RUSH RUN, WV
Yet another ghost town in the New River Gorge, Rush Run was established around 1889, the year the post office opened there. It closed in 1939. In the intervening years
Rush Run was a booming coal mining community operated by the Rush Run Coal Company. The mine had closed by the 1940s. The Rush Run mine is best known for an explosion in March, 1905 that resulted in the
death of 24 men (13 in the explosion and, a few hours later, all eleven of the rescue team).
The ruins of Rush Run are typical of the New River Gorge: stone foundations, old bottles, and a galvanized wash tub. There must be dozens of vintage wash tubs in
the Gorge that no longer serve coal miners taking their "Saturday Night Bath."
Instead of stone foundations, which are common in the New River Gorge, these foundations are made from poured concrete.
A chimny in the abandoned coal camp of Rush Run, WV.
Amazingly, these coke ovens remain.
Detail of the Rush Run coke ovens.
Foundation ruins of the Rush Run tipple.
Dec. 2006 image by author
Dec. 2006 image by author
Dec. 2006 image by author
Dec. 2006 image by author
Dec. 2006 image by author
Dec. 2006 image by author