Book Description

Author: Paul W. Zimmer
Publisher: Bloated Toe Publishing
Printed by Write One, Chateaugay, NY (Jean Roussel, Proprietor)
Foreword by Lawrence P. Gooley
Softcover (Staple-Bound), 24 Pages

The idea for this booklet came to Paul Zimmer while recording notes for the Memory Book housed in the Lyon Mountain Mining and Railroad Museum. The Memory Book allows anyone to share their stories with others. It is open to all who attend the museum, and makes fascinating reading.

While preparing his comments, Mr. Zimmer came to the realization that many people, including former miners, had no idea what a rock burst was. He further concluded that few laymen, even from nearby villages, knew the meaning of many common mining terms.

Understanding those terms enhances the museum experience, and Mr. Zimmer decided that a booklet with brief descriptions of mining would be a nice addition to the publications offered in the museum store. He consulted with the Friends of Lyon Mountain and immediately went to work on the project.

There was no better person available for the job. Paul W. Zimmer was the Geologist of the Chateaugay Iron Mine from 1940—49. That was sixty years ago, and by doing the math, one might come to the conclusion that Mr. Zimmer is now quite an aged man.

That isn't the case, thank goodness—he's only in his early 90s. He was able to put much energy into creating line drawings, preparing the text, and selecting a cover image for the booklet. During that process, Paul was at one of his bi-weekly swimming sessions when he suffered injuries in a fall near the pool; as he described it, "spraining my shoulder and ripping some tendons."

That was in spring 2009. Despite the injuries, he continued to work on the booklet, explaining only that his ability to type had been somewhat hampered. I expected at least a little complaining from a man 91 years old, but none was forthcoming. Technically, he is aged, but good luck proving he's old.

Mr. Zimmer is a geologist, but it sure sounds like he would have made a good miner, too—hard-working, and as tough as they come.

He prepared this booklet on his own time and at his own expense, and then handed it off to Bloated Toe Publishing. We put it together for him, again at no cost to the museum. Profits from all sales will go solely to the Lyon Mountain Mining and Railroad Museum, a cause we all believe in.

Thank you to Paul Zimmer for coming up with the idea, creating the materials, and bringing the project to fruition.