The Human Cost of an Emerging Industrial Economy: Coal Mining Disasters in the West-U.S.

This document collection concerns three mine explosions that ripped through the southern Colorado cornfields in the early twentieth century. Through these documents, students will understand how Americans grappled with the deadly consequences of an emerging industrial economy fuelded by vast quantities of coal. Students are guided through their analysis of the primary sources with an author-provided learning objective, central question, and historical context.