Ferdinand C. Menk Coal Mining Records , A&M 3645

West Virginia and Regional History Center

1549 University Ave.
P.O. Box 6069
Morgantown, WV 26506-6069
Business Number: 304-293-3536
wvrhcref@westvirginia.libanswers.com
URL: https://wvrhc.lib.wvu.edu

Staff of the West Virginia & Regional History Center

Repository

West Virginia and Regional History Center

Identification

A&M 3645

Title

Ferdinand C. Menk Coal Mining Records 1889-1990 1922-1956

Quantity

21.38 Linear Feet, 21 ft. 4.5 in. (44 document cases, 5 in. each); (1 document case, 2.5 in.); (1 record carton, 15 in.); (4 flat storage boxes, 3 in. each); (1 rolled storage box, 6 in.); (1 unboxed artifact, 1 in.)

Creator

Menk, Ferdinand C., 1892-1980

Location

West Virginia and Regional History Center / West Virginia University / 1549 University Avenue / P.O. Box 6069 / Morgantown, WV 26506-6069 / Phone: 304-293-3536 / Fax: 304-293-3981 / URL: https://wvrhc.lib.wvu.edu/

Language

English

Conditions Governing Use

Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. For more information, please see the Permissions and Copyright page on the West Virginia and Regional History Center website.

Conditions Governing Access

No special access restriction applies.

Preferred Citation

[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Ferdinand C. Menk Coal Mining Records, A&M 3645, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Gift from Telander, Rory J., University of Wyoming. American Heritage Center, 2008 September 16

Scope and Contents

Papers of coal mine engineer and German-immigrant Ferdinand C. Menk documenting his work of developing and implementing operations in the coalfields of southern West Virginia, southwestern Virginia, and eastern Kentucky, as an employee and later a consultant for the Island Creek Coal Company in Holden, West Virginia (1922-1966). The bulk of the collection consists of Menk's professional records relating to his his career with Island Creek Coal Company. There are also a few items from Menk's early employment with Copper Queen Mining Company in Arizona (circa 1917-1919), including photographs. Scattered in the collection are materials related to Ferdinand Menk's uncle, Karl Schoew, a mine engineer and inspector in southern West Virginia, including photographs, drawings, and published articles.

Series include:

Series 1. Biographical Information
Series 2. Manuscripts
Series 3. Maps and Other Material
Series 4. Plans, Blueprints, and Other Material
Series 5. Reports and Other Material
Series 6. Island Creek Coal Company
Series 7. Subjects
Series 8. Photographs and Other Material
Series 9. Books and Other Publications
Series 10. Artifacts
Series 11. Oversize

Separated Material

Separated to West Virginia Book Collection, 32 items, including:

1) "Useful Information for Business Men, Mechanics and Engineers" compiled by C.C. Briggs, M.E.;

2&3) "Mine Examination Questions and Answers", Parts I & II by James T. Beard, C.E., E.M., 1923;

4)"Geological and Chemical Report on a Portion of the Virginia and Tennessee Coal and Iron Company's Property" by Messr A.S. McCreath and E.V. D'Invilliers, 1892;

5) "The Geology and Coal Resources of Buchanan County, Virginia" by Henry Hinds, 1918;

6) "Annual Meeting of the West Virginia Mining Association" 1910;

7) "The Mine Foreman's Examination Guide" by N.P. Rhinehart, 1937;

8) "Coal Miners' Safety Manual, A Handbook for Miners" by J.J. Forbes, M.J. Ankeny and Francis Freehand, 1943;

9) "Proceedings, West Virginia Coal Mining Institute", 1910;

10) "Proceedings of Meetings of Coal Operators of West Virginia and Other States", 1908/11/8;

11) "Annual Report of the Department of Mines for the Year Ending June 30, 1913";

12) "Annual Report of the Department of Mines for the Year Ending June 30, 1915";

13) "Annual Report of the Department of Mines for the Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1912;

14) "Annual Report of the Department of Mines for the Fiscal Year Ending June 30, 1924;

15) "Proceedings - Coal Mining Institute" 1908;

16) "Proceedings - West Virginia Coal Mining Institute, 1912;

17) "Proceedings of the West Virginia Coal Mining Institute", 1922;

18)"Mine Examination Questions and Answers, Part III" by James Beard, 1923;

19) "1972 Proceedings of the West Virginia Coal Mining Institute";

20) "Proceedings - Mine Inspectors' Institute of America", 1940;

21)"Pond Creek Pocahontas Company Annual Report to the Stockholders" 1937, '38, '39,'40, '42, '43, '44, & '49 [8 items]

22) "Report of the Committee on Uniform Mine Statics", 1910/June;

23) "Information Circular - Design and Operation of the Coal Planer Ruhr District, Germany" by John W. Buch, 1946/October;

24) "Test On the Control of Coal-Mine Fires in the Experimental Coal Mine" by John Nagy, Irving Hartmann, and H.C. Howarth, 1950/April; and

25) "Estimate of Known Recoverable Reserves of Coking Coal in Floyd County, Ky." by James J. Dowd, Louis A. Turnbull, Albert L. Toenges, R.F. Abernethy, and D.A. Reynolds, 1951/September.

Series 1. Biographical Information

Mixed Materials Box: 1 undated

Scope and Contents

This series includes information regarding Ferdinand Menk, including several clippings, job applications, certificates, memorabilia, and patents issued for his inventions involving coal processing and loading equipment.

Series 2. Manuscripts

Mixed Materials Box: 2 1964 and undated

Scope and Contents

This series includes a typescript authored by Menk entitled "Thrills and Chills: Incidents Not Generally Known Occurring During Forty Years of Engineering at Island Creek Coal Company"; (1964).

Series 3. Maps and Other Material

Mixed Materials Box: 3 Mixed Materials Box: 4 Mixed Materials Box: 5 Mixed Materials Box: 6 Mixed Materials Box: 7 Mixed Materials Box: 8 Mixed Materials Box: 9 Mixed Materials Box: 10 Mixed Materials Box: 11 Mixed Materials Box: 12 Mixed Materials Box: 13 undated

Scope and Contents

This series contains material regarding coal seams, property, topography, geology, and stratigraphy.

Series 4. Plans, Blueprints, and Other Material

Mixed Materials Box: 14 Mixed Materials Box: 15 Mixed Materials Box: 16 Mixed Materials Box: 17 Mixed Materials Box: 18 Mixed Materials Box: 19 undated

Scope and Contents

This series includes renderings of equipment, processing systems, and other mechanisms related to coal mining operations.

Series 5. Reports and Other Material

Mixed Materials Box: 20 Mixed Materials Box: 21 Mixed Materials Box: 22 Mixed Materials Box: 23 Mixed Materials Box: 24 Mixed Materials Box: 25 Mixed Materials Box: 26 Mixed Materials Box: 27 Mixed Materials Box: 28 Mixed Materials Box: 29 undated

Scope and Contents

This series includes analyses, cost estimations, specifications, bulletins, company polices, and staff meeting minutes regarding coal companies and their operations, including Island Creek, United Thacker, Red Jacket, and Pond Creek Pocahontas Coal.

Series 6. Island Creek Coal Company

Mixed Materials Box: 30 Mixed Materials Box: 31 Mixed Materials Box: 32 Mixed Materials Box: 33 undated

Scope and Contents

This series records includes contracts, specifications, analyses, and correspondence, among other files.

Series 7. Subjects

Mixed Materials Box: 34 Mixed Materials Box: 35 Mixed Materials Box: 36 undated

Scope and Contents

This series include company directives; management guides; pamphlets; memoranda files and bidding instructions; photographs of mining engineers, mine operations, and the surrounding landscape; maps, plans, and drawings pertaining to engineering, air circulation, and auger mining, among other mining techniques; procedures and equipment used by Island Creek, Pond Creek Pocahontas, and Marianna Smokeless Coal Companies. There are also maps, drawings and plans regarding the inventions of F.C. Menk.

Series 8. Photographs and Other Material

Mixed Materials Box: 37 Mixed Materials Box: 38 Mixed Materials Box: 39 Mixed Materials Box: 40 Mixed Materials Box: 41 Mixed Materials Box: 42 undated

Scope and Contents

This series includes images related to the coal industry, including tipples, mining equipment, construction projects, the above ground terrain of mines, railroad and water transportation, miners, and engineers.

Series 9. Book and Other Publications

Mixed Materials Box: 43a Mixed Materials Box: 43b 1882, 1921, and undated

Scope and Contents

This series includes two books ("American Electrician's Handbook", 1921; "Treatise on Land-Surveying", 1882), three pamphlets on coal mining published by the U.S. Bureau of Mines, and three pamphlets on river craft published by the U.S. Government Printing Office.

Series 10. Artifacts

Mixed Materials Box: 44 Mixed Materials Box: 45 Mixed Materials Box: 46 circa 1910-1957 and undated

Scope and Contents

This series includes surveying tools, drafting instruments (circa 1910-1957), and mining equipment.

Series 11. Oversize

Mixed Materials Box: 47 Mixed Materials Box: 48 Mixed Materials Box: 49 circa 1912-1925 and undated

Scope and Contents

This series contains several large maps of the tri-state area of southern West Virginia, southwestern Virginia, and eastern Kentucky. The maps document properties, gas and coal seams, and geology. There are also mine directories and situation maps. There are also three artifacts (one "waywiser" surveying tool and two rulers), five large photographs (circa 1912-1925, including a 1912 group portrait of members of the Mine Engineers' Institute of the United States), two certificates (certifying F.C. Menk as a mine engineer), and several drawings, blue prints, and plans pertaining to Menk's inventions, such as the coal deduster.