In the 1940's, Coalwood was starting to boom. Just comming out of the depression, the word was out. Coal was in high demand and with the start of WW II Coalwood was on the move. Jobs were plentiful, over 1000 men were working in the mines, but a lot of the men going off to war. The community began seeing a lot of changes. The "Coalwood Caretta News " was created and published for free. This paper was another bonding element for the communities in the coal camps and is still highly regarded today. The paper was a great way to keep the communities up-to-date of everyday life and especially devoted to our men in service. No religion or race was omitted. News happening in the Coalwood was depicted by their given names of New Camp, Substation, Six, Main, Snakeroot, Mudhole, Middletown and Frog Level. What a great way to hear about those who were sick and needed prayers from broken bones to the flu. How else would you find out about folks visiting out of town and with whom. The paper was better than any city paper, it also included birthdays, weddings, who was off to war and even told some embarrassing monents for moral boosters. These papers are a great history book. Day by day in these articles you can see how Coalwood was changing; buildings being moved or torn down to make way for new and better life. The boys in service could come home, catch up on their reading and it would seem as if they hadn't missed a thing. It has been my good fortune to have been given access to several of these old Coalwood news papers and I want to share some articles and pictures with you. The quality of some of the pictures and articles are a little poor but remember these papers are over 50 years old. Keep a watchful eye out, you may see your father, mother, cousin or favorite teacher posted. But one thing is for sure, you will see how Coalwood endured the bitter depression and started a new decade - one day at a time through the everyday lives of her people.
