Mary Lee Mine
These images were provided courtesy of an e-friend in Fultondale. They show coke oven ruins in the vicinity of the Mary Lee Mine in Lewisburg/Fultondale area. These photos were taken in 2004.
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This images shows an exterior view of a beehive oven in a "battery" configuration. That is, there is stonework that fills in between individual beehive ovens.
These photos are really appreciated and are very interesting. Compare with views of the Brookside ovens and the Newcastle ovens elsewhere on this web site. |
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This image shows the inside of an oven. I think that you can get an idea of why they were called "beehive" ovens, based on the dome shape. |
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This is a close up view of some of the stone work walls that make the "battery" wall.
The general location of these ovens may be seen on the next page from a 1916 map. |
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This is an old postcard view of battery coke ovens in operation. These are thought to be similar to the ovens shown in the photos above.
Basic operation involved a narrow gauge locomotive and car, often called a "dinkey", to dump coal into the top of the ovens.
After the coal has burned in a closed oven, the coke is pulled out manually with long hooked rods and loaded into regular rail cars for shipment. |
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