April 25, 2025 - “May the thousands who walk these trails each year spend a moment remembering those who perished and the contributions they made to our community. You are not forgotten.”

With those words, Board of Supervisors Vice Chair Dr. Mark Miller (Midlothian District) concluded his remarks during a memorial dedication hosted by Chesterfield Parks and Recreation Tuesday, April 22 at Mid-Lothian Mines Park.

Moments later, following the playing of bagpipes by Sgt. Scott Kennedy of the Chesterfield Sheriff’s Office, county officials and community members unveiled a stone monument adjacent to the ruins of the Grove Shaft coal mine – where 40 men tragically lost their lives in two underground explosions in the late 1870s.

“Coal mining was once more than an industry in this region, it was a way of life that brought prosperity for many. It also came at a heavy toll for the brave souls who worked hundreds of feet below the surface of the earth,” said Rev. Pernell Johnson, pastor of First Baptist Church of Midlothian, who also spoke at the dedication ceremony. 

“We remember the fathers, sons and brothers who went to work in the mines each day with no guarantee they would return home. We remember the mothers, daughters and wives who lived with the ever-present fear, wondering if their loved ones would ever walk through the front door again,” he added. “As we leave this place, may we not just move forward but carry something with us: a memory, a story, a new perspective or a deeper appreciation for the sacrifice that built this community.”

Chesterfield was home to North America’s first commercial coal mines, which date back to around 1730. The hand-dug mines heated homes and fueled the Industrial Revolution, providing a foundation for the early growth of the United States.

Midlothian’s Grove Shaft mine reached a depth of 625 feet and employed white men and boys, free Black workers and enslaved people, all of whom toiled shoulder-to-shoulder in dangerous conditions.

Demand for coal increased into the 1800s, creating the need for transportation improvements to deliver it to expanding markets in Washington, Baltimore and New York. Midlothian was the site of Virginia’s first railroad, a mule and gravity rail line that connected the mines to James River wharfs in south Richmond.  

By the time the Mid-Lothian Coal Mining Company was chartered in 1835 on a 404-acre tract by the heirs of William Wooldridge, Scottish immigrants who brought their knowledge of coal mining to Virginia, there were seven major mines producing 75,000 tons of coal annually in the Midlothian area. 

On May 20, 1876, a violent methane explosion killed eight workers in the Grove Shaft mine. Less than a decade later, on Feb. 3, 1882, another explosion claimed an additional 32 lives. 

“These miners were killed hundreds of feet below the ground, buried in anonymity and erased from the annals of history,” Miller said.

Until one day a few years ago, Chesterfield residents Mark and Susan Goodin were walking through Mid-Lothian Mines Park, read signs about the area’s mining history and thought it would be appropriate to dedicate a monument to the workers who died there.

They contacted Midlothian native Peppy Jones, a well-known local historian, who thought it was “a wonderful idea.” After coming up with a couple initial designs, the Goodins and Jones met with county officials and secured approval to locate a privately funded monument near the Grove Shaft ruins in the public park.

They raised money for the project with support from local developer and philanthropist Tom Garner, who along with his brother, William, donated the 44 acres that became Mid-Lothian Mines Park to the county in 1999.

The Goodins also spent more than two years producing a documentary film, “No Time to Grieve,” a historical account of America’s earliest commercial coal mines, and generated donations for the monument by hosting screenings of their self-funded movie.

“It was a labor of faith and love,” said Susan Goodin. “We had a ceremony about a year and a half ago where we read out the names of everyone who died here. We know exactly who is still down there. It’s an active grave.”

Johnson noted the monument, which was installed by the Parks and Recreation Department, serves as a “reminder that the work they did helped build the foundation for everything we see around us today.

“It’s easy to forget the cost of progress,” he added, “but this memorial will ensure we never forget the people who paid the price.”

Watch a video of the Grove Shaft memorial dedication ceremony below.