Nov. 20—CHARLESTON — The following events happened on these dates in West Virginia history.
Nov. 20, 1894: Eight men were killed in a coal mine disaster near Colliers, Brooke County. They were using a dangerous method called "shooting from the solid," meaning that they blasted the coal loose without first undercutting it.
Nov. 20, 1917: Robert C. Byrd was born in North Wilkesboro, North Carolina. West Virginians elected him to serve in the U.S. Senate in 1958 and remained in office until his death in 2010.
Nov. 20, 1968: An explosion at Consolidation Coal Company's No.