In 1963, with a shift of mining operations, Reading Anthracite Company constructed a New Saint Nicholas Breaker near Minersville, Pennsylvania, in proximity to its open pit mines and tremendous coal reserves. The New Saint Nicholas Breaker became the World’s Most Modern Heavy-Media Preparation Plant and home of Famous Reading Anthracite – the red Trademarked Coal.
Reading Anthracite’s New Saint Nicholas Breaker was designed for a normal output of 4,500 tons of coal per single shift. It ran a multiple shift operation.
In a five-minute cycle, raw coal received at the Primary Feed source became the finest prepared Famous Reading Anthracite on arrival at the Loading Bay. In 1996, with this modern, efficient preparation plant, Reading Anthracite celebrated 125 years of progress in the mining, processing, and marketing of America’s Finest Hard Coal.
1982 photo showing the new breaker. Eric Bella collection.
Our photos showing the breaker in the early 2000s.
Sources:
Reading Anthracite Website