Name/Title
"MacDowell" Coal Miner statueEntry/Object ID
MW.0116Description
Figurine of male coal miner standing with pickaxe and lunch bucket, and wearing a leather "turtleshell" helmet.Type of Sculpture
Free StandingArtwork Details
Medium
Coal Dust + Epoxy ResinSubject
Coal MinerContext
Sculpture of "MacDowell", or "Mac", a fictional character representing the first generation of MacDowell County (West Virginia) underground coal miners, created by Coal Camp Creations. This version of "Mac" corresponds with the "Small MacDowell" item in an undated Coal Camp Creations trifold brochure that lists three size variations. A version of "Large MacDowell" with a custom plaque on the base was gifted to then-sitting president Donald Trump in July, 2019 during a fundraising event in Wheeling, West Virginia.Collection
Art, Fred Barkey CollectionMade/Created
Artist
Coal Camp CreationsInscription/Signature/Marks
Location
front, baseTranscription
MACDOWELLLocation
rear, baseTranscription
MC ARTSNotes
McArts Fine Arts Organization is the umbrella organization that Coal Camp Creations was developed underParts
Count
2Parts
main body, pickaxe headResearch Notes
Research Type
ResearcherPerson
Shaun SliferDate
Jan 23, 2024Notes
Although the Coal Camp Creations brochure notes "Mac" as "honors the men who opened the first mines in MacDowell County, WV", the type of helmet the figure is wearing was invented and patented in the early 1930s. The Flat Top-Pocahontas Field, located primarily in Mercer and McDowell counties, first shipped coal in 1883.
