I was born and grew up in Mahanoy City, PA, which is located in the heart of the anthracite coal region of NE Pennsylvania in Schuylkill County. On Monday, May 21, 2012, I drove “up state” to place flowers on the graves of my parents and grandparents. It’s an up state tradition to “decorate” the graves before “Decoration Day”, aka Memorial Day coming next week.

After visiting the cemetery, I drove through Mahanoy City to reminisce. To be kind, Mahanoy City is a struggling small town with all the problems that have accumulated over the last 50 years since “King Coal” has left the area. Well, to my surprise and probably some SHOCK, as I drove down the main street of town (Centre Street), I came upon this new monument to the Molly Maguires.

Shock is probably what was my first thought and impression…a statue of a man standing on a gallows with a hood on his head? What the he**, only in Mahanoy City was perhaps my second thought!

Well as I stopped to view the Molly Maguire Historical Park, I was impressed with how the town was memorializing this controversial part of PA history. I am not going to admit being a historian and excuse the shock of this image, but it depicts a vivid and important part of the history of coal mining and labor in PA.

Here’s a link to the local newspaper’s account of the dedication of the statue and historical park: http://republicanherald.com/news/molly-maguires-story-echoes-through-new-mahanoy-city-statue-1.800170
Don’t miss the comments from readers below the story and on continuing pages!

Also, here is the text that appears on the first plaque inside the historical park’s wall:

This park is dedicated to the memory of those who suffered and died in the anthracite coal mining communities of Eastern Pennsylvania during the 1862-1879 Molly Maguire era.

This fragile period erupted into a multi-faceted socioeconomic conflict between mining labor and mining management, between justice and criminal conspiracy, between Irish-American Catholics and English Protestant, Welsh and Germans, and between secret societies such as the Ancient Order of Hibernians and the Free Masons.

History depicts the Molly Maguires as either a band of Irish-American martyrs, or criminals of a labor struggle. Regardless of how history portrays the men called the Molly Maguires, their story provides us with an example of mankind’s perseverance and sacrifice in the face of trial and tribulation. Thousands of immigrants pursued a better way of life in this corner of the United States and thousands lost their lives working in and around the coal mines. Scores of others lost their lives as victims in a regional conflict fueled by prejudice, violence and retributive justice.

This monument remembers the sacrifices and the hardships borne by communities in Carbon, Columbia, Luzerne, Northumberland and Schuylkill Counties. Conceived and developed by community leaders and volunteers in and around Mahanoy City and Schuylkill County, this memorial is dedicated to inspire a better understanding of the Molly Maguire story and its impact upon American History.