The Industrial Revolution, which began in Britain in the 18th century, and later spread to continental Europe and North America, was based on the availability
of coal to power steam engines. International trade expanded exponentially when coal-fed steam engines were built for the railways and steamships. The
new mines that grew up in the 19th century depended on men and children to work long hours in often dangerous conditions.
Coal was mined in America in the early 18th century, and commercial mining started around 1730 in Midlothian, Virginia.
Coal-cutting machines were invented in the 1880s. Before the invention, coal was mined from underground with a pick and shovel. By 1912 surface mining
was conducted with steam shovels designed for coal mining.
Historically, coal mining has been a very dangerous activity and the list of historical coal mining disasters is a long one. In the U.S. alone, more than 100,000 coal
miners were killed in accidents over the past century, with more than 3,200 dying in 1907 alone. Open cut hazards are principally mine wall failures and vehicle
collisions; underground mining hazards include suffocation, gas poisoning, roof collapse and gas explosions. Firedamp explosions can trigger the much more
dangerous coal dust explosions, which can engulf an entire pit. Most of these risks can be greatly reduced in modern mines, and multiple fatality incidents are
now rare in some parts of the developed world. Modern mining in the U.S. is only slightly more dangerous than driving