Phillips-Sprague Mine, also known as the Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine, is a historic coal mine located at New River Park in Beckley

Beckley, West Virginia

Beckley is a city in Raleigh County, West Virginia, United States, which was founded on April 4, 1838. The 2008 population was estimated to be 16,832 by the U.S. Census Bureau. Early in its history, the town was known as Beckleyville and Raleigh Court House...

, Raleigh County, West Virginia

Raleigh County, West Virginia

As of the census of 2000, there were 79,220 people, 31,793 households, and 22,096 families residing in the county. The population density was 130 people per square mile . There were 35,678 housing units at an average density of 59 per square mile...

. The mine opened about 1889 on what had been operated as a "drift" mine. Commercial development of the drift mine began in 1905 and the first coal was shipped on January 4, 1906. Mine operations ceased in 1953, and the property sold to the City of Beckley. The Beckley Exhibition Coal Mine opened in 1962, as the first historic site wholly dedicated to educating the public about coal mining. It consists of consists of 1,500 feet of restored passageways and entries with 3,000 feet of vintage track. It reopened to the public on April 1, 2008. It is a preserved coal mine that offers daily tours and a history lesson on coal mining in Appalachia.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

in 1988.