Old coal mines problematic for new development
By Steve Berry
Progress Staff Writer
From 1851 until 1960 coal mines provided an industrious livelihood for families in O'Fallon and Shiloh. Today, the underground void left by these mines creates infrastructure problems for current and future above ground developments.
McEagle Property Development expects mine remediation work for their 194 acre development on the south side of Frank Scott Parkway East to cost $23.7 million. This cost is eligible for tax increment financing.
William Laskowsky, Chief Development Officer for McEagle, said despite the undermining, their site along Frank Scott Parkway East is right for them because it is strategically located for retail.
During a meeting at Shiloh's Village Hall on April 23, McEagle President Chris McKee said St. Ellen Mine burrows underneath almost the entire western section of the future development.
"It actually stops about a third of the way into Three Springs (Park)," McKee said. "It obviously covers part of the Dierbergs/Target area where they have had some settling issues with a few of the properties."
McEagle's mine remediation will be the first in Shiloh, even though the majority of Shiloh in undermined.
The biggest underground void was caused by St. Ellen Mine, which has a northern boundary along State Street in O'Fallon from near Obernuefemann Road, west to Old Collinsville Road; and a southern boundary in Shiloh south of Lebanon Avenue. St. Ellen Mine is surrounded on the north, west and south sides by other mines.
Since the mine closed in 1960 there have been incidents of mine subsidence. Notably, in August 1978 two homes along Highway 50 in O’Fallon, at 714 and 716, received extensive damage after St. Ellen subsided. The basement floor buckled in one of the homes and porches were separated away from the main structure — evidence of major movement.
The legacy of that late August, 1978 mine subsidence, which occurred over a period of days, can still be seen and felt today when driving down Highway 50 in O’Fallon. The dip in Highway 50 as the road merges from two eastbound lanes into one in front of Sonic, is a result of the 1978 mine subsidence. During the subsidence the road buckled, cracked and dropped over one foot.
The Fraternal Order of the Eagles No. 545 are having present day subsidence issues with their facility at 100 Eagle Drive in Shiloh. Eagles first noticed damage to their building in July 2007.
Mine subsidence and remediation expert Robert Gibson, of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, said the subsidence in the middle of Shiloh is unusual because of the affected area’s size. The area is 1,200 feet in diameter rather then the more typical 400 feet diameter.
Gibson said mine subsidence can occur after a pillar in the mine gives away and pushes into the floor of the mine. The ground above the pillar then sinks into a bowl with the subsidence process lasting from five to 10 years.
The Illinois State Geological Survey maps show St. Ellen’s undermining has an eastern border in the area of the Eagle’s facility, but even the State Geological Survey has to disclaim that their maps may not be completely accurate.
The Directory of Coal Mines in Illinois begins with a notice that “the accuracy and completeness of the mine maps and directories vary with the availability of reliable information. Maps and other information used to compile this mine map and directory were obtained from a variety of sources and the accuracy of some of the original information cannot be verified.”
At the April 23 meeting at Shiloh Village Hall, McKee spoke about the accuracy of mine maps.
"It’s where they under shoot, where the mines are usually outside of the boundaries of what the actual map showed,” McKee said.
Shiloh Mayor James Vernier agreed.
“There have been several cases in town where the property is not supposed to be undermined and they wound up with mine subsidence,” Vernier said.
Maps indicate land purchased by BJC Health Care Systems on the north side of Frank Scott Parkway East is free from undermining, but Shiloh Village Engineer Norm Etling said BJC drilled at the site before purchasing to ensure there was not a coal mine beneath the land.
McKee said the lack of undermining on BJC’s ground was a big reason they purchased there.
“There is very little undermining under the BJC property, which is on the north side of Frank Scott,” McKee said. “Frankly I think it was a big reason for their decision to purchase property right there instead of looking at a different location.”
Lack of undermining also determined where the new O’Fallon Township High School freshman campus will be located. OTHS District 203 School Board President Greg Cundiff said land free of underground coal mines was requisite for the new school, which will be built on Milburn School Road.
Drury Hotels, however, was not swayed by undermining, and like McEagle, recently chose a site to build on that was undermined — the corner of Green Mount Road and Central Park Drive. Drury Development Corporation decided to remediate before they built a seven story hotel over St. Ellen Mine.
“It was a concern for the property and an expensive infrastructure for the property to be built,” Larry Hasselfeld, Vice President and CFO of Drury Development Corporation said.
According to an Illinois Department of Natural Resources publication written by Collin Treworgy, approximately 19 percent of St. Clair County is undermined. Another IDNR publication, “Mine subsidence in Illinois: Facts for Homeowners,” by Robert Bauer, indicates 840,000 acres of Illinois are undermined.
Gibson said all undermined areas eventually subside with time.
Local coal mine legacy lives on
More than a hundred years of coal mining in O’Fallon has created a history as rich as the ore once sought from the ground.
The St. Ellen Mine was the largest local underground mine, which has a northern boundary along State Street in O'Fallon from near Obernuefemann Road, west to Old Collinsville Road; and a southern boundary in Shiloh south of Lebanon Avenue. St. Ellen Mine is surrounded on the north, west and south sides by other mines.
According to the O'Fallon Historical Society, Joseph Taylor officially opened St. Ellen Mine on August 12, 1903. The mine, which was named after Taylor’s mother, Ellen, closed in 1960.
The mine was productivity and at its peak employed hundreds of employees.
According to the Illinois State Geological Survey, the mine produced 21.2 million tons of coal from 1904–1960.
Coal miners originally entered the mine through another of Taylor’s mines called Ridge Prairie, which opened in 1883 north of St. Ellen in O’Fallon.
St. Ellen Mine experienced more than one set-back during it’s 56-year existence. According to the Historical Society, on April 13, 1931 the mine’s wooden tipple — a device used for loading coal into railroad cars — burned, costing the operation $100,000. Work was delayed for two months. On Feb. 7, 1939 a fire destroyed the mine’s engine room costing the company $75,000.
For the most part St. Ellen was a positive operation. The mine experienced modernization after World War II. A new conveyor belt brought coal into the light of day rather than mine cars. In addition, the upgrades also included a new coal washing house and other above and below ground equipment upgrades.
The new post World War II era saw the discontinuation of “timbering” and the beginning of roof bolting machines in St. Ellen. In 1954, 300 miners were employed at St. Ellen. The mine operated two shifts averaging 2,600 tons of coal per shift.
The mine closed on May 20, 1960 after it became unprofitable.
