View of Arch Mineral Corporation's mountaintop removal and reclamation project, the Samples Mine on Cabin Creek

The Samples Mine was named for the St. Louis, Missouri-based company's executive, Eugene Samples. Though permit applications for mountaintop removal projects routinely attest to the absence of prime farmland in such sites, articles in 19th century industrial publications like The Virginian extol the value of the land for its capacity to support a population of workers. D.T. Ansted praises the Cabin Creek Plateau for its moderate winters, delightful climate, excellent water, and deep soil, “well-adapted to the growth of wheat, Indian corn, potatoes and other crop.” “There are on the plateaus,” he wrote in June of 1885, “intersected by the valleys, many thousand acres of good land, admirable adapted for cultivation. These lands are nowhere far from settled habitations, and would supply everything required for a colony of emigrants. The climate is delightful for the greater part of the year, and the winters moderate and short. There is excellent water and deep soil, well-adapted to the growth of wheat, Indian corn, potatoes and other crops. The pastures where the trees have been removed are excellent, and the cattle are left to graze far into the winter. By offering allotments of moderate extent on easy terms, reserving the minerals, population could be secured and the whole district improved. The reserved allotments would soon increase in value. The cost of placing emigrants on these lands, from Liverpool, would not exceed $45 per head.” (Ansted 1885)
Event: Tour of Mountaintop Removal and Reclamation Sites from Seng Creek to White Oak.