By Charles Owens

May 2, 2021 - A $379,178 grant award will allow for a continuation of ongoing renovations and additions to Virginia's historic Pocahontas Exhibition Mine, state and federal officials announced Friday.

The funding award from the Abandoned Mine Lands Economic Revitalization Program will allow for continued improvements to the Tazewell County-based exhibition mine, including a guided tour by tram into the mine — the only one of its kind in Virginia.

Officials pose for a photograph at the Pocahontas Exhibition Mine during a presentation for a grant award.
 

Staff photo by Jessica Nuzzo

U.S. Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va., was joined by local and state officials, including representatives of Virginia’s Department of Mines Minerals and Energy, for Friday’s funding announcement.

“The Pocahontas Exhibition Mine is a unique Southwest Virginia treasure that showcases our mining heritage. This latest federal AML Pilot Project grant will advance upgrades to the property, including the addition of a tram stop to increase the site’s accessibility,” Griffith said. “As a result, the Pocahontas Exhibition Mine will become even more appealing to sightseers and a greater asset to the local economy. Continued support for the project is a boom to the town of Pocahontas and the region’s wider tourism industry.”

Griffith said the grant will fund phase II of the work that is now underway at the mine.

“What a perfect example of how a former mine site can boost a local economy, which is exactly what DMME’s Abandoned Mine Land Economic Revitalization Program is designed to do,” DMME Abandoned Mine Lands Project Manager Lesa Baker said. “This will be a complete experience for those coming to Pocahontas to learn about an important piece of Virginia’s history.”

According to a DMME press release, visitors can now experience the exhibition mine as many did in its early days through a riding tour. A tram stop was created and visitors can participate in a guided tour by taking the tram underground, the statement said. Space neighboring the museum also was renovated and turned into a restaurant and is available for lease.

The town of Pocahontas expects to see a 50-percent increase in ticket sales due to the mine improvements. Because the mine is located in close proximity to the Spearhead Trail system in Tazewell County, and the neighboring Hatfield-McCoy Trail system in nearby Bramwell, many of the new visitors to the mine are expected to be ATV tourists.

“We have worked hard to make this town a destination,” Pocahontas Mayor Benjamin Gibson said. “It is amazing to see plans come to fruition and we are grateful for the helping hand of agencies like DMME that can assist us in reaching our goals to revitalize this coalfield community.”

“I am proud to call Pocahontas my hometown and so proud of the opportunities available now and in the near future, not only for our citizens, but also for our many visitors, “Tazewell County Board of Supervisors Northern District representative Maggie Asbury added. “It will be good to see a crowd in this town to take in this piece of Tazewell County history we’ve worked diligently to preserve.”

The mine improvements were one of 19 proposals submitted to the DMME. The agency reviewed proposals for eligibility and then took them before an advisory council made up of people involved in local economic development. The council chose 10 projects to go to the Office of Surface Mining for approval, including the Tazewell County exhibition mine.

The AMLER grant wards are managed the DMME and overseen by the federal Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation Enforcement.