Asa Lansford Foster

Asa Lansford Foster
Asa Lansford Foster
Born	August 19, 1798 Massachusetts
Died	January 9, 1868(1868-01-09) (aged 69) Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Nationality	American
Known for	Helping to pioneer coal mining in Pennsylvania

Asa Lansford Foster (August 19, 1798 – January 9, 1868) was a Pennsylvanian geologist, merchant, and coal mine owner. He was also a geologist, mining engineer, and publisher and was one of the pioneers of the anthracite industry. He was a native of Massachusetts but immigrated to Pennsylvania in 1818. Foster married Louisa Trott Chapman.

Foster was born on August 19, 1798 in Massachusetts. He received a common school education. In 1818, he immigrated to Pennsylvania from Rowe, Massachusetts.

Between 1827 and 1834, Foster worked for the Lehigh Coal Company. He frequently studied the geology of coal formations and became an expert in that field. Foster was among the leading experts on the geology of the Coal Region. After 1837, Foster founded the Buck Mountain Coal Company, of which he was a superintendent and significant stockholder. The coal company opened in 1838. Foster then constructed wharves, tunnels, inclined planes, and a four-mile railroad for the purpose of transporting the coal of the Buck Mountain Coal Company to a canal near Rockport. In the autumn of 1840 the coal company started to ship anthracite. The company was initially successful, but failed in the winter of 1841. After the Buck Mountain Coal Company failed, Foster became the financial manager for Daniel Bertsch, an early mine operator. He also conducted the Council Ridge Colliery's mining and made a profit from it. One of the first tunnels in the Panther Creek valley was driven by Foster. He helped develop a number of other mining operations in the Panther Valley and aided in the development of a stove to efficiently burn anthracite.