The Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission announced that Eckley Miners’ Village, a landmark patch town preserving the legacy of Pennsylvania’s Anthracite mining industry, will undergo a large-scale, phased project to upgrade the site’s coal breaker.

This project marks a significant step in the ongoing, strategic efforts of PHMC to protect and share this invaluable site and the history of its residents.

The project will begin with the clearing and regrading of the breaker site this winter and will culminate in the construction of a new multimillion-dollar structure based on the 1915 Eckley breaker.

Eckley Miners’ Village was built with a limited life span in mind, reflecting the short-term nature of coal mining operations. Structures like the site’s original breaker were lost over time.

However, through the resilience of the community and the dedicated preservation efforts of the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, many of Eckley’s original structures have endured. The new coal breaker will complement these preservation efforts by returning a critical and more historically accurate component of the Eckley story to the site’s landscape.

The upgraded breaker will not only add to the site’s historical narrative but also house a modern and functional facility for preserving and showcasing site and regional artifacts.

This new, state-of-the-art collection storage facility will allow for the expansion of the village’s collections and provide a climate-controlled environment for the long-term preservation of PHMC’s significant array of anthracite, mining, social, and industrial material culture.

The breaker building will serve as a striking visual centerpiece, enhancing the character of one of the last company patch towns in the U.S.

“We are excited to embark on this transformative project,” said Bode Morin, Site Administrator at Eckley Miners’ Village. “The new coal breaker will not only honor the rich history of coal mining in Northeast Pennsylvania but also provide a valuable educational and collections resource for visitors of all ages.”

The construction of the upgraded Breaker will be made possible through Commonwealth capital project funds.

Eckley Miners’ Village is a living history museum that offers visitors a unique glimpse into the lives of anthracite coal miners. The 170-year-old site features preserved homes, churches, outbuildings, gardens, and landscapes of the industrial communities of Pennsylvania mine families.