This collection is open for research.
Born digital materials are available in-person only. Researchers must contact the West Virginia & Regional History Center reference department. to make an appointment to view the items.
Gift of Joseph D'Andrea, 2018.
Joseph D'Andrea immigrated from Italy to the United States in 1947. A resident of Moon Township, PA, he spent much of his adult life immersed in the Italian American community, including a stint as honorary consul at the Italian Consulate in Pittsburgh. He started researching and bringing attention to the Monongah Mine Disaster of 1907, which killed almost 200 Italians, of which 86 were from his home of Molise, Italy. He was responsible for the implementation of the commemorative bell that sits in Monongah, WV, which features in the collection.
[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Joseph D'Andrea Papers on the Monongah Mine Disaster, A&M 4540, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.
The collection includes the research papers of Joseph D'Andrea pertaining to the Monongah Mine Disaster of 1907. Materials include photographs of the 100-year anniversary of the disaster, general photographs of the memorial, D'Andrea's involvement in the communities of Monongah and Fairmont, WV, and the graves of victims, most circa 2007 (Box 2). Other papers include his research materials about the disaster, such as printed articles, scholarly journals, facsimilies such as Department of Mines fatal accidents lists, newspaper clippings, and three DVDs (Boxes 1-2).
Disc one contains a 2005 interview with Reverend Everett Francis Briggs in Monongah, WV pertaining to his life in Monongah and the disaster, including a tour of the mine site as of 2005 (runtime 2 hours, 10 minutes, and 16 seconds). Discs three and two,
Other items of interest include artifacts from the Monongah mine, including what are presumed to be gears from the coal cart pulley, molten rock, and a DuPont letter opener (Box 3); and two 1984 drawings of Duronia, Italy (oversized folder).