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Spanning
4 floors of exhibit
space, the Museum houses a diverse collection of artifacts exploring
the early years of industrial coal mining in Kentucky.
Continuous featured exhibits include the Loretta Lynn Exhibit and
the Mock Mine Exhibit.
Key
Ingredients: America by Food
December 11, 2004 to January 23, 2005.
In cooperation with the Kentucky Humanities Council, the Kentucky
Coal Museum will host the local showing of the exploration of diverse
food traditions in America. A Smithsonian Institution Ttraveling Exhibition
Service: keyingredients.org.
The
Loretta Lynn Exhibit The
third floor of the museum is dedicated to the life of country music
singer and Coal Miner’s Daughter Loretta Lynn. The Lynn Exhibit
includes portraits capturing the singer at various stages of her
life in addition to many items from Mrs. Lynn’s personal collection.
Mock
Underground Mine Children and adults alike enjoy a tour through
the Museum’s Mock Mine. The short walking tour winds along
coal corridors and includes
vivid sound and video from modern mines.
While
visiting the Kentucky Coal Mining Museum, you can see the floor plan
of a typical underground coal mine. The display shows all aspects
of a coal mine including the tipple and other mining activities.
Visitors
can have their picture made outside the building next to the two-ton
block of coal that was specially cut for the Kentucky Coal Mining
Museum.
Kids will also enjoy climbing on the 1940's model electric locomotive.
It was used to haul miners inside the mine. You can see other heavy
machinery used in mining the "black diamond."
The
Kentucky Coal Mining Museum offers a complete picture of the lives
that revolve around the coal industry. Visitors to the museum can
view the process detailing the formation of coal by looking at several
visuals and fossil displays. Next a narrated video describes the
early coal mining days in Benham and Lynch.
Other
displays include items from the company hospital, early mining tools,
items from the commissary and the miner's home, and a working scale
model of a coal tipple. A photography collection documenting the
history of Benham - mining accidents, new buildings, people, etc.
-can also be seen.
Thousands
of items have been collected detailing every segment of coal mining
history. After a short trip to Portal
31 in nearby Lynch, you can enjoy a walking tour of one of the
largest coal loading facilities in the world.
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Original
Portrait of Loretta Lynn and Husband
The Museum has
numerous original works of art detailing the life of Kentucky's
famous Coal Miner's Daughter.
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One
of several original stage dresses worn by Loretta Lynn. |
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Mock
Underground Mine encompassing the Commissary's basement floor.
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Detail of
original Loretta Lynn Stage dress |
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