Bridgeport Coal Mines
Bridgeport, Wise County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Once a staple of Bridgeport's economy, coal was discovered here in later part of 19th century. Diggers hit vein 60 feet deep while seeking water. Mine No. 1 lies under northeast Bridgeport, and entire area is honeycombed with tunnels and shafts. Wise County Coal Company was chartered August 23, 1882, by C. D. Cates, J. C. Carpenter, J. G. Halsell, J. J. Lang, H. Greathouse, and D. Waggoner. The firm was bought in 1900 by Colonel William H. Aston of Virginia. Renamed Bridgeport Coal Company, it had 500 employees at Zenith. Mines closed in 1929 due to increased use of oil and gas.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Coal turned up here by accident in the late 1800s, when diggers hunting for water struck a vein 60 feet down, and the ground beneath northeast Bridgeport is still honeycombed with the resulting tunnels and shafts. The Wise County Coal Company was chartered in 1882, later became the Bridgeport Coal Company under Virginia's Colonel William H. Aston, and at its peak employed 500 workers before the rise of oil and gas closed the mines in 1929.
Why it matters
Bridgeport's rise and fall traces the arc of an American mining town, and the energy transition from coal to oil that reshaped countless communities.
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Themes & tags
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