Pemberton, WV | Winding Gulf Coalfield

Pemberton, West Virginia

Pemberton is located on Soak Creek and was opened by the Pemberton Fuel Co. in the 1910s. Later the Koppers Coal Co. in the 1930s and Lillybrook Coal Co. in the 1940s mined there, with each operating a company store. A handfull of people still live there.

Vintage photo of Pemberton, West Virginia — From the John Barringer Collection Vintage photo of Pemberton, West Virginia. Some of the coal company houses are in the background.

Location where the C&O and Virginian railroads crossed at Pemberton — Oct. 1997 image by author Location where the C&O and Virginian railroads crossed. This was the first coal heritage picture that I ever took with a very cheap camera. At the time, I had no idea how obsessed I would become.

Possible pump house for one of the Pemberton coal mines — Feb. 2001 image by author This may have been a pump house for one of the Pemberton coal mines.

Old wooden railroad trestle near Pemberton — Feb. 2001 image by author An old wooden railroad trestle near Pemberton.

Old coal mine fan by the road in Pemberton — Dec. 1998 WV SHPO image by Jeff Davis An old coal mine fan by the road in Pemberton. This was demolished in early 2002.

Doctor Daniels house in Pemberton after a fire — Nov. 2007 image by author One of the last remaining historic homes in Pemberton, the Doctor Daniels house, burned in 2007.

Former Emanuel Amato family house and store in Pemberton — Oct. 1997 image by author The Emanuel Amato family came to the Winding Gulf Coalfield from Sicily. They eventually settled in Pemberton, bought this house, raised it up, and put a store underneath. Later, Philip Gaziano operated his barbershop there.

Emanuel and Provvidenza Amato headstone — 2020 image by author Emanuel Amato's and his wife Provvidenza's headstone at St. Francis de Sales cemetery in Beckley. Note "Riposa in Pace" etched in the stone — Italian for rest in peace.

Last wall of a store that burned in Pemberton — Oct. 1997 image by author This is the last wall of a store that burned in Pemberton. The store was owned by the late Sam Amato, brother of Emanuel.

Sam Amato's store in Pemberton in 1965 — Image courtesy of Leonard St. Clair Sam Amato's store as it looked in 1965.

Old railroad depot at Pemberton — Image courtesy of Leonard St. Clair A great old picture of the railroad depot, probably Virginian, contributed by Leonard S. That is smoke probably from one of the slate dumps on the left.

Wedding party in front of a slate dump in Pemberton in 1946 — From a private collection A wedding party poses in front of one of the slate dumps in Pemberton in 1946: Front Row L to R — Rena DellaMea, bride and groom Theresa and Enrico Dellamea, his parents Maria and Pietro Dellamea; Back Row L to R — Louie, Gino, and Joe DellaMea.