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The Devil Is Here in These Hills: West Virginia's Coal Miners and Their Battle for Freedom
From before the dawn of the 20th century until the arrival of the New Deal, one of the most protracted and deadly labor struggles in American history was waged in West Virginia. On one side were powerful corporations whose millions bought armed guards and political influence. On the other side were 50,000 mine workers, the nation’s largest labor union, and the legendary “miners’ angel,” Mother Jones. The fight for unionization and civil rights sparked a political crisis verging on civil war that stretched from the creeks and hollows to the courts and the US Senate. In The Devil is Here in These Hills , celebrated labor historian James Green tells the story of West Virginia and coal like never before.
The value of West Virginia’s coalfields had been known for decades, and after rail arrived in the 1870s, industrialists pushed fast into the wilderness, digging mines and building company towns where they wielded nearly complete control over everyday life. The state’s high-quality coal drove American expansion and industrialization, but for tens of thousands of laborers, including boys as young as ten, mining life showed the bitter irony of the state motto, “Mountaineers are Always Free.” Attempts to unionize were met with stiff resistance. Fundamental rights were bent, then broken, and the violence evolved from bloody skirmishes to open armed conflict, as an army of miners marched to an explosive showdown. Extensively researched and told in vibrant detail, The Devil is Here in These Hills is the definitive book on an essential chapter in the history of American freedom.
The value of West Virginia’s coalfields had been known for decades, and after rail arrived in the 1870s, industrialists pushed fast into the wilderness, digging mines and building company towns where they wielded nearly complete control over everyday life. The state’s high-quality coal drove American expansion and industrialization, but for tens of thousands of laborers, including boys as young as ten, mining life showed the bitter irony of the state motto, “Mountaineers are Always Free.” Attempts to unionize were met with stiff resistance. Fundamental rights were bent, then broken, and the violence evolved from bloody skirmishes to open armed conflict, as an army of miners marched to an explosive showdown. Extensively researched and told in vibrant detail, The Devil is Here in These Hills is the definitive book on an essential chapter in the history of American freedom.
448 pages, Hardcover
First published February 3, 2015
205 people are currently reading
2530 people want to read
About the author
James R. Green
123 books19 followersJames Robert Green (November 4, 1944 – June 23, 2016) was an American historian, author, and labor activist. He was Professor of History Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
Green received his Ph.D. from Yale in 1972. Green studied under the legendary historian C. Vann Woodward, and became acquainted with the leftist historians Eric Hobsbawm and Herbert Gutman. During this time he also was involved in the anti-war movement, which eventually sparked his interest in the history of radicalism in the United States.
Green's research focuses on radical political and social movements in the U.S. (including new social movements), as well as the history of labor unions in the United States. Green writes social and political history from "the bottom up." He writes from a leftist theoretical standpoint.
In 1987, in addition to continuing on the faculty at UMass-Boston, Green was named a lecturer at the Harvard Trade Union Program (now called the Labor and Worklife Program) at Harvard Law School.
In 1995, Green founded the Labor Resource Center at UMass-Boston.
In 1998, Green was named a Fulbright scholar and taught at the University of Genoa in Italy.
Green was a member of the Labor and Working-Class History Association (LAWCHA). He was a vice president of LAWCHA from 2001 to 2003 and its president from 2003 to 2005.
Green received his Ph.D. from Yale in 1972. Green studied under the legendary historian C. Vann Woodward, and became acquainted with the leftist historians Eric Hobsbawm and Herbert Gutman. During this time he also was involved in the anti-war movement, which eventually sparked his interest in the history of radicalism in the United States.
Green's research focuses on radical political and social movements in the U.S. (including new social movements), as well as the history of labor unions in the United States. Green writes social and political history from "the bottom up." He writes from a leftist theoretical standpoint.
In 1987, in addition to continuing on the faculty at UMass-Boston, Green was named a lecturer at the Harvard Trade Union Program (now called the Labor and Worklife Program) at Harvard Law School.
In 1995, Green founded the Labor Resource Center at UMass-Boston.
In 1998, Green was named a Fulbright scholar and taught at the University of Genoa in Italy.
Green was a member of the Labor and Working-Class History Association (LAWCHA). He was a vice president of LAWCHA from 2001 to 2003 and its president from 2003 to 2005.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 86 reviews
March 2, 2015
A Must read for anyone who cares about the economic injustice of today and the future of our democracy
As a native West Virginian and co-author of "West Virginia USA", a bicentennial book published in 1976, I have read dozens of books and countless articles about the coal wars of West Virginia and the courageous lives of the laboring class across America who fought against economic injustice during the most ruthless periods of the American Industrial Revolution.
But I have not read any account more fully and captivatingly told than found in James Green's new book, "The Devil Is Here in These Hills".
It is a story that needs to be retold today when the working classes from the middle class to the working poor face the same forces of evil in a social, political and economic environment that affects not only those in the heavy industries, but in all fields.
James Green's book is a history, but reads like a novel and keeps you on the edge of your seat even if you already know the general story. While I probably know more than most, I was amazed at how much more I learned.
If I had only enough room on my bookshelf (or in my electronic devices) for three books, they would be Howard Zinn's "A People's History of the United States; History as a Weapon", Chris Hedge's "The Death of the Middle Class", and James Green's "The Devil Is Here in These Hills".
History teaches by example and delivers perspective on contemporary issues. James Green's history does just that. Here are few excerpts to prove my point:
Over 100 years ago, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis, known as the people's attorney, was particularly concerned about the fate of the nation's wage earners; Unless they became "self-respecting members of the democracy," they would remain in a servile condition and America would become a society increasingly divided by class interests and extremist politics.
Prior to becoming the U.S. President, Woodrow Wilson also had fears about labor unrest and the consequences of going to war. As a professor, he had lectured previously: "Once you lead [the] people into war, they will forget there ever was such a thing as tolerance."
And he remarked privately, "The spirit of ruthless brutality will enter every fiber of our national life, infecting Congress, the courts, the policeman on the beat, the man in the street."
Green even surprised me with words I'd never heard from the quotable Mother Jones. To a group in Washington, D.C., she detailed the constitutional abuses she had seen in the West Virginia coalfields and said:
"If such crimes against the citizens of the state of West Virginia go unreduced by the government, I suggest that we take down the flag that stands for constitutional government, and run up a banner saying "This is the flag of the money oligarchy of America."
Jim Green's new book is a must read for anyone who cares about the economic injustice of today and the future of our democracy.
Jerry Ash
Former West Virginia State Senator (1980-87)
Author, "Hellraiser — Mother Jones: An Historical Novel" (2013)
As a native West Virginian and co-author of "West Virginia USA", a bicentennial book published in 1976, I have read dozens of books and countless articles about the coal wars of West Virginia and the courageous lives of the laboring class across America who fought against economic injustice during the most ruthless periods of the American Industrial Revolution.
But I have not read any account more fully and captivatingly told than found in James Green's new book, "The Devil Is Here in These Hills".
It is a story that needs to be retold today when the working classes from the middle class to the working poor face the same forces of evil in a social, political and economic environment that affects not only those in the heavy industries, but in all fields.
James Green's book is a history, but reads like a novel and keeps you on the edge of your seat even if you already know the general story. While I probably know more than most, I was amazed at how much more I learned.
If I had only enough room on my bookshelf (or in my electronic devices) for three books, they would be Howard Zinn's "A People's History of the United States; History as a Weapon", Chris Hedge's "The Death of the Middle Class", and James Green's "The Devil Is Here in These Hills".
History teaches by example and delivers perspective on contemporary issues. James Green's history does just that. Here are few excerpts to prove my point:
Over 100 years ago, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis D. Brandeis, known as the people's attorney, was particularly concerned about the fate of the nation's wage earners; Unless they became "self-respecting members of the democracy," they would remain in a servile condition and America would become a society increasingly divided by class interests and extremist politics.
Prior to becoming the U.S. President, Woodrow Wilson also had fears about labor unrest and the consequences of going to war. As a professor, he had lectured previously: "Once you lead [the] people into war, they will forget there ever was such a thing as tolerance."
And he remarked privately, "The spirit of ruthless brutality will enter every fiber of our national life, infecting Congress, the courts, the policeman on the beat, the man in the street."
Green even surprised me with words I'd never heard from the quotable Mother Jones. To a group in Washington, D.C., she detailed the constitutional abuses she had seen in the West Virginia coalfields and said:
"If such crimes against the citizens of the state of West Virginia go unreduced by the government, I suggest that we take down the flag that stands for constitutional government, and run up a banner saying "This is the flag of the money oligarchy of America."
Jim Green's new book is a must read for anyone who cares about the economic injustice of today and the future of our democracy.
Jerry Ash
Former West Virginia State Senator (1980-87)
Author, "Hellraiser — Mother Jones: An Historical Novel" (2013)
January 3, 2015
Why were we not told about this in any of our history classes or in any classes in school? This was a very prominent piece of history that was ignored to the detriment to our society. This was a time, over a century ago, that men and women fought (and some gave their lives for), to be recognized as true American citizens in their own country and to have a better life. I can see big business getting away with treating their workers more like cattle than humans. Cattle were treated much better. If big corporations could get away with it today, they would.
The thousands upon thousands of hard working miners in West Virginia and their families nearly came to another civil war when the miners went on strikes and tried to start up labor unions. They were trying to fight for their very rights, especially for the right to be free American citizens (which they were not). They were fighting for decent wages, shorter working days, child labor laws, and eventually for the basic necessities as was written in our countries's constitution. They paved the way forward to our way of life today.
This very important book showed me how much we take for granted these days. We have comfortable homes and nice beds. The big corporations kicked entire families out of their homes in the company owned mining towns. We practically gorge ourselves on the great abundance of food, where they were starving to death. The rich got richer, hired goons to lord over the workers and tried to control their every move like masters did over slaves. Finally, the miners had enough and fought literally with guns against the powers that be. This went on for decades.
I just am furious that the government, who was supposed to protect its citizens, one and all, just closed their eyes to all of the corruption, the greed of big business, and all of the atrocities that all those miners and their families endured. Thank God for people such as Mother Jones who rallied the miners to keep pushing for labor unions and provided moral support. The real hero in all of this was Franklin D Roosevelt, who won the presidential election of 1932. In 1933, once in office, he vowed to help the poor by way of The New Deal and work programs like the CCC for men to work. His administration did so much more to try to end the Great Depression as well as pass humane laws. If it weren't for him, I hate to even imagine the consequences.
I believe there is so much extremely important content for all Americans in this great book. Just knowing about the citizens of West Virginia who fought and sacrificed so much for all of our rights is very noble and deserve to be recognised for their integral part of our American history. Mr. Green did an impeccable job with this book. *Net Galley provided me with a copy of this book to read and give my honest review.
The thousands upon thousands of hard working miners in West Virginia and their families nearly came to another civil war when the miners went on strikes and tried to start up labor unions. They were trying to fight for their very rights, especially for the right to be free American citizens (which they were not). They were fighting for decent wages, shorter working days, child labor laws, and eventually for the basic necessities as was written in our countries's constitution. They paved the way forward to our way of life today.
This very important book showed me how much we take for granted these days. We have comfortable homes and nice beds. The big corporations kicked entire families out of their homes in the company owned mining towns. We practically gorge ourselves on the great abundance of food, where they were starving to death. The rich got richer, hired goons to lord over the workers and tried to control their every move like masters did over slaves. Finally, the miners had enough and fought literally with guns against the powers that be. This went on for decades.
I just am furious that the government, who was supposed to protect its citizens, one and all, just closed their eyes to all of the corruption, the greed of big business, and all of the atrocities that all those miners and their families endured. Thank God for people such as Mother Jones who rallied the miners to keep pushing for labor unions and provided moral support. The real hero in all of this was Franklin D Roosevelt, who won the presidential election of 1932. In 1933, once in office, he vowed to help the poor by way of The New Deal and work programs like the CCC for men to work. His administration did so much more to try to end the Great Depression as well as pass humane laws. If it weren't for him, I hate to even imagine the consequences.
I believe there is so much extremely important content for all Americans in this great book. Just knowing about the citizens of West Virginia who fought and sacrificed so much for all of our rights is very noble and deserve to be recognised for their integral part of our American history. Mr. Green did an impeccable job with this book. *Net Galley provided me with a copy of this book to read and give my honest review.
July 18, 2020
A truly comprehensive look at the decades long fight to unionize West Virginia coal miners, with a focus on the mine wars of the 1910s and early 1920s. The story is patiently and matter of factly told, but still manages to shock with its discussions of repeated declarations of martial law in the state, the corruption of mine owners, and the power of individuals in the movement.
June 7, 2023
After many years of being like “I’ve got to read this book next,” I did in fact read James R. Green’s The Devil Is Here In These Hills: West Virginia’s Coal Miners and their Battle for Freedom. More specifically, the book club graciously agreed to read it with me after I’d suggested it several times, thus prompting me to actually do so.
Overall I found this a really good read. It’s got it all: strikes, murder, leftist infighting, heroic underdogs, spy stuff, explosions, flooding of Biblical proportions, the lot. We’ve got cameos from big-name labor history leaders like Mother Jones and Eugene Debs, and we meet lesser-known-outside-of-West-Virginia folks like Frank Keeney and Fred Mooney. We meet lots of Hatfields (not as many McCoys, though).
One thing that sticks out to me as a modern socialist is that the West Virginians who took on the mine owners and their private guards were a politically mixed bunch who fought on every front at their disposal. They held rallies, they ran elections for political office, they unionized, they picketed, they talked to the press, they published their own press, they sued, they stole guns and sabotaged industrial equipment and had shootouts. Truly the whole gamut of tactics. And it wasn’t neatly divided up into, like, the business unionists did electoral work and the anarchists toted guns, or anything that neat and simple. The same people who supported more “moderate” tactics in one controversy would sometimes back the more “extreme” ones in another. The first time the National Guard was called in, most of the miners were pleased to have federal forces show up instead of just the coal companies’ private rent-a-cops; Mother Jones was one of a relatively small number of more radical voices in the picture who presciently warned that state power could never really be the miners’ friend and would eventually be turned to putting the strikers in line (she was right about this, of course). Later, when the strikers decided to march to the state capital to spring their brethren from jail, Jones went so far as to fake having received a telegram from the President to try to get them to stand down. Frank Keeney was usually one of the more militant “red” minority voices and butted heads with the more business-unionist head of the NMWA; he was also one of the people pushing the mine workers to go all-out on patriotism and shit during WWI. Turns out labor history is full of people after all, and people are contradictory and contain multitudes.
I feel like I learned a lot from this book but I will have to cudgel my brains a bit to come up with some good discussion questions. Maybe my brain is just tired but I’m basically like “I learned a lot of things! I don’t have questions about them ‘cause I learned them now!” so it’s clearly time to wake up my dormant brain cells.
Originally posted at Dug the mines and built the workshops, endless miles of railroad laid.
Overall I found this a really good read. It’s got it all: strikes, murder, leftist infighting, heroic underdogs, spy stuff, explosions, flooding of Biblical proportions, the lot. We’ve got cameos from big-name labor history leaders like Mother Jones and Eugene Debs, and we meet lesser-known-outside-of-West-Virginia folks like Frank Keeney and Fred Mooney. We meet lots of Hatfields (not as many McCoys, though).
One thing that sticks out to me as a modern socialist is that the West Virginians who took on the mine owners and their private guards were a politically mixed bunch who fought on every front at their disposal. They held rallies, they ran elections for political office, they unionized, they picketed, they talked to the press, they published their own press, they sued, they stole guns and sabotaged industrial equipment and had shootouts. Truly the whole gamut of tactics. And it wasn’t neatly divided up into, like, the business unionists did electoral work and the anarchists toted guns, or anything that neat and simple. The same people who supported more “moderate” tactics in one controversy would sometimes back the more “extreme” ones in another. The first time the National Guard was called in, most of the miners were pleased to have federal forces show up instead of just the coal companies’ private rent-a-cops; Mother Jones was one of a relatively small number of more radical voices in the picture who presciently warned that state power could never really be the miners’ friend and would eventually be turned to putting the strikers in line (she was right about this, of course). Later, when the strikers decided to march to the state capital to spring their brethren from jail, Jones went so far as to fake having received a telegram from the President to try to get them to stand down. Frank Keeney was usually one of the more militant “red” minority voices and butted heads with the more business-unionist head of the NMWA; he was also one of the people pushing the mine workers to go all-out on patriotism and shit during WWI. Turns out labor history is full of people after all, and people are contradictory and contain multitudes.
I feel like I learned a lot from this book but I will have to cudgel my brains a bit to come up with some good discussion questions. Maybe my brain is just tired but I’m basically like “I learned a lot of things! I don’t have questions about them ‘cause I learned them now!” so it’s clearly time to wake up my dormant brain cells.
Originally posted at Dug the mines and built the workshops, endless miles of railroad laid.
October 4, 2017
Another case where a half star should be tacked on. Exhaustive, dogged research by James Green. His ability to chronologically lay out the history of WV miners and mine operators complete with the many causes and effects is incredible. His writing style is not particularly inspired and some readers may give up on him for that reason, but that's not his game.
If you needed another reason to doubt the merits of unfettered capitalism . . . look no further.
If you needed another reason to doubt the merits of unfettered capitalism . . . look no further.
July 16, 2015
This book is so important and well written.
Green relates West Virginia's coal business to the human history, especially the amazing Mine Wars before and after World War One, that included the Battle of Blair Mountain, a domestic saga not taught in schools.
My highest recommendation.
Green relates West Virginia's coal business to the human history, especially the amazing Mine Wars before and after World War One, that included the Battle of Blair Mountain, a domestic saga not taught in schools.
My highest recommendation.
February 26, 2018
A chilling account of the long war to unionize the Coal Mines of West Virginia. The conditions of the coal miners and their treatment by the mine owners and the "gun thugs" employed to keep them in their place with the support of the "elected" officials owned by the mine owners was as brutal as any chapter in American history. While the gains made by the unions were real, the miners continue to be exploited by the owners and politicians of our day.
October 4, 2021
I've been interested in a lot of local history lately, and the beginnings of the unionization of West Virginia is especially interesting for me, based on family history. This is probably the definitive volume on the coal wars, beginning with mining making its entrance into West Virginia's economy in the late 1870s through the unionization efforts held throughout the state. There are multiple examples of greed, graft, and grievances at all levels, from state politicians to the mine operators to the striking miners.
It's a good read for anyone who wants to know more about the life of the coal miners and why they wanted to form a viable union.
It's a good read for anyone who wants to know more about the life of the coal miners and why they wanted to form a viable union.
April 6, 2021
This book provides an in-depth and exciting look at the climb that West Virginian Coal Miners and the UMWA had to take in order to achieve basic rights and privileges for the miners. Dr. Green provides a gripping experience that will keep anyone entertained. A must read for anyone wanting to gain an understanding of one of the most pivotal moments in American worker rights history.
March 2, 2025
Incredibly thorough and detailed. I (and probably most ppl who don’t live in west virginia) had no idea that the US federal govt bombed its own citizens only 100 years ago or honestly about almost any of this. Such an interesting insight into us labor history, WV history & classism, and the mining industry and really draws you in - i loved that I got so much detail on so many individuals and events involved and i keep bringing up things I learned reading this book in conversation lol
December 27, 2019
The coal mines of West Virginia were a brutal working place for miners. Greed drove the owners to push their employees heartlessly, with little regard to loss of human dignity and life. Not an easy read.
However, the author is a meticulous researcher and his presentation is impeccable.
However, the author is a meticulous researcher and his presentation is impeccable.
March 12, 2024
4.75 rounded up.
As someone from Appalachia who grew up close to the WV border I've always been curious about the mine wars so reading this was a nice look at the history of what happened between the miners and the owners of the mine.
As someone from Appalachia who grew up close to the WV border I've always been curious about the mine wars so reading this was a nice look at the history of what happened between the miners and the owners of the mine.
Read
June 19, 2024super interesting and informative
picked this up because it was in the bibliography of Rednecks by Taylor Brown and it didn't disappoint
picked this up because it was in the bibliography of Rednecks by Taylor Brown and it didn't disappoint
Want to read
May 20, 2018The 2016 PBS "American Experience" video is called "Mine Wars."
imdb.com/title/tt5292108
worldcat.org/title/mine-wars/oclc/933...
imdb.com/title/tt5292108
worldcat.org/title/mine-wars/oclc/933...
April 16, 2022
Decent history of coal and West Virginia, but is primarily one sided.
September 27, 2024
Green tells a story that is interesting, compelling, and accessible. He even includes some things not widely related in earlier works. This is a book designed to capture the reader with an important true story and it does so successfully.
In weaving a clear, compelling and fully sequential tale, Green often resorts to flowery language and 'perhapses' that explain the thinking of characters and feel of the scene that we just don't have information to support. Green also skips over sourcing some claims entirely. He isn’t generally inaccurate. Sometimes, especially in the first section, his citations aren’t sufficient*.
Green's narrative glosses over or at least deemphasizes important political facts that contributed to the situation: coordinated suppression of freedom of information and the power of coal operators to control the lives of miners and public policy. This power allowed them select governors and thus judges, coerce and control voting by placing voting locations on company property without private ballots and having armed mine guards as voting officials, as well as owning most of the commercial newspapers at the time. Despite these flaws he does also accurately report details of events not previously widely available in popular research and does an excellent job with his chronology.
The book, as a whole, is still well done popular history if what you are looking for is an orderly and clear sequence of events. If you want a modern narrative telling of this story, this book is that. Just don't assume everything you read will be free of un-noted speculation and dramatic flair. Green certainly isn't going out to create heroes and villains--at times he gives more credence to some claims than they may deserve when taken in full historical context. However, he is making this a story of all the participants--guards, politicians, outside organizers and miners.
David Corbin's works may be less chronologically narrative based, but they are far more painstakingly documented with original research. Green frequently uses him as a reference. Corbin's Life, Work, and Rebellion in the Coal Fields is a reasonably accessible and highly accurate read for those wanting to get a feel for the history whether or not you plan on researching further. There are things in both books not covered in others and Green did inspire me to chase down a primary source I had not yet read.
For those interested in a narrative history with a story feel Winthrop Lane's Civil War in West Virginia also does this fairly well and with a different eye for balance--with the caveat that it was written in 1921 as contemporary long form journalism. Lane, clearly doesn't have opportunity to put the events into historical context because he is part of the history. He also is functioning as a reporter and some information just wasn't available to him. All in all, his work still holds up though.
Green wrote multiple popular histories and other books, many about labor history in the US, some about other topics. In Corbin's case this chapter in West Virginia history was his life's work. The difference shows in three ways:
1. Corbin documents more carefully and is more cautious with his conclusions--you find no perhapses here. While Green uniquely provides a mostly dated and chronological narrative based history and attempts to set mood and thoughts of the subjects--he is quite willing to suppose. Often he makes this supposition clear, but not always.
2. Corbin’s fact based style brooks little justification of mine owner and guard actions while Green is willing to occasionally adopt mine owner/guard language referring to miner actions as criminal.
And finally, 3. Corbin gives a wider context of mine life and the control mine operators had on every aspect of mine camp life before the strikes and wars occurred while Green mentions these in passing and covers them very lightly.
*This caused me to rate the book lower originally. Because I was reading this book as research, I was quite frustrated when his sources for a passage often supported only one out of handful of claims made, especially when they were for specific claims not widely made elsewhere. Generally, I could eventually find primary source material that could be used to back up his statements--but not universally. In the latter case, the claims were more general and gave a more picturesque feel to the narrative rather than being specific events with specifically named individuals.
In weaving a clear, compelling and fully sequential tale, Green often resorts to flowery language and 'perhapses' that explain the thinking of characters and feel of the scene that we just don't have information to support. Green also skips over sourcing some claims entirely. He isn’t generally inaccurate. Sometimes, especially in the first section, his citations aren’t sufficient*.
Green's narrative glosses over or at least deemphasizes important political facts that contributed to the situation: coordinated suppression of freedom of information and the power of coal operators to control the lives of miners and public policy. This power allowed them select governors and thus judges, coerce and control voting by placing voting locations on company property without private ballots and having armed mine guards as voting officials, as well as owning most of the commercial newspapers at the time. Despite these flaws he does also accurately report details of events not previously widely available in popular research and does an excellent job with his chronology.
The book, as a whole, is still well done popular history if what you are looking for is an orderly and clear sequence of events. If you want a modern narrative telling of this story, this book is that. Just don't assume everything you read will be free of un-noted speculation and dramatic flair. Green certainly isn't going out to create heroes and villains--at times he gives more credence to some claims than they may deserve when taken in full historical context. However, he is making this a story of all the participants--guards, politicians, outside organizers and miners.
David Corbin's works may be less chronologically narrative based, but they are far more painstakingly documented with original research. Green frequently uses him as a reference. Corbin's Life, Work, and Rebellion in the Coal Fields is a reasonably accessible and highly accurate read for those wanting to get a feel for the history whether or not you plan on researching further. There are things in both books not covered in others and Green did inspire me to chase down a primary source I had not yet read.
For those interested in a narrative history with a story feel Winthrop Lane's Civil War in West Virginia also does this fairly well and with a different eye for balance--with the caveat that it was written in 1921 as contemporary long form journalism. Lane, clearly doesn't have opportunity to put the events into historical context because he is part of the history. He also is functioning as a reporter and some information just wasn't available to him. All in all, his work still holds up though.
Green wrote multiple popular histories and other books, many about labor history in the US, some about other topics. In Corbin's case this chapter in West Virginia history was his life's work. The difference shows in three ways:
1. Corbin documents more carefully and is more cautious with his conclusions--you find no perhapses here. While Green uniquely provides a mostly dated and chronological narrative based history and attempts to set mood and thoughts of the subjects--he is quite willing to suppose. Often he makes this supposition clear, but not always.
2. Corbin’s fact based style brooks little justification of mine owner and guard actions while Green is willing to occasionally adopt mine owner/guard language referring to miner actions as criminal.
And finally, 3. Corbin gives a wider context of mine life and the control mine operators had on every aspect of mine camp life before the strikes and wars occurred while Green mentions these in passing and covers them very lightly.
*This caused me to rate the book lower originally. Because I was reading this book as research, I was quite frustrated when his sources for a passage often supported only one out of handful of claims made, especially when they were for specific claims not widely made elsewhere. Generally, I could eventually find primary source material that could be used to back up his statements--but not universally. In the latter case, the claims were more general and gave a more picturesque feel to the narrative rather than being specific events with specifically named individuals.
June 5, 2025
Must read as an American
June 17, 2021
The Devil is Here in These Hills by James Green
This book pleasantly surprised me. I have no idea how it ended up on my to-read shelf to begin with. Although I am a history buff so I must have come across a good review somewhere.
Why is it such a compelling read?
First, there were a lot of genuinely interesting historical events involving the coal miners in West Virginia during the turbulent decades of the early 20th century. This included several incidents labeled as the Mining Wars. The loss of life was shockingly high.
Secondly, the author has written a highly readable narrative with excellent pacing. It is not so easy writing an interesting story about coal mining. At 350 pages of content, it was just the right length, not too much detail.
Lastly the characters are compelling. Mother Jones, John Mitchell, Frank Keeney, Eugene Debs and Governor Hatfield make appearances to name just a few.
1. I found out what Jenny Lind houses were - cheap board and batten houses that popped up in West Virginia company towns which got their name from cheap housing construction near the Jenny Lind mine in Colorado.
2. With the introduction of engines to take the place of mules and with the noise of mechanized cutting machines underground, the warning that miners had of cave-in were gone and it is believed some additional deaths occurred.
3. Between 1900 and 1915 - on average - more than fifty West Virginia miners died each year from explosions and cave-ins. In 1907 more than 300 miners died during the Monongah Explosion - the worst such mining disaster in the country’s history. There is a photo in the book where coffins - two rows deep - lined Main Street as far as the eye could see.
4. From 1912 to 1922 violent conflicts were common place in West Virginia between the union and the strike breakers and coal companies. Thousands of weapons were unlawfully seized by sheriffs. A state of martial law existed in many of these years - in at least one county. In violation of the US Constitution, there were even several pseudo-military tribunals held to prosecute striking miners and insurrectionists.
5. The mining towns were also subject to the forces of mother nature. Many such towns were built along the banks of creeks and rivers in steep valleys. Flooding wiped out several towns that had to be rebuilt.
6. The Battle of Blair Mountain - only the anticipated intervention of 2,000 army troops out of D.C. put an end to this bloody battle in 1922. 10,000 mountain miners and veterans vs. 3,000 well armed militia and law enforcement. Nearly 100 people were killed in what became the largest labor uprising in U.S. History.
4 stars
This book pleasantly surprised me. I have no idea how it ended up on my to-read shelf to begin with. Although I am a history buff so I must have come across a good review somewhere.
Why is it such a compelling read?
First, there were a lot of genuinely interesting historical events involving the coal miners in West Virginia during the turbulent decades of the early 20th century. This included several incidents labeled as the Mining Wars. The loss of life was shockingly high.
Secondly, the author has written a highly readable narrative with excellent pacing. It is not so easy writing an interesting story about coal mining. At 350 pages of content, it was just the right length, not too much detail.
Lastly the characters are compelling. Mother Jones, John Mitchell, Frank Keeney, Eugene Debs and Governor Hatfield make appearances to name just a few.
1. I found out what Jenny Lind houses were - cheap board and batten houses that popped up in West Virginia company towns which got their name from cheap housing construction near the Jenny Lind mine in Colorado.
2. With the introduction of engines to take the place of mules and with the noise of mechanized cutting machines underground, the warning that miners had of cave-in were gone and it is believed some additional deaths occurred.
3. Between 1900 and 1915 - on average - more than fifty West Virginia miners died each year from explosions and cave-ins. In 1907 more than 300 miners died during the Monongah Explosion - the worst such mining disaster in the country’s history. There is a photo in the book where coffins - two rows deep - lined Main Street as far as the eye could see.
4. From 1912 to 1922 violent conflicts were common place in West Virginia between the union and the strike breakers and coal companies. Thousands of weapons were unlawfully seized by sheriffs. A state of martial law existed in many of these years - in at least one county. In violation of the US Constitution, there were even several pseudo-military tribunals held to prosecute striking miners and insurrectionists.
5. The mining towns were also subject to the forces of mother nature. Many such towns were built along the banks of creeks and rivers in steep valleys. Flooding wiped out several towns that had to be rebuilt.
6. The Battle of Blair Mountain - only the anticipated intervention of 2,000 army troops out of D.C. put an end to this bloody battle in 1922. 10,000 mountain miners and veterans vs. 3,000 well armed militia and law enforcement. Nearly 100 people were killed in what became the largest labor uprising in U.S. History.
4 stars
April 1, 2022
Wow, where do I begin? To start off with this book was incredibly well researched and documented. The characters were also well researched, and you definitely had the good guys vs. the bad guys. From the beginning to almost the end the theme was the same. The big bad mine operators against the poor mineworkers. Strikes, walkouts, the miner's army vs the mines army, as could be expected the mine operator's army usually won. Of course, our federal government wanted to not take sides and was always reluctant to get involved. Speeches, protests, elections, etc. etc.
It really got to a point that the reader is worn down and seeing no end in sight. But the 60' arrived and with-it progress was made but not everlasting.
The author used vintage photos throughout the book, and this is what kept my rating from being a one or two star. If you are really into the mining history of Appalachia, then this would be the book for you, but I wouldn't recommend it for the casual reader.
It really got to a point that the reader is worn down and seeing no end in sight. But the 60' arrived and with-it progress was made but not everlasting.
The author used vintage photos throughout the book, and this is what kept my rating from being a one or two star. If you are really into the mining history of Appalachia, then this would be the book for you, but I wouldn't recommend it for the casual reader.
August 13, 2015
This book details the forgotten coal miners of West Virginia and how they had their civil rights violated as they sought for safe and equitable work. Those who joined the union were blacklisted and evicted. The way in which the coal companies used and abused their workers was atrocious and some were outright murdered. The state government often stoked the flames of conflict. This book remembered those forgotten men and women who fought for fair working conditions, often risking their lives to do so. For those who may not realize where the term "redneck" originates from, you will never use the term in a pejorative way again.
December 25, 2019
My grandfather was a mining engineer in Logan County during the 1920s. He never talked about those times before he died in 1970. This book helps to give me a perspective on what it was like back then although I suspect he may have been on the wrong side of history. It also is amazing that mine owner hatred of unions lives on in owners' revulsion at adhering to safety standards and honoring pension commitments. Greed knows no bounds. Looking forward to watching the PBS special based on the book
June 17, 2025
“God does not walk in these hills…The devil is here in these hills, and the devil is greed.” - General Charles D. Elliott
As a West Virginian, I will admit I only recently learned about the mine wars. About four years ago my work created an exhibit and presentation about it be mine wars and it was my first exposure to our states labor history. The reason for my ignorance about this topic is that it’s not tough in our West Virginia history classes or in our normal history classes. This is a topic that has been neglected, and continues to be neglected, most likely because companies, especially coal companies, don’t want their workers striking for a better workplace.
This was a very comprehensive and informative book about the decades long fight of West Virginia coal miners. This book started with the early strikes at Cabin Creek in 1912 and continued until 1921 with the Battle of Blair Mountain, and then he covers what happened afterwards. This discusses the working conditions, the housing, the strikes, and the struggle to form a union to change the coal companies. These coal miners were basically enslaved to their coal companies because the coal companies controlled everything in their lives. They had to use company script for pay and all their goods, and it wasn’t transferable to another company. Also it was cash, so couldn’t be used outside a mining town. It sounds like a horrible cycle that workers couldn’t get away from.
Green does a great job at leading the reader from strike to strike and the culmination of their fight on Blair Mountain. It was a very interesting and captivating recount of history that kept me hooked to these people’s individual stories and the overall fight. I am amazed that these miners had to fight for so long and so hard just to get some resolution. They didn’t even get everything they wanted in the end!
The Battle of Blair Mountain was not only the largest labor uprising since the Civil War, it was also the only time that American citizens were subjected to aerial bombardment on their own soil. This battle was intense for how short it was. The battle lasted five days and roughly 10,000 armed coal miners confronted 3,000 lawmen and strikebreakers. About 1 million rounds were fired and the National Guard had to intervene to stop it. This battle was crazy, not only because it was the first time this happened, but also because only a small number of people were killed.
“There is never peace in West Virginia…because there is never justice.” - Mother Jones
The conclusion of Blair Mountain is very surprising for me. Because while the miners might have held off the coal companies on the mountain, they stopped fighting when the National Guard arrived. Also, what is really crazy is that while they fought so hard for change, the coal industry actually won in the end. The UMWA membership plummeted and the idea of a union in West Virginia disappeared, so the coal industry continued their predatory practices.
Now, Blair Mountain is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), but that also came about after a long battle. The coal companies, mainly Don Blankenship from Massey Energy, fought back and ended up getting the mountain removed from the register shortly after it was added. After a many years' battle, Friends of Blair Mountain and some of the descendants of the miners, was finally able to get it relisted in 2016. I am heartened to learn that this important piece of West Virginia’s history is being preserved and used to teach the history of our state. I am definitely going to try and visit it.
My only real complaint with this book was that it got a bit dense at times on the information dumping to where I struggled to remember how the main story branched off to this topic. This probably wouldn’t be such an issue if you had the physical book, but with an audiobook it doesn’t work. I still feel like I learned a lot from this though.
Overall, this was a fascinating piece of West Virginia history. I learned so much about the history of the state from this book, like the origin of the word Rednecks.
TW: murder and death; coal mining disasters; racism; racist slurs; physical abuse; homelessness; starvation; child death; flooding disaster; imprisonment; war themes; gun violence;
As a West Virginian, I will admit I only recently learned about the mine wars. About four years ago my work created an exhibit and presentation about it be mine wars and it was my first exposure to our states labor history. The reason for my ignorance about this topic is that it’s not tough in our West Virginia history classes or in our normal history classes. This is a topic that has been neglected, and continues to be neglected, most likely because companies, especially coal companies, don’t want their workers striking for a better workplace.
This was a very comprehensive and informative book about the decades long fight of West Virginia coal miners. This book started with the early strikes at Cabin Creek in 1912 and continued until 1921 with the Battle of Blair Mountain, and then he covers what happened afterwards. This discusses the working conditions, the housing, the strikes, and the struggle to form a union to change the coal companies. These coal miners were basically enslaved to their coal companies because the coal companies controlled everything in their lives. They had to use company script for pay and all their goods, and it wasn’t transferable to another company. Also it was cash, so couldn’t be used outside a mining town. It sounds like a horrible cycle that workers couldn’t get away from.
Green does a great job at leading the reader from strike to strike and the culmination of their fight on Blair Mountain. It was a very interesting and captivating recount of history that kept me hooked to these people’s individual stories and the overall fight. I am amazed that these miners had to fight for so long and so hard just to get some resolution. They didn’t even get everything they wanted in the end!
The Battle of Blair Mountain was not only the largest labor uprising since the Civil War, it was also the only time that American citizens were subjected to aerial bombardment on their own soil. This battle was intense for how short it was. The battle lasted five days and roughly 10,000 armed coal miners confronted 3,000 lawmen and strikebreakers. About 1 million rounds were fired and the National Guard had to intervene to stop it. This battle was crazy, not only because it was the first time this happened, but also because only a small number of people were killed.
“There is never peace in West Virginia…because there is never justice.” - Mother Jones
The conclusion of Blair Mountain is very surprising for me. Because while the miners might have held off the coal companies on the mountain, they stopped fighting when the National Guard arrived. Also, what is really crazy is that while they fought so hard for change, the coal industry actually won in the end. The UMWA membership plummeted and the idea of a union in West Virginia disappeared, so the coal industry continued their predatory practices.
Now, Blair Mountain is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP), but that also came about after a long battle. The coal companies, mainly Don Blankenship from Massey Energy, fought back and ended up getting the mountain removed from the register shortly after it was added. After a many years' battle, Friends of Blair Mountain and some of the descendants of the miners, was finally able to get it relisted in 2016. I am heartened to learn that this important piece of West Virginia’s history is being preserved and used to teach the history of our state. I am definitely going to try and visit it.
My only real complaint with this book was that it got a bit dense at times on the information dumping to where I struggled to remember how the main story branched off to this topic. This probably wouldn’t be such an issue if you had the physical book, but with an audiobook it doesn’t work. I still feel like I learned a lot from this though.
Overall, this was a fascinating piece of West Virginia history. I learned so much about the history of the state from this book, like the origin of the word Rednecks.
TW: murder and death; coal mining disasters; racism; racist slurs; physical abuse; homelessness; starvation; child death; flooding disaster; imprisonment; war themes; gun violence;
April 12, 2019
This book has one of the best titles I've ever seen and it more than lives up to the name. "The Devil is Here in These Hills" covers one of the most interesting events in American history, and one that isn't talked about enough in textbooks or on this history channel, West Virginia's mine wars. And author James R. Green manages a mix of action and gravity that does justice to the riveting subject matter.
Spanning decades and involving thousands of people on both sides, the mine wars were one of the most interesting and dramatic labor conflicts in American history. Every chapter offers compelling anecdote after compelling anecdote about standoffs between police and miners, private detective masquerading as miners to take down the union, and assassinations of heroic union leaders. Well known figures like Mother Jones, John L. Lewis, and Eugene Debs make appearances while Green also introduces lesser known figures who you won't soon for get, from radical organizers to folk musicians to coalminers' wives who answered the call to action.
Green is a great writer and a fine historian, and if "The Devil is Here in These Hills" has any shortcomings, they fall with the challenges of the material more than the writer. To tell the story of the mine wars, you have to discuss various mines in various regions with various workers, and keeping all of it straight can be a bit daunting. If this were, say, the biography of UMWA leader Frank Keeney, it might have been an easier story to follow, but that version of events would have also felt incomplete. Green does his best to honor the many people who played a role in this epic struggle, and is careful to shine a light on people of color, women, and other lesser known figures. But this vital inclusion sometimes comes at a cost of a lack of clarity. And that is probably the right choice.
"The Devil is Here in These Hills" is both an action-packed story that plays out as a mix of a mountain western and a corporate corruption fable, and a political case study on what is and isn't possible with militant labor power. What few limits the book has are more than made up for with Green's clear passion and sense of purpose.
Spanning decades and involving thousands of people on both sides, the mine wars were one of the most interesting and dramatic labor conflicts in American history. Every chapter offers compelling anecdote after compelling anecdote about standoffs between police and miners, private detective masquerading as miners to take down the union, and assassinations of heroic union leaders. Well known figures like Mother Jones, John L. Lewis, and Eugene Debs make appearances while Green also introduces lesser known figures who you won't soon for get, from radical organizers to folk musicians to coalminers' wives who answered the call to action.
Green is a great writer and a fine historian, and if "The Devil is Here in These Hills" has any shortcomings, they fall with the challenges of the material more than the writer. To tell the story of the mine wars, you have to discuss various mines in various regions with various workers, and keeping all of it straight can be a bit daunting. If this were, say, the biography of UMWA leader Frank Keeney, it might have been an easier story to follow, but that version of events would have also felt incomplete. Green does his best to honor the many people who played a role in this epic struggle, and is careful to shine a light on people of color, women, and other lesser known figures. But this vital inclusion sometimes comes at a cost of a lack of clarity. And that is probably the right choice.
"The Devil is Here in These Hills" is both an action-packed story that plays out as a mix of a mountain western and a corporate corruption fable, and a political case study on what is and isn't possible with militant labor power. What few limits the book has are more than made up for with Green's clear passion and sense of purpose.
November 10, 2020
Green delivers a well-researched, thorough history of coal in West Virginia from 1877, when a railroad was built that provided access to coal fields and started a coal rush in West Virginia, to the mid 1930s, when a combination of union action, economic developments, and federal legislation established protections and benefits for union coal miners.
In between, you'll find dastardly private police forces, cheating wives, mad preachers, fanatic newspapermen, gunslinging rogues, blood feuds, knee-deep mud, coal dust explosions that kill hundreds of men--and soldiers who shoot and bomb hundreds more. It's the story of a war, an actual shooting war, fought on American soil, pitting American workers against American industry in courtrooms, pitch-dark holes in the ground, and battlegrounds on the steep forested hills of West Virginia.
In many ways it's a second Civil War, one that I didn't learn about until I was an adult. As the internet kids say, I was yesterday days old when I learned that Americans have been bombed from the air on American soil (other than at Pearl Harbor, the Tulsa race riots, and the MOVE bombing in Philadelphia... so maybe it's not that uncommon after all). Like the other Civil War, it's clear who the good guys are, and it's also, unfortunately, clear that the good guys won, but. The 'but' means that the story isn't over yet.
As a writer, I was fascinated by this book because I'm using it as background research for a novel, and I was able to pull seeds of characters and/or events from nearly every chapter. As a political organizer it's incredibly motivating to read about the frustrating, difficult work of creating a union: all the pettiness and back-stabbing, the strikes that didn't work, the workers who were blacklisted and lived in shitty tents where their kids caught pneumonia, the leaders who betrayed the people who had put trust in them. All that *happened* and the union won anyway!
Well. It won in some ways, for a while. This is America, after all.
In between, you'll find dastardly private police forces, cheating wives, mad preachers, fanatic newspapermen, gunslinging rogues, blood feuds, knee-deep mud, coal dust explosions that kill hundreds of men--and soldiers who shoot and bomb hundreds more. It's the story of a war, an actual shooting war, fought on American soil, pitting American workers against American industry in courtrooms, pitch-dark holes in the ground, and battlegrounds on the steep forested hills of West Virginia.
In many ways it's a second Civil War, one that I didn't learn about until I was an adult. As the internet kids say, I was yesterday days old when I learned that Americans have been bombed from the air on American soil (other than at Pearl Harbor, the Tulsa race riots, and the MOVE bombing in Philadelphia... so maybe it's not that uncommon after all). Like the other Civil War, it's clear who the good guys are, and it's also, unfortunately, clear that the good guys won, but. The 'but' means that the story isn't over yet.
As a writer, I was fascinated by this book because I'm using it as background research for a novel, and I was able to pull seeds of characters and/or events from nearly every chapter. As a political organizer it's incredibly motivating to read about the frustrating, difficult work of creating a union: all the pettiness and back-stabbing, the strikes that didn't work, the workers who were blacklisted and lived in shitty tents where their kids caught pneumonia, the leaders who betrayed the people who had put trust in them. All that *happened* and the union won anyway!
Well. It won in some ways, for a while. This is America, after all.
September 11, 2019
I'm sorry, but I found this book deeply disappointing. What should have been a dramatic and exciting story was instead rendered as dry as dust by the author. In addition, I think the author failed to provide much in the way of context for the story of the West Virginia coal wars. As an example, I found it tremendously ironic (and somewhat puzzling) that at the end of the book, within about 20 - 30 pages (of less than 10% of the book), the UMWA goes from being completely defeated in southern West Virginia to successfully organizing the whole area, and winning the 8-hour day, higher pay, the right to collectively bargain and strike, etc. All this was as a result of the legislation of the New Deal under President Roosevelt, NOT further violence by the mine workers. Yet the author never really explores the contradictions of this sudden transition, and why it couldn't have happened sooner (or more peacefully). Another point that I found very frustrating is that the author describes the mutli-day battles in and around Blair Mountain, but after describing the battle, he never clarifies the number of miners and/or private guards that were either killed or wounded, and whether charges were ever brought against anyone on either side, and if so, whether those people were tried and/or convicted. To me that seems an unexplainable lapse in trying to tell the complete story of what happened. These are just a couple of examples of what I found to be rather a lack of story-telling talent - again the author had a sure-fire great story to tell, yet he somehow didn't bring that off. I wouldn't recommend this book, unless you have a very strong interest in the West Virginia mine wars of the early 20th century.
December 19, 2020
James Green sets out to shed light on the history of the labor movement in West Virginia, particularly in the coalfields, but he accomplishes much more than that. What Green does instead - or in addition - is to craft a portrait of the poorest citizens of the poorest state in the years before and then during the Great Depression.
In places, Green's writing affirms long-held stereotypes of the Mountain State. Describing one trial, Green writes, "Deputies traveled deep into the hollows to find potential jurors who were not related to any of the defendants." Nearly every third character is a Hatfield, in one way or another descended from or related to the Hatfields. And the number of guns, amount of liquor, propensity for violence, and preponderance of barefoot brides and babes do not help the state's case. Also, mining is hard and dirty work.
The Devil Is Here in These Hills, though, is much more than a soliloquy on West Virginia. Green has comprehensively compiled the history of the mine wars, and in many ways, the entire Labor Movement. I am embarrassed to admit, but before reading this book, I knew Mother Jones only as left-leaning journalism site; I had not a clue that the real Mother Jones was a fearsome fighter for the union movement for decades, and throughout the country.
The topic is necessarily narrow, and for that reason may appeal to a somewhat limited audience. Those who do decide to read this should not be disappointed, though, for the characters and events both border on the unbelievable and the book (not unlike Ashes Under Water), sheds light on a forgotten and shameful episode in American history.
In places, Green's writing affirms long-held stereotypes of the Mountain State. Describing one trial, Green writes, "Deputies traveled deep into the hollows to find potential jurors who were not related to any of the defendants." Nearly every third character is a Hatfield, in one way or another descended from or related to the Hatfields. And the number of guns, amount of liquor, propensity for violence, and preponderance of barefoot brides and babes do not help the state's case. Also, mining is hard and dirty work.
The Devil Is Here in These Hills, though, is much more than a soliloquy on West Virginia. Green has comprehensively compiled the history of the mine wars, and in many ways, the entire Labor Movement. I am embarrassed to admit, but before reading this book, I knew Mother Jones only as left-leaning journalism site; I had not a clue that the real Mother Jones was a fearsome fighter for the union movement for decades, and throughout the country.
The topic is necessarily narrow, and for that reason may appeal to a somewhat limited audience. Those who do decide to read this should not be disappointed, though, for the characters and events both border on the unbelievable and the book (not unlike Ashes Under Water), sheds light on a forgotten and shameful episode in American history.
February 18, 2019
Green has a knack for making what could be relatively dry reading quite engaging, even, I imagine, for people who are not specialists in labor history.
This text covers a roughly 50 year span of history in West Virginia and the fights between the mine operators and the would-be-organizers. For those not at all familiar with the period, this is one of extreme labor strife throughout the country, and WV is a solid micro study of many of the broader trends happening in the country during this time.
The story here is not particularly dissimilar to the one you will find in other industries and places: lax regulatory environments and exploitable unskilled workers lead to high profits for large industrial concerns. Ultimately, the low wages, shady pay practices, and unsafe conditions lead to agitation. Active military-esque responses (often by private concerns; in others by the actual military) are used to fend off said agitation often with predictably bloody results.
Green covers some of the major players and groups well: Mother Jones, the UMWA, John Lewis; but always keeps the narrative grounded. For those who are not at all familiar, this is a great introduction to a period of intense strife and struggle.
This text covers a roughly 50 year span of history in West Virginia and the fights between the mine operators and the would-be-organizers. For those not at all familiar with the period, this is one of extreme labor strife throughout the country, and WV is a solid micro study of many of the broader trends happening in the country during this time.
The story here is not particularly dissimilar to the one you will find in other industries and places: lax regulatory environments and exploitable unskilled workers lead to high profits for large industrial concerns. Ultimately, the low wages, shady pay practices, and unsafe conditions lead to agitation. Active military-esque responses (often by private concerns; in others by the actual military) are used to fend off said agitation often with predictably bloody results.
Green covers some of the major players and groups well: Mother Jones, the UMWA, John Lewis; but always keeps the narrative grounded. For those who are not at all familiar, this is a great introduction to a period of intense strife and struggle.
June 17, 2024
I found rating this book fairly to be difficult. I read The West Virginia Coal Wars: A Captivating Guide to the Mine Wars and the Battle of Blair Mountain, the Largest Labor Uprising in the History of the United States of America earlier this year which covers almost the same ground. WV Coal Wars was not well written, but I found that I knew much of what was going to happen in The Devil is Here in These Hills. It is by far the better book on the subject, so I chose to be generous. Not a 5 Star, but worth the read if you are interested in the subject.
The book seemed balanced and fair to both the miners and the coal companies. Actions are not justified away or swept under the rug.
The ending was rather abrupt, I would have liked to have some more analysis and reflection to get the authors thoughts.
The book seemed balanced and fair to both the miners and the coal companies. Actions are not justified away or swept under the rug.
The ending was rather abrupt, I would have liked to have some more analysis and reflection to get the authors thoughts.
August 3, 2022
There are parts of this book that are incredible. There are other parts of this book that are less than incredible. Do not let my ignorant opinion convince you to not read this book. When it comes to WV and mining history, I’m less than a novice. My issues with not enjoying this book more is due to my unfamiliarity with the topic. I got lost in the details many times.
The work is THOROUGH. The book is well sourced. I appreciated the research behind the book. I would have preferred more of a biographical approach. When there were issues taken in a biographical sense, this book was fantastic. However, some lack of passing the torch from one character to another made the transitions between events choppy.
I understand this review is more on the method of his storytelling and writing than the content of the book. You cannot argue or even speak ill of his content and information. This book is serving as a primer for more reading and study on the issue of the WV coal mines, Mother Jones, and the plight of mining camp life.
The work is THOROUGH. The book is well sourced. I appreciated the research behind the book. I would have preferred more of a biographical approach. When there were issues taken in a biographical sense, this book was fantastic. However, some lack of passing the torch from one character to another made the transitions between events choppy.
I understand this review is more on the method of his storytelling and writing than the content of the book. You cannot argue or even speak ill of his content and information. This book is serving as a primer for more reading and study on the issue of the WV coal mines, Mother Jones, and the plight of mining camp life.
August 26, 2017
This is a very well written book that tells a story of an important, and often overlooked part of American History. I have read several well written books on individual events associated with the labor movement in the West Virginia coal fields. They dealt with the events at Matewan and Blair Mountain. I have also read a few ponderous tomes written by sociologists. This book tells the whole story. It is not a dull read at all. Although I have reservations about what the union system turned into, it is easy to see from this book why unions started and why they were necessary to improve the lot of the working man. Whether you are pro-union or anti-union or just want a good history book to read, I highly recommend The Devil in These Hills.
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