Coal Miner's
Dedication Page Forty Two
These are pay envelopes in which Elmer Presley (my grandpa) received his wages in from working in the Coal Mines, which was paid in cash. The envelope on the left is from Red's Creek Coal Company (this is written on the back of the envelope). The information on the envelope is deceiving. It looks as if he worked 40 hours at the rate of $24.25 per hour. However, his wages were $24.25 per day and he worked 40 hours that week. Unfortunately, this particular pay envelope does not have a date on it.
The pay envelope on the right is dated January 18, 1962, but we do not know which coal mining company it came from though. On this envelope, he worked three days at the pay scale of $24.25 per day. You will notice that the envelopes have different withholdings on them. The first deduction is for Federal Old Age Benefit Tax (we know it as Social Security today). Another deceiving fact is that the "Balance Due and Enclosed" is not actually the amount that grandpa received. Men were paid $1.00 per coal car loaded. These cars held one ton of coal each. Written on the back of the envelope is the actual amount of cash which grandpa received, it was only $46.23! There are envelopes that show other deductions such as, UMWA Union Dues and Health Insurance.
Submitted by Kim Jones Dean
My Kinfolks of Kentucky & Beyond
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