Gano Coal Mine

The Gano Mine was reported in the Fuller & Sturgeon Listing of Coal Mines in the Mahoning and Trumbull Counties State Records. The mine likely originated in the 1880s but then lost their railroad connection (the Liberty & Vienna Railroad). The Liberty & Vienna Railroad (later acquired by the Erie RR) which ran west of the mine, served a large number of underground coal mines. This mine was likely the last underground coal enterprise in Trumbull County.  For the Fuller & Sturgeon record, click here.

On Sunday, November 17, 1940 an accident resulting in a fatality occurred at the Gano Mine (State Number Trumbull-8). A two-way lift cage crushed 49 year-old employee Albert Bajorek of Buffalo, Ohio while the mine operator was installing a pump near the shaft at the 114 foot level of the mine. About eight of the 80 employees working at the mine were in the level at the time.  A few others were working on the surface. Click here for the article. Albert Boyjrek's Find a Grave memorial may be found here.

James Sebring was the last operator of the mine during the 1940's.

The Gano Mine was located 300 feet west of Sodom-Hutchings Road and 250 feet north of Williams Drive, now a wooded area.

The maps below show the area of the Gano Mine. The mine's location is shown with a red dot.

On May 10, 1979 an agreement was executed between Trumbull County and the State of Ohio to drill at the site of the old mine to determine the stability of the shaft. Two other local shafts were also included in the inspection. The results indicated that that it was necessary to excavate and remove debris from the shaft, and then fill it.

Construction to fill the shaft started on August 12, 1980. The shaft was cleaned of debris and backfilled with 507.6 cubic yards of aggregate material. The project was completed on August 24, 1980. The former site of the mine is marked by a bollard of steel and concrete 3 feet tall and 6 inches wide in diameter with a seal on top that reads "FILLED MINE SHAFT: ODNR DIVISION OF RECLAMATION."

The GPS coordinates of the bollard are 41.2183, -80.6378.

Contributor: Bob Smith