Why Drumheller Was Alberta’s Wildest Boomtown ft. Lothar Malberg, Bob Moffett & Jay Russell
Drumheller was once called “Hell’s Hole”—a rough coal-mining boomtown filled with danger, legends, tragedy and unforgettable characters.
From haunted streets to underground coal mines, discover the remarkable history that helped build Alberta and power Western Canada.
In this episode, we break down:
- Why Drumheller earned its reputation as one of Canada’s roughest Wild West towns
- The coal-mining boom that transformed the Drumheller Valley beginning in the early 1900s
- Lothar Malberg’s stories of ghosts, spirits and Drumheller’s haunted history
- The brothels, bootlegging and colourful characters that shaped the town’s early years
- Bob Moffett’s firsthand experience working underground as a fifth-generation coal miner
- What daily life was really like inside Drumheller’s dangerous coal mines
- How immigration and mining created a remarkably multicultural community
- The rise and fall of coal mining in the Drumheller Valley
- How the Atlas Coal Mine became a National Historic Site and preserved Alberta’s mining heritage
- Why tourism became Drumheller’s new economic lifeline after the coal industry disappeared
- Hosts: Mike Wixson
- Guests: Lothar Malberg, Bob Moffett, Jay Russell
Timestamps:
- 00:00 Intro
- 00:35 Drumheller’s Wild West history and “Hell’s Hole”
- 03:06 Preserving Drumheller’s history and historic downtown
- 06:14 Wayne, the Last Chance Saloon and Wild West legends
- 07:33 Brothels, prohibition and bootlegging in Drumheller
- 09:18 Drumheller ghost walks and haunted history
- 12:22 Spirits, ghosts and the paranormal explained
- 16:38 How to experience the Drumheller ghost walk
- 18:14 Inside the Atlas Coal Mine National Historic Site
- 19:47 What working underground was really like
- 21:16 Coal mining during the Great Depression
- 23:09 How Drumheller’s massive coal deposits formed
- 24:53 Jobs, workers and life around the mines
- 26:01 The end of Drumheller’s coal-mining era
- 27:19 Tourism gives Drumheller a new life
- 29:14 The physical realities of being a coal miner
- 31:00 What mining history teaches us about building Canada
- 32:40 How Drumheller became Alberta’s “wild child”
- 35:00 Immigration and the multicultural mining workforce
- 36:21 What visitors can experience at the Atlas Coal Mine
- 39:02 Going underground at the Atlas Coal Mine
- 40:36 Saving Drumheller’s mining heritage
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Pillars: Resources
#Drumheller #AlbertaHistory #CoalMining #CanadianHistory #AtlasCoalMine
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