Alabama Coal Mines: Convict Leasing at Industrial Scale

Alabama leased thousands of Black convicts to Pratt Coal and Coke Company and Tennessee Coal, Iron and Railroad Company mines. By the mid-1880s over 1,000 convicts labored in Jefferson County mines. The state documented mortality rates of 30-40 per 1,000 annually — higher than free miners — from cave-ins, explosions, and deliberate brutality. The system generated millions for the state.