Editing Bluefield, West Virginia (section)

===Coal rush===
Beneath the land of the Davidsons and Baileys lay the largest and richest deposit of [[bituminous coal]] in the world. The first seam was discovered in nearby [[Pocahontas, Virginia]] in the backyard of Jordan Nelson. President [[Frederick J. Kimball|Frederick Kimball]] of the [[Norfolk and Western Railway]] described this as the "most spectacular find on the continent and indeed perhaps of the entire planet."{{citation needed|date=March 2018}} The coal seam had been mentioned much earlier in [[Thomas Jefferson]]'s ''[[Notes on the State of Virginia]]'', but it was not mined until 1882.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Lambie |first=Joseph T. |title=From Mine to Markets: The History of Coal Transportation on the Norfolk and Western Railway |publisher=New York University Press |year=1954 |location=New York, New York |page=33 |asin=B0007EEEVK}}</ref> Around that time, coal mines were developed in the area around [[Bluefield, Virginia|Harman]], Bluefield, [[War, West Virginia|War]], and [[Pocahontas, Virginia|Pocahontas]], which together were known as the Pocahontas Coal Fields. They helped support the [[Industrial Revolution]] in the United States. The development of the coal industry in this area created a boom in the local and national economy and attracted immigrant European workers and migrant [[African Americans]] from the [[Deep South]] to the mountains in search of industrial work.

In the late 19th century, the Norfolk and Western Railway Company selected Bluefield as the site for a repair center and a major division point, which greatly stimulated the town's growth.<ref name="ewv" /> In the one-year period from 1887 to 1888, passenger travel along the railroad increased 317%. As with the extremely accelerated growth of [[San Francisco]] during the [[gold rush]], Bluefield became a city that seemed to spring up "overnight." Growth far outpaced the existing infrastructure. [[Urban sprawl]] and [[Urban decay|blight]] were common complaints in the early days, as workers crowded into aging housing.

The growth and decay of the city depended almost entirely upon Norfolk and Western Railroad. A bustling metropolis, it had a nightlife and a personality that was "a little bit Chicago, a little bit New York, and a whole lot of Pittsburgh"{{Citation needed|date=September 2011}}—rugged and with steel and coal embedded in its soul.

The coal boom generated a flood of money in the area. Nearby [[Bramwell, West Virginia|Bramwell]], incorporated in 1888, boasted that it was the "Millionaires' Town" because more millionaires per capita lived there than anywhere in the nation. The city also had more automobiles per capita than any other city in the country. On November 20, 1889, the city of Bluefield was officially incorporated.<ref name="West Virginia Blue Book"/>

Bluefield headquartered the  [[Baldwin–Felts Detective Agency|Baldwin-Felts Detective Agency]] who initially worked train crimes but became famous strike breakers and were prominent figures in the [[Coal Wars]], including the [[Battle of Matewan]].

With a strong [[Black Americans|Black]] community, Bluefield was the site of the 1895 founding of the Bluefield Colored Institute, an [[historically black college]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Heritage |url=https://bluefieldstate.edu/community/heritage |website=Bluefield State College |access-date=January 5, 2021}}</ref> It developed as today's [[Bluefield State University]]. Demographics began to shift with the hiring of its first white President, Dr. Hardway, and  his closing of dormitories after the 1968 bombing.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://jacksonvillefreepress.com/this-school-is-the-whitest-hbcu-in-america/ | title=This School is the Whitest HBCU in America | date=April 18, 2016 }}</ref> It is known as "The Whitest Historically Black College in America".<ref>{{cite news |title=The Whitest Historically Black College In America |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2013/10/18/236345546/the-whitest-historically-black-college-in-america |newspaper=NPR.org |access-date=January 5, 2021}}</ref>