The men are posing in what was known as the "pit car". According to the Cherry Coal Mine Disaster website's glossary, this type of car was "a small railroad-type car approximately 6' x 3' in size, used to haul coal, dirt and rock". It was also used to transport the miners to their dark workplace below ground, as you can see here.
This postcard has been submitted to the 1st edition of the Festival of Postcards Carnival to be published at Evelyn Yvonne Theriault's A Canadian Family blog. Visit for more postcards with the theme: Wheels.
This image is taken from a vintage postcard (date unknown) courtesy of USGenWeb's Penny Postcards website.
