Milner Coal and Railroad Company meeting minutes

Collection

Identifier: W-0101

No requestable containers

Scope and Contents

This collection contains one 153-page notebook, containing handwritten and typed copies of meeting minutes from the directors and stockholders' meetings of the Milner Coal and Railroad Company. Entries are dated between July 1900 and August 1910, and address the election of company directors, bylaw changes, and the financial decisions of the company.

Dates

Creation: 1900-1910

Creator

Williams, A. S., III (Collector, Person)
Milner Coal and Railroad Company (Organization)

Conditions Governing Access

None

Biographical / Historical

The Milner Coal and Railroad Company owned approximately 2,000 acres of coal-producing land near Coalburg and New Castle, communities located in Jefferson County, Alabama. The New Castle mines were opened in 1874 by the New Castle Coal and Iron Company and were purchased in 1881 by the Milner Coal and Railroad Company.

A notable feature of the company's legacy was its early and extensive use of convict labor. Managed by President John T. Milner, the company employed a staff of 200. Approximately 150 of these employees were prisoners incarcerated in Alabama's state and local prisons.

Sources: Douglas A. Blackmon, Slavery by Another Name: The Re-enslavement of Black Americans from the Civil War to World War II. (New York: Anchor Books, 2009).

Extent

0.15 Linear Feet

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

Minutes of directors and stockholders' meetings between 1900 and 1910

Physical Location

The A. S. Williams III Americana Collection, Amelia Gayle Gorgas Library, The University of Alabama

Provenance

Gift of A. S. Williams III, 2010

Related Materials

The A. S. Williams III Americana Collection contains several resources related to coal production and railways in Alabama. Please contact a staff member for assistance.