1928 — Jan 9, Peabody Coal Co. No. 18, Mine gas explosion, West Frankfort, IL — 21
Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 2-18-2025 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/
–21 AP. “Total Death List in Mine Blast Is 21.” Carbondale Free Press, IL. 1-10-1928, p. 1.
–21 National Institutes for Occupational Safety and Health, CDC. Mining Disasters.
–21 United States Mine Rescue Association. Mine Disasters in the United States. No, 18.
Narrative Information
Jan 9, AP: “(By Associated Press) WEST FRANKFORT, Ill., Jan 9. – Two miners were known to have been killed and 24 were missing, six hours after an explosion today in the Industrial Coal Co Mine No. 18 near here. LeRoy Fink, chief of police, said he had received word that rescue teams were able to enter the mine by the main shaft which Fink said had not been damaged. ‘The full force of the explosion was felt first in northeast section,’ he said.
“Of approximately 100 men in the section of the mine where the explosion occurred all but 24 had been accounted for….
“Fire broke out after the explosion and made rescue work difficult….
“Miners from the explosion area who made their way to the surface said they believed those who remained in the mine could not have lived in the gas laden air and their only hope was to have reached a northern portion of the mine. Those who escaped could tell little about the explosion except that they heard or felt it and there was great confusion. Many wrapped portions of their clothing around their heads to keep from breathing the poisonous gas.
….
“Officials said after-damp which formed after such explosions often caused more deaths than the explosions themselves….” (Associated Press. “Fear 26 Miners Die in Blast. Bad Explosion Occurs at West Frankfort Mine.” Carbondale Free Press, IL. 1-9-1928, p. 1.)
Jan 10, AP: “(By Associated Press) WEST FRANKFORT, Ill., Jan 10 – The cause of the gas explosion which resulted in the loss of 21 lives in the industrial Coal Co. No. 18 remained a mystery today. One theory was that the gas had been set off by a spark from an electric coal cutting machine, but this was considered improbable. Another theory is that a miner had struck a match….
“The dead are: [We break the names out of paragraph and place in separate lines.]
Carl Jones
David McPhail
Walter Graves
Ed Dodd
- M. Duger
Albert Jones
Kelly Lawrence
George Carter
George Mahler
- Tanner
Neely Hall
Andy White
Leonard Smith
Paul Keys
Ray Farrell
John Mitchell
Lloyd Bradley
Orval Simons
- P. Caraway, all of West Frankfort
Gerald Day. Of Benton
Aubura Stone, of Marion….”
(Associated Press. “Total Death List in Mine Blast Is 21.” Carbondale Free Press, IL. 1-10-1928, p. 1.)
Sources
Associated Press. “Fear 26 Miners Die in Blast. Bad Explosion Occurs at West Frankfort Mine.” Carbondale Free Press, IL. 1-9-1928, p. 1. Accessed 2-18-2025 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/carbondale-free-press-jan-09-1928-p-1/
Associated Press. “Total Death List in Mine Blast Is 21.” Carbondale Free Press, IL. 1-10-1928, p. 1. Accessed 2-18-2025 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/carbondale-free-press-jan-10-1928-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 2-18-2025 at:
https://wwwn.cdc.gov/NIOSH-Mining/MMWC/MineDisasters/Table
United States Mine Rescue Association. Mine Disasters in the United States. “Peabody Coal Company No. 18 Mine Explosion, West Frankfort, Franklin County, Illinois, January 9, 1928, No. Killed – 21.” Accessed 2-18-2025 at: https://usminedisasters.miningquiz.com/saxsewell/peabody_18_news_only.htm