The Aldrich Coal Mine Museum near Montevallo is collecting and preserving part of Alabama's coal mining history in Shelby County.  The Aldrich mining camp was founded in the late 1800's by William Farrington Aldrich and his brother Truman.  Along with the mine, the camp grew to include two churches, two schools and  a thirty room victorian mansion, which Aldrich named Rajah Lodge.
   All that remains today is an old company store and Farrington Hall, which was an office and library built by Farrington after he retired in 1905.   Owner Henry Emfinger and his wife, Rose, purchased the property in 1969, and eventually began collecting pictures and mining memorbillia.
   The museum includes a simulated mine, a monument dedicated to the miners of Alabama and five murals that are believed to have been painted by Giuseppe Moretti, the creator of Vulcan.

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