Vigo C: Pimento, IN: Maumee Chieftan Mine

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Matt Booe posted two photos with the comment: "Maumee Chieftan mine south of Terre Haute IN, headed south April 14 1962."
Charles Jones Matt, I wonder if this was just north of Sycamore Ridge Landfill? I know the are well, but I can't make out any distinguishing landmarks.
Matt Booe It is. Boot city is just about even with the end of the pit.
Matt Booe Actually, they stripped south against the rr tracks, until they got to that farm, then they boxed around it to the east. In the pic, they are just one field away from that point. You can see it on A current pic.
Charles Jones That's the last cut at "Porky's" (just north of Sycamore Ridge Landfill) that the 1150 made before deadheading to Latta.
Mitch Rabe Charles Jones was this shallow coal?
Charles Jones Mitch Rabe, I'm not exactly sure on the overburden depth as when they were stripping this I was in elementary school. My best guess is that it probably run 40 to 50'. I know the further to the south and southwest they went, the deeper it got.
Matt Booe The mine report says 63'
Charles Jones Matt Booe, oh, it was just a guess on my part. "Big Rock"/ The "Nut" was somewhat deeper than "Porky's" pit was. My guess is that the last cut the 250 Marion made back in 1929-30 was around 70'. I don't have the right application on my computer to go back in time, but you can see the old "Big Rock"/The "Nut" pit on this. I was raised on a small farm just east across the road from there. https://www.google.com/maps/@39.2249289,-87.3381015,16z
Charles Jones Matt Booe You mean the last cut that Old Glory made before deadheading to Bear Run (Hawthorn)?
Matt Booe Yep. And the only one they ran highwall side.
Charles Jones Matt Booe, in my opinion, that's the only way to strip. But that's the way I learned.
Matt Booe I was on that 2570 once in the early 90s. It was still north of 70. They were on the highwall side then. It was a real smooth operation. They are so deep now, I think working off that bench is the only way it will work.
Robin Matthews How long has Chieftain been there.
Nick Koba Jr. it was running in 1933 , so it was started before then.
Matt Booe I’m not sure how long it ran, but it shut down in about 67.
Charles Jones Matt Booe, my understanding of what I heard from Maurice Anderson, who I mentioned earlier was, it started in the late 1920's or early 1930's northwest of Riley. I believe he started there shortly after it began operations. As I said earlier, he fired the boiler on their first steam powered stripping shovel. Later they went to an electric Marion shovel, then the 1150 B.E. Dad use to have a newspaper clipping from one of the Terre Haute newspapers in either 1946 or 47. The front page showed a photo of an 1150 model. The caption was something like, "Worlds Largest Dragline to be Built Here". I don't know whatever happened to that paper. I suspect my brother ended up with it when he cleaned the house out after Dad's death.

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Charles Jones Looks like the old 1150 might be deadheading to the center incline to shear back in.

Matt Booe commented on his post

It looks like strip mining is good for climate change because the land is not restored to farming. They let nature take over and do a lot of photosynthesis.

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