James C. Justice, Sr.

James C. Justice, Sr. attended the Greenbrier Military Academy after graduating from Purdue University and flew a B-29 bomber as an Air Force pilot during World War II. Justice had been in the coal business since the early 1950's when he operated a small mining company in Whitesville. A few years later he and his family moved to Monterey, Tennessee, where he started another small coal operation. He then returned to West Virginia and joined Leo Vecellio in developing Ranger Fuel Corp., which was sold to Pittston Coal in the late 1960's. It was a dream of developing more efficient and safer mining equipment that led Justice to start the research and development company Coaltex in 1975. Coaltex developed several pieces of mining equipment: the Edna Miner, a piece of highwall equipment designed to mine a high coal seam of 40 to 48 inches; The Justice Miner, a similar piece of equipment designed for underground mining; and the Justice Highwall Miner, a dual head, highwall angering machine designed to mine larger areas of low seams and having the capabilities of being modified for underground mining. The Justice Highwall Miner machinery was finished and sent to on­site testing only one week after Justice's death. In addition to success in coal, business and agriculture, Justice was well known for his contributions to the community. Organizations such as the Beckley Little League, the Davis-Stuart School in Lewisburg, the Beckley Child Care Center, Duke's Children Hospital and the YMCA all benefited from his benevolence. Justice died on June 11, 1993.