Pat Quinn, Governor Illinois Abandoned Mine Land (AML)
Reclamation Program Early settlers of Illinois mined numerous
outcroppings of coal for local use. These earlier mines, often
called "dogholes" were shallow, horizontal tunnels driven into
generally thin coal seams. With the onset of industrialization
in the mid-1800's the demand for coal began to dramatically
increase. Large scale mines were opened, having shafts (vertical
openings) or slopes (inclined openings) to access the coal seam
and provide ventilation. Railroads allowed for the establishment
of large shipping mines. Strip mining of coal began around 1910
with the introduction of the steam shovel for removing the
overburden. By the 1960's more than half of the coal mined was
by stripping. From a record level of 1350 mines in 1935, the
number of active coal mines has declined precipitously to about
20 today. During the years of rapid technological advancement,
little attention was given to the serious adverse effects of
coal mining. By the late 1970