Coal miners clash with the Ohio National Guard in the Hocking Valley Coal Fields near Corning in an image from Jobie Seimer’s book, “The Clash at Sunday Creek: Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion.” Seimer will talk about unrest in the coal fields at noon Thursday at the Southeast Ohio History Center in its Lyceum Luncheon Speaker Series. (Photo Provided)

ATHENS — Unrest in the coal fields of Hocking County will be the subject of a discussion in the Lyceum Luncheon Speaker Series at noon Thursday at the Southeast Ohio History Center, 24 West State St., in Athens.

Jobie Seimer, a former Green Beret, author and military historian will discuss his book “The Clash at Sunday Creek: Rum, Romanism and Rebellion” about the Battle of Corning on Sept. 19, 1880, the 144th anniversary of the first battle of the Ohio National Guard.

Seimer describes Southeast Ohio as a rugged region in the 1800s with an influx of migrants and immigrants who changed the landscape, the nature of life and the economy. Nowhere was this truer than in Corning and Rendville, mining towns reminiscent of the Wild West era with gun duels, scandals, lynchings and murders.

European immigrants and tenacious Black miners relied on raw grit to survive rowdy saloons and perilous coal mines. These impoverished workers also took bold stands against affluent mine operators, leading to intense clashes with the Ohio National Guard.

Seimer will touch on the social interaction between Rendville’s Black and Corning’s Immigrant miners. Seimer also will sell his book and be available for book signing.

After completing his studies at Ohio University, he was commissioned in the U.S. Army and was an infantry officer in the 82nd Airborne Division and later the Green Berets. He led numerous combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan.

After his military service, he earned his master’s in military history.

For more information, call 740-592-2280 or go to www.southeastohiohistory.