St. Nicholas Coal Breaker Visit

NoSmoke · Post by **NoSmoke** » Sun. Oct. 21, 2012 8:48 pm

I ran across this Blog regarding the St Nicholas Coal Breaker. I know for many of you, it is something you see everyday, but for me it was neat. I really liked the video in the end of it, and thought the guy did a very good job with excellent pictures and a story.

**Broken Link(s) Removed**

Dann757 · Post by **Dann757** » Sun. Oct. 21, 2012 9:00 pm

Wow,
That was some awesome photography. Some of the narrative seemed pretty anti-coal when he was describing "the plundered land", etc.
The photo of the mercury was cool, but I don't believe that came from flourescent bulbs no way. Probably somebody broke a bottle of mercury way back when.

freetown fred · Post by **freetown fred** » Sun. Oct. 21, 2012 9:10 pm

Nice NoSmoke

Post by **Lightning** » Mon. Oct. 22, 2012 4:43 pm

I would love to explore that place. Wow

g13nw00d-man · Post by **g13nw00d-man** » Mon. Oct. 22, 2012 5:56 pm

I want that Reading sign!!!!

Darren L · Post by **Darren L** » Mon. Oct. 22, 2012 6:04 pm

be very carful if you go DO NOT GO INSIDE they have really stepped up on partols around the breaker,we were up a couple Sunday's ago and we park near the scale house and saw a guy on a four wheeler with a white hard hat on.I have a few photographer friends they got kicked out when they got near it.

g13nw00d-man · Post by **g13nw00d-man** » Mon. Oct. 22, 2012 7:28 pm

I live in maine, not going to travel for a sign. Thank you for the warning. I would go at night and they would never know I was there. The Coal Ninja...

NoSmoke · Post by **NoSmoke** » Tue. Oct. 23, 2012 6:07 am

I would love to visit it as well, but being from Maine, it is a bit of a trip! So I will just cruise the internet and let younger people who have more energy and stamina then me, use their skills at taking excellent photos and be satisfied with that. Besides, it is much better to enjoy a few photos from the internet then to meet Big Bubba while in a PA jail cell awaiting trial for Criminal Trespass and Criminal Mischief. I am not sure as I have never had the pleasure of being in jail, but it sounds...well...overrated!

I have had the pleasure of though of going to the largest coal mine in North America on an escorted tour. I used to work for the railroad out west and set up a tour at the Black Thunder Mine in Wright, Wyoming. It was a really neat tour and I am glad I got to go. I think the highlight was when a 300 ton haul truck rolled by and spilled some of the coal off the back. I naively asked, "You must come along with a grader and scrape that up and then send it to the crusher." The Maintenance Supervisor giving the tour stated it was just waste and that it would never be used. I was, "Really? That would heat my house for the rest of my life!" He looked at me and said, "You know I never thought of it like that before." It was the truth, a little spillage is a whole lot of tons when you are moving 300 tons of it at once.

(My apologies to the NE PA Forum Moderators for the latter part of this post. I recognize that this forum is for the sole promotion of the anthracite region and not the Powder River Basin and out of respect will not make mention of my 7-1/2 years of life in the Powder River region even though it was interesting to say the least. If nothing else, take stock, that very Maintenance Supervisor told me, "In order to get Powder River Coal to burn, you got to douse it with diesel fuel first!" It is inferior to say the least!)

Davian · Post by **Davian** » Sun. Oct. 28, 2012 9:13 pm

g13nw00d-man wrote:I live in maine, not going to travel for a sign. Thank you for the warning. I would go at night and they would never know I was there. The Coal Ninja...

A similar one is going for around $650 on Ebay right now. Of course, dodging security and lugging it arent worth it...given that it'd still be grand theft and all.

mattcoalburner · Post by **mattcoalburner** » Sun. Oct. 28, 2012 9:59 pm

I live in Tamaqua, and have passed the old saint nic breaker many times on my travels, I just wanted to say AWESOME photo story!!!

NoSmoke · Post by **NoSmoke** » Mon. Oct. 29, 2012 5:37 am

MCB: Man am I ever jealous of you. Despite trespassing laws, I think I might just have to risk it and go in for a look!

I have been in that area a few times and enjoyed the region, similar to Maine where I live with good, down-home people who are friendly, hardworking and proud of what they do and what their area has. I certainly hope that region is doing well economically with the natural gas and uptick in anthracite coal sales. We are really slogging behind here in Maine with a terrible economy, but just because things are bad here, does not mean I wish that on another part of the country.

I did spent 3 days in Hazelton back in 1998. It was early April and we got caught in a snowstorm on I-81. There was a 22 car pile-up just south of us and we ended up being stranded for 3 days on the interstate while they tried to clear up the mess. I had 4x4 truck, a full tank of fuel and plenty of blankets, but people in cars, with kids, and the like had to take help from the National Guard that came around in HumVee's to help the stranded motorists. It was pretty bad. I need to go back, but maybe this time get to stay under more advantageous weather.

coalnewbie · Post by **coalnewbie** » Mon. Oct. 29, 2012 6:01 am

The photo of the mercury was cool, but I don't believe that came from flourescent bulbs no way.

Most likely imported to add drama to the shoot given the overall negative coal tone. Unlikely to be the lights and a silver dollar size Hg pool in that sized building, exactly what were the chances of finding it when you weren't even looking for it? Why is the guard so prevalent now? Is this to be another trillion dollar toxic superfunded site? How do we raise the drama level? Cadmium or arsenic would not be seen for what they are only elemental Hg is recognizable to the average Joe. I don't buy it for a second. Guess what, mercury poisoning with coal is now the hot topic and they just happened to find it......So the ecolunies want it condemned, every milligram examined and then filled back in and repopulated with spiders and snakes. They don't care where the trillion dollars comes from. Should be made into a museum as a testament to human effort and struggle.

Shame, great photo shoot, would have stood on it's own merits for us coalies but for the green crowd much more drama was needed. This type of BS is happening all over.

NoSmoke · Post by **NoSmoke** » Mon. Oct. 29, 2012 7:16 am

Myself, I do not think the group of guys were on a anti-coal agenda trip.

I think there is some negative-coal-stereotyping going on, but only because they are young and misinformed. They are not unlike the millions of other young yuppies that look at old machinery, black soil and old buildings and think of mother nature being pummeled, and then merrily going about their lives, thinking nothing of shutting off the computers they rely so deeply upon, never realizing coal powers it all!

I think if they had truly intended to be anti-coal, they would have immediately made the link from mercury to the coal, and not dumbly assume it came from old light bulbs. Anyone that has ever worn a blue collar knows that mercury was used heavily with steel, and any maintenance shop, machine shop or fabrication shop of any appreciable vintage, had mercury on its premisses. From the pictures you can see they found the mercury in the maintenance part of the shop...it is no surprise to me.

These guys do not make me laugh as much as this guy and his trip to the old St. Nicholas Coal Breaker...
http://urbansetting.wordpress.com/2010/10/01/miss ... l-breaker/, about 1/3 of the way down the website you will see him in a mask, at which he says, "St Nicholas Breaker was immense…..the sight sent chills down my spine. I hurt my neck looking towards the sky to view the entire building. The colors of rust and broken windows excited me….the smell of old made me curious, it also said I should dawn my mask. I reached into my backpack and pulled out my oxygen mask. It was fairly new so I snapped a photo to see how I looked."

First of all, that is not an oxygen mask, it is a dust particle mask and is not really going to protect you from much. As such there is nothing in that coal breaker that would harm your lungs. Assuming there is even asbestos in there, it would only affect you if you disturbed it, or miraculously the asbestos pipe insulation fell off a pipe as you walked by in huge amounts, and you breathed it in. With that many windows missing, and the place open and airy, it is going to be so well ventilated that your little footsteps are not going to kick up much of anything harmful.

But I agree with you, it is the misinformed who enter a place for the thrill of it, and then do stupid things that ruin it for everyone.

I know there is a Preservation Society for the Huber Coal Breaker, and while I applaud those efforts, it seems as if that coal breaker is in far worse shape then the St Nicholas Coal Breaker just by gauging by the photos online.

VigIIPeaBurner · Post by **VigIIPeaBurner** » Mon. Oct. 29, 2012 8:41 am

I'd bet that the mercury was used in a liquid manometer. That was one of the common type used in industry back in the last century. Now everything is digital.

mattcoalburner · Post by **mattcoalburner** » Tue. Oct. 30, 2012 9:25 pm

I didnt think they were trying to degrade the coal industry in any way shape or form, I think it ws an amazing thing they did!