Horses or Men: Who Mattered More?

Original Coal Creek barn and part of granary circa 1900

In the early 1900s, coal production depended on horses as

Pit Ponies at the MONTANE BARN

much as human labour. Without them, coal could not reach the surface. Selected for strength, steadiness, and calm temperament, these animals were vital to the mining process. Horses were valued so much, they wore helmets before men!

In near-total darkness, controlling horses was challenging. They could startle, stumble, and mine records describe many incidents where men were kicked or injured.

Rather than one mattering more, horses and men depended on each other, bound together in a dangerous environment where survival and productivity relied on their shared effort.

Carelessness with horses meant immediate dismissal. While it was relatively easy and inexpensive to hire and train men for work underground, horses were costly to train, feed, shoe, rest and pasture. In early Fernie, where Ridgemont subdivision is located was once mostly hayfields for livestock.

Coal Creek Heritage Trail June 2026 | Page 18

Horses or Men: Who Mattered More?

Original Coal Creek barn and part of granary circa 1900

In the early 1900s, coal production depended on horses as

Pit Ponies at the MONTANE BARN

much as human labour. Without them, coal could not reach the surface. Selected for strength, steadiness, and calm temperament, these animals were vital to the mining process. Horses were valued so much, they wore helmets before men!

In near-total darkness, controlling horses was challenging. They could startle, stumble, and mine records describe many incidents where men were kicked or injured.

Rather than one mattering more, horses and men depended on each other, bound together in a dangerous environment where survival and productivity relied on their shared effort.

Carelessness with horses meant immediate dismissal. While it was relatively easy and inexpensive to hire and train men for work underground, horses were costly to train, feed, shoe, rest and pasture. In early Fernie, where Ridgemont subdivision is located was once mostly hayfields for livestock.

The narrow trail running up below Ridgemont Place

Pit pony exiting from portal

was known by locals as

Starting in 1897, pit ponies made coal production possible at the Coal Creek mine. In dark confined tunnels, horses hauled one-ton coal cars to the surface, linking the miners’ labour underground with growing industrial demand above.

Today the barn stands as a reminder of how animal strength powered early industry, revealing that coal’ s history is not only about machines and men, but about endurance, reliance, and shared labour with horses.

The Importance of Horses Underground

It was accidents to horses that was the major concern to the Crow’ s Nest Pass Coal Company, as evident from this 1911 memo.

Barn boss Martin Vanlerberg on horse with son Doug Vanlerbergs driving wagon, 1951.