Blair Mountain and the National Register of Historic Places

	More than 70 people gathered to protest Gov. Manchins request that Blair Mountain not be granted federal protection.

On March 30, the National Park Service placed Blair Mountain in Logan County, WV, on the National Register of Historic Places.

The announcement came after decades of campaigning by local residents, historians and conservationists, with help in recent years from OVEC, other groups affiliated with Friends of the Mountains and the Sierra Club.

Blair Mountain is one of the most important labor historic sites in the nation. In 1921, 10,000 people clashed on Blair Mountain as coal miners rose up against coal barons in defense of the right to unionize. The undeclared civil war that followed lasted 10 days and became known as the Battle of Blair Mountain.

This legendary event is now characterized as Americas largest labor struggle. The shooting war pitted union and anti-union forces against one another in the mountains of Logan, WV, and culminated in the arrival of federal troops at the governors request.

"National Register designation is a vitally important step in the preservation of Blair Mountain, a site we listed as one of Americas 11 Most Endangered Historic Places in 2006," says Richard Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. "Nevertheless, the threat of coal mining activity at Blair Mountain remains present and we will continue to vigorously oppose mining efforts at the site."

Local residents celebrated the announcement of the listing. "Im so happy to see the culture and history of Logan County being honored," said Kenny King, a Logan County resident and long-time proponent of the historic listing for Blair Mountain. "The next step is to get local officials to realize the value of putting a local tourism center on Blair Mountain."

Archaeologist Dr. Harvard Ayers and historian Dr. Barbara Rasmussen collaborated on the most recent, successful nomination of Blair Mountain to the National Register of Historic Places. OVEC board member Regina Hendrix has been a leader on this issue for the past 8 years.

Just days after the designation, news reports said Governor Manchins administration had written a letter petitioning the Keeper of National Register of Historic Places to delist Blair Mountain.

Friends of the Mountains quickly organized a protest of this action. Moments before the noon protest began, the state issued a press release saying the Governor was not involved in the letter sent to the Keeper and the state did not mean to petition the Keeper for de-listing.

Since his days as WV Secretary of State, Joe Manchin has received nearly 1 million dollars in campaign contributions from the coal industry.

The Charleston Gazette reflected the views of many when the newspaper editorialized that it was hard to believe the Governor knew nothing about what was going on.

On July 6, news came that the Keeper was moving to delist Blair Mountain after reviewing the letter sent from the West Virginia Division of Culture and History. Watch the OVEC website for the latest information and contact the office at (304) 522-0246 to get involved.