NOVA SCOTIA- Sydney's still a proud steel town

BY ANDREW PARNABY AND LACHLAN MACKINNON

There's a new mural in Whitney Pier. It's on the side of the Discount Dollar Store on Victoria Road. In the image, a dark silhouette of the Sydney steel plant is depicted against a burst of bright colour. The picture is striking, as is the caption underneath: ‟Remember where you're from." Up the street, the reconstruction of St. Mary's Polish Church continues. The historic building, first erected by immigrant labourers in 1913, was gutted by fire in 2014. Its dedicated parishioners immediately undertook an inspirational campaign to rebuild.

Both the new mural and the resurrected church remind us of the city's not-so-distant industrial past. And the importance of history, memory and sense of place in a community beset by protracted economic crisis, underemployment and child poverty.

A sprawling complex in the middle of the city, the steel plant not only employed thousands of people over the years, but its physical presence was unavoidable for all who lived in its vicinity. As St. Mary's existed as a spiritual centre for many residents of Whitney Pier, so did the plant regulate much of economic life. Over time, the plant became a key part of how people viewed themselves, their surroundings, and their island - for good and bad.

When Hawker Siddeley threatened to close the plant on Black Friday in 1967, people said it was the ‟backbone," ‟heart" and ‟mother" of the city. Just as these things give form, strength and life to the human body, heavy industry did so for residents in the steel city.

During the tar ponds debates, some folks publicly recanted these sentiments - recognizing the immense environmental and health costs. Sydney, for better or worse, was a steel city for decades. As the new mural attests, an attachment to that idea remains important to many. Other solidarities, vital in their own unique ways, persist too, as the rebuilding of the Polish church indicates.

No historical era ends easily or neatly, and the end of an economic period is especially traumatic. As direct ties to a lived moment wither, the experience becomes one of memory.

Memories of Sydney's steel history have found a place in public life here. A handful of plays and many songs written over the years have described, celebrated and sometimes lamented life at the plant. There is a powerful painting inside the local Polish Hall that shows the community in the shadow of industrial production. The city's wonderful new Open Hearth Park evokes steel's wider legacy.

But don't go looking for this history on the Sydney waterfront. A display in the cruise ship pavilion urges the viewer to forget: ‟100 years of steel making," it says. ‟Good-bye to all that!" Yet people always remember: indeed, a powerful sense of the past bolsters the Polish church's stake in the future.

The power of the new mural is matched by the clarity of its caption. Combined with the re-establishment of St. Mary's, they address the tight connection that remains between memory and place. A shared experience centred upon steel brought these elements together. They emerged out of history and collective struggles and triumphs. These characteristics may yet be critical to the city's and island's future.

Andrew Parnaby and Lachlan MacKinnon teach at Cape Breton University

The Sydney Steel plant has been dismantled but this image of it adorns the side of the Discount Dollar Store in Whitney Pier, where many former steelworkers still reside. Cape Breton Bureau

16 Tons - Wadda ya get... another day older and deeper in debt... I owe my soul 2 the company store.... Tennessee Ernie Ford

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5VMZqgVzRo

INCREDIBLE SITE:-

Westray Coal Mine Disaster

Pictou County, Nova Scotia

At 5:18am on 9 May 1992
the Westray coal mine exploded
killing 26 miners

http://newscotland1398.ca/westray/wraymenu.html

History of Coal Mining in Nova Scotia

The Springhill Mine Disaster of 1958 MESSAGE FROM THE COPYRIGHT HOLDER: This document is reproduced with permission of the copyright holder, the Province of Nova Scotia. The electronic version of this report can be used for general information purposes. For accurate reference, please consult the original publication available from the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources.
Two Documents Herein

Document 1
Proceedings of The Public Inquiry
Held in Springhill, N.S., January, 1959

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Appointment of Commission, Pages 1 - 3

Appearances

Document 2
Final Report Of The Royal Commission Of Inquiry

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PART I

PART II

APPENDICES

List of Men killed in No. 2 Mine and List of men who were rescued, 4 pages.
Plan of No. 2 Mine -- Springhill, Nova Scotia, 1 page.
Report of Dr. J. E. Blanchard, 18 pages including 9 large diagrams.
Memorandum of Fuels Division, Mines Branch, Department of Mines and Technical Surveys, Ottawa.
Report of A. Brown on Rock Pressure Studies in the Mines of Springhill, Nova Scotia.
Report of William F. Campbell on Deep Coal Mining in Springhill No. 2 Mine.
Memorandum submitted by the Geological Survey of Canada.
Notes on Various Bumps and Accompanying Plans.

Return to Top of Page
Last Modified: 2000-03-12
Originally Produced by: The Nova Scotia Provincial Government
Re-published by: Gary W Ellerbrok gary.ellerbrok@ns.sympatico.ca
IMPORTANT
The information contained on this site is not provided for the purpose of factual
representation. Instead, it is provided in an historical context. Every effort has
been made to ensure that this information represents the actual content of
the documents of the public inquiry of the 1958 Springhill Mine Disaster.
Nevertheless, no warranties are provided in any respect.
~~ End of Page ~~ http://mininghistory.ns.ca/springhill/sp-index.htm

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Springhill-NOVA SCOTIA CANADA-Enclopedia Britannica

Springhill, town, Cumberland county, northern Nova Scotia, Canada. It lies 22 miles (35 km) southeast of Amherst and is situated on a hill 700 feet (210 metres) high, which was once the source of numerous springs—whence its name. Coal, discovered in the vicinity in 1834 and mined commercially since 1872, is the town’s economic mainstay. The first Canadian coal-mining trade union was legalized in the Springhill collieries in 1879. One of the mines, with a vertical depth of 4,000 feet (1,220 metres), is said to be the deepest in Canada. Springhill has experienced several major mining disasters—in 1891, when 125 miners lost their lives; in 1956, when 39 were killed by an explosion; and in 1958, when 76 were suffocated by a massive earth disturbance. Most of the business district was destroyed by fire in 1957. Coal now is mined only intermittently. Other activities are gardening, farming, lumbering, woodworking, and machine-shop practice. Among the town’s attractions are a mining museum and a centre dedicated to country singer Anne Murray, who was born in Springhill. Inc. 1889. Pop. (2006) 3,941; (2011) 3,868.

You may also be interested in...

http://www.britannica.com/place/Springhill-Nova-Scotia
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Well... I was born a coal miner's daughter.... making a poor man's dollar

LORETTA LYNN- COAL MINERS DAUGHTER

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9eHp7JJgq8

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CANADA- In 1959 , the Royal Canadian Humane Association awarded its Gold Medal to the citizens of Springhill. The award is the society's highest recognition for bravery in life-saving. It was the first time the award had been made to a community. And it followed the disaster of Oct. 23, when 74 miners died after a deep underground ‟bump" in a coal mine. The last survivors were brought to the surface on Nov. 1. In 1970

Earth

Springhill Mining Disasters - 1891, 1956 and 1958

Coal mining in Springhill, Nova Scotia began shortly after the community was settled in the early 19th century. A small mine was opened in 1834 and larger-scale mining started in 1872. Explosive coal dust -- a fine powder produced during the mining process -- and methane gas trapped inside coal deposits made for a dangerous combination, and three major explosions at the Springhill mine, in 1891, 1956 and 1958, claimed the lives of local men and boys. In addition, the town lost 182 men in over 125 accidents between the 1891 and 1956 explosions.
In the February 21, 1891 explosion at the Springhill mine, 125 men and boys were killed. The second major explosion at the mine occurred on November 1, 1956 in number 4 pit. Fire and a methane gas explosion hindered rescue efforts so that while 88 miners were rescued, 39 died.
The third major explosion at the Springhill mine happened on October 23, 1958 in number 2 pit, shortly after 8 p.m. as the afternoon shift was at work. The pit, opened in 1873, was the only remaining colliery in Springhill and was also the deepest coal mine in North America. It extended over 14,000 feet (4,200 metres) to the bottom of the mine. A "bump", the miners' term for an underground earthquake, shook the mine and the town above. The result was that 174 miners were trapped in the mine. In parts of the mine the ceiling was compressed into the floor and contact with miners below 7,800 feet (2,340 metres) level was cut off.

Photograph of a row of three buildings equipped with large smokestacks, number 1 slope, Springhill mine, Nova Scotia, 1897

Source

Surface buildings, no. 1 slope, Springhill mine, Nova Scotia, 1897

Large pockets of methane gas meant that draegermen, men specially trained for mine rescues, had to be used for the rescue efforts. They had special breathing equipment that promised the greatest chance of success. The draegermen were mostly miners themselves, and many had assisted with the 1956 rescue efforts. Still, the gas was so heavy it smothered the safety lamps used by the draegermen. Further, the damage from the explosion meant that tunnels had been reduced to crawl spaces and barefaced rescuers had to lie down to clear a passageway.
By morning, 81 miners had been freed. As October 25th dawned, officials believed that any men still below the surface were dead. Rescue efforts continued, however, and on October 29th, rescuers heard a voice from one of a group of 12 miners who had been trapped in a dungeon for six days. Three of these miners were survivors of the 1956 explosion. Saving these men meant tunneling through 25 metres of coal as small bumps continued. Seven more miners, the last survivors, were out by 9:15 a.m. on November 1st.
It was a magnificent rescue. Although 74 miners died, 100 were saved. The rescuers' efforts were recognized when they were awarded the Royal Humane Association Gold Medal for bravery in lifesaving, the first time the medal had been awarded to a group.

The Carnegie Hero Fund Commission presented a gold medal and bronze plaque to the rescuers and five of them were awarded Scout Silver Crosses.

Deemed too dangerous for operations to continue, the Springhill mine closed in 1959. Today, the abandoned coal mines of Springhill provide geothermal energy for various industries in the area.

Newspaper article: 50 BODIES FOUND; 24 MISSING

View all photographs
of the Springhill Mining Disasters

http://collectionscanada.gc.ca/sos/002028-2100-e.html

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Working Man- RITA MACNEIL AND THE MEN OF THE DEEP-

Its a working man l am
And Ive been down under ground
And I swear to God if l ever see the sun
Or for any length of time
I can hold it in my mind
I never again will go down under ground

At the age of sixteen years
Oh, he quarrels with his peers
Who vowed theyd never see another one
In the dark recess of the mines
Where you age before your time
And the coal dust lies heavy on your lungs

Its a working man l am
And Ive been down under ground
And I swear to God if l ever see the sun
Or for any length of time
I can hold it in my mind
I never again will go down under ground

At the age of sixty four
Oh, he'll greet you at the door
And he'll gently lead you by the arm
Through the dark recess of the mines
Oh, he'll take you back in time
And he'll tell you of the hardships that were had

Its a working man l am
And Ive been down under ground
And I swear to God if l ever see the sun
Or for any length of time
I can hold it in my mind
I never again will go down under ground

God, I never again will go down under ground

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Coal mining disaster

The 1958 Springhill Bump

By Correy Baldwin

The seventh and last man being removed from Springhill’s No. 2 colliery to waiting ambulance | Image courtesy of Nova Scotia Archives

The coal mining town of Springhill, Nova Scotia, has the unfortunate distinction of suffering three major mining disasters at its underground Cumberland mine. The first, an explosion in 1891, killed 125 miners. Another explosion ripped through the mine in 1956, killing 39. Two and a half years later, on October 23, 1958, a third disaster devastated the mine. Seventy-four men were killed and 100 were rescued, in what became known as the 1958 Bump – the largest bump in North American history.
A “bump” occurs when geological stresses in a mine – often triggered by the removal of coal from the bedrock – cause the mine to collapse in on itself, resulting in effects similar to those of a small earthquake. The three shockwaves that shook the mine also shook the town above.
There were 174 men working at the time, and many of them were trapped 3,900 metres from the entrance. The affected shaft was one of the deepest in the world, extending nearly 1,200 metres below the surface. When rescuers descended into the mine, they were hampered by fresh pockets of methane, partially collapsed shafts and tunnels blocked by fallen rock. By early morning, they brought 75 survivors to the surface.
Additional rescue teams from other coal mines across Nova Scotia came to help. On the morning of October 29, rescuers made contact with a group of 12 miners trapped behind a 49-metre rockfall. The next morning, they tunnelled through and reached the men. A final group of seven survivors was found and rescued on November 1, after having spent nine days underground.
Both Canadian and international news organizations rushed in to cover the story. The ongoing rescue effort became a major media event, and the first major international story in Canada to be covered by a live television broadcast – a medium pioneered at Springhill by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, even visited the site, accompanied by Nova Scotia Premier Robert Stanfield. Reporters crowded the mine entrance, interviewing every survivor and rescuer who surfaced, bringing some miners momentary fame. One survivor, Douglas Jewkes, became a spokesman for 7Up after asking for the drink upon emerging from the mine. Others later appeared on the Ed Sullivan show.
One of the final seven rescued miners was Maurice Ruddick, who had done much to keep up the spirits of others trapped underground, despite having broken his leg in the bump. Ruddick even organized a birthday party for a 29-year-old miner on their fourth day underground and sang to the men throughout their nine-day ordeal. A renowned baritone, Ruddick often led his fellow miners in song while working or resting underground, and sang in a quartet in his spare time. He was modest about his role, but others attributed their survival to Ruddick’s positive spirit. He was named Citizen of the Year by the Toronto Telegram after the rescue.
Marvin Griffin, the governor of Georgia, later invited 19 of the survivors to stay at a luxurious holiday resort in his home state. Griffin had been in Canada during the disaster and had been moved to do something for those who had been trapped. Ruddick was one of the invitees, but when Griffin learned that the much-respected miner was African-Canadian, he insisted that Ruddick be kept segregated.
The other miners were not impressed, with one miner reportedly saying, “There was no segregation down in that hole, and there’s none in this group.” However, Ruddick obliged Griffin, not wanting to come between his fellow survivors and their much-needed vacation. Along with his wife and their children, Ruddick stayed in a separate trailer and did not see his white companions until the vacation was over.
Back home, the Springhill miners had to look elsewhere for work. The bump was so destructive to the underground workings that the mine was shut down after the rescue effort, never to reopen.
Maurice Ruddick wrote a song, The Springhill Disaster, which was recorded and performed by American bluegrass singer Bill Clifton. All proceeds went to a miners’ relief fund. Visit www.cim.org/magazine/Springhill for the lyrics.

http://cim.org/en/Publications-and-Technical-Resources/Publications/CIM-Magazine/Dec-2012-Jan-2013/mining-lore/Springhill-bump.aspx

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Home » Mining Disasters » Disasters » 1958 Springhill Mine Disaster

1958 Springhill Mine Disaster

On Thursday, October 23, 1958 at approximately 8:06 PM[1] the No. 2 Colliery just outside the town of Springhill N. S. Was struck by an underground shift in the mine, known as a “bump.” The mine was owned and operated by Cumberland Railway and Coal Co. The bump was the result of increased tensions in the earth due to the removal of coal and the lack of replacement support.[2] Smaller bumps had occurred before in the mine, with one even shaking the mine at about 7:00 PM that day.[3] These usually resulted in a minor tremor; however this was looked upon favourably by miners as it was seen to relieve pressure and lessen the chances of a more serious bump.[4] This was clearly not the case. The effects of the bump tend to be described as the ceiling and/or floor suddenly lurching towards its opposite, often meeting and crushing what lay in between and causing showers of debris and releasing gasses.[5]When the serious bump struck at 8:06 PM of that day, the entire town of Springhill felt it, and it registered on seismic monitoring devices in Halifax, Darmouth, Quebec, and Ottawa as a small earthquake centered on Springhill.[6]
There were 174 men working in the mine at the time of the bump.[7]Of those, 75 men died,[8] and of those, only one died above ground in hospital.[9] The other 74 died almost instantly during the bump or soon after. Many were crushed or buried in the rock, while others were injured and then suffocated due to the gasses.[10] One account states “’Most of those who weren’t killed instantly by the bump died shortly afterward from gas,’ said Caleb Rushton later. ‘The gas wasn’t too bad at first and later we got some air to clear it out. But those who had been injured just didn’t have the strength to fight it off.’”[11] It is of note that because there were no fires in this incident, the gasses were different, and less present, while still a threat. Therefore, debris became the chief obstacle to rescuers, in part because there was often nowhere to move it to.[12] Many survivors were buried to some extent in rubble, or otherwise trapped.[13] Rescuers were forced often to dig survivors out. Injuries ranged from minor bruises to crushed limbs and severe contusions.[14] Rescuers worked through the night, and by the morning of Friday, October 24, 1958, 81 of the 174 miners had been brought up, and 19 of these had serious injuries.[15]

“Injured miner being taken to hospital by helicopter.” From 1958.
Photo courtesy of Nova Scotia Archives. Used by permission.

It then looked as if any remaining survivors would require significantly more time to reach, and efforts largely turned towards recovering bodies.[16] On Saturday, October 25, 1958 at 12:00 PM the general manager of Dominion Steel and Coal Corporation, the company to which Cumberland Railway and Coal Co. Was a subsidiary, Harold Gordon, stated in a press conference that there was no hope for any miners save those on the 13,000 wall, and that was faint.[17] The media disseminated this report[18], though citizens of Springhill and rescuers contested the claim, generally sticking to the miner’s code that those below should be deemed to be alive until they the discovery of bodies proved otherwise.[19] However, some did lose hope, due to media reports and miners’ descriptions of the situation in the mine, and they began digging graves for their loved ones, while a series of funerals occurred each day.[20]
Rescuers were now forced to dig new tunnels through the coal in an effort to reach the lower levels where they believed it possible that survivors could still be found.[21] Indeed, there were two groups of survivors left. The first, a group of twelve, was found on Wednesday October 29, 1958 when rescuers heard them through a pipe.[22] It took rescuers till about 2:30 AM on Thursday October 30, 1958 to reach the men, who where then brought to the surface.[23] The second group consisted of seven surviving miners, who were discovered Saturday November 1, 1958 at about 4:00 AM and rescued at about 6:30 AM.[24] At this point, most bodies had also been retrieved. The mine was closed at this point, leaving no open mines in Springhill and most of the population of the town unemployed.[25] It is worth noting that illegal mining became an issue for a short time after this in the Springhill area as former miners sought to get coal to heat their homes.[26] The Springhill Disaster Relief Fund emerged, raising two million dollars to support the families of the dead miners.[27] Others who volunteered aid to the rescue efforts and the community were the Royal Canadian Navy, the Red Cross, the Royal Canadian Legion, the Auxiliary, the St. John ambulance Accociation, The Salvation Army, the Halifax Police, the Boy Scouts, and the volunteer daegermen from surrounding communities.[28]

“Seventh and last man being removed from Springhill’s No. 2 colliery to waiting ambulance.” From 1 November 1958.
Photo courtesy of Nova Scotia Archives. Used by permission.

After the rescue of the last two groups of survivors, a few of the rescued miners were invited to be on the Ed Sullivan Show and were given a trip to New York.[29] Meanwhile, Prince Philip visited Sprighill and many of the rescued miners.[30] The Governor of Gerogia also invited the rescued miners to come to an island resort in Georgia for an all expenses paid vacation.[31] However, due to the Governor’s strong belief in Georgia’s segregation laws, there were some difficulties when he insisted that Maurice Ruddick, a black miner in the group of seven miners, be segregated. The other miners supported Roddick, declaring that they would not go if Ruddick refused the conditions under which he would be allowed to go. However, seeing that the others both wanted and needed the vacation, Ruddick agreed to go and be segregated.[32]
[1] Greene, Melissa Faye. (2003) Last Man Out: The Story of the Springhill Mine Disaster. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt, 38. Confirmed by Brown, Roger David. (2002)Blood on the Coal. Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 39 and Brown, Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 88 and “Hope Fades in NS for Trapped Miners” (The Globe and Mail, October 25, 1958, p2).
[2] Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal. Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 39.
[3] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 144. Confirmed by Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal. Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 41.
[4] Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal. Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 39-41.
[5] Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal. Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 41.
[6] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 144. Confirmed by Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal.Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 41 and Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 89.
[7] Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal. Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 41. Confirmed by Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies.Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 151 and Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, “90 and 93 Buried Under Mountains of Dust Two Week Task” (The Toronto Star, October 24, 1958, p1). Note: “Rock Surge Crushes Tunnels; Two Known Dead, 69 Rescued” (The Globe and Mail, October 24, 1958, p1) states that 167 men entered the mine that shift.
[8] Greene, Melissa Faye. (2003) Last Man Out: The Story of the Springhill Mine Disaster. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt, 38. Confirmed by Brown, Roger David. (2002)Blood on the Coal.Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 39 and Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 88 and Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 161.
[9] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 161.
[10] Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal. Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 443-44. Confirmed by Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies.Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 147.
[11] Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal. Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 44.
[12] Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal. Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 43-44. Confirmed by Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies.Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 155.
[13] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 151-152. Confirmed by “On Three Levels” (The Toronto Star, October 24, 1958, p1).
[14] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 151-152, 155.
[15] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 151. Confirmed by “Recover 10 Bodies After NS Distaster.” (The Globe and Mail, October 25, 1958, p1). Note: Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982 Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 89 mentions only 72 rescued at this point. Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal.Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 43 agrees with that, but says the total rescued would reach 81, as Burden does.
[16] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 154.
[17] Greene, Melissa Faye. (2003) Last Man Out: The Story of the Springhill Mine Disaster. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt, 104. Confirmed by Brown, Roger David. (2002)Blood on the Coal.Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 43 and Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 93 and “Hope Fades for 83 Miners Still Trapped at Springhill” (by Langevin Cote, The Globe and Mail, October 25, 1958, p2).
[18] Seen in The Globe and Mail and The Toronto Star on October 24-27, 1958.
[19] Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982.Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 93-94.
[20] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 152-153. Confirmed by Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal.Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 43 and Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 94.
[21] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 155. Confirmed by Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal.Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 43-44 and Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 94.
[22] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 155-156. Confirmed by Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal.Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 47 and Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 97.
[23] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 160.
[24] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 162. Confirmed by Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 97.
[25] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 168. Confirmed by Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 98.
[26] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 170.
[27] Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal.Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 54. Confirmed by Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies.Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 167.
[28] Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 153. Confirmed by Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 93 and Greene, Melissa Faye. (2003) Last Man Out: The Story of the Springhill Mine Disaster. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt, 82.
[29] Greene, Melissa Faye. (2003) Last Man Out: The Story of the Springhill Mine Disaster. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt, 229-231. Confirmed by Burden, Arnold, (1991)Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 162.
[30] Greene, Melissa Faye. (2003) Last Man Out: The Story of the Springhill Mine Disaster. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt, 215-216. Confirmed by Brown, Roger David. (2002) Blood on the Coal.Revised Edition. Halifax, NS: Nimbus Pub, 48-49 and Brown, Brown, James (1983) Miracle Town: Springhill, Nova Scotia 1790-1982. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 97 and Burden, Arnold, (1991) Fifty Years of Emergencies.Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 161 and “Prince Visits Stricken Town” (The Globe and Mail, November 1, 1958, p2).
[31] Greene, Melissa Faye. (2003) Last Man Out: The Story of the Springhill Mine Disaster. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt, 251-253. Confirmed by Burden, Arnold, (1991)Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 168.
[32] Greene, Melissa Faye. (2003) Last Man Out: The Story of the Springhill Mine Disaster. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt, 251-253. Confirmed by Burden, Arnold, (1991)Fifty Years of Emergencies. Hantsport, NS: Lancelot Press, 168
All images used with permission from Nova Scotia Archives.
Tags: 1958 Springhill Mine Disaster

Bump kills 75! Miracle: 12 rescued after week, 7 more after 9 days!

3 Responses to “1958 Springhill Mine Disaster”

Resources II: Popular Histories | Disaster SongsDisaster Songs says:

August 28, 2014 at 8:01 am
[…] Fay Greene (2003). Although I have not heard that it has inspired any of the many songs about the 1958 Springhill disaster, I think it would if more people read it. It’s a meticulously researched book, and a gripping […]

Reply
Curtis says:

May 31, 2015 at 8:39 am
The number 2 mine wasn’t 30,000 feet deep, so Harold Gordon couldn’t have said that there was no hope for any men trapped at those levels. I think that might have been a typing error because the shaft was only about 14,200 feet deep. I guess I shouldn’t be saying “only” because it was the deepest coal mine in north america. One news reporter who was on scene at the time said, “At a press conference attended by many – by most of the people here today, he said that all hope must be given up for any of the men trapped, at the 13,800, and the 13,400 foot levels.”

Reply

Heather Sparling says:

June 10, 2015 at 9:38 am

Thank you, Curtis, for catching that error! I’ve corrected the text to read “13,000″ instead of “30,000″ (and corrected a few other typos while I was at it).

http://disastersongs.ca/1958-springhill-mine-disaster/

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Springhill Coal Mine Disaster Nova Scotia Canada 1956 - YouTube
► 0:55	https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4fYFX57IOo26 Aug 2009 - 55 sec - Uploaded by markdcatlin This clip describes the November 1, 1956 explosion in the No. 4 mine. Fire and a methane ...

and

The Springhill mining disaster of 1891

www.cim.org/en/Publications.../Mining.../Springhill-disaster.aspx - Cached - Similar

A few moments later, an enormous explosion marked the beginning of what was
to ... The coal mines in Springhill, Nova Scotia, first opened in 1873, were an ...

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Westray remembered: explosion killed 26 N.S. coal miners in 1992

By Martin O'Malley , CBC News Posted: May 08, 2012 3:18 PM AT Last Updated: May 09, 2012 9:09 AM AT

Family and friends are shown in 2002 marking the 10th anniversary of the Westray mine disaster. On May 9, 1992. At 5:18 a.m., far beneath the small town of Plymouth, N.S., a sudden gush of methane gas escaped from the Foord coal seam and erupted into flames. Within seconds, a huge fireball raced through the mine, stirring up coal dust that exploded in a thundering blast. (Andrew Vaughan/Canadian Press)

On May 9, 1992, at 5:18 a.m., far beneath the small town of Plymouth, N.S., a sudden gush of methane gas escaped from the Foord coal seam and erupted into flames. Within seconds, a huge fireball raced through the mine, stirring up coal dust that exploded in a thundering blast.
A blue-grey flash lit up the pre-dawn sky. Homes more than a kilometre away shuddered as the shock wave rumbled through the earth.
In all, there were 26 men underground at the time, most of them in the final hours of a four-day shift.
"The Westray story is a complex mosaic of actions, omissions, mistakes, incompetence, apathy, cynicism, stupidity and neglect," said Mr. Justice Peter Richard in his report on the explosion and fire at the coal mine in Pictou County that day.
In fact, Westray's very existence was controversial from the very start.
In July 1991, Liberal MLA Bernie Boudreau sent a letter to Nova Scotia Labour Minister Leroy Legere warning that the new Westray coal mine scheduled to open in two months near Stellarton "is potentially one of the most dangerous in the world."
But that wasn't enough to stop the Westray mine from opening on Sept. 11, 1991. Nearly 500 guests attended the official opening and the local member of Parliament, then revenue minister Elmer MacKay, arrived from Ottawa to cut the ribbon on a project that promised 300 badly needed jobs that would last at least 15 years.
Coal mining has always been dangerous work. Between 1838 and 1950, the peak years of coal mining in Pictou County, 246 miners were killed in similar methane-and-coal-dust explosions, many of them working the rich Foord seam that became part of the Westray operation.

The Westray victims

John Thomas Bates, 56
Larry Arthur Bell, 25
Bennie Joseph Benoit, 42
Wayne Michael Conway, 38
Ferris Todd Dewan, 35
Adonis J. Dollimont ,36
Robert Steven Doyle, 22
Remi Joseph Drolet , 38
Roy Edward Feltmate, 33
Charles Robert Fraser ,29
Myles Danial Gillis, 32
John Philip Halloran, 33
Randolph Brian House,27
Trevor Martian Jahn, 36
Laurence Elwyn James, 34
Eugene W. Johnson, 33
Stephen Paul Lilley, 40
Micheal Frederick MacKay ,38
Angus Joseph MacNeil, 39
Glenn David Martin, 35
Harry Alliston McCallum, 41
Eric Earl McIsaac, 38
George James Munroe, 38
Danny James Poplar, 39
Romeo Andrew Short, 35
Peter Francis Vickers, 38

Between 1866 and 1972, another 330 miners were killed in other accidents – mangled in machinery, buried under stone, squashed in coal-car collisions.

'A Predictable Path to Disaster'

The tragedy of Westray goes far beyond a simple, ghastly accident. It involved corporate greed, bureaucratic bungling and government incompetence of the highest order. The title of Mr. Justice Richard's report on the tragedy – the inquiry took five years and cost nearly $5 million – says it all: The Westray Story: A Predictable Path to Disaster.
Richard's report zeroed in on Curragh Resources Inc., the private company that managed the coal mine, and government inspectors who ignored glaring safety abuses, among them:

Inadequate ventilation design and maintenance that failed to keep methane and coal dust at safe levels;
Unauthorized mine layout, forcing miners to work risky tunnels to get the coal out faster;
Methane detectors that were disconnected because of frequent alarms;
Procedures to "stonedust" coal to render it non-explosive, which were done only sporadically, usually before inspections;
An "appalling lack of safety training and indoctrination" of miners.

From the start, the mandate of the Westray operation was clear: get the mine running, get the coal out, sell it quickly.

Miners concerned Westray was dangerous

Toronto-based Curragh Resources Inc. announced the creation of the Westray mine in the village of Plymouth on Sept. 1, 1988, five days before the provincial election in Nova Scotia. The coal mine was described as a $127-million operation, which would create 300 new jobs in the area. The next day the Nova Scotia government promised to contribute a $12-million loan to the mine.

Relatives of a miner killed in the Westray mine disaster watch as workers install a memorial to the lost men in New Glasgow, N.S., on May 7, 1993. (Andrew Vaughan/Canadian Press)

A week later, Nova Scotia Power Corp. announced a deal to buy 700,000 tonnes of coal a year for 15 years at a price of $60 to $74 a tonne. The reserves of coal at the Westray mine were estimated at 45 million tonnes. Another week later, the Bank of Nova Scotia kicked in a $100-million loan to the mine operation, with the federal government guaranteeing 85 per cent of it.
The facilities at Westray were supposed to be state of the art. The coal was there in abundance, the buyers were waiting for it, big loans were guaranteed by governments – everything was in place except some nagging concerns from workers that it was a dangerous mine and safety precautions were lax.
Looking back on the tragedy, Judge Richard commented: "A safe workplace demands a responsible and conscientious commitment from management – from the Chief Executive Officer down. Such a commitment was sadly lacking at the Westray mine.
"Since there was no discernible safety ethic, including a training program and a management safety mentality, there could be no continuum of responsible safety practice within that workplace. Complacency seemed to be the prevailing attitude at Westray – which at times regressed to a heedless disregard for the most fundamental safety imperatives."

Management failed, inspectors failed

"As I stated in the report," the judge said, "compliance with safety regulations was the clear duty of Westray management. To ensure that this duty was undertaken and fulfilled by management was the legislated duty of the inspectorate. Management failed, the inspectorate failed, and the mine blew up."
The Westray miners not killed in the blast, 117 of them, were awarded severance pay for 12 weeks, which came to $1.2 million. Individual cheques to the miners ranged from $6,626 to $12,367. A $30-million lawsuit was launched against the province of Nova Scotia by families of the dead miners, but Nova Scotia’s Supreme Court threw it out, ruling that the province was protected from lawsuits under the Workers Compensation Act.
Curragh Resources Inc. initially was charged with 52 non-criminal counts of operating an unsafe mine. The company went bankrupt in 1993. The charges then were dropped after a Nova Scotia judge criticized the way in which they were laid. The case went back to trial, was dismissed again, then the Supreme Court of Canada ordered a new trial.
Charges of criminal negligence and manslaughter had been laid against mine managers Gerald Phillips and Roger Parry, but these came to nothing when the Crown stayed proceeding, saying there was not enough evidence to ensure a conviction.
Clifford Frame, founder and chief executive officer of Curragh Resources Inc., refused to testify at the Richard Inquiry, as did Marvin Pelley, former president of Westray. The inquiry had no federal powers, which meant subpoenas could not be enforced outside of Nova Scotia, leaving company officials safe in their Toronto headquarters.

Westray Act a legacy of disaster

Tribute from a miner's son

Simon Lilley, the son of one of the miners killed in Westray, pays tribute to his father with this poem:
5:27 fast asleep,
Awoken by family,
My memory will keep,
My Father my guide,
Taken away,
By the deep underground,
Which brought us this way.

10 years ago,
A life changed forever,
Once a child full of hope,
Is now a man full of rage and sadness.

Oh how I miss you Dad,
Tear on the page.

As a family we don't forget,
Only those that do are full of regret.

You're close at heart,
But still underground,
I love you Father,
I miss you Father,
I remember Father,
Do They?

Ramsey Hart, a co-ordinator with Mining Watch Canada, says Westray's legacy can be measured in the application of the so-called Westray Act, a federal law enacted in 2004 that provided new rules for attributing criminal liability to corporations and representatives when workers are injured or killed on the job.
The law has been used in criminal prosecutions several times, but the courts have registered just two convictions.
"We don't seem to have switched the mentality to these being issues of criminality," Hart says. "Unfortunately, we are still seeing an unacceptable number of fatalities in mines. There are some disturbing indications that we may be losing some ground."
Though Nova Scotia's last operating underground coal mine was closed in 2001, plans are in the works to open another one in eastern Cape Breton as early as 2014. The proposed Donkin mine is in the midst of an environmental assessment.
Ten years ago the Westray operation was sold by the province. The remains of Westray have been knocked down, covered and seeded to grass, entombing the 11 miners whose bodies never made it up from the doomed mine.

First published May 9, 2002; updated with files from Canadian Press

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/westray-remembered-explosion-killed-26-n-s-coal-miners-in-1992-1.1240122

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CANADA ENCYCLOPEDIA...

Coal Mining Disasters

Coal mining involves deep workings, soft rock, dust, poisonous and flammable gases, explosives, machinery, transport and ventilation systems, and, in early times, open-flame lamps.

Coal mining involves deep workings, soft rock, dust, poisonous and flammable gases, explosives, machinery, transport and ventilation systems, and, in early times, open-flame lamps. Each has been a factor in the many Canadian coal mine tragedies, the worst of which are detailed here.

Nova Scotia

The first major Canadian coal mining disaster was at Westville, Pictou County, Nova Scotia, on 13 May 1873 after a shot of explosive ignited methane at the coal face. The fire caused a gas explosion, which, fed by coal dust, ripped through the mine and set off further explosions, killing workers and firefighters attempting their rescue. Those untouched by the blast and fireballs were brought down by the carbon monoxide left in the fire’s wake. The mine was sealed to starve the fire of oxygen, and two years passed before the last of 60 bodies were recovered.
The Pictou County coal field was particularly dangerous because the thick, methane-oozing seams made them prone to spontaneous combustion and explosion. Of the coal field’s 676 known mining deaths, 246 were from explosions. Experts considered Stellarton’s Allan mine the world’s most dangerous colliery. In the explosion of 23 January 1918, 88 died, leaving barely a family in the community untouched by the disaster.
From 1866 to 1987, 1,321 fatalities were reported in Cape Breton mines, including 65 in an explosion at New Waterford (25 July 1917), and 16 in Sydney Mines (6 December 1938) when a cable broke, sending a riding rake plummeting. The last explosion (Glace Bay, 24 February 1979) took 12 lives.
At Springhill, Nova Scotia, from 1881 to 1969, 424 persons died in mines, mostly in three explosions. On 21 February 1891, 125 miners were killed in an explosion triggered by a shot that flamed back and ignited gas. On 1 November 1956, six cars from a coal trip being hoisted broke away and crashed into an electric cable. The ensuing flash of electricity lit the coal dust generated by the crash, creating a huge dust explosion that killed 39. The event was notable for the rescue of 88 trapped survivors. On 23 October 1958, a “bump” (i.e., underground earthquake) killed 74 men in mine number two. Miraculously, 12 entombed men were found alive after six days and seven more three days later. They were rescued from levels as deep as 3,960 m — the deepest rescues ever conducted in Canada.

Western Canada

Canada’s worst coal mine disaster occurred on 19 June 1914 at Hillcrest, Alberta. It is believed that a rock fall struck a spark, setting off dust explosions that crippled the ventilating fans and burned away half the mine oxygen. As a result, 189 men died, leaving 130 widows and about 400 children. Also in the Crowsnest Pass, at Coal Creek near Fernie, British Columbia, 128 were killed in a methane explosion on 22 May 1902. Several explosions in this area were caused by lightning.

Canada’s second-deadliest mine disaster occurred in Nanaimo on 3 May, 1887 when 150 perished in an explosion. Vancouver Island knew its fair share of disasters, with such towns as Ladysmith and Cumberland joining Canadian communities like Bellevue and Lethbridge, Alberta, and River Hebert, Thorburn and Inverness, Nova Scotia in the annals of mine disasters in Canada.

Impact

Tragedy was not only in lives lost, but also in families bereft of their breadwinners in a society with little, if any, compensation, and no government-sponsored income security programs. Moreover, many were permanently injured in these accidents, never to work again, while destruction of a mine left miners unemployed.
Automation has reduced the workforce in modern collieries. The Westray mine in Plymouth, Nova Scotia, exploded on 9 May 1992, claiming 26 lives — the whole underground shift on duty. It was determined that sparks from the blade of a continuous mining machine exploded methane, which would not have been present with proper monitoring and ventilation. Fuelled by an illegal buildup of coal dust, the blast roared through the mine, wrecking everything in its path. The report of a commission of inquiry damned the negligent operation of the mine and flagrant violations of the Coal Mines Regulation Act. After the explosion, the Westray Families Group and the United Steelworkers successfully lobbied to amend Canada’s Criminal Code to assign criminal liability to organizations for acts of their employees and directors. Bill C-45 came into force on 31 March, 2004.
Rescue teams have been specially trained to save miners trapped in gas, fire, explosive, flood or other dangerous conditions. In 1906, the first self-contained breathing apparatus for mine rescue in North America was obtained by Glace Bay collieries. Rescue workers, known as draegermen, were responsible for saving many lives in mine disasters, usually working under precarious conditions and at great risk to their own lives. See also Mining Safety and Health.

Links to other sites

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Springhill Coal Mine Disaster Nova Scotia Canada 1956

Video Info

Source:	YouTube
Added:	6 years ago
Tags:	coal, springhill, disaster, canada, nova, scotia, fire, explosion, rescue, niosh
Categories:	Library
Description:	This clip describes the November 1, 1956 explosion in the No. 4 mine. Fire and a methane gas explosion hindered rescue efforts so that while 88 miners were rescued, 39 died. This was the second of three major disasters in the Springhill Mines over the years beginning with the Explosion on February 21, 1891 , with a loss of 121 men and boys. The last was the Bump on October 23, 1958 which saw the loss of 75 men. The Springhill Mining Company began coal mining in Springhill Nova Scotia in 1873.
Rating:	(1 rating)

http://www.infomine.com/library/videos/1747c0/springhill_coal_mine_disaster_nova_scotia_canada_1956.aspx

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PRAYING FOR CHILE...

SPRINGHILL
Canadians are praying for you, donating, rosaries, and lighting candles.... we love u so much....we think of you each and every day...
NASA to Help Trapped Chile Miners

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-PwDF73X5k
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Springhill, NS Coal Mine Explosion Disaster, Feb 1891
Submitted by Stu Beitler
A TERRIBLE MINE DISASTER.
PROBABLY ONE HUNDRED LIVES AT LEAST ARE LOST.
THE DISTRICT OF SPRINGHILL, NOVA SCOTIA, THROWN INTO MOURNING BY THE RESULTS OF AN EXPLOSION IN A COAL MINE AT SLOPE NO. 4.
Halifax, N. S., Feb. 21. -- Springhill, one of the most important coal mining districts of Nova Scotia, has been thrown into mourning by a terrible explosion that occurred in what is known as Slope No. 4, about 2 o'clock to-day. This part of the mine was opened a few days ago by a committee appointed by the workmen, who reported it to be in excellent condition. The Deputy Inspector of Mines finished a thorough inspection of all the pits yesterday, and found everything in splendid order. The cause of the explosion is a mystery. The mine has been terribly shattered, and the loss of life is very large. Rescuers are now at work bringing out the dead bodies, which are frightfully mutilated.
Heartrending scenes are being witnessed about the mouth of the pit. Sorrowful mothers and wives are to be seen everywhere, weeping and lamenting for those near and dear to them, and who are being brought up dead or wounded. The names of the injured so far rescued are:
HYATT NOILES; JOHN DIKENS; JOHN B. ANDERSON; GORDON CARMICHAEL; HUGH BUNT; JOHN CONWAY; HENRY NASH; CYRUS MUNRO; DAVID LOCKHART; and DAVID MERRITT. Doctors were summoned from neighboring towns and speedily answered the call. The work of recovering the dead is attended by considerable difficulty. There is, however, no lack of brave volunteers, who are doing good work.
The dead brought to the surface up to 9 o'clock to-night number twenty-three.
The majority of the bodies bear no marks of violence, death having apparently been caused by fire damp. Others are horribly mutilated and almost unrecognizable. Several of the rescue party were overcome by damp and were resuscitated with difficulty. The work of rescuing is still being vigorously carried on. This is a laborious task, and all who are now in the pit will certainly be dead before they can be reached. The number of those still under ground is estimated at eighty. Manager SWIFT is among the missing. The pits are clear of fire and ventilation has been restored in the neighborhood of the disaster, but owing to the damp no person has ventured into No. 6 or 7 balances. These places will be explored as soon as possible.
This is the first serious accident that has occurred at Spring Hill mines since they were first opened. General Manager COWAN arrived from Montreal only about an hour before the explosion took place. The mines turn out between 300,000 and 400,000 tons of coal a year, the market for it being largely in Ontario and Quebec.
One of many pathetic scenes was that of the fainting of a woman whose husband is among those in the wrecked pit and who stood with her three children clinging to her in a pouring rain watching the progress of the rescue work. The majority of the killed were husbands and fathers, and the calamity will fall heavily on a large number who are unable to help themselves.
The New York Times New York 1891-02-22
Total List of Casualties:
ARTHUR ANDERSON, 17.
JESSE ARMISHAW, JR., 21.
HERBERT ARMISHAW, 18.
JOHN BOYD, 27.
JOHN BENTLIFFE, 39.
WILLIAM BROWN, 19.
ANDREW BUNT, 19.
ALEXANDER BUNT, 15.
GEORGE BOND, 18.
WILLIAM BIRCHELL, 22.
ALONZO BUDD, 27.
ERNEST BAINBRIDGE, 20.
ERNEST CHANDLER, 16.
DONALD CAMPBELL, 47.
ALEXANDER CAMPBELL, 30.
JOHN D. CAMPBELL, 23.
REID CARTER, 50.
CLARENCE CARTER, 23.
WILLARD CARTER, 13.
JOHN CRAWFORD, 20.
JUDE CASEY, 21.
ANDREW CARMICHAEL, 32.
WILLIAM CARMICHAEL, 21.
JOHN CARMICHAEL, 36.
ROBERT CLARK, 37.
JAMES CONWAY, 24.
JOHN CONNERTON, 30.
WILLIAM CARRIGAN, 27.
MATTHEW COLLINS, 35.
RICHARD DAWSON, 45.
SAMUEL DAWSON, 20.
FRED DILLON, 17.
JOSEPH DUPEE, 12.
JOHN DUNN, 13.
THOMAS DAVIS, 15.
ROGER ERNEST, 15.
SAMUEL FURBOW, 17.
JOHN FRANCIS, 35.
HIRAM FIFE, 37.
THOMAS FLETCHER, 35.
DANIEL FINCILAYSON, 38.
LAZARUS GUTHRO, 56.
PETER GALLAGHER, 35.
JOHN GILLIS, 24.
THOMAS HALLET, 25.
PETER HANNIGAR, 25.
JOHN HAYDEN, 23.
JOHN HUNTER, 33.
WILLIAM HYDE, 35.
JAMES JOHNSON, 16.
WILLILAM KENT, 40.
SAMUEL LEGERE, 23.
FRANK LETCHER, 22.
HENRY LIVINGSTON, 24.
DAN LOCKHART, 24.
WILLIAM J. MAIDEN, 22.
GEORGE MARTIN, 14.
THOMAS MORRISON, 18.
SAMUEL MUCKLE, 21.
JAMES MORRIS, 50.
RICHARD MURPHY, 21.
JEREMIAH MURPHY, 37.
JAMES MILLER, SR., 50.
JOHN MITCHELL, 38.
ERNEST MOTT, 26.
ALLAN McKINNON, 35.
ANGUS McKINNON, 2nd, 51.
JOHN McKINNON, 1st, 26.
LAUGHLIN McKINNON, 23.
JOHN D. McEACHRAN, 22.
A. J. McKAY, 25.
DONALD McKAY, 2nd, 50.
WILLIAM McGILVERY, 2nd, 25.
WILLIAM McKEE, 45.
JOHN J. McDONALD, 42.
RORY B. McDONALD, 40.
ROBERT McFADDEN, 28.
NEIL McPHEE, 28.
CHARLES McNUTT, 24.
NEIL McLEOD, 23.
HENRY McLEOD, 18.
RORY McLEOD, 32.
NORMAN McLEOD, 29.
JOHN F. McNEIL, 32.
RODNEY C. McNEIL, 25.
JOSHUA McNEIL, 21.
NEIL S. McNEIL, 23.
DAVID McVEY, 16.
JAMES McVEY, 14.
CHARLES NASH, 27.
HENRY NASH, 24.
JOHN NAIRN, 50.
JAMES NAIRN, 20.
MALCOLM NAIRN, 21.
ROGER NOILES, 33.
MALCOLM NICHOLSON, 42.
JAMES OVERS, 25.
JOSEPH PITT, 20.
JAMES PEQUINOT, 15.
BRUCE RYAN, 14.
PHILIP ROSS, 14.
MURDOCH ROSS, 16.
PETER REID, 13.
CLIFFORD RIPLEY, 21.
THOMAS ROGERS, 21.
JAMES ROBBINS, 31.
STEPHEN RUSHTON, 31.
HUGH ROBINSON, 39.
HENRY SWIFT, 42.
ROBERT A. SHERLOCK, 45.
ARCHIBALD SHIPLEY, 35.
JAMES SHARPLES, 36.
HOWARD SIMMONDS, 17.
EDWARD SMITH, 14.
DOUGLAS TAYLOR, 16.
WILLIAM H. TURNER, 64.
JOSEPH TATTERSTAL, 45.
ALEXANDER VANCE, 35.
DAVID WATT, 17.
GEORGE WOOD, 21.
HENRY WRY, 18.
EDGAR WRY, 22.
PHILIP B. WHITE, 30.
JOHN WILLIAMS, 40.
THOMAS WILSON, 40.

Springhill's first mining disaster, the 1891 explosion, occurred at approximately 12:30 pm on Saturday, February 21, 1891 in the Number 1 and Number 2 collieries, which were joined by a connecting tunnel at the 1,300-foot (400 m) level (below the surface) when a fire caused by accumulated coal dust swept through both shafts, killing 125 miners and injuring dozens more. Some of these people were 10 to 13 years old.
Rescue efforts throughout that afternoon and evening were made easier by the lack of fire in No. 1 and No. 2, but the scale of the disaster was unprecedented in Nova Scotian or Canadian mining history, and the subsequent relief funds saw contributions come in from across the country and the British Empire, including Her Majesty Queen Victoria.
A subsequent inquiry determined that sufficient gas detectors in working order had been present in the two collieries; however, the ignition source of the explosion was never determined, despite investigators having pinpointed its general location.
http://www3.gendisasters.com/nova-scotia/5265/springhill-ns-coal-mine-explosion-disaster-feb-1891?page=0,2

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Earth

Springhill Mining Disasters - 1891, 1956 and 1958

Photographs

Source

Surface buildings, no. 1 slope, Springhill mine, Nova Scotia, 1897

Photograph of buildings, some equipped with large smokestacks, number 2 slope, Springhill mine, Nova Scotia, 1897

Source

Surface buildings, no. 2 slope, Springhill mine, Nova Scotia, 1897

Photograph of buildings, some equipped with large smokestacks, number 3 slope, Springhill mine, Nova Scotia, 1897

Source

Surface buildings, no. 3 slope, Springhill mine, Nova Scotia, 1897

Photograph of miners Bill Miller and Don Ferguson, their faces black with coal dust, after surviving the mine disaster, 1958

Source

Bill Miller (left) and Don Ferguson, survivors of the mine disaster, after coming out of the mine at Springhill, Nova Scotia, 1958

Source

Springhill, Nova Scotia, from the south, 1923

Photograph of a statue of a miner, 1894. The miner is standing with one hand resting on a pick and the other hand at his belt, from which is clipped a lantern

Source

"The Miner", a monument to those who lost their lives in the 1891 explosion

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Welcome to the Cape Breton Miners’ Museum

Situated on one of the most picturesque coasts of Cape Breton Island, on a 15-acre site filled with wild roses and grasses, the Cape Breton Miners Museum pays tribute to the region’s long and rich history of coal mining. It is home to profound stories of miners and their families, and the resource that helped build a nation. The Museum is also home to the famous choir of miners – The Men of the Deeps. Plan a visit to the Museum where you can join a retired mine guide for an underground mine tour, browse the modern exhibits and stroll through our historic village. Complete your visit with a delicious home cooked meal at the Miners Village Restaurant.
Cape Breton Miners Museum is trying to raise funds to repair our crumbling infrastructure. You can find out more about it here: https://www.gofundme.com/minersmuseum
http://www.minersmuseum.com/
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Mining Hope

Once, coal was king in Springhill, Nova Scotia. Then disaster struck. by Mark Reid

We’re speeding along the highway in north-central Nova Scotia, the scenery a blur of rolling, forested hills, when a sign appears in the distance. Growing closer, we make out the words: “Springhill — You should see us now.”
I pause momentarily.
For most passersby, this slogan would seem little more than a platitude. But for those who know the history of Springhill — a town all too familiar with disaster and sacrifice — it’s a defiant declaration that there’s life after loss.
Once, Springhill was synonymous with coal mining. Today it’s synonymous with coal-mining disasters, due to three terrible events that took the lives of several hundred men and ultimately killed the industry here.
As we head down Main Street, evidence of the town’s mining heritage abounds. White paint flakes off Miner’s Hall, established in 1927. The adjacent lot contains several grey concrete slabs and a tall monument, all bearing names of the many miners here who died in the pits.
We pull into the parking lot of the Springhill Miner’s Museum. Inside the nearby wash house, tour guide Tony Somers — decked out in a miner’s hard hat and thick-soled boots — is speaking to a group of teenagers who are in town for a music competition. He stands in the “dry” room, surrounded by picks and round-bladed spades — the tools of the trade for miners. Overhead, hanging by hooks from the ceiling, are the spare boots and clothing left behind by the last shift of men to ever work the mine.
Springhill’s first mine disaster occurred in 1891, when a coal-dust explosion ripped through the No. 1 and No. 2 collieries, killing 125 and wounding dozens more. A second disaster occurred in 1956, killing thirty-nine in the No. 4 shaft.
The mine museum is located at the former site of the Syndicate Mine, opened in 1960 and operated for ten years before the company shut it down for economic reasons. “The company just walked away,” Somers says. “Lots of men never got their final paycheque.”
Somers’ grandfather Harvey was a coal miner and was underground the day of Springhill’s most infamous mine disaster — the “bump” of October 23, 1958.
“He was working the night the bump happened,” Somers says. “Luckily, he was up higher in the mine and was able to escape.”
The accident occurred at the No. 2 colliery, which, at approximately 4,300 metres, was one of the deepest mines in the world. At around 8:00 p.m., the floors of the coal shafts suddenly slammed into the ceiling. Most men caught in the vicinity of the bump were crushed immediately. A handful of miners were trapped. The disaster, followed by a dramatic, almost week-long rescue effort, was covered live by CBC Television and beamed around the world. In the end, seventy-four of the 174 men caught in the disaster were killed.
Ironically, Somers says most miners welcomed small seismic tremors in the mines.
“It loosened up the coal,” he explains. The 1958 bump, however, was an industry killer. The mine never reopened, and over the ensuing decades Springhill saw its population erode from a high of 11,000 to less than 3,500 today.
Somers leads us to the lamp cabin. This is where miners traded in a small, round ID tag for a lamp and battery apparatus before heading down into the pit. Each miner was given an ID number, and they kept a duplicate tag in their pocket when they went underground. “It helped ID the dead bodies,” Somers says grimly.
Donning hard helmets and rain gear, we begin our descent into the mine. The walls of the shaft are dark and dank and the height from floor to ceiling is barely two metres. The floors are slick with continuously dripping water, which seeps through the braced wooden ceilings. The floor of the mine descends at a twenty-eight-degree angle — steep enough to make you feel tipsy if you stand in one place for too long.
Tough doesn’t begin to describe the miners who made these shafts their second home. Working “barefaced” — without breathing gear — the miners constantly sucked a stream of black soot into their lungs. Somers says most miners chewed tobacco because it was the only way to keep their throats moist.
The actual mining was done with pick and shovel, with miners on their knees hacking and stabbing at the coal seams in search of the bituminous black gold. Their only companions were pit ponies — sturdy steeds that spent their entire lives underground, as well as canaries, a sort of avian alarm system for gas detection, and rats that followed the men down in search of food.
“The men liked the rats,” Somers says.“They had the sixth sense. If you saw a bunch of rats running for the surface, you took off after them!”
We pass by a narrow airflow tunnel and enter another shaft. Suddenly, Somers slams a door behind us and turns off the artificial lights. We find ourselves in utter blackness, devoid of shape or sensation. It’s impossible to see your hands in front of your face. All we hear is the breathing of the man or woman standing beside us. After a few minutes, we all begin to feel claustrophobic. I can’t imagine how it must have felt for the dozen men who were trapped underground in the No. 2 colliery for almost seven days during the 1958 bump before being rescued.
When Somers finally restores the lights, there’s an audible sigh of relief from all of us.
Normally, the mine tour would also include a visit to a coal face, where pick-wielding tourists can hack a souvenir piece of coal out of the wall. However, the area of the coal face flooded in the spring of 2009 and had not reopened by the time of our visit.
A little later, we emerge from the mine. The air has never tasted sweeter, nor has the sky seemed so blue. I ask Somers how Springhillers feel about their town’s bitter legacy. Almost sixty years have passed since the last disaster, but for many Sprinhillers, it still seems like yesterday.
“There’s still a lot of hard feelings,” he says. “A lot of people lost their loved ones in the mines. A lot of Springhillers won’t come here because of the loved ones they lost.”
The conversation turns to the future of the town. Besides mine tours, the other major tourist attraction is the Anne Murray Centre (she’s a Springhiller).
Somers pauses, then mentions the flooded mine shafts beneath the town. For the longest time, the flooding of the mine shafts has symbolized the failure of the industry.
However, in an ironic twist, these flooded shafts today represent the best potential for the town’s revival. Springhill has become a hotbed of geothermal energy production, derived from the pressure-heated floodwaters in the coal shafts. From coal’s black past springs a greener future.
“That’s my hope, at least,” Somers says. “A greener future.”
Mark Reid, Editor-in-Chief of Canada’s History, grew up in a small mining village in Nova Scotia, a short drive from Springhill. This article originally appeared in the August-September 2010 issue of Canada's History magazine.

http://www.canadashistory.ca/Destinations/Getaways/Articles/NS/Mining-Hope

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The Great colliery explosion at Springhill, Nova Scotia ...

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The Great colliery explosion at Springhill, Nova Scotia, February 21, 1891 [microform] : full particulars of the greatest mining disaster in Canada, with a brief ...
Tour a Mine, Springhill Miners' Museum | Tourism Nova Scotia

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Tour a Mine, Springhill Miners ... Tour the depths of a Springhill coal mine, ... You’re sure to find lots of activities to fill your days in Nova Scotia. Browse ...

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The Great colliery explosion at Springhill, Nova Scotia, February 21, 1891: full particulars of the greates mining disaster in Cada, with a brief description and historical sketch of the Sprinhill collieries

Ancestry.com. The Great colliery explosion at Springhill, Nova Scotia, February 21, 1891: full particulars of the greates mining disaster in Cada, with a brief description and historical sketch of the Sprinhill collieries [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2008.

Original data: The Great colliery explosion at Springhill, Nova Scotia, February 21, 1891: full particulars of the greates mining disaster in Cada, with a brief description and historical sketch of the Sprinhill collieries. Springhill, N.S.: H.A. McKnight, [1891?].

http://search.ancestry.ca/search/db.aspx?dbid=33235

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JIMMY DEAN- BIG BAD JOHN- 1961

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Friday, November 6, 2015

Westray Coal Mine Disaster

Pictou County, Nova Scotia

At 5:18am on 9 May 1992 the Westray coal mine explodedkilling 26 miners

Springhill-NOVA SCOTIA CANADA-Enclopedia Britannica

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The Great colliery explosion at Springhill, Nova Scotia ...

Tour a Mine, Springhill Miners' Museum | Tourism Nova Scotia

The Great colliery explosion at Springhill, Nova Scotia, February 21, 1891: full particulars of the greates mining disaster in Cada, with a brief description and historical sketch of the Sprinhill collieries

Ancestry.com. The Great colliery explosion at Springhill, Nova Scotia, February 21, 1891: full particulars of the greates mining disaster in Cada, with a brief description and historical sketch of the Sprinhill collieries [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2008.

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At 5:18am on 9 May 1992
the Westray coal mine exploded
killing 26 miners