Ethan Karnes, a proud West Virginia native and a graduate of Marshall University, is now conducting research at the museum! Ethan is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in the Anthropology Program at George Washington University, and he’s bringing a wealth of knowledge and ton of experience to the team.

As our small team gears up for Giving Tuesday, we're not just asking for your support; we're inviting you to be part of the ongoing story of this Museum. Your contribution isn't just a donation; it's a vote for more stories, more exhibits, and more community impact. We hope you’ll join us. 

“We were still educating. We were showing our kids how to stand up for themselves to a bully.”

The Appalachian Wage Agreement was the culmination of decades of struggle by the United Mine Workers of America, especially the coal miners in southern West Virginia who, twelve years prior, took the fight directly to the coal operators at the Battle of Blair Mountain.

This new exhibit, The Children of Mother Jones: West Virginia Educators' Strikes as Care Work, runs for one year. If you haven’t done so yet, now’s the time to plan your visit for 2023. 

If you can’t make it to Matewan or want to dive a bit deeper into the stories with us, we have a catalog of ten oral histories with educators, activists, and allies available for free on our website at wvminewars.org/edstrike.

Several key events in the West Virginia Mine Wars took place in August of 1921. August is an especially significant month in regards to the Battle of Blair Mountain, which was the largest armed labor uprising in the United States.

Your friendly neighborhood education coordinator here, giving you an update on what I’ve been doing at the Museum during my first few months. It’s fair to say that I’ve been keeping myself busy with Museum projects, educator events, and presentations for West Virginia students.

Pride happens year round and to celebrate that the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum commemorates Lesbians and Gays Support the Miners, an organized effort in the lesbian and gay communities in the United Kingdom to support the year-long National Union of Miners strike of 1984-1985.

Around midday on June 14th, 1921, a group of over 70 vigilante volunteers and officers with the newly-formed West Virginia state police surrounded the Lick Creek tent colony from all sides. State police and volunteers swarmed through the tents, knocking them down, breaking locks, slashing giant holes in the canvas, kicking over and destroying furniture, all while corralling miners, women, and children.

Recently, the family of Ezra Fry, a local UMWA organizer during the historic Battle of Matewan, visited our museum and experienced firsthand the town that played such a significant role in their grandfather's life. Their touching reflections emphasize the crucial role individuals like Ezra played in the West Virginia Mine Wars.