Joan Quigley, the granddaughter and great-granddaughter of Centralia miners, first glimpsed the mine fire at age fifteen, during her grandmother’s funeral at St. Ignatius Cemetery.

Twenty years later, while seated in her parents’ kitchen, she decided to write a book about the town -- and the underground blaze that virtually destroyed it. THE DAY THE EARTH CAVED IN: An American Mining Tragedy, is the culmination of that effort, a seven-year process of conducting almost two hundred interviews with current and former residents, tracking down more than five hundred government documents, and unearthing Centralia’s rich past, piece by piece, before it disappeared.

A former Miami Herald business reporter, Quigley is a graduate of Princeton and Columbia University’s School of Journalism. She won the 2005 J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Award for her efforts on this book. She lives outside Washington, D.C.

Tour Dates

The dates and times below have been confirmed, but remain subject to change, so please check with the venue before venturing out. If you are interested in arranging an event, please contact Jennifer Huwer at Random House, who can be reached by phone at 212-547-3995 or by e-mail at jhuwer@randomhouse.com.

•April 17, 2007 -- Mount Carmel, PA; Mount Carmel Public Library, 30 South Oak Street, (570) 339-0703; 3:00 pm

•April 17, 2007 -- Bloomsburg, PA; Bloomsburg Public Library, 225 Market Street, (570) 784-0883; 6:00 pm (co-sponsored by the Columbia County Historical Society)

•April 18, 2007 – Pottsville, PA; Pottsville Public Library, 215 West Market Street, (570) 622-8880; 6:30 pm

•April 19, 2007 – New York, NY; The Corner Bookstore; 1313 Madison Ave. (at 93rd Street), (212) 831-3554; 6:00 pm

•April 20, 2007 – New York, NY; Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism Alumni Book Fair; Low Library Rotunda; 7:30 pm

•April 28, 2007 – Shamokin, PA; Shamokin-Coal Township Public Library, 210 E. Independence Street, (570) 648-3202; 10 am to 12 pm

•May 11, 2007 – Frackville, PA; Frackville Public Library, 56 N. Lehigh Avenue, (570) 874-3382; 6:00 pm

•May 21, 2007 – Ashland, PA; Ashland Public Library, 1229 Centre Street, (570) 875-3175; 1:00 pm

•May 22, 2007 – Washington, DC; The Sulgrave Club (private event, limited to members and guests)

•May 30, 2007 – Pottsville, PA; The Historical Society of Schuylkill County, 305 North Centre Street, (570) 622-7540; 7:00 pm

•July 7, 2007 – Washington, D.C.; Politics & Prose Bookstore, 5015 Connecticut Ave., N.W., (202) 364-1919; 1:00 pm

•October 16, 2007 – New York, NY; KGB Nonfiction; KGB Bar, 85 E. 4th St., (212) 505-3360; 7:00 p.m

•Nov. 10-11, 2007 -- Miami, FL.; Miami Book Fair International