Diamonds in the Rough: A History of Alabama's Cahaba Coal Field

5. Convict Leasing: 1872–1927

5 Convict Leasing 1872–1927 On Saturday, April 8, 1911, an explosion rocked the Banner Mine (located in Alabama ’sWarriorfield)ofthePrattConsolidatedCoalCompanykilling128miners. Disasters of this type were not uncommon given the risks inherent in such underground work, but the victims’ demographics marked this tragedy as one of distinct significance. First, the miners were state and county convicts, leased to Pratt Consolidated. Second, of the 128 killed (122 convicts, 6 free), all but 5 were black. Next, seventy-­ two convicts (or 56 percent) were from Jefferson County. Finally, 30 percent of the Jefferson County prisoners were serving sentences of no more than twenty days for misdemeanors such as gambling, vagrancy, and illegal drinking . Consequently, the Banner Mine explosion incited the ire of numerous progressive reformers, but opposition to the convict-­ lease sys­ tem in Alabama would not end the program until 1927.1 The BannerMine incident constitutes the most infamous tragedy of Alabama’s coal industry. In addition, because of its visibility, this disaster drew attention to the paucity of mine safety procedures during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In fact, similar events occurred through­out Alabama’s coal district. Just one year prior to the Banner Mine explosion, tragedy struck in the Cahaba field at Lucile shortly after convicts arrived at that location. At 2:00 a.m. on May 16, 1910, firebrokeoutinthewoodenstockadethathousedtheprisoners.Apparently,three inmates set the fire as a diversion to facilitate their escape attempt. Unfortunately, the flames spread quickly and soon created a life-­threatening situation. Many convicts were trapped inside the burning structure, and Warden A. O. Thompson was overcome by smoke as he attempted to unlock cells on the sec­ ond floor. In the end,theescapeprovedunsuccessfulandaninmatepulledThompsontosafety,but twenty-­ seven prisoners died, and twenty-­ two others suffered from burns. Survivors occupied temporary quarters in the commissary building, construction crews rebuilt the stockade, and convict labor continued at Lucile until 1918.2 Even though convict leasing failed to gain widespread acceptance through­ out the Cahaba coal field, this exploitive sys­ tem did exert some influence over the region . Adopted at Aldrich, Belle Ellen, Helena, and Lucile, the convict-­ lease sys­ Convict Leasing / 93 tem introduced a statewide issue into the local coal industry. Pitting coerced labor against free miners, the employment of convicts fostered a dynamic of oppression, greed,andfrustrationintheCahabafield.Moreover,becauseofthesystem’sprevalence in the Birmingham District, many operators and miners found themselves vicariously connected to events outside of their local districts. The incidents mentioned are typical of mining conditions through­ out the South and reflect the region ’s unique sys­tem for managing prisoners. Similar events occurred at sugar and cotton plantations, turpentine farms, phosphate beds, brickyards, and sawmills that used convict labor.3 Historian Matthew J. Mancini contends that the convict-­lease sys­tem depicted thetruenatureofthevaluesofthepost–CivilWarSouth—racism,violence,shortageofcapital ,andchallengestomodernization. Moreover,convictleasingreplaced slavery as the means of controlling the black population. However, Mancini argues that the convict-­ lease sys­ tem was “worse than slavery.” As property, slaves had value, but convicts were expendable. If a convict laborer died, escaped, was injured or abused, he could be replaced cheaply. Labor historian Alex Lichten­ stein agrees that the penal sys­ tem controlled black labor. But, “far from representing a lag in south­ ern modernity, convict labor was a central component in the region’s modernization.” Grounded in the heritage of slavery, the convict-­lease sys­ tem promoted economic growth in industry, not in agriculture. In Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, and other south­ ern states, “Big Mules”—industrialists and planters—combined forces to develop a sys­tem of labor recruitment, control, and exploitation that blended tradition with modernization.4 Alabama’s convict-­lease sys­tem was the South’s longest running one. Noted for its persistence and its profitability, Alabama’s lease sys­tem traced its roots to antebellum days. State lawmakers established a penitentiary in 1839 and construc­ted a facility the following year, but the facility ran up a significant debt by 1845. As historian Elizabeth Boner Clark observes, “penology in Alabama labored under the theory that the state’s correctional institutions should be self-­ sufficient.” There­ fore, the general assembly voted to lease the penitentiary to private interests. Un­ der this arrangement, the state negotiated a contract with a lessee who agreed to pay a specified amount in exchange for the convict labor. Once established, the agreement required the lessee to provide housing, food, clothing, and security for the convicts. In addition, contractors usually agreed to provide transportation from the state penitentiary or county jails...