The Coal Obelisk, also called the Coal Monument, can be found in Baxter, Kentucky. This monument, which was constructed in 1934, commemorates the first shipment of coal from the Harlan County coalfields in 1911. The structure is made up of fifty-four blocks of coal, and each block represents one of the fifty-four coal companies operating in the region in the 1930s. The monument stands at the corner of Highway 421 and Highway 119.
“The Coal Obelisk” photos by Zoe Brooks
Further Readings:
The Story Behind KY’s Very Own ‘Washington Monument’
Dave Spencer, “The Story Behind KY’s Very Own ‘Washington Monument’,” for WBKR: The Country Station, 2024.