Black
Diamond was officially incorporated on February 19, 1959.
Black Diamond was a coal mining area. Eventually a town grew up around
the mine in the 1880s and it was named in honor of the Black Diamond
Coal Company of California, which owned and operated the mine. The
town was home to around 3,500 people by the early 1900s, almost all
of which produced coal, which was transported to Seattle via the Pacific
Coast Coal train.
After World War I, the town shut down the mine as it was no longer
viable to maintain. However a second mining boom struck the town in
the early 1930's on the strength of multiple mining operations promoted
by the Morris brothers through the Palmer Coking Coal Company. Mining
has continued until very recently through the Pacific Coast Coal Company,
formerly of San Francisco, and the prospect of future mining operations
remain strong. Today the town is home to its original mining population,
as well as a growing population of commuters to Seattle, Bellevue,
and elsewhere.
The town has been home to many famous residents, including folk musicians
Tom Eivers and Brandi Carlile (who actually grew up a few miles east
in Ravensdale). The minor-league baseball player Edo Vanni was born
at Black Diamond in 1918.
