 boat loads of coal had been shipped on the canal from the mine during the summer and fall of 1905, going to Massillon, Akron and Cleveland. However, the company books contained a record of only 113 loads.

Kollar acknowledged 122 loads, but that left 21 loads of coal unaccounted for.

"Many sales of coal from the tipple at the mine are unaccounted for, the plaintiff (Quinn) asserts and charges the partner with having appropriated the proceeds of these sales for his own use," the New Philadelphia Daily Times reported.

A judge appointed a receiver for the company.

"A train of ill luck seems to follow the working of this mine," the Daily Times reported, noting the death of Stowe and a strike there a few weeks before Quinn filed suit.

The lawsuit pretty much marked the end of coal mining in New Castle, which faded away in years to come.

Jon Baker is a reporter for The Times-Reporter and can be reached at jon.baker@timesreporter.com.

This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: History: Goshen Township coal mine was cursed with bad luck