sentences:  In the latter half of the 18th century, the first coalmines were opened (Carls-Fundgrube, Sankt-Paulsgrube and Maximiliansgrube).With mining came the opportunity for some villagers to work at the collieries.One prominent figure in the growth of the Altenkirchen coalmining industry was Johann Paul Weiß from Saxony, who, before his arrival in Altenkirchen, had been undertaking important activities in the Electoral Palatinate mining establishment, and he had even brought experienced miners from his homeland to the Palatinate.