Lansford borough was built on coal, and local organizations are hoping for official recognition of the town's rich black diamond history through a nomination to have Lansford included in the National Register of Historic Places.

The Lansford Historical Society, with the help of the Delaware and Lehigh National Heritage Corridor, is the driving force behind the $15,000 project. The Historical Society obtained a matching grant from the Keystone Historic Preservation Grant fund through the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission.The acceptance - which could be in place by year's end - would help Lansford with grants, offer tax breaks for restoration of old buildings and encourage businesses to come to town, says Dale Freudenberger, who works with both organizations.About a year ago, Freudenberger visited a meeting of borough council, urged town leaders to think of the designation as a tool."It's just a designation" he said. "If you do nothing with it, it doesn't harm you, it doesn't hurt anybody, doesn't hurt any residents or private property owners. But if you take advantage of it, it can bring you benefits."The benefits include grants and tax breaks for building restoration and the enticement of new businesses to be drawn into town as tourism grows."Lansford's nomination for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places was to be reviewed by the state Historic Preservation Board (last) week, but the review has been postponed until June," Freudenberger said. "Once the nomination is reviewed, and is, we hope, approved, it will be sent to the federal level for final review."The district includes most of the town. On the western edge of Carbon County, the coal mines and shops were on the north side of town.Lansford is being nominated for the designation under three categories: As a coal company town, and for its architecture and history. Freudenberger says LC&N, one of the largest coal companies in the world during its heyday, had its headquarters there. The nomination focuses on the town when coal was king, from about 1878-1954.Only one other Carbon County town, Jim Thorpe, is listed in the National Historic District.Built on King CoalThe nomination includes mention of the discovery of coal in the Panther Valley region in the mid-1800s. The discovery led LC&N to buy up most of the land, and dig mines, build breakers and homes."Because of its long and dominant history in the southern anthracite coal field and the mark that it left on the community of Lansford in both architecture and landscapes, Lansford is an excellent example of a coal town from the southern anthracite fields, and continues to show these influences to this day," the nomination's narrative says. "While the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company no longer participates in anthracite mining, the permanent record of its time in the Panther Valley can be seen and felt through the streets, houses, and churches of Lansford."The borough of Lansford was born in 1875, when several small villages united under the name of a local mover-and-shaker, Asa Lansford Foster.Coal mining provided jobs for the men of the community of about 2,000 people, and sewing mills provided work for the women.The borough experienced its peak in population - about 10,000 people - around 1920, when the coal industry was also at a high. But from there, it waned, slipping into sharp decline as the demand for coal during World War II dropped off. In 1954, LC&N began leasing its mineral rights to outside companies.Deserving of recognitionAlthough King Coal has been long dethroned, the borough has kept the spirit and feel of its anthracite heritage."Lansford is exemplary as an anthracite coal town in Pennsylvania. The majority of the town's buildings were built without a particular style, and with little or no ornamentation. Its development spanned from the mid-1800s through to the town's peak in the late 1800s, before the decline of the anthracite industry that began in the early 1900s and continued to the mid 1900s," says the nomination narrative."North of the town is a small industrial area that housed the repair shops of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company. The railroad tracks used to run north of town, taking coal from the entire valley out through the Number 7 Tunnel, which is located in the Locust Mountains north of Lansford.Another feature that is a part of the district is the once-used Number 9 Mine. This mine has since been converted to a museum, but the entrance is still clearly marked on the landscape, facing south into the mountain just to the northwest of Lansford.The town has a commercial district located on Ridge Street, which runs for approximately 4 blocks. The houses in Lansford are spaced quite tightly. Most of the houses are doubles, and many have a half-block back yard, especially in the older sections on the west side of the town.In the most southern and western sections of Lansford, there are areas where backyards are virtually nonexistent. This dense development corresponds with what was at one time the small village of Ashton.Also of interest is the northeast portion of the town where houses were company-built after 1900 and there is more space. Setbacks are deeper, lots wider, and backyards longer than in other portions of the town, the narrative says.The coal company took pains to keep its workers separated from management."Sections of the town where upper managers lived are easy to note in Lansford," the narrative says. "One example is the area surrounding Edgemont Lodge. This area is totally separated from the rest of the town and up on a hill. This is where the highest-level workers in the town lived."There are also two other areas where supervisor housing can be seen. This is on West Bertsch Street, in the 100 and 200 blocks. On the south side of the street, there are approximately 10 houses that are all made of concrete."The houses were not built in any one particular style. Workers' houses were cheaply made, flat-faced and plain.Churches were the heart of the communityWhile workers' housing was no-frills, the residents, for the most part eastern European immigrants, took great pride and reverence in their churches."The gothic revival style is represented in Lansford by a few churches," the nomination's narrative says. "Several of these churches are found on Abbott Street. One good example is St. Michael the Archangel (now St. Katharine Drexel) Roman Catholic church ... the church exhibits classic gothic elements such as gothic arched windows, a rose window, and a tall narrow steeple."Another good example is on Abbott Street. St. Peter and Paul Russian Catholic and Polish Catholic churches were built in 1907 and 1926 respectively. Both display gothic styling through window and door openings."Exotic Revival style is commonly demonstrated in Lansford by the churches that were built. These churches housed members of the Eastern orthodox faith, and thus the 'onion dome' is a common sight within the district. A few examples of Exotic Revival Style are St. John the Baptist Byzantine Catholic Church on East Bertsch Street and St. Nicholas Orthodox Catholic Church on the corner of West Bertsch Street and Center Street," it says.A hefty documentationThe inches-thick nomination application describes the town's streets, yard layouts, garages and architectural changes to homes."While there have been many changes to things such as siding and roofing materials, these are minor losses of integrity to individual buildings," the narrative says. "However when taken as a whole, the town of Lansford retains its integrity. Design is seen through patterns of development over time, and the designation of certain areas for mid- and upper-level managers."Lansford also retains integrity of workmanship. The majority of houses in Lansford were built with no ornamentation, being houses for miners, and so the consistent lack of ornamentation highlights the integrity of the district."Finally, Lansford most strongly possesses integrity of feeling and association. The town clearly feels like a mining town with some cramped streets and the appearance of coal chutes on many houses; and exhibits characteristic buildings such as industrial resources and ethnic churches that tell the story of anthracite mining in Pennsylvania."Overall, the integrity for Lansford remains intact, and the town continues to convey its significance as an industrial town of the late 19th and early 20th centuries that consisted of worker housing, a regional business district, and industrial resources associated with the coal industry," the narrative says.