Shenandoah (Images of America)

By: Darryl Ponicsan and Anne Chaikowsky La Voie

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Synopsis: From a distance, Shenandoah may look like any other small town, quaint and unassuming, and yet in one square mile, there are more treasures than the "black diamonds" of coal that run in her veins. Discovery of the Mammoth Vein of anthracite in the 1860s brought tens of thousands of immigrants to work the local mines; in turn, they brought their cultures and dreams of a better life in America. Within a generation, rapidly increasing population created the "Most Congested Square Mile in the United States." Later, a shift from coal mine to Main Street fashioned recognition for retail fineries, along with distinction as the "City of Churches." At the center of the Molly Maguire troubles of the 1870s and the 1902 coal strike that changed the power of the presidency, Shenandoah has long been recognized for defiance and determination. Mining disasters, financial adversity, and ruinous fires scarred memories of decades of prominence; however, Shenandoah's spirit has endured through the last 150 years.