History

The Miners Memorial statue in front of City Hall is a symbol of the history of the people who built Louisville – the coal miners. In August 1877, the Welch Mine opened in Louisville, the first of many coal mines to come. Louis Nawatny, a local landowner, platted his land and named it for himself. The Town of Louisville was incorporated on June 16, 1882. Coal miners soon moved to the new town to work in the emerging coal industry. From the beginning, Louisville differed from most coal camp towns as it was not owned and controlled by a single mining company. Miners lived in the town and walked to work in the nearby mines. They were involved in a democratic community life that was not dominated by mine owners or companies.

Louisville is located in an area known as the Northern Coalfield, an extensive coalfield in Boulder and Weld counties. Wages in the early days of coal mining were somewhat higher in the Louisville mines and the mines were relatively safe. The economy, however, was generally depressed. Family gardens and odd jobs were the way of life as mining was seasonal and strikes often interrupted production.

From 1890 to 1928, the Acme Mine operated directly beneath the original town of Louisville. Worked on two levels, the Acme produced nearly two million tons of coal and was one of 171 coal mines in Boulder County. In all, thirty mines were located in and around Louisville. During the peak years of 1907 and 1909, there were twelve mines in operation. The use of coal declined following World War II, and the last mines near Louisville closed in 1952.

Many Europeans migrated to Louisville to work in the mines as jobs were plentiful. Some learned the skills to become miners, while others brought skills they had used in Europe. Later, miners were recruited as strike breakers during the several union disagreements with coal companies. Although miners worked together, they lived with their own relatives and fellow countrymen in ethnically separated neighborhoods.

These ethnic neighborhoods are gone now, as are the remnants of the coal mines. Flowers grow in suburban yards with never a hint of the passageways underground or the history they represent.

-Information from The Louisville Story, by Carolyn Conarroe