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The three of us then went to the Pioneer Tunnel Coal Mine Museum in Ashland, PA. The mine closed in the 1930s, but you can ride into the mine and see what it looked like back when it was in operation. There's also a steam train that goes about 3/4 mile out and shows strip mining operations nearby.

Marie won't enter a coal mine. Her father died in one when she was a little girl, and thus, she never wants to ever see what one looks like. So, she went on the steam train ride. Mom and I went on the mine tour, though. My grandmother's father died in a coal mining accident at age 24, when my grandmother was 6 months old.

Life is tough.