| his reputation is well deserved. In addition, Notting and Centers brought in noted structural engineer and cynic DAN GERMAN. His job is the safety of everyone within the tunnels.
The proprietors came up with a great idea to supplement their ruby mining operation. They are opening up certain “safer” areas of the tunnels to tour groups, allowing them to get a glimpse into the underworld that is the mine. Dan has been totally against this idea from the beginning, calling it reckless and a tragedy waiting to happen. He walks around muttering about cave ins, snakes, spiders, and sometimes he even talks about things he can’t even explain. Of course, this falls on deaf ears with Prout because all he sees is the additional revenue these tours can create.
With the Grand Opening upon us, the tunnels have been divided into two very distinct areas. The first are the public areas where the tours are conducted. This trek takes you through several parts of old Thad’s mine and give you a good idea how he and his workers lived during their days in the underground. Using your map as a guide, you will be led through several safer, but none the less exciting caves. Along the wa y, you can even grab clues to the location of Thaddeus Greer’s lost Treasure. There will be help along the way, as you explore deeper and deeper into the caverns, but watch out for the occasional stray critter or other obstacle. The tour is for the adventurous at heart and the explorer in us all. But, whatever you do, stay out of the restricted area of the mine.
The restricted tunnels are off limits to all but T. Greer Mining Co. employees. This is for your protection as well as theirs ( but mostly yours ). Along with the obvious hazards from being 586 feet below the earth’s surface, their have been several unconfirmed reports of strange things going on down there. Many of the workers have spoke of seeing abnormally large creatures crawling around and needing to arm themselves against these critters. Others have talked about heading down a particular tunnel, one they have traveled many times, only to find the path had changed and they were lost for hours at a time. The most shocking were the tales they told of running up on someone they thought was a fellow worker and realizing that it the lost soul of a miner long trapped down in the tunnels.
Recently Dan German and his crew uncovered a disturbing scene within a newly opened cave. In this previously hidden area of the mine was what could only be described as a crude version of a torture chamber. It must have been Thaddeus Greer’s way of dealing with troublemakers and thieves. Many strange and evil looking implements were discovered, but the worst was something that looked like an electric chair. This was how he must have broken the will of the miners and kept them working down in the holes.
Undeterred by all of this, Stayton Prout has said that this is all just foolishness and that the mine will open to the public as scheduled. He has told the workers to close off the restricted sections and only allow tours through the cleared tunnels. Let’s hope that Prout’s desire to make money will turn out better than it did for old Thad Greer.
The stories of this mine and the events that occurred there are well documented, if a person is inclined to do a little research. Since most of us are not so inclined, the legend had disappeared with the years. Until Now…
 In the 1880s, while everyone was rushing out west to find their fortunes in gold, we were having something of a rush here. Ours wasn’t a gold rush, in these hills we found veins of beautiful gems. The most famous of these gem mines was the Thaddeus Greer Mine. Striking the vein in 1886, old Thad Greer had worked this area of the Oconaluftee River for many years looking for the rubies he knew were around. Then one day he found the elusive rock along the banks of the river beneath this very building. It seemed to be an inexhaustible source of the precious red stones, the further down he dug, the more he found.
It quickly got beyond Greer’s ability to work the mine, and although he trusted no one but himself, he needed help to bring out the stone. He hired a small group of men to work the mine. These men were all drifters with no families or other attachments. Old Thad chose these loners for one reason, they were not allowed to leave the mine during the term of their contract. They worked, slept, and ate within the caverns for a period of 6 months. Armed guards were placed at the mine entrance keep the workers in and the claim jumpers out.
The only person allowed in and out of the mine was a young girl named Lilly Thomas. She delivered food to the miners each day. They all looked forward to her visits and thought of her as a daughter. She brought them news about the outside world. She knew her way around the caves as well as any of the men.
During this time, Old Thad was a constant reminder of why they were all there. He worked the men hard with little rest. He had a terrible case of the Ruby Fever and it made him reckless and careless in his mining. There were always small cave-ins or rock slides within the mine and the men were in a constant battle shoring up the walls and ceilings of the caverns. Luck was with the men for they always seemed to be one step ahead of the old boss and his insatiable thirst for more and more of the blood red stone.
Everyone knew when the six month terms ended and the locals enjoyed the money coming in from the miners and the stories they told about crazy Old Thad. He also came out during this time, but only long enough to oversee the delivery of his fortune to the bank, grab the tools and provisions needed to last through out the next contracts, and take one drink from the local bar for good luck. Then he went right back into the mine.
Most of the miners rejoined for more than one contract, because although the work was extremely tiring, there were few others jobs available in this part of the country. The miners bonded and became like brothers, all under the watchful eye of Thaddeus Greer. Lilly Thomas also continued to deliver food to the  men each day.
In the summer of 1889, only two days before the end of the contracts, things seemed to be going well for Old Thad and the miners and soon they would have the sun on their faces once again. They were deeper in the ground than they had ever been and also closer to the river than they had ever dared go. Water was seeping in and timbers were used every few feet to make sure it all held. Greer was pushing to hit the source of the vein before the end of the current term. His greed was getting overwhelming and clouding his good judgment. The Fever had him fully in its grasp now. Everywhere he looked, he saw blood red stone and nothing else. The only thing that mattered was finding the source.
Lilly came in that day as she always did and followed the twists and turns down and down, knowing that the men were getting dangerously close to the river and the loose ground. This would be her last days delivering to the miners. She would tell Mr. Greer when he came out of the mines for his delivery that he would have to find someone else to bring their food each day. She knew he would be mad, but he would have no problem finding someone to take her place. She would dearly miss all of her friends from underground, but she no longer felt safe down here. They would understand.
They were all taking their food break when it happened. Old Thad was still striking away at the main vein while the men ate. He pulled at a big rock that was blocking his way to the source. It had to be right behind this stone. The boulder shifted and water started seeping into the cave. The miners all felt the slight shutter. The reaction was immediate. “Run”, “Get Out”, “Hurry Lilly, Run”, “It’s Going Down”, “Get Lilly Out”, “CAVE IN!!”. It was all in vain.
No one knows exactly what happened next. Except that it was quick and nobody escaped. The entrance caved in. All the locals tried to get down to the miners and the little girl, but they couldn’t make a dent in the mass of dirt, stone and timber piled in front of them. After many days and no progress, the people just gave up and began to mourn for those lost.
As time passed the legend of the mine grew, but the location of the mine was forgotten. Several people tried to find the old mine and unearth its riches, but unfortunate events ended their attempts. For more than a century, the secrets and riches of the Thaddeus Greer Mine have been left undisturbed…….Maybe It Should Have Stayed That Way |
