In this April 1974 photo by Barry Kombol, two coal miners of Croatian descent are shown drilling 800 feet underground in the gangway of the Rogers No. After drilling, the holes were loaded with dynamite needed to break up the coal and allow easy loading on cars hoisted to the surface. Both were life-long coal miners like their fathers before them who’d emigrated from Croatia to U.S. Croats were one of the more prominent nationalities laboring in Washington’s coal mines. Few spoke English and most worked backbreaking jobs in coal mining and construction. The coal mining town of Roslyn supported a large Croatian population and accompanying cemeteries.