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COALWOOD AND CARETTA
in PICTURES - VOLUME ONE
WEST VIRGINIA COAL CAMPS

Now Available

"This life lasted but a moment ... like the blink of an eye ... a spring dream only imagined"

The time period between 1945 and 1965 brought tumultuous change to the coal fields of Appalachia ... a unique visual chronicle of a bygone era ... photographs never before seen by the public at large 

Front and Back Cover of Volume One
  

INTRODUCTION

It was a simple time.
      It was the early 1950s in America , and everything was finally and blissfully settled.  The Great Depression was more than a decade removed.  World War II was also finally behind us, as were the troublesome times that immediately followed the war, with all the uncertainty surrounding the reentry of servicemen into the mainstream of American life and the return of the women they had left behind to more traditional roles.  Everything had returned to normal.
     In a way the Age of Simplicity was a great time to be alive.
     Here is an illustrated, authentic picture in four volumes of a period in history of Coalwood and Caretta,  West Virginia that captures that time.
     It was a time of contradictions.  On the one hand, it was a time of growth, encouragement, segregation, altruism, optimism, confidence and living; and on the other hand, it was a time of decline, indifference, withdrawal, integration, resignation, indecision, and dying. 
     This series plainly illustrates the unique way in which the people of Coalwood and Caretta lived their daily lives - always hoping for a better future for their children, and living their lives with pride yet resignation, recognizing that their little towns’ days were numbered. 
     From Coalwood and Caretta came excellent educators, benevolent owners, innocent and fun-filled days, high community spirit, good neighbors, camaraderie, caring pastors, tough and independent people, and loving parents.  This was the real Coalwood and Caretta of that era.  

     It was a simple time.  Or was it?

David E. Bader, MBA
President,
USS Terrebonne Parish (LST 1156) Association
May, 2009

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Authored by Bradley N Hatmaker
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