Mining Methods and Operations
Coal is mined in two ways – underground mines and surface mines.  Surface mining is used for deposits that lie within 100 to 200 feet of the earth’s surface.  In this type of mining, soil and rocks are stripped away, exposing the coal that is then removed by machinery.  This method is known as strip mining or open pit mining.
Underground mining involves more human labor than surface mining. Historically, coal was dug by hand by the coal miners.  Today, underground mines are highly mechanized, with machines doing the digging, loading and hauling in nearly all the mines.  Even so, underground mines need more laborers than surface mines.
Most underground mines have two access passages from the surface to the coal bed. One is used as an entrance and exit, while the other is used to haul out the coal. Both are used for circulation of air. The main types of underground mines are shaft mines, drift mines or slope mines. The deepest of these three are the shaft mine. Passages are dug straight down into the earth to the coal deposits. An elevator called a hoist is located in each shaft.  A slope mine is similar to a shaft mine except that the coal is nearer to the surface and passage to the coal is accessed by a tunnel that is dug on slant.  A drift mine goes straight into the mountainside to the coal.  The tunnel is dug horizontally into the seam and is parallel to the ground.

Mines in central Appalachia were mostly drift mines. Coal seams were located on a hillside and entered laterally, rather than vertically like many other American mines.  Advantages to these drift mines were that they were well-drained, required less machinery and less initial effort.
Coal deposits are connected by tunnels, which once had to be dug with picks and shovels. The coal was the loaded by hand into small cars that ran on tracks and were pulled by mules or horses and sometimes even goats. Mechanization has changed coal mining drastically. Today, one miner can mine the amount of coal that once would have required many miners with picks and shovels.
After being brought to the surface, the coal is washed, dried, sorted by size and carried away to be sold. It is transported by trucks, railroad cars or barges.  In some cases, it must travel by two or three means to reach a buyer. The cheapest way to ship coal is by barge, but they can operate only between river or coastal ports. The least costly way of moving coal short distances by land is by truck. Long distance shipping is more economical by rail.