I think Professor Magocsi wrote in "The People from Nowhere" that one of the first activities of miners and their families that emigrated to America was to build a new church.  In contrast to Europe, these miners owned the land and buildings.

They would invite a priest to come to America and be INTERVIEWED for the job of pastoring their church and community.  Shocked a few priests.  Created a rivalry between Greek, Russian and Roman Catholic institutions in Europe.

In addition to Churches, mining communities also created Insurance Companies and Community Welfare Societies to help offset death of a family breadwinner.

They promoted education.  Started their own newspapers that covered local news as well as news from their homeland.

https://www.amazon.com/people-nowhere-illustrated-history-Carpatho/dp/966783896X/ref=sr_1_14?crid=3BWE8EW7W1A1U&keywords=magocsi&qid=1673771884&s=books&sprefix=magocsi%2Cstripbooks%2C93&sr=1-14

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Robert_Magocsi

PS: "People from Nowhere" phrase is attributed to Andy WARHOL(A) when asked where he came from.  Details of his life are on Wikipedia.com.

GRAVESITE: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/1459/andy-warhol

24/7 EARTHCAM:

https://www.earthcam.com/usa/pennsylvania/pittsburgh/warhol/

The Russian Orthodox church in Benld, Illinois is been closed for many years.  It was founded early in the 1900's when the Rusyns from eastern Slovakia came to the US.  Spoke with a  descendent of the Benld church, she mentioned only a few members may be living in the area.  The congregation was small and elderly by the 1950's, as children have moved on to colleges and better paying jobs.  

This area never had a Rusyn population, on the church members.  The Rusyns came to small coal mines thoughout central and southern Illinois because they had little to no education and money to purchase farms.   Most mines closed by the 1950's. because of new & stronger mining restrictions.

It was a rough life for our people.  

I looked up PLISHKA surname on my Ancestry DNA matches. 

My 2C1R cousin was born in Zakarpattya Oblast.  He shares DNA with a person that has Fedor PLISHKA born 1877 in Czortkow which I think is now Chortkiv, Lviv Ukraine.  Mother was Hafie OLCHOWY born  in Malopolskie, Poland which borders Ukraine.

I am very involved with genealogy, especially Eastern Europe.  I'm able to view DNA matches for about 40 of my Ancestry DNA cousins.  DNA is helpful because many records of Eastern European ancestors have been lost or difficult to find and translate.

From forebears.io website that explains surnames and provides alternatives:

How Common Is The Last Name Plishka? 

The surname is the 802,733^rd most frequently occurring surname internationally, borne by approximately 1 in 20,881,220 people. The last name occurs mostly in The Americas, where 95 percent of Plishka live; 95 percent live in North America and 95 percent live in Anglo-North America.

This surname is most common in The United States, where it is borne by 261 people, or 1 in 1,388,732. In The United States Plishka is most numerous in: Nevada, where 40 percent are found, Pennsylvania, where 11 percent are found and New Jersey, where 10 percent are found. Not including The United States Plishka exists in 5 countries. It is also found in Canada, where 22 percent are found and Belarus, where 2 percent are found.

Coincidentally, PLISHKA family my cousin is related to emigrated to Canada.

There a family stories that when a miner was killed in an accident, the company moved his family out of company owned housing, sometimes the same day of his death.  Many women with children sought a husband soon as possible to avoid further hardship.

After immigrants embarked from ships and were processed at places like Ellis Island, coal company representatives were waiting on shore with promises of jobs and housing.  Many immigrants could not even sign their name.  X marks the spot.

Almost all family stories have been lost as that generation died off and technology replaced men with machines.

Although I'm "only" 80 years old, I remember visiting my relatives in Dunbar and Leisenring in Fayette County in the early 1950s.  They retired from working in coal mines and coke ovens.  They lived in company houses, had outdoor toilets, pumps in the kitchen, coal cooking stoves and bought most of their goods from a company store.

By the time I graduated in 1960, they had indoor plumbing and gas for heating and cooking.  Scary thought.  I'm beginning to sound like my grandparents!

Hello, I am aware that coal companies paid the way for some immigrants to come to the US. I am curious if anyone has tried to research which coal company paid for their relative's journey and uncover any related documents like cost, travel itinerary, etc.  I'm curious about the specific path my great grandfather took to the port, like which train stations, etc. I can probably make an educated guess about the journey but wondering if specific documents exist. Thanks in advance.