{"id":257287,"date":"2026-08-01T19:06:08","date_gmt":"2026-08-01T19:06:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/257287\/"},"modified":"2026-08-01T19:06:08","modified_gmt":"2026-08-01T19:06:08","slug":"historic-brooks-mine-at-nay-aug-park-offers-visitors-education-inspiration-scranton-times-tribune","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/257287\/","title":{"rendered":"Historic Brooks Mine at Nay Aug Park offers visitors education, inspiration \u2013 Scranton Times-Tribune"},"content":{"rendered":"

Roughly 200 visitors got a chance to step back in time at Nay Aug Park\u2019s historic Brooks Mine on Saturday, exploring a piece of local anthracite coal mining history.<\/p>\n

The Brooks Mine, a model mine in Scranton\u2019s Nay Aug Park, reopened in 2023 after being closed for nearly 50 years. It offers free tours every Saturday from May through October.<\/p>\n

Mark Izak and other members of the nonprofit Underground Miners organization \u2014 who restored the mine to make its reopening a reality \u2014 volunteer their time every week to guide visitors through the exhibit.<\/p>\n

Each volunteer shares a wealth of information, covering details such as why miners brought caged canaries underground, why helmet lamps were vital for lighting, and how coal was transported out of the shafts. They also explain the historic significance of the fossils, tools, and artifacts on display.<\/p>\n

This summer, volunteers are also showcasing a fully operational 1926 Whitcomb Electric Storage Battery Locomotive, which was delivered to the park in June.<\/p>\n

\"Visitors<\/p>\n

Visitors to the Brooks Mine tour at Nay Aug enter the mine on Aug. 1, 2026. (GERI GIBBONS\/STAFF PHOTO)\n<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The Brooks Mine is open free of charge every Saturday through October. The exhibit provides an opportunity for visitors to get a better understanding of mine history in Northeast Pennsylvania over more than a century. It is shown here on Aug. 1, 2026. (GERI GIBBONS\/STAFF PHOTO)\n<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The Brooks Mine is open free of charge every Saturday through October. The exhibit provides an opportunity for visitors to get a better understanding of mine history in Northeast Pennsylvania over more than a century. It is shown here on Aug. 1, 2026. (GERI GIBBONS\/STAFF PHOTO)\n<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The Brooks Mine is open free of charge every Saturday through October. The exhibit provides an opportunity for visitors to get a better understanding of mine history in Northeast Pennsylvania over more than a century. It is shown here on Aug. 1, 2026. (GERI GIBBONS\/STAFF PHOTO)\n<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

The Brooks Mine is open free of charge every Saturday through October. The exhibit provides an opportunity for visitors to get a better understanding of mine history in Northeast Pennsylvania over more than a century. It is shown here on Aug. 1, 2026. (GERI GIBBONS\/STAFF PHOTO)\n<\/p>\n

\"Mark<\/p>\n

Mark Izak explains the origin of the expression \u201ccanary in a coal mine.\u201d The diminutive, brightly colored songbirds were placed in mines as a safety measure because they succumb before humans to the buildup of odorless but deadly carbon monoxide gases. (GERI GIBBONS\/STAFF PHOTO)\n<\/p>\n

Show Caption<\/p>\n

1 of 6<\/p>\n

Visitors to the Brooks Mine tour at Nay Aug enter the mine on Aug. 1, 2026. (GERI GIBBONS\/STAFF PHOTO)\n<\/p>\n

Expand<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Reflecting More Than a Century of History<\/p>\n

In addition to providing fuel to local residents during the early 1900s, coal miners made major inroads for workers\u2019 rights, organizing early unions to demand fair pay, vacation time, and safer working conditions, Izak noted.<\/p>\n

First opened in 1902, the site was never a commercial coal mine. Instead, it was designed entirely for education, so none of the coal mined inside could be sold. It operated until 1975, when it closed largely due to the lack of a required second emergency exit.<\/p>\n

The guided tour takes visitors through the 150-foot mine shaft in about 20 minutes, making it an easy addition to an afternoon spent enjoying other activities throughout Nay Aug Park.<\/p>\n

Many visitors use the tour as an opportunity to share personal memories of heating their family homes with coal\u2014from bulk deliveries into basement coal bins to lugging buckets full to the furnace. Homeowners gradually shifted from coal to oil and gas throughout the 20th century as liquid and gas fuels became cleaner and more convenient to transport.<\/p>\n

Today, Pennsylvania has just 28 active underground coal mines remaining, according to recent federal data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Those deep operations function alongside roughly 80 surface and strip mines, totaling 110 active coal-producing sites across the state.<\/p>\n

Staffed entirely by volunteers, the Brooks Mine is open every Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. through October.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a perfect way for visitors of all ages to spend time at the park, learn about local history, and connect with members of the community,\u201d Izak said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Roughly 200 visitors got a chance to step back in time at Nay Aug Park\u2019s historic Brooks Mine…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":257288,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15],"tags":[182,139,178,180,179,181],"class_list":["post-257287","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-scranton","tag-local-news","tag-news","tag-scranton","tag-scranton-headlines","tag-scranton-news","tag-top-stories-stt"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257287","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=257287"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257287\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/257288"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=257287"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=257287"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=257287"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}