1908 — Nov 28, Rachel and Agnes Coal Mine Dust Explosion, Marianna, PA –153-154

— 155 PA Dept. of Mines. Annual Report of…Bituminous Vol. II, 1908, p. 62.
— 154 Chicago Daily News Almanac & Yearbook 1919. “Great Mining Disasters…”
— 154 Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). 1982, p. 315.
— 154 National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, CDC. Mining Disasters.
— 154 US Mine Rescue Assoc. Mine Disasters in the [US]. “…Mine Explosion, Marianna, 1908.”
— 153 Nov 30. Bodies recovered by this date.
— 153 Named victims (including eight unidentified). In PA Dept. of Mines. Annual Report…
— 148 Morning Herald, Uniontown, PA. “Twelve More Bodies Are Taken From Mine.” 12-2-1908, 1.
— 136 New Castle News, PA. “Mine Survivor’s Story of Horror.” 12-2-1908, p. 4.

Narrative Information

PA Dept. of Mines: “One of the most disastrous explosions of recent years occurred November 28, about 10:30 in the morning, at the Marianna mine of the Pittsburg-Buffalo Company, located at Marianna, Washington county.

“It seems almost incredible that a disaster of this kind could occur at the Marianna, as it was deemed by all persons who had ever seen it to be a model and safe mine. As soon as the report could be verified, the department notified all the inspectors located near Pittsburg to repair at once to the scene of the explosion and give such advice and help as might be necessary to rescue any of the entombed miners who might be living and properly to care for those that had been killed.

“Mr. Henry Louttit, the inspector of the district, was at the mine when the disaster occurred. A number of other inspectors arrived at the mine on the afternoon of the same day, but as the casing leading to the fan was destroyed and the top of the outlet shaft and the head frame were badly wrecked, it was several hours before the ventilation could be even partially restored.

“I arrived at the mine Monday noon and found that all the employes in the mine had been killed but one. About one hundred of the bodies had been taken from the mine and it was supposed that there were still from thirty to fifty remaining. At that time it was feared that the coal had taken fire and this belief was strengthened by the fact that considerable smoke was encountered while exploring the mine. It was a great relief to the management, the inspectors, and the other persons who know what the danger from fire meant at that time, to find that there was no fire in the coal or in any of the timbers in the mine. All the entries of the mine that could be explored were examined by the inspectors and a few capable superintendents by Monday noon, and a number of the remaining bodies were located….

“The work of restoring the ventilation was pushed as rapidly as possible and the bodies located and removed to the surface. By Wednesday morning all the bodies had been removed to the surface, except those covered by the debris and those in part of the dip workings which were covered with water….

“We spent about six hours in exploring the mine and were more than astonished to find so small an amount of gas, which was found only at the face of a few entries that were driven over two hundred feet in advance of the last cut-though. This was proof to my mind that the Marianna mine was not a very gaseous mine and that the cause of the destruction of life and property was nothing else than the dreaded coal dust held in suspension in the air, which was ignited by a small explosion of gas, an electric spark or a blown-out shot….A blown-out shot would have been sufficient to cause the explosion without any accumulation of gas….

“George Whyel, a practical miner, mining engineer, superintendent, manager, general manager, at present operator; L. E. Fogg a mining engineer of large experience, fourteen years as superintendent and general manager and at present the general manager of Tower Hill Coke Company; and George E. Gay, mining engineer and a graduate of the Lehigh University, with experience since 1884 in coal mines as a mining engineer and superintendent of mines, were selected by the Chief of the Department of Mines to make a careful investigation as to the cause of the explosion in the Marianna mine, and to make in connection therewith any recommendations that would have a tendency to prevent disasters in coal mines from the explosion of gas and dust. Their full report is given elsewhere, but I desire at this point to call attention to a few of their remarks and recommendations:

We feel that it should be recognized that mines liberating gas and producing dust have to face the danger of ignition from three principal causes – open lights, blown-out shots and electric sparks. To reduce these dangers to a minimum without forcing a condition of sacrificing values of property should be the aim of our future laws. We feel that the danger from open lights can be more easily eliminated that the other two, and we do not believe it is a hardship to enforce the use of improved safety lamps in any or all of the mines that have given off, or are apt to give off, explosive gas.

In regard to blasting, it is a recognized necessity that in mining the Pittsburg coal other means than hand-pick mining must be employed, and that the blasting of time, under proper regulations, can be accomplished with a minimum amount of danger. To do this, we fell it is necessary for the employment of competent shot firers who shall have charge of the explosives and be responsible not only for the firing of the shot but for the quantity and quality of the explosives used; that all holes should be tamped with clay; that the shot firers shall use only permissive explosives as furnished by the company; that all shots shall be fired by an electric battery, and that blasting for the complete safety of thee miners can be done only between shifts when the men are out of the mines.

We recognize at the present time that one of the dangerous conditions of any mine is the accumulation of dust. To prepare and take are of it is a serious condition, and we cannot but recommend that the same fare as used in the Marianna mine for distributing water for saturating the dust, be employed in every mine under like conditions. We also feel that it is not simply a question of the sprinkling of the dust, but that it should be a saturation; that unless the coal dust is saturated the sprinkling does not accomplish the purpose intended. We also feel that in all mines where machines are used for undercutting or mining of coal, the accumulations of fine coal and dust should be loaded and taken out of the mine before shooting.

We recognize the present estimated commercial value of the use of electricity in mines, but we can only recommend its use on intake air currents, believing there is sufficient power otherwise obtainable to do the necessary work as economically, and, in eliminating electricity from all gaseous parts of the mine, we remove as great a danger as the open light.

That there should be realized by the miner his importance as a factor in not only safeguarding his own life, but those of his fellow-employees in faithfully following the rules and regulations prescribed, and his education should be first on these lines. That the employer and employee working together for mutual protection under intelligent guidance will reduce the liability to accident by explosion by removing the causes. We realize that following out the lines of our recommendations may mean an increased cost of operating expenses, and hardships might result between competitive fields unless similar laws are passed in all such fields.

(PA Dept. of Mines. “The Explosion at Marianna,” Report of…Part II Bituminous 1908. 1909, p. 5-7 and 9-10.)
Newspapers

Nov 28: “Monongahela, Nov. 28 – It is believed that 200 miners met death at Marianna when at 10:55 this morning a terrific explosion wrecked the Marianna mine, destroying the tipple and choking both shafts with debris. The mine is on fire. A relief train having on board President John H. Jones and other officials of the Pittsburg and Buffalo Coal company which owns the mine, were hurried to the scene.

“Mine Foreman Henry Thompson was making a descent on one of the shafts when the explosion occurred. The cage was hurled into the air and Thompson was instantly killed. His body was removed to Monongahela and taken to the morgue. A foreigner near the mouth of the shaft was badly injured. He was hurried to the Memorial hospital at Monongahela. Shortly after the accident Mine Inspector Henry Loutitt expressed the belief that those in the mine were all dead.

“Between 190 and 200 men were in the mine. Mr. Loutitt with Joe Kennedy, who is interior superintendent of the mine and Foreman Thompson had just left the mine after a trip down the shaft. Thompson was returning when he met his death. The explosion rocked the earth and brought hundreds to the mine opening in a few minutes. The mine changed superintendents on Tuesday, John McVicker, formerly general superintendent of the Monongahela River Coal Combine at Monongahela, leaving the Marianna mine to go to Illinois. Supt. Beeson was since in charge outside and Kennedy within the workings….

“Company officials on the scene would not go beyond the statemen6t that there had been an explosion….The fact that the mine is entered by a shaft will make the work of rescue more difficult. If any of the miners escaped death, they may starve before the shaft is cleared of the tons of debris that choke them.

“The Marianna was a twin shaft mine and destined to be the largest in the world. According to a statement recently issued by John H. Jones, the president, 15,000 miners were to be employed in the coal workings.” (Daily Independent, Monessen, PA. “Bib Mine Horror.” 11-28-1908, p. 1.)

Nov 28: “Marianna, Pa., Nov. 28. – Probably 200 lives were snuffed out by an explosion today in the model mine of the world. %The officials of the Pittsburg-Buffalo Company, which owns the property, say there are but 135 bodies in the pit. Miners, however, who have been down in the shaft and returned to the surface, declare that there are about 70 more corpses in the mine. At any rate, every man who went to work this morning in the Rachel and Agnes pits is dead.

“The cause of the disaster is a mystery. None of the officials tonight would even hazard a guess as to what caused the explosion. Some say it was an abandoned gas well that was tapped by the miners; others say the mine has been known to be gaseous and that fears have been expressed that some disaster, such as that recorded, would happen.

“There is no telling tonight who the victims are. Most of them are English-speaking men, though some are Poles and Slavs. The bodies are being brought out, but the company will permit no names to be given out.

“The work of rescue was no work of rescue at all. There was no possibility of aid. The entire work of death was consummated in a flash.

“The explosion occurred at 10:55 this morning. Marianna is forty-one miles southeast of Pittsburg, in Washington county, and is nine miles from the nearest telegraph station. There is but one telephone line running into the place and on this account details were hard to obtain until the several newspapers had sent men to the scene….

“…the men at the mine…organized relief parties and…made several efforts to get into the pit. In these efforts they were beaten back by the gases and foul odor which emanated from the pit entry, thus rendering it impossible for any living thing to enter with safety. Thus, for seven or eight hours, hundreds of grief stricken men were compelled to stand by, idly wringing their hands and praying for a chance to risk their lives for those they knew to be down in the veritable inferno, a few hundred feet under the ground. Women and children crowded about the entry to the mine, frantic in their grief and fear. They had husbands, fathers, brothers and friends in the pit, and they were anxiou8sly awaiting tidings of them.

“When the first effort was made to get into the pit, it was hoped the men down below could be gotten out alive. This hope, however, was soon dispelled, for no sooner had the first party gone down than they were overcome by the gas and rendered unconscious.

“The rescue of this party was accomplished at great personal risk. Dan Cox, who has a reputation as a fire fighter in this country of mines, went down into the pit and tied ropes about the four unconscious men at the bottom. These latter were drawn up and then, with scarcely enough strength left to move, Dan Cox tied the rope about his own waist and gave the signal to be hoisted up. When he was brought to the surface he was unconscious. None of those overcome will die….

“The explosion affected two mines. Both are new and are connected by an L-shaped passage….”
(Philadelphia Inquirer. “Explosion Entombs 200 Men in Model Mine Up State.” 11-29-1908, p.1.)

Dec 1: “Washington, Pa., Dec. 1. – ‘The dead at Marianna may number 200.’ This was the statement made by Burgess Marsh at Washington at noon today upon his return from the scene of Saturday’s awful disaster in the new mine of the Pittsburg-Buffalo Company. Burgess Marsh talked to a number of miners who were employed by the company and each and every one of them maintained that the number of victims would far exceed the estimate of the company.

“‘The explosion,’ said Burgess Marsh, ‘occurred just at the time of changing the shifts. As a consequence there were more than the usual number of miners in the depths. Some had just gone into the pit while others were ready to come out when the mine let go.’

“Up to noon 136 bodies had been taken from the pit and of this number less than a hundred have either been claimed by friends or partially identified by means of their checks [tags]….President John H. Jones of the Pittsburg-Buffalo Company, is confident that practically all the bodies have been recovered save possibly one or two who may be buried beneath coal and broken timbers….

“G. W. McCollough of the Manufacturer’s Light & Heat Company denied last night that there was any leak from his company’s well which passes through the coal. The casing was of such character as to preclude any possibility of leakage….

“The work of recovering bodies is progressing more slowly today than at any time since the mine was first entered after the explosion. It has been necessary to erect many brattices before parties could penetrate into the extreme depths. The air in most of the mine is exceptionally good.

“The last bodies recovered were in bad condition and matters have not been helped by the extremely mild weather that has prevailed. Some of the remains are in a bad state of decomposition.” (Daily Courier, Connellsville, PA. “Bodies Recovered From Marianna Now Total 136.” 12-1-1908, p. 1.)

Dec 2: “Marianna, Pa., Dec. 2. – From the lips of Fred Elinger, the sole survivor of the explosion in the ‘model mine’ here Saturday, when 135 persons were killed, there was told today the first story of the awful disaster in the underground workings which experts had pronounced the most perfectly safe-guarded plant in the world.

“At the Memorial hospital in Monongahela Erlinger told this story:

I was employed at the Marianna mine as a brick mason, and, with eleven other masons, entered the mine at 6:45 o’clock, Saturday morning. When the explosion happened after 11 o’clock Saturday forenoon, I did not see the beginning of it and for that reason I cannot assign a cause, as I and the others were at work near the Rachel shaft, farthest removed from where the explosion is supposed to have happened.

I did hear, however, a hissing sound and, instinctively, concluded that something was wrong. This was the burning of the gas preceding the report of the explosion. Immediately I ducked, buried my face and head in the dirt and mud and the pulled my coat over my heard. The explosion came along. It struck me and threw me with terrific force against one of the mine walls. For about ten minutes I was unable to move.

“I never actually lost consciousness, although I was badly stunned, but I was unable to move. Every part of my body ached. As hour after hour passed, I heard my comrades groaning all around me, but gradually the groaning grew less and less, and I knew that they were all dead.

“I was in the mine for about twelve hours after the explosion, and was ultimately rescued by Fire Boss William Underwood. When he found me I could not speak, only groan. He caught me in his arms, hurried with me from underground, and, on reaching the surface, toot me at once to his home, just close to the shaft, where I was revived. The doctors tell me I am going to get better.

“Chief Mine Inspector James E. Roderick arrived at Marianna at 2:30 o’clock and began in inspection of the mine yesterday afternoon.

“Between 150 and 200 weeping men women and children were lined up in front of the morgue awaiting their turns to claim their dead. A force of twenty-two undertakers are preparing the bodies as fast as they are brought to the surface.” (New Castle News, PA. “Mine Survivor’s Story of Horror.” 12-2-1908, p. 4.

Dec 2: “Marianna, Pa., Dec. 2. – Twelve more bodies of victims of the Mariana mine disaster were taken from the mine today. This brings the total of bodies recovered up to 148.

“Coroner Sipe said that in view of the finding of additional bodies the unidentified which rest at the morgue will not be buried this afternoon as had been planned, but will be held for several days. He announced that the request would take place on December 10, but he has decided to wait until James E. Roderick, chief of the state mine inspectors, and his assistants make an investigation. The state mine inspectors will go into the mine next Monday or Tuesday to make a thorough investigation as to the cause of the explosion. Coroner Sipe will hold the inquest immediately after the investigation, either at Washington, Pa., or at Monongahela, Pa.

“One hundred miners entered the mine this morning to clear up the debris and will remain in the mine throughout the day. Officials of the coal company expect to resume work at the mine on Monday, December 14.

“Among the bodies found in the mine was that of Samuel Sifton, a former well known resident of Dunbar township, Fayette county, and father-in-law of Calvin Jaynes, of New Haven. The body was discovered Sunday afternoon and was recognized by the members of his family by his gold watch and a pair of new shoes which he had put on the morning of the explosion. Mr. Sifton is widely known throughout the coke region. For a number of years he worked in the mines of the Cambria Coal Company at Wheeler and later removed to Dunbar.” (Morning Herald, Uniontown, PA. “Twelve More Bodies Are Taken From Mine.” 12-2-1908, p. 1.)

Sources

Chicago Daily News Almanac and Yearbook 1919. James Langland, (Ed.). Chicago: Chicago Daily News Company. Digitized by Google at: http://books.google.com/books?id=vWQTAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA788&dq=Ohio+River+Steamship+Disasters#PPA13,M1

Cornell, James. The Great International Disaster Book (Third Edition). New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1982.

Daily Courier, Connellsville, PA. “Bodies Recovered From Marianna Now Total 136.” 12-1-1908, p. 1. Accessed 5-26-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/connellsville-daily-courier-dec-01-1908-p-1/

Daily Independent, Monessen, PA. “Bib Mine Horror.” 11-28-1908, p. 1. Accessed 5-26-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/monessen-daily-independent-nov-28-1908-p-1/

Morning Herald, Uniontown, PA. “Twelve More Bodies Are Taken From Mine.” 12-2-1908, p. 1. Accessed 5-27-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/uniontown-morning-herald-dec-03-1908-p-1/

National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Mining Safety and Health Research.. Mining Disasters (Incidents with 5 or more Fatalities). NIOSH, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2-26-2013 update. Accessed at: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/mining/statistics/disall.htm
and http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/mining/statistics/content/allminingdisasters.html

New Castle News, PA. “Mine Survivor’s Story of Horror.” 12-2-1908, p. 4. Accessed 5-27-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/new-castle-news-dec-02-1908-p-4/

Pennsylvania Department of Mines. “The Explosion at Marianna,” Report of the Pennsylvania Department of Mines, Part II Bituminous 1908(Official document No. 24). Harrisburg, PA: Harrisburg Publishing Co., State Printer 1909. Accessed 5-27-2020 at:
https://www.google.com/books/edition/Report_of_the_Dept_of_Mines_of_Pennsylva/ApsPAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=pennsylvania+department+of+mines+bituminoius+the+explosion+at+Marianna+official+document+24+1909&pg=PA1007&printsec=frontcover

Philadelphia Inquirer. “Explosion Entombs 200 Men in Model Mine Up State.” 11-29-1908, p. 1. Accessed 5-26-2020 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/philadelphia-inquirer-nov-29-1908-p-1/

United States Mine Rescue Association. Mine Disasters in the United States. “Pittsburg-Buffalo Coal Company Rachel and Agnes Mine Explosion, Marianna, Washington County, Pennsylvania, November 28, 1908.” Accessed 5-27-2020 at: https://usminedisasters.miningquiz.com/saxsewell/rachel_and_agnes.htm