The No. 9 Coal Mine and Museum, Lansford will celebrate the 160th year since the opening of the anthracite coal mine, and the public is invited to take part.

The yearlong anniversary celebration will continue from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday."Enjoy delicious coal region foods, as well as the annual display of the Anthracite Region Car Show sponsored by (Antique Automobile Club of America). Perhaps you will see the car of your dreams," said Jan LeVan, No. 9 correspondence secretary.At 11 a.m. the mine will observe the "Veteran Salute to Men and Women of Service," which will include the release of 160 balloons, symbolic of the veterans and the 160th anniversary of the day the No. 9 first opened for coal production.The event is supported by the Carbon County Labor Chapter.Opened in 1855, the No. 9 Coal Mine is the world's oldest continuously operated anthracite coal mine.The site closed in 1972, but was reopened as a heritage tourism attraction in 2002.Today visitors ride safely by train 1,600 feet into the mountainside to see and experience firsthand what it was like for this region's fathers and grandfathers who worked underground over the past 200 years.The mine is located beneath both Carbon and Schuylkill counties and touches Lansford and Coaldale.The No. 9 features free parking and grounds entry.