Miner's Memorial Park

 

Typically memorial parks honor the soldiers who fought in wars or workers who died on the job. Not this one. It's all about Big Muskie, the huge excavator which used to remove the overburden of soil to get down to the coal seams. Big Muskie operated from 1969 to 1991 after which it sat abandoned and rusting for eight years until the state of Ohio and the EPA ruled that old equipment had to be removed from former strip mines. Big Muskie was taken apart and the metal recycled. The bucket stayed to become the focal point of the park. 

The display area and the kiosk are accessible. Stairs are the only access for visitors who want to climb into the bucket. 

The parking lot is large enough for any vehicle. Park  39.69945, -81.73098