The Shenandoah Lost Creek
Colliery was located on the south slope of the Locust Mountain two miles west
of Shenandoah city borough on the Lost Creek. The colliery was opened by a drift
driven west on the mammoth vein by Franklin B. Kaercher and George Huntzinger
in 1863. The first shipment of 1523 tons was made in 1864. They continued to
mine the drift to 1865 when Kaercher sold his interest to Colonel Henry l. Cake
and the colliery was then operated under the name of the Girard Mutual Coal
Company who continued mining to 1868.
In 1868, the colliery was
leased to the Philadelphia Coal Company who sunk the first slope 390 ft. on
the south dip mammoth vein to the first level, erecting powerful hoisting and
pumping machinery, operating the slope with cages and continued mining to 1874.
In 1874, the Lehigh Valley Coal Company purchased the controlling interest in the colliery and operated it under the old name of the Philadelaphia Coal Company to 1880. They sunk a second slope 150 yards east of the old slope, 675 ft. to a level which was 336 ft. below the old slopeworkings. They completed the second slope in 1875 and in 1878 extended it to a fourth level. In 1880 the Lehigh Valley Coal Company leased the Shenandoah Lost Creek Colliery. They changed the name to "Packer No. 2" and rebuilt the breaker which was destroyed by fire on October 12th. They also consolidated the Shenandoah No. 2 and the Packer No. 4 Collieries.
In 1885 they renewed their
lease for fifteen years from the first of January 1885.
In 1886, the colliery was
drowned out due to a fire which started August 24 on the third level and quickly
spread to other levels. The fire was extinguished the last day of December 1885.
Mining did not resume until 1888 after standing idle for 2 years and eight months.
In 1903, the tender slope on the mountain vein was extended to a fourth level
and in 1904 this tender slope was again extended to a fifth level to connect
underground with the Packer No. 4 Colliery workings.
In 1906, the tender slope engines were replaced with new engines with 36" cylinders. In 1923, the mammoth vein tender slope was electrified.
The total shipments from Shenandoah Lost Creek Colliery (Packer No. 2) was 6,163,964 as of 1928.