Little Cities of Black Diamonds

Mother nature blessed Ohio with many natural resources, but none had the same immediate economic impact as coal did in Southeastern Ohio. The veins of coal that run through hills around Athens, Ohio led to an economic boom prior to the dawn of the 20th Century and turned a series of sleepy little hollows into thriving communities. But as quickly as these towns boomed, shifting coal mining technology turned many of these towns into literal ghost towns while others struggle still today to survive.

In the late 1800s, coal was being excavated from the hills of Southeast Ohio through hard, tedious and dangerous human labor. A day's wage was dependent upon how much good coal a worker could produce, often at a rate of 10 cents a ton. But that also was for quality coal, not just shale and other bits of less valuable rock. Between dangerous working conditions and disputes over wages, coal workers had a rough life.

The tri-county area of Athens, Perry and Hocking Counties is the geographic home to the Little Cities of Black Diamonds region. It is one of the poorest areas of Ohio, if not the entire country. Trying to find viable opportunities for economic growth is challenging enough, but trying to revitalize historic structures is harder yet. But little by little, at almost a glacier-like pace, the Little Cities are finding ways to transform history into economic opportunity.

Driving by Rendville, Ohio (map, history) at 60 mph on Ohio Route 13, you would hardly think this was a town. But at the turn of the century Rendville's population was at 2,000 (see photo here), of which 300 were African-Americans. In 1884 there averaged a bar for every 24 people in the town. Comparatively, the 2000 Census shows a population of 46 people in 12 households. Today Main Street is barely 500 feet long and has six different properties, of which one is a circa 1860s church (see top left, click to enlarge) and another a condemned home (see right, click to enlarge) being renovated as a project by students and nearby Ohio Univesity.

Today the church serves as a beacon of a different sort, one of how to find a new use for a historic property. The church (see left, click to enlarge) has been turned into a combination workshop and folk art studio for disadvantaged adults (YouTube video here). Each day students work in conjunction with volunteers to produce various folk art treasures that are offered for public sale. The church still retains its original tin ceiling and steeple.

Just under 10 miles to the west at the junction of Ohio 93 and 155 is another of the Little Cities, the town of Shawnee (map, historic pictures). The story of each of the Little Cities is similar to the other, where the enterprise of coal built a town, followed by its near abandonment as the coal ran out. Route 155 has now bypassed the city, but only by several hundred feet. Driving this route will reveal a glimpse of huge murals on the back side of the buildings along the main street.

Shawnee, however, has unique architectural features that place a style with the region. Along the main street nearly all of the buildings have second story porches that overhang the sidewalk (see left, click to enlarge). The arching supports to each are very distinct and unlike other places. Preservation efforts are being attempted to maintain the look of the downtown, but with the state of economics in the region the task is monumental.

The jewel of downtown Shawnee is the Tecumseh Opera House (see left, click to enlarge). The cavernous second floor theater rivals the size of any modern day theater (an individual theater, not the complex) and is said to have hosted basketball games on its floor. It is the tallest structure in Perry County and nearly did not survive modern times. During the 1970s the building was slated for demolition to reclaim the steel. But the building was saved and is being slowly renovated with the hopes of restoring to full operational condition (see right, click to enlarge). While it may seem unusual to see such a grand theater (at one point) in such a remote and depressed area, during their prime time just about each of the Little Cities had one, if not two, opera houses for entertaining the coal miners and families.

A block down from the Tecumseh is a rather unique and creative re-usage of a detoriating property. One of the vacant storefronts suffered a roof collapse and the cost to repair was prohibitive for a building with no tenant and no prospects for use. So the entire roof and second floor were demolished and a garden planted, open to the sky. It is an unusual feeling to walk through a storefront doorway and see plants and trees and look up to the sky (see left and right, click to enlarge).

Shawnee is the home for the Little Cities of Black Diamonds organization and across from the Tecumseh is a gift shop and just down the block the offices of the non-profit community-based organization. The group has secured federal grants to assist in their revitalization attempts.

A few miles down Ohio 93 is New Straitsville (map, pictures). While the storyline is much the same here, both in the boom and bust of the town, there is a unique aspect that burns even as time marches forward. The volatile relationship between labor and management led to numerous coal strikes. The unofficial birthplace of the United Mineworkers is here in New Straitsville, having been formed at Robinson's Cave (see left, click to enlarge).

In 1884 a coal strike resulted in an unusual attempt to disrupt the replacement workers, hoping to bring a resolution to the conflict. Coal cars were loaded with coal and doused with gasoline and sent back into the mines. The coal car ignited the underground seam of coal which could not be extinguished and, incredibly, still burns to this day. The mine fire drew tourists to the area, albeit briefly, and there are historic photos showing people cooking eggs in skillets over seams where the fire burns. Needless to say, the mine ceased operation.

Coming into New Straitsville there is a large mural, similar to ones seen in the other of the Little Cities, with an old wood car of coal below it. The mural project was undertaken between the Little Cities organization and the area schools for students to look at the town's past and envision its future and paint the sides of buildings in the town (see right, click to enlarge).

The area today is surrounded by Wayne National Forest and attempts are being made at luring the wealthy, suburban vacationers into the region. There is also a Moonshine Festival (see left, click to enlarge) that celebrates the heritage of homespun beverages that also draws tourists. It is a tough sell to the state and beyond, as time marched quickly past many of these cities, but the Little Cities of Black Diamonds seeks to preserve and promote a significant era of both Ohio and American History in the hills of Southeast Ohio.

-J.