Christmas Rubies In My Treasure Box

“The Christmas Candle at Barker” A Historical Christmas Narrative Based on the 1900 Barker Mine Disaster, Fayette County, WV “The people which sat in darkness saw great light.” — Matthew 4:16 (KJV) The year was 1900 , and winter had settled early over the rugged hills of Fayette County. The coal camp near the Barker Mine , tucked between the ridges outside Thurmond, was a place where families lived close to the earth and even closer to one another. Coal dust clung to every porch rail, and the sound of the New River echoed through the valley like a restless hymn. Life was hard, but the people were used to hard. What they weren’t used to was the kind of sorrow that would strike just weeks before Christmas. The Morning the Mountain Spoke On December 8, 1900 , the men of Barker Mine descended into the earth before dawn. Among them was Jonas McClure , a father of four, known for singing old hymns as he walked to work. His wife, Eliza , had packed his lunch pail with leftover cornbr...

“Christmas Under the Mountain: The St. Clair Mine Story” A Historical Christmas Narrative from Fayette County, West Virginia “For unto you is born this day in the city of  David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.” — Luke 2:11 (KJV) The winter of 1907 settled hard over Fayette County. Snow clung to the ridges like white lace, and the New River Gorge lay quiet beneath a sky the color of slate. Coal trains rattled through the valleys, their whistles echoing off the mountainsides, carrying the lifeblood of the region toward distant cities. In the small coal camp near Mount Hope, the St. Clair Mine dominated every sunrise and every prayer. The men who worked there knew the mountain intimately—its moods, its groans, its warnings. They also knew its dangers. But coal was the only work, and families depended on it. Among the miners was Samuel “Sam” Hensley , a man in his early thirties with a gentle voice and a Bible worn soft from years of reading by lamplight. His wife, Lila , k...