Communities, Welcome to Island Creek, Kentucky
“I fear daily as to what may happen to my home.” – Brenda Mutter Urias, member of KFTC
Friday, October 19th, 2007
The following story was contributed by Kentucky resident Brenda Mutter Urias, whose family home was at the foot of Hylton Knob. Brenda is now actively fighting mountaintop removal and is a member of the non-profit group Kentuckians for the Commonwealth.
My name is Brenda Mutter Urias. I’d like to welcome you to my home here in Island Creek of Phyllis, Kentucky.
My father’s dad came to settle in this area around 1825. He built a home and raised a large family. He was a farmer. My father built the house I live in back in 1955 with lumber he sawed himself from a particular type of tree taken from the mountains that surround the homeplace. He built it solid and with pride, just like his dad before him. It was a place he was proud of and he took comfort in knowing his family would always have a place to call their own.
We had good well water, beautiful mountains, clear streams and clean air. We were poor in material things but we were also rich. Most of our food came from the garden. We had fruit orchards and, of course at that time, farm animals.
My dad was a miner and he fought to help establish the UMWA so that the workers and their families would have better pay and medical coverage. He died at the age of 68 from black lung. He had one son and his one wish was that his son would never go into coal mining to make his living. Glad to say, he didn’t.
Today, the beautiful mountains have been destroyed by mountaintop removal mining. The streams are buried and have dried up. The air is full of dust and the well water is contaminated. The house is not as solid as it was just a few years ago. The nearby blasting is taking a toll. The mountains around the house now also pose a threat to our home in regards to flash floods and mudslides. I fear daily as to what may happen to my home. I don’t want to see it destroyed but sometimes I feel I’m watching a slow death to it and to the environment that surrounds it.
Click here to learn more about the mountains and communities near Island Creek, KY.
Summary contributed by Kentuckians for the Commonwealth. Photo courtesy of Virginia Tech Special Collections.
