Big Brutus

 

Did you know that coal was once mined in the southeastern corner of Kansas?  I honestly did not know this, until I attended the December KARL session in Pittsburg, Kansas.  The whole process was quite fascinating, and this machine, actually help garnish coal back in the day.  The machine is named "Big Brutis."

The massiveness is evident from the photos, but really, standing next to this big guy is unbelievable!  I could stand inside the track, and still not touch my head on the top track.  The machine removed overburden (ground above the coal deposit) and moved at a maximum speed of .22 mph.  The bucket could remove 90 cubic yards of overburden, in one scoop!

Coal mining still impacts this area today.  Much of the underground geography is riddled with abandoned mines.  This has caused cave ins and the after affects of mining have led to some unusable soil, and land.  Coal still remains in the area, but it currently is not cost effective to mine the remaining ore veins.