Cloud by Day: The Story of Coal and Coke and People

Cloud by Day: The Story of Coal and Coke and People by Sheppard, Muriel Earley. paperback edition. ISBN: 9780822954590.

Coke―coal that had been cooked in beehive-shaped ovens to remove aa by-products except carbon, was essential to making steel. Named for a town fifty mailes form Pittsburgh, "Connellsvile coke" was known throughout the world for its rich quality. It was produced in 44,000 ovens spilling across Fayette and Westmoreland counties-the coke region-and it created a boom economy and a fiery industrial landscape. Beehive coke flourished for some sevety-five years before it was replaced by new technology. Journalist Muriel Earley Sheppard, describes the coke region, through the lives of European immigrants.She describes their daily routine both at home and at work, including accounts of their bitter and bloody labor strikes.