One of the world's largest coke producing centers operated here from 1883 to 1931. H. C. Frick Coke Company's more than 900 beehive ovens consumed thousands of tons of coal daily. The company publicized itself by exhibiting a scale model of Standard Shaft Number 2 at Chicago's Columbian Exposition in 1893. The largely immigrant work force, exemplary in its productivity, helped shape the culture of the region.

Photo: Mike Wintermantel