Jewell Ridge To Mark Holiday With Activities

It was unlike other coal camps. Sitting high on a mountain, at an elevation of 3,500 feet, Jewell Ridge became just that – the jewel of Tazewell County, Va.
“It’s a beautiful place,” said Barbara Altizer, who grew up at Jewell Ridge, a coal camp near Richlands, during the 1950s and 1960s.
“My mother always said the beauty of the fall foliage was equal to the Great Smoky Mountains,” Altizer said.
“And she hoped the public never realized that,” Altizer added, snickering some. “She liked the rural setting. She didn’t want all the traffic.”
Today, getting to Jewell Ridge remains a journey. It’s an 11-mile excursion from Richlands, going uphill.
Altizer, the executive director of the Richlands-based Eastern Coal Council, enjoys the drive.
“I always say that when I travel home in the evenings, I can unwind,” said Altizer, a Jewell Ridge resident. “Whenever you travel up the mountain, it could be raining in Richlands and snowing in Jewell Ridge. And there always seems to be a breeze. It’s usually cooler in Jewell Ridge than it is in Richlands.”
This weekend, Altizer and other Jewell Ridge residents are celebrating their heritage.
Look for the annual Fourth of July party.
Yet you can also get started a day early and stay a day later.
“We do a one-day celebration every year on the Fourth of July,” Altizer said. “But we do the three-day event every five years.”
Located in the northwestern corner of Tazewell County, Jewell Ridge straddles headwaters of the Tennessee and Ohio river valleys.
Originating in the early 1900s, Jewell Ridge developed as a coal-mining town under the guidance of George W. St. Clair, an attorney from Wytheville, and Thomas M. Righter, a Pennsylvania anthracite coalmine operator. St. Clair and Righter eventually acquired a boundary of more than 18,000 acres of land.
By 1910, the first mine began producing coal.
Along the way, Jewell Ridge boasted an array of homes for workers plus a school, churches, post office, theater, hospital, park, ball fields, bowling alley, gymnasium, restaurant, club house, skeet shooting club, YMCA and a company store.
“The people are proud of the town and its place in history – both when the mining operation was at its peak and now when times are quieter,” Altizer said.
This year, the party at the Jewell Ridge Learning Center begins on July 3 with arts, crafts, a horseshoe pitching contest and demonstrations of a coal-mining simulator.
The Collegians play classic rock at 8 p.m. July 3. Later, on July 4, Caiged Angel plays at 9 p.m., and fireworks blast off at 9:30 p.m. More activities are slated for July 5, including church services and a gospel performance by Shirley Keene. Proceeds from the event are being used to support the Jewell Ridge Learning Center and other activities in the community.
Want more? Call (276) 964-9088 or visit http://www.jewellridgeva.org.