General Map of the Anthracite Coal Fields of Pennsylvania and Adjoining Counties Showing the Position of Each Colliery

Immense map of eastern Pennsylvania showing local coal mines and the railroads that serve them.

This enormous folding map highlights the workable coal beds in portions of 11 counties in Pennsylvania, east of the Susquehanna River. An inset map in the lower right identifies the area in the larger context of the rail network in Pennsylvania and the surrounding states.

Hand color shows the extent of the Pottsville Conglomerate (an area of mapped bedrock known to contain coal deposits) in yellow and the viable coal mining operations in pink. Topographical detail is conspicuously absent, but the numerous rivers, railroads, and mining towns of the region are all individually labeled.

Of further interest is the 361 numbered mines scattered throughout the map; each corresponding to a field, mine, or washery described in the accompanying index. Adjacent to each coal operation is a letter identifying the attached freight line – ten railroad companies are listed overall.

The map was originally published in 1916 by Adler & Company in Philadelphia, and is based off earlier U.S.G.S surveys of the region (see notes lower left). This particular example was customized for use in the Central Engineering Department of the Pennsylvania Railroad, and has been dissected and mounted on linen for preservation and convenient storage. Red lines and check marks (in manuscript) can be found next to each colliery served by the P.R.R., and one is noted as abandoned.