Climate change requires adaptation and, as a result, Missourians are now powering their lives with less pollution and more renewable energy. Windmills and solar panels have an increased footprint across the state, but for decades it was coal and coal mining that was a major force in Missouri’s energy production and economy.
In this episode of Mo’ Curious, you’ll meet four Missourians whose lives are deeply embedded within North Central Missouri’s mining history and culture. Macon County is the setting for “Digging Deep,” which draws on recent oral histories to describe a time when coal was king.
Mo’ Curious host Trevor Harris intertwines the narrative with observations from Steve Blomberg and George Morganwick, representing the Macon County Historical Society in Macon, and Patty Cheever and Lois McQuitty, who are affiliated with Bevier, Missouri’s Black Diamond Museum.
Go ahead and click below to learn how it was to mine coal and be married to a miner in Macon County, Missouri back in the 20th century.
Photo credit: Macon County Historical Society
The Recollection Agency 