1908 Explosion of Union Pacific Coal Company's Hanna Number One Mine
Coroner's Inquest
COPY OF TESTIMONY DELIVERED AT
CORONER'S INQUEST HELD UPON
THE BODIES OF VICTIMS
OF THE EXPLOSIONS of
March 28th 1908
IN HANNA NO. 1 MINE, HANNA, WYOMING
also
COPY OF VERDICT RENDERED BY THE
CORONER’S JURY
Jurors:
Grant Routt;
Arsen Clavel;
E. A. Wallace.
Witnesses:
Jas. Walsh;
Wm. Bailey;
Jos. Woods;
Phil Gardner;
Thos. Love;
Thos. Wakely;
Geo. W. Hughes;
Chas. Johnson;
Andrew Brown;
T. H. Butler.
STATE OF WYOMING)
)ss
County of Carbon )
AT AN INQUISITION
Holden at Hanna, in Carbon County, on the 17th day of September, A. D. 1908, before me H. K. Bennett, Coroner of said County, upon the bodies of fifty-nine as per list attached, lying dead, by the jurors whose names are hereto subscribed, the said Jurors upon their oath do say that under the conditions all the direct evidence was killed in the explosion and from evidence produced before us we find that they all came to their deaths in Hanna Mine No.One on the 28th day of March, 1908, by an explosion of gas or other combustibles.
IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, The said Jurors have hereunto set their hands the day and year aforesaid.
JURORS.
(Signed) Grant Routt;
Arsen Clavel;
E. A. Wallace.
I herein certify that this is a true and correct copy of the verdict of the Coroner’s Jury at Hanna on Sept. 17th, 1908.
(Signed) H. K. Bennett,
Coroner
Victims of the First Explosion
Of March 28th, 1908.
Alex Briggs; Jos. Burton; Alfred Dodds;
Jas. Knox; John B. Evans; Harry Lyon;
John Rimmer; W. H. Pascoe; Robt. Herrin;
Robt. Warburton; Peter Munson; Ben Parry;
Emil Silvfast; John Ikonen; P. A. Boyd
Thos. Flint; Gus Raimey; Gabe Lahti;
Victims of the Second Explosion
Of March 28th, 1908
Aaron Madden; Jas. Tyner; T. D. Penn;
Elmer Johnson; Wm. Joki; Alex Tennant;
A. C. Corley; Chas. Harris; Jalmer Ollila;
Emil Hendrickson; Jonas A. Lynn; Abel Pura;
Anthony Dodds; Chas. K. Hughes; Harry Foster;
Mat Joki; John Cookson; Jas. Larson;
Alfred Halliday; Albert Riley; Wm. Johnson;
Mat Huhtala; Geo. H. Case; John Hoy;
Andrew Hoy; Henry C. Birchall; Richard Wilson;
Andrew Birchall; Sam McCormick; B. L. Frink;
Peter Travis; Jas. Smeaton; Wm. Burns;
John Tully; John Tate; D. M. Elias;
F. E. Collins; August Lakson; Ensti Karrika;
R. W. Armstrong; F. G. Burton
Jas. Walsh, being first duly sworn, testified as follows:
Q. What is your occupation?
A. Miner, in No. One Mine.
Q. At what part of the mine were you working on the 28th of March last?
A. I was between Nos. Five and Six Entries, on the East Side.
Q. Where were you working on March 27th?
A. I had not been working for a week, on account of fire in the entry.
Q. What do you know of the condition of things down as far as No. Ten Entry?
A. I only got down as far as between Five and Six Entries; I was helping take out the body of Ben Parry.
Q. You had not been in the mine for a week before that?
A. No, sir.
Q. What was the reason you had not been at work?
A. I was working in Ten Entry and could not work on account of the fire in that entry. I had just started on Monday morning.
Q. Had you been driven out of Ten Entry on account of fire before that time?
A. No, sir.
Q. How long before the explosion did the fire take place?
A. A week before, on Friday night.
Q. Were you working the night the fire started?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Did you men try to put the fire out?
A. Yes sir, the best we could; there was no water in the pipes.
Q. Could you see fire after you left there?
A. No, sir.
Q. Had you reported the fire after you came out?
A. Yes, sir, we reported to the Fire Boss; he was in there after we left.
Q. Which Fire Boss was it?
A. John Evans. The fire was in the top entry and we were in the back entry.
Q. How far was this fire from where you were working?
A. It was just off the cross-cut, about five or six feet off the face.
Q. You had to go back from the face and get through the cross-cut to the way to the top entry?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. How far in was Ten Entry?
A. About seventeen hundred feet, as near as I can tell.
Q. You never were in there after that night?
A. No, sir.
(Signed) James Walsh.
Wm. Bailey, being first duly sworn, testified as follows:
Q. What is your occupation?
A. Miner.
Q.You worked in No. One Mine, at Hanna?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. What conditions had you found in the mine, as to fire and gas?
A. We found lots of it in Ten Entry.
Q. Where were you working about the time of the explosion?
A. I was working in Ten Entry the week before the explosion.
Q. That’s the last place you worked?
A. I worked the night before the explosion, cleaning switches on the West Side.
Q. Had there been precautions taken, to your knowledge, to take care of this fire in the Ten Entry?
A. They had blocked it off.
Q. Do you know what kind of stopping was put in on this entry?
A. No, I never was up to it. I wasn't in there until after the first explosion; I was down as far as the overcast.
Q. How long have you worked in the mines here?
A. About five years.
Q. There has always been more or less fire in the mine during that time, in different parts?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Ten Entry always gave off lots of gas?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. What was the cause of the fire you speak of?
A. It was from a bottom shot; feeders at the bottom caught fire.
Q. Did it ever catch fire before the last time?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. And you put them out?
A. Yes, sir. We could not see any fire and thought it had been put out. We told the Fire Boss there was a fire in there and if we had water we could put it out in a couple of minutes; he said he could not help about the water and I said I could not help it either. I asked him if everything was all right when he left.
Q. It was always the policy to have water pipes in the top and back entries?
A. The water pipes were there but we could not get the water.
Q. You had had water before this time?
A. The pipes were up all right but we could not get the water.
Q. What was the object in having the water pipes in?
A It was for the purpose of putting out any fire that might occur or for keeping the dust down, I guess.
Q. How long had the water pipe been extended that far down?
A. It had always been there, ever since it started. We used to get water but it was not there that night.
Q. You don’t know whether or not Mr. Burton used water on the fire when he came down?
A. I could not tell you that.
Q. How long had this fire been blocked off when they started to open it again?
A. A week the first time, I think.
Q. You don’t know where they had the stopping in, do you?
A. No, I never was up to it; it was about six hundred feet from the slope, so they tell me.
Q. Do you know how far the face of Ten Entry was from the slope?
A. I think about sixteen hundred feet.
Q. The stopping would be about one thousand feet from the face?
A. Yes, sir.
(Signed) Wm. Bailey.
Jos. Woods, being first duly sworn, testified as follows:
Q. What is your occupation?
A. Fire Boss.
Q. In which of the mines do you work?
A. In No. One previous to the explosion.
Q. Had you been working in that part of the mine that is No. Ten Entry prior to the explosion?
A. Not just prior; I had been in there about two weeks before that.
Q. You were working in the capacity of Fire Boss at that time?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. What is your duty as Fire Boss?
A. To examine rooms and entries for gas and fire and see that the roof is safe for miners to go to work.
Q. And in case you find fire, what do you do?
A. Try to put it out if possible and if we cannot, report it to the Foreman.
Q. Had you been in No. Ten Entry and noticed the fire there?
A. No, sir.
Q. What shift were you on prior to that fire being discovered?
A. I believe that I was on the night shift, but am not sure.
Q. You started at nine o’clock at night?
A. I could not say for certain what shift I was on at that time.
Q. In case you find fire in the mine do you use water on it from those pipe lines that were there?
A. Yes, if there is water in them.
Q .Were you in there after the fire was discovered?
A. Yes, I was in on the afternoon just before they finished.
Q. It was sealed up perfectly air tight?
A. As far as possible with lumber.
Q. Was the stopping in about one thousand feet from the face?
A. It would be over that. That entry is nearly nineteen hundred feet in and first stopping would be four hundred feet from the slope.
Q. Between the time the stopping was put in and they opened the stopping to advance onto the fire would it be full of gas, both top and back entries?
A. It is quite possible.
Q. In your duties as Fire Boss did you ever examine the stopping after it was put in, to see if gas was escaping?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Did you every find any?
A. I believe our reports cover that question. I cannot remember what the reports are at that time.
Q. There was a man stationed there, was there not, after that stopping was put in to guard those entries to keep any one from going in there?
A. No, sir. There were danger boards put across the entry.
Q. You were not with the party that first opened the stopping to advance?
A. Not at the first. I was there when they finished the stopping and helped them close it off.
Q. Before you built the stopping did you try to put the fire out?
A. I was not with the party that was fighting the fire.
Q. You don’t know if they used the pipe or not?
A. I don’t know.
Q. Do you know whether or not there was any water in those pipes at that time?
A. I could not say for certain. Water was supposed to be in all the pipes on all the entries.
(Signed) Jos. Woods.
Phil Gardner, being first duly sworn, testified as follows:
Q. What is your occupation?
A. I was driving on Twenty-one Entry, on the West Side, previous to the explosion.
Q. What do you know about the condition of the mine around Ten Entry?
A. I never was over there a great deal and could not say much about it.
Q. You don’t know whether this explosion took place at Five Entry or not?
A. I supposed it was at Ten Entry.
Q. Were the pipe lines in the mine kept up on good condition?
A. I have not been in a position where I knew much about the water. I have seen them used but I guess there were times when they were broken and they did not have water from various causes; I have seen the water pipes broken.
Q. Where were you when the first explosion took place?
A. In the Blacksmith shop at the West Side.
Q. It has been customary to work in No. One Mine with open lights?
A. Yes, sir, in most places, unless there was something special.
Q. There has always been more or less fire or gas throughout the whole mine?
A. That’s what I understand.
Q.They have never had a great deal of trouble controlling the fires heretofore, to your knowledge?
A. I believe they have usually sealed them off.
Q. Did you ever drive on Ten Entry?
A. No, I don’t remember driving on Ten Entry. I have never been on the Entry and never was there for more than half an hour at a time and don’t know much about it.
Q. Were you there at the time of the second explosion?
A. I was outside, about twenty-five feet from the mouth of the slope.
Q. You had been in the mine before that?
A. Yes, sir, I had been to Ten Entry. I helped to carry Warburton’s body out.
Q. While you were in there did you have any reason to believe the place was not safe?
A. I naturally was scared from the first explosion but the Mine Inspector was there and it is generally considered that the Mine Inspector knows what he is doing.
(Signed) Phil Gardner.
Thos. Love, being first duly sworn, testified as follows:
Q. What is your occupation?
A. Clerk.
Q. Do you get around the mines at times, through the different parts?
A. No, sir.
Q. Do you know anything about the fire that happened in Ten Entry about a week prior to the explosion?
A. Nothing more than that the fire was there.
Q. You saw the reports that came to the office?
A. No, I don’t say that I saw any of them.
Q. Were you there at the time of the second explosion?
A. I had just left the East Side with the team having Warburton’s and Parry’s bodies. I was inside after the first explosion.
Q. You don’t know anything about the conditions of the mine, especially Ten Entry, prior to the first explosion?
A. No, sir.
Q. How did you know there was a fire on Ten Entry?
A. There was material ordered for that purpose - sent down to the mine to stop off the fire.
Q. How far did you go down on the East Side?
A. To Four Entry.
Q. Did you have a lamp with you?
A. No, I didn't have a lamp with me.
Q. Were there any open lights there?
A. No, there was not an open light in the mine; I didn't see any.
Q. Do you know whether both fans were running?
A. The West Side fan was running. The East Side fan was running also; I went in there with Inspector Elias before he went down.
Q. You don’t know at what speed they were running?
A. No, they were regulated by Inspector Elias.
Q. Didn't he give instructions to have the West Side fan speeded up before he went in the mine?
A. No, I don’t think he did.
Q. Did you notice the air that was going into the slope when you went down to Four Entry - take note about the quantity?
A. No, I didn’t take much note of it. There was plenty of good air on the slope.
(Signed) Thomas Love.
Thos. Wakely, being first duly sworn, testified as follows:
Q. What is your occupation?
A. Fire Boss in No. Two Mine prior to the explosion.
Q. You are acquainted with the working of No. One Mine?
A. I had not worked there for more than two years prior to the explosion.
Q. You have worked in there since the explosion?
A. No, sir, only that night.
Q. As a Fire Boss state just the condition of things as you saw them the night of the explosion.
A. After the first explosion - I was over at No. Two Mine when she went up – I took my lamp with me and went from No. Two to No. One and waited until Joe Woods and Dick Wilson got ready and we tried to get in the West Side; went down to the second cross-cut and found they were all blown out so we came back up again. Got a team and went over to the East Side; there were Frank Collins, Dick Wilson, Joe Woods and a few more - I don’t remember all of them. We got over there and went in and had a look at the fan; the top of the fan shaft was blown off; the fan was running about forty or forty-five revolutions. We stopped it and repaired the top of the fan shaft with brattice cloth; we run the fan at fifteen revolutions. Then we started down into the mine, putting stoppings in as we went.
Q. When you got down in the mine were you alone?
A. There must have been five or six of us together.
Q. Were you ordered down?
A. No, there was nobody ordered down; there was no one there to give orders.
Q.You didn't order anybody yourself?
A. No, sir.
Q. How far did you go down?
A. To Four Entry.
Q. Did you see any gas there?
A. We never found any gas, only at one Back Entry.Mr. Routt was there.
Q.That was explosive gas?
A. No, sir.
Q. Could you estimate, with that East Side fan running about fifteen revolutions, about the quantity of air it was forcing down that slope?
A. No, I don’t think I could.
Q. You don’t know anything about what the West Side fan was running?
A. No, sir. When we left the West Side to go to the East Side, the West Side fan was stopped; at least, I think it was.
Q. By the West Side fan running, the East Slope would be the intake and it would exhaust through the West Side fan?
A. It would seem that way to me.
Q.You don’t know of any places on the West Side where there would be any gas blocked off?
A. Not that I am particularly acquainted with. There were lots of old entries blocked off when I worked there but they were blocked off when I went there so whether or not there was any gas in them I could not say.
Q.You are not in a position to state definitely what caused either the first or second explosions?
A. No, sir.
(Signed) Thomas Wakely.
Geo. W. Hughes, being first duly sworn, testified as follows:
Q. What is your occupation?
A. Shot Firer.
Q. Where did you work?
A. I worked in No. One at the time of the explosion.
Q. You were the Shot Firer on Ten Entry?
A. No, sir.
Q. What do you know of the condition of things in Ten Entry?
A. I had been in Ten Entry previous to the explosion but not for a few months.
Q. Were you on Ten Entry after they had put the stopping in?
A. No, sir.
Q. You don’t know whether or not they had ever had a man placed there to guard the entry?
A. Not to my knowledge.
Q. Do you know whether in trying to remove any possible gas that might have accumulated in Ten Entry that gas would return on the East Side or the West Side?
A. I don’t know.
Q. Do you know who the Shot Firer was on that entry at the time?
A. John Tate.
(Signed) Geo. W. Hughes.
Chas. Johnson, being first duly sworn, testified as follows:
Q. What is your occupation?
A. Stable Boss inside the mine.
Q. When were you in No. One Mine prior to the explosion?
A. I was down at the bottom at two o’clock on the twenty-eighth of March.
Q. What did you see at that time?
A. I didn’t see anything. I just went down to feed the stock.
Q. You hadn’t been close to the entry since that time?
A. No more than just to pass on the slope.
Q. Did you meet Gus Raimey there?
A. I met him on the bottom. He took the trip and came down to the bottom to get his dinner and I was coming on out and he asked me why I didn’t wait for the trip as it would go out in about twenty minutes and I said I would be on top by that time.
Q. In going over there you went to the East Side Stables?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. On what part of the East Side were the stables located?
A. One stable at Six Back Entry and one at Two Back Entry.
Q. Did you go to Two Back Entry stable that day?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. In going up there that day did you see any one besides Raimey?
A. Only the ones with me; Bob Herrin and Jim Knox came up as far as Ten Entry and I went on up to Two Entry.
Q. Did any one say anything to you about the conditions in Ten Entry?
A. I asked Gus Raimey about it when I came back and he said, “We’ve got back four hundred feet”; I said, “From where they started Thursday?” and he said, “No, from where they started this morning.”
Q. He didn’t mention anything about the conditions in Ten Entry, whether they had fire or gas in there?
A. He didn’t say anything only what he mentioned about going back four hundred feet.
Q. You had a safety lamp with you?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. When you came up to the top did you see the trip come on top?
A. No, sir; when the trip came up I wasn’t there.
(Signed) Chas. Johnson.
Andrew Brown, being first duly sworn, testified as follows:
Q. What is your occupation?
A. Miner.
Q.You have been working in No. One Mine before the explosion?
A. Yes, sir; previous to the explosion and since.
Q. Can you give the jury an idea of the conditions of the mine prior to the explosion?
A. The conditions of the mine previous to the explosion, with the exception of No. Ten Entry, were comparatively safe.
Q. What were the conditions of Ten Entry?
A. Ten Entry was on fire for a week previous to the explosion and was built off.
Q. Were you up there at the fire at Ten Entry?
A. No, sir.
Q. When had you been there last?
A. I had not been there for a week before the explosion.
Q. Did you know it was on fire?
A. Yes, sir; Tom Flint had built it off. I was at work building stoppings at Eighth Entry at that time and I know that Ten Entry was built off because I cut the material for it.
Q. Were you in the mine after the first explosion?
A. No, sir; I was just going toward the East Side slope when the second explosion occurred.
Q.You have worked there ever since then right along?
A.Yes, sir; from the top down to the water.
Q. From the indications in there could you gather an idea of the cause of the second explosion?
A. Of course that is a thing we may all be cheated in, but I do not think it occurred in Ten Entry. From the indications we have there I think the second explosion occurred in Six Entry; it is not positively known where it occurred and probably never will be.
Q. Why do you think the second explosion took place at Six Entry?
A. There was a curtain at Eight Entry that the rescuers hung there that has never blown down yet; had the second explosion occurred at Ten Entry this curtain would have been blown down, being so near at hand.
Q.There was never any gas found at Six Entry, was there?
A.Yes sir. Chas. Hughes and Alf Halliday were both found at Six Entry; Chas. Hughes was lying just inside the switch at Six Entry and Alf Halliday was lying eighteen feet further in on the entry.
Q.You don’t know of any body of gas existing prior to the explosion, in Six Entry?
A. No, but naturally on the return there would certainly be gas coming from Eight and Ten Entries.
Q. There was a pipe line all over the mine before the explosion?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. Was the pipe line kept in working condition?
A. The pipe line was in pretty good condition all along.
Q.That water used on the East Side was taken down?
A.Yes, it was the same water that we use in Hanna.
Q.You spoke of canvas being up on eighth entry; isn’t there any indication that the force went inside of Eight Entry?
A. Had the explosion occurred at Ten Entry it would have come up the return airway and blown that canvas down. I think the second explosion occurred at Six and went down toward the West Side; I mean the explosion went down and up.
Q. It blew cars and material in both directions at Six Entry?
A. Yes, sir.
(Signed) Andrew Brown
Jos. Woods, being recalled, testified as follows:
Q. What was the general condition of the mine previous to the explosion?
A. The conditions previous to the fire were good, with the exception of Three Entry on the East Side, and Eight and Ten Entries were giving off gas at various times.
Q. Do you know whether that pipe line in Ten Entry was in working condition?
A. I could not say whether or not it was in good working order at that time but I think if it had not been, there would have been a report made to the Foreman.
Q. There was no report ever made of any fire in Ten Entry until the fire was found there?
A. Not previous.
Q. How close to the face was this water pipe in Ten Entry?
A. I could not say. When we drove a cross-cut it was extended from the one cross-cut to the other. It never was over fifty or sixty feet from the face.
Q. In your opinion what do you believe to be the cause of both the first and second explosions?
A. It is hard to form an opinion by the conditions of the mine after the first explosion.
Q. You believe Ten Entry to have been full of gas inside the stopping?
A. Yes, I am sure of that - inside to the first stopping that was put in on Thursday.
Q. That would have been fifty or sixty thousand feet of gas?
A. It could not be measured. The stopping was put in Thursday and was leaking the same night. The air after the first explosion seemed to be going too strong down the East Side but we could not find where it came from for we cut down the East Side fan to fifteen revolutions and shortly after that there was a big current going down. We got down as far as One Entry when I came back on the slope and found there was lots of air going down. Just then Mr. Elias came and I asked him what they were doing with the West Side fan and he said he didn’t know. I told him we had too much air going down and thought it was due to the West Side fan pulling through or we had a back fire on the bottom somewhere; I asked him his opinion and he said he couldn't form any theory at all as to what was causing it. In regard to the first explosion, we found Two Entry with lots of old timber and it was blown in all directions. In regard to One Entry, the stopping was blown inside. Three Entry stopping was blown inside. Four Entry was not damaged. At Six Entry the cars were blown out on the slope. The stoppings between Six and Eight Entries were all blown out, but between Eight and Ten Entries the stoppings were intact; they were not blown out at all. Ten Entry was not damaged either, with the exception of the undercast and overcast being blown in all entries. I think it would be impossible to form an opinion as to where either the first or second explosions came from, or what the correct cause was.
Q. In Six Entry were the cars blown down the slope?
A. They were not blown down the slope; they were blown right across it. There were cars right there on the slope.
(Signed) Joe Woods.
T. H. Butler, being first duly sworn, testified as follows:
Q.You are Superintendent of the mines here, are you not?
A.Yes, sir.
Q. You had worked prior to the explosion in No. One Mine?
A. I had sometime ago, yes sir.
Q. I wish you would state what you know of the condition of the mine just before the explosion.
A. I do not know anything of the condition of the mine as I had not been in it for two years prior to the explosions.
Q. You were in the mine after the first explosion?
A. I was not in any great ways - possibly a hundred feet or so down the slope on the East Side.
Q.You don’t know whether the water was in running order in Ten Entry the day of the fire, do you?
A. I could not state.
Q. Do you know anything about the number of revolutions the East Side and West Side fans were running at the time?
A. No sir. I was not interested in the mining part of it at all. I was working in the office and did not pay any attention to those things whatever.
(Signed) T. H. Butler
Wm. Bailey, being recalled, testified as follows:
Q. In regard to those pipes, you stated that the water was not running.
A. No sir; we could not get any water.
Q. You tested it and tried?
A. Yes, sir.
Q. You don’t know whether or not it was through the pipes being broken?
A. I don’t know only that we couldn’t get any water.
Q. You told the Fire Boss when you left him that you could not get water?
A. Yes, sir.
(Signed) Wm. Bailey.
Hanna, Wyo. Sept. 29th, 1908
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
I hereby certify that the foregoing is a true and correct transcription of the testimony given at the inquest held upon the bodies of the victims of the explosions in Hanna No. One Mine on March twenty-eighth, 1908.
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Subscribed in my presence and sworn to before me this twenty-ninth day of September, 1908.
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Notary Public