Wagner Free Institute of Science

     This is bituminous coal, which is one of the objects at the Wagner Free Institute of Science. At the Wagner Institute, this kind of coal is found in the fossil collection, and like many fossils, was created by Earth. For most people, such as people who are not interested in environmental science, bituminous coal would not be an important or interesting thing to look at, but it would be for environmental scientists, people who are interested in collecting rocks, or people who have read the book Rocket Boys and/or seen its accompanying film "October Sky." It is on display because it is a fossil and a part of earth. It was acquired by C. W. Johnson, who was the curator at the Wagner Institute around the turn of the twentieth century. There is not just one piece of coal displayed; there are quite a few in a small, shallow cardboard box and is at the end of a long case containing only fossils:  clams, snails, sea-lillies, squid, and lamp-shells.
     The point of view of the label is informative but spartanly descriptive. The text states:
                                                      Bituminous Coal
                                   Coal Measures                 Pennsylvania
                            Braeburn Sta. [Station], Westmoreland Co., PA
                                   C. W. Johnson                      8186

     There are many avenues of research that could be taken. One field of study could be why is coal considered a fossil? What is it made up of? Another field of research could be how coal changed cooking, home life, work, and in essence, everyday life in the Victorian era, when people transferred from using wood to using coal. In addition, people could examine how coal has changed lives in the twentieth and twenty-first century, first as something people would mine for as a living, and then, its forming the backdrop of company towns in the Appalachian mountains which inspired the book Rocket Boys and the film October Sky. An opposing point of view would be if someone did not believe in evolution and said that God created coal, not the Earth. To engage viewers with this object, I could have them use coal. One way to do this would be to have them sketch with it since coal is the basis of charcoal. Another way, would be to let people put coal in a old coal stove and light it up and give them a chance to see how stoves worked in the Victorian era and the early twentieth century.