John J. Casey - Early Life

Early Life

Casey was born in the Georgetown section of Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania in 1875 - the oldest son of an Irish immigrant family. At the age of seven, his father, Andrew Casey, died in a mining accident in the Wilkes-Barre Coal Mines. In accordance with company policy, the oldest son of a miner was required to take his father's place in the mine if his family was to retain their home and company credit. The mining companies owned the miners' homes and paid the miners with company credit rather than money.

In 1883 at the age of eight, Casey was a breaker boy in Plymouth, Pennsylvania, responsible for breaking the slag off of coal fragments as they were excavated from the mine. By the age of 12 he was a 'mule skinner', charged with dragging the mules in and out of the mines. According to his grandson, Terry W. Casey: "he used to speak about his excitement towards days with the occasional noontime break, which could last almost an hour in length. That was until he realized why they had the breaks - which were used as time to remove bodies of dead miners from the work zone, as had been done to his father." His harrowing experience in the coal mines of the 1880s and 90s would have a profound impact on his career both as a union organizer and a Congressman.