Leckrone, PA/ Village, Mine Buildings and Coke Ovens

The Leckrone No. 1 mine and coke works date back to 1899 and were operated by the Eureka Fuel Company. The Eureka Fuel Company was the fuel end of the Federal Steel Company of Chicago and was the second largest company merged in the steel combination. Eureka also owned plants at Footedale and Buffington. After January 31, 1902, the H.C. Frick Coke Company took over operations and eventually acquired it for good on March 28, 1903. By 1928 the coke plant had two batteries of block and one battery of bank ovens totaling 516 ovens. It is uncertain when the mine and coke works shut down.

The company store remains and dates back prior to the Frick era. Across from the company store is the ruins of the office building. The back wall remains as well as the foundation. What is interesting about this building is a cast iron door frame on the rear wall. It almost looks like an old vault door. Apparently this building served as the post office as well as the Superintendents office. Next to the company store sits the ice house which dates back to 1901.

There is another building further down the road that may have been a boiler house or a machine shop.

Update 3/23/14: The Leckrone mine map does list the ruins of the building across from the company store as "office".

The company store.

This is the ice house next to the store. I'm sure it was modified to a garage later but it's a nice old building.

This is the post office/superintendents office across the street.

Exposed basement.

This is the top of the iron door frame.

The door frame itself. Maybe a vault?

Plaster remaining on the wall.

The front door of the company store. Yes, there is a light on.

Apparently the company store sold gas at one time.

Side view of the company store.

A view of the coke ovens from the store.

The ovens are deteriorated but the ground is really clear.

These ovens are on the opposite side of the dock area.

A little bit of remaining block from the dock wall.

It started raining.

I've seen this stuff remaining where the bricks have fallen before. I'm beginning to think it is baked fill or clay that was used to insulate the ovens. It's not brick or concrete but it can be found around ovens.

This is the flooded dock area where the trains would come in to load up the coke.

This is the other building down the road that may have been a boiler house or machine shop.

Some of the patch houses behind it.

This is inside that building.

It's nice to see an intact window that hasn't been smashed out.

Front door.

This was sitting by a side door.

Rear of the building.

These sit behind the houses. Either ice houses or spring houses.

 

Hoover Coke Works

The Hoover Coke Works has approximately 79 bank ovens remaining. At one time there was an additional block containing 100 double block ovens but these have been removed. What remains are either in relatively decent condition or are falling apart. At the beginning of the bank, the ovens seem raised. According to the SWPA Rural Exploration website, this area was excavated during the time the mine site was being reclaimed. Towards the middle of the bank it levels out.

These ovens date back to approximately 1908 when James Hoover, a farmer in German Township began mining the Pittsburgh Coal Seam on his property. The Hoover Works closed in 1922 and remained abandoned until 1939 when the Pennsylvania Coal Company, headed by the Noble family (of Shoaf fame, as well as other sites) acquired the property. The Nobles operated the site until 1942. After that the ovens were operated occasionally until finally closing for good in the early 1950's. 

Stonework varies on the ovens. Some appear to be original, while others have been altered later with block. At the end of the bank is a room of some sort. It is a brick and stone room with some sort of piping in it and has a hole in the top of one side, almost like a trunnel hole but possibly a chimney hole.

The beginning of the bank, the "raised" section.

In decent condition but too high to climb into.

This section, where the ovens begin to fall apart, are almost on a curve. The beginning of the bank starts closer to the road but turns slightly as it progresses.

This is where it starts to level off.

Part of the old dock wall in front of the ovens.

More Garfield crown blocks. The Garfield brick yard was near Bolivar, PA.

A bit of hardware.

Very high up.

Exposing the oven.

Some block laying around.

Crazy.

This wall is across the field from these ovens. I'm assuming it's where the block ovens were located.

Inside.

This is some of the later block front on these ovens. This occurred sporadically. One could be this type of block and the next could be original stone.

This is the room at the end of the bank.

Piping inside the room.

The hole in the roof.

The end of the bank on the room side.