Kaymoor, WV

Kaymoor was a mine and camp built by the Low Moor Iron Co. in 1899. The name is a combination of a company official, James Kay, and Low Moor. There were two mines - Kaymoor No. 1 & No. 2 - that were about a mile and a half apart. In 1925, Kaymoor was sold to New River and Pocahontas Conolidated Coal Company (a subsidiary of the mighty Berwind interests in Pennsylvania), who also had other large mines in this coalfield at Layland and Minden. 101 coke ovens were built and they burned until 1935. At it's peak, Kaymoor employeed approximately 1500 men. But the post office closed in 1952, and everyone moved out of Kaymoor Bottom during the 1950s. New River & Pocahontas closed Kaymoor in 1962. As late as 1964, the Barbara Gale Coal Co. was operating at Kaymoor on a lease. Then it was simply left as it was. It became overgrown and fell into disrepair until the National Park Service came to the New River Gorge. The NPS built steps down to the site, and also installed some interpretive signs. Also some site stabilization occurred. Yet, in addition to these positive steps that the Park Service took, they mortally wounded the centerpiece of the site - the Kaymoor tipple. According to local residents, CSX railroad strongarmed the Park Service into dynamiting the tipple because it was afraid it would fall onto their adjacent and active railroad. I am so disappointed that the Park Service handled it this way, instead of repairing the tipple, as was done across the river at Nuttalburg. Yet the NPS claims that a study of the Kaymoor tipple was performed, and it was found to be beyond rehabilitation.

NPS' blurb about Kaymoor

Image courtesy of Beth Mier A special thank you to Beth for submitting this picture of her uncle, Charles Huff, at the end of his shift at the Kaymoor mine. He lived at Garten.
May 2005 image by author One of the first things you see before you start down the mountain is the ruins of the hoist house for the incline.
Feb. 1999 image by author The "drift mouth" portal of the mine into the Sewell seam of coal.
Feb. 1999 image by author The wooden headhouse built in 1899 (or what was left of it). Photo taken in 1999. As of 2007 this headhouse has collapsed and is just a jumble of lumber on the mountainside.
May 2005 image by author The cut stone powder house, which housed the exploives used to shoot down the coal, is still in good condition.
May 2005 image by author This was one of the portals that the coal cars came through from the mine going to the headhouse. Behind it is the ruins of the lamphouse and mine office.
Feb. 1999 image by author The Kaymoor preparation plant (tipple). This isn't the original tipple, but one built in the 1930s when the unwieldly named New River & Pocahontas Consolidated Coal Co.
Feb. 1999 image by author View of the prep plant and rail sidings. The power house is to the left.
Feb. 1999 image by author Another photo of the tipple showing the slack coal bin on the right.
Feb. 1999 image by author Some of the 101 coke ovens. I wish the Park Service would remove some of the vegetation that is destroying these landmarks.
Feb. 1999 image by author All that's left of Kaymoor Bottom coal camp are these foundations.
1986 image by Gerald Ratliff, courtesy "Wonderful West Virginia" magazine But when this picture was taken in at least there was this one last coal camp house in Kaymoor Bottom.
Jan. 1989 image by Mick Vest Mick contributed this photo that he titled, "Last House in Kaymoor." This would be true for Kaymoor No. 1 bottom. However, some of the houses Kaymoor No. 1 "Top" do remain.
Google Street View image A few of the remaining company houses at "Kaymoor Top."
2018 image by author There is nothing left of the Kaymoor No. 2 mine site. Whatever remained of it was destroyed when the New River Gorge Bridge was constructed. However, these small houses on the edge of Fayetteville were probably the coal camp houses for Kaymoor No. 2.
Image by Paul Perry Kaymoor tipple as viewed from across the river.

2007 VISIT TO KAYMOOR

In 2007 I hiked to the bottom at Kaymoor for the first time since 1999. Some things had really changed!

Mar. 2007 image by author The coal car and drift portal are still in existence at the bench halfway down the mountain (the elevation where the coal outcropped). To the right is the ruins of the lamphouse. The fan house ruins and powder house are still there as well. But the wooden headhouse has collapsed into a heap of rotting boards. This saddened me very much.
Mar. 2007 image by author This safety message is still on the steel beam crossing over the bench level mine complex.
Mar. 2007 image by author Halfway down the steep mountainside between the higher bench level mine complex and the lower mine complex is this small structure. It may have been a place to house blasting caps, hence its remote location to minimize damage in case of a catastrophe.
Mar. 2007 image by author My heart was broken when I arrived at the bottom and found the Kaymoor tipple half collapsed and laying on its side. After the columns supporting the tipple were dynamited by Dykon Blasting Corporation on March 10, 1999 (using only 25 pounds of explosives), the half-destroyed structure has been left to be interpreted as a historic ruin.
Mar. 2007 image by author The stone power house next is still next to the tipple. The roof is partially intact, but obviously not over this portion of the large building.
Mar. 2007 image by author Small sheds and deteriorating equipment surround the Kaymoor tipple.
Mar. 2007 image by author This is the remains of one of the cars that hauled cargo and passengers from Kaymoor Top to Kaymoor Bottom.
Mar. 2007 image by author It is unclear what part this buggy played in the coal and coke operations at Kaymoor.
Mar. 2007 image by author After all of the years of exploring old coal mining sites I still cannot determine what this was used for.
Mar. 2007 image by author The beehive coke ovens are still at Kaymoor, too. They are not getting any better though, as trees and vegetation continue to destroy them. These are some of the best preserved ovens, but many have collapsed.
Mar. 2007 image by author Coke ovens engulfed in forest.
Mar. 2007 image by author Some of the ovens were numbered, such as the one shown here designated "27."
Mar. 2007 image by author

Reader contributed pictures:

June 2007 image by Kris Rossmiller In June 2007 Kris wrote, "I saw your note about wishing the Park Service would clean up the Kaymoor coke ovens. I visited Kaymoor two weeks ago. They did a nice job of cleaning up the trees. I'm really glad they did - it was too long of a climb to get down there to find them all overgrown." He also took these photos to show the newly cleaned up coke yard at Kaymoor. Good job Park Service.
June 2007 image by Kris Rossmiller This was clearly the right thing to do if the ovens are to survive.
June 2007 image by Kris Rossmiller

Reader contributed pictures #2:

2011 image by Rick Burgess Rick. contributes this photo and writes, "The coke ovens are,sadly, once again grown over with scrappy weeds and bushes."
2011 image by Rick Burgess Rick also went in this building, about which he says, "We went into the machine shop, where there was tons of "artifacts" as I guess one would call them."
2011 image by Rick Burgess Another picture Rick took inside what he called the machine shop, and which I think may be the power house.