Rufus E. Ribble, Photographer, Panoramic Group Portrait Photographs of Coal Miners and Related Subjects A&M 4167

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 4167

Title

Rufus E. Ribble, Photographer, Panoramic Group Portrait Photographs of Coal Miners and Related Subjects ca. 1920-1958

URL:

https://archives.lib.wvu.edu/ark:/99999/205271

Quantity

.2 Linear Feet, Summary: 2 in. (large flat storage box, 1 1/2 in.); (oversize folder, 1/2 in)

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

Abstract

This collection of panoramic photographs primarily documents the coal miners of Fayette and Raleigh counties. The photographer, Rufus "Red" Ribble, was born May 14, 1878, near Blacksburg, Virginia, and died December 27, 1967 in West Virginia. He came to West Virginia sometime before 1920 and lived out his life in Mount Hope. The collection contains 119 panoramic photographs, which were made with a large rotating camera called a Cirkut camera. These photos are contact prints; all but one are black and white. Images include group portraits, landscapes/views of towns, and a few views of store interiors. Subjects of the photographs include coal miners, mining towns, local businesses, and local social and church groups. The majority of the photos are group portraits of coal miners from Fayette and Raleigh counties.

Administrative Information

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

Special access restriction applies.

Researchers may access digitized materials by visiting the link attached to each item or by requesting to view the materials in person by appointment or remotely by contacting the West Virginia & Regional History Center reference department at https://westvirginia.libanswers.com/wvrhc.

Preferred Citation

[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Rufus E. Ribble, Photographer, Panoramic Group Portrait Photographs of Coal Miners and Related Subjects, A&M 4167, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Purchase from Crabtree, Mark, of Crabtree Photographs, 2016/01/19

Scope and Contents

Photographer Rufus "Red" Ribble was born May 14, 1878, near Blacksburg, Virginia, and died December 27, 1967 in West Virginia. He came to West Virginia sometime before 1920 and lived out his life in Mount Hope. The collection includes 119 panoramic photographs, which were made with a large rotating camera called a Cirkut camera. These photos are contact prints; all but one are black and white. Images include group portraits, landscapes/views of towns, and a few views of store interiors. Subjects of the photographs include coal miners, mining towns, local businesses, and local social and church groups. The majority of the photos are group portraits of coal miners from Fayette and Raleigh counties. Some photos were identified with the help of West Virginia Coalfield Photography 1900-2005: Panoramic Photography, by Rufus Ribble, George A. Bragg, Morgan G. Bragg, and Melody Bragg (Beaver, WV: GEM Publications, 2005.) Photos are organized roughly by county.

Subjects and Indexing Terms

Coal mines and mining
Fayette County (W. Va.)
Greenbrier County (W. Va.)
Kanawha County (W. Va.)
Nicholas County (W. Va.)
Raleigh County (W. Va.)
Summers County (W. Va.)
Wyoming County (W. Va.)

Significant Places Associated With the Collection

Fayette County (W. Va.)
Greenbrier County (W. Va.)
Kanawha County (W. Va.)
Nicholas County (W. Va.)
Raleigh County (W. Va.)
Summers County (W. Va.)
Wyoming County (W. Va.)

Container List

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- Clifftop Mines (group portrait)

1929 July 18

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- Fire Creek Mine, Royalty Smokeless Coal Co., Clifftop, WV

1956

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- Preparation Plant, Royalty Smokeless Coal Co., Clifftop, WV (not group portrait)

1956

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- Ames Mining Company, Fayette, WV (night force)

1950

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- Fayette County School Buses, Fayetteville, WV

1940 August 13

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- New River at Fayette Station (landscape)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- Whitlock Motor Co., Fayetteville, WV

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- Whitlock's Farm, Fayetteville, WV

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- Free Will Baptist Bible School, Kilsyth, WV

June 1948

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- North Kilsyth and Siltix, WV (group portrait)

September 1925

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- Saint Anthony Catholic Church, Kilsyth, WV

August 1949

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 1

Fayette County -- 12th Annual Sectional Safety Meeting, Mount Hope, WV

1941 September 13

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- City of Mount Hope, WV (landscape)

1948

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- Miner's First Aid Training or Mine Company Safety Contest, Mount Hope Stadium, Mount Hope, WV

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- Mount Hope, WV (Group portrait, mostly women wearing white with flowers)

1921 March 27

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- Beards Fork, WV ("hoot-owl" shift)

1956

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- Cannelton Coal and Coke Co., Cannelton, WV (coal carts)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- Cannelton Coal and Coke Co., Cannelton, WV (shows rail line)

ca. 1958

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- Cannelton Coal and Coke Co., Cannelton, WV (landscape/buildings)

1925

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- Cannelton Coal and Coke Co., Cannelton, WV (store interior)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- Cannelton Coal and Coke Co., Lady Dunn Mines, Cannelton, WV (night force)

1956

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- Club House, Cannelton Coal and Coke Co., Cannelton, WV

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- Cunard, WV (group portrait of miners)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 2

Fayette County -- Lee's Tree Tavern (building and landscape, sign for Sewell Mountain)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 3

Fayette County -- Eastern Gas and Fuel, Page, WV

1952

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 3

Fayette County -- Eastern Gas and Fuel, Page, WV (day force)

1952

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 3

Fayette County -- Kanawha Falls, WV (landscape)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 3

Fayette County -- Longacre, WV (group portrait of miners)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 3

Fayette County -- Maple Lane Farms, Inc., Oak Hill, WV

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 3

Fayette County -- McKendree Hospital (group portrait)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 3

Fayette County -- McKendree Hospital (grounds)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 3

Fayette County -- Standard Fire Creek Coal Co., Beelick Knob, WV (landscape)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 3

Fayette County -- Summerlee, WV (day force)

1955

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 3

Fayette County -- Summerlee, WV (night force)

1946

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 4

Fayette County -- Thurmond, WV (landscape)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 4

Fayette County -- Thurmond, WV (landscape)

April 1920

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 4

Fayette County -- Turkey Knob, WV (group portrait)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 4

Fayette County -- Turkey Knob, WV (group portrait)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 4

Fayette County -- Turkey Knob, WV (landscape)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 4

Fayette County -- Whipple, WV (landscape)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 4

Fayette County -- Ames Height (houses)

undated

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 4

Fayette County -- Medo Fuel Co., Mine No. 2

1956

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 4

Fayette County -- Oakwood Mine, Oakwood, WV (night force)

1955

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 4

Fayette County -- Oakwood Mine, Oakwood, WV (officials)

1947 July 28

Mixed Materials Box: 1 Folder: 4

Fayette County -- Oakwood, WV (night force)

1944 July 28