Coal and CultureOpera houses were fixtures of Appalachian life from the end of the Civil War through the 1920s. Most towns and cities had at least one opera house during this golden age. Coal mining and railroads brought travelers, money, and change to the region. Many aspects of American life converged in the opera house. Coal and Culture: Opera Houses in Appalachia is a critical appreciation of the opera house in the coal mining region of Appalachia from the mid