Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1882-02-05
TERRIBLE EXPLOSION,
In a Virginia Goal Mine.
Thirty-two Men in the Sha1
When it Occurred.
No Hope that a Single One G
Them Escaped. j

CoALFIRLD, VA, February 5.--An
explosion occurred at the Grove
shaft of the Midland coal mines,
about eleven and a-half miles from
here, about l o'clock yesterday
Thirty-two men were caught IN the
shaft, and there is little or no hope
that any one of them will be gotten
out alive. Gas testers went down 70
the bottom of the pit three times,
but were forced to return on account
of smoke and gas. They will try
again to-day to reach the unfor
tunates. News of the disaster rap
idly spread, and soon a crowd had
gathered. The scene was distraeting,
as nearly every one had some rela>
tive or friend among the buried men.
The cause of the disasteter is not
positively known. Some attribute it
to gas, and others say the boiler in
the pit exploded.
George w. Doods, the superin~
tendent, states that gas testers made
an examination yesterday morning,
and reported that there was no gas
to burn. There is no doubt, how
ever, that those not killed by the ex :
plosion will be suffocated by gas and
smoke, with which the pit is choked,
which no fresh air can penetrate.
The following is a list of the miss
ing: White: II. Marshal Boteller,
Jas. E. Hall, Thos' nj. Hall, George
Jenkins, A. w, Jewett, JAS. Brown,
Jas. Cornief, John Morris, Jas.
Shields and Richard Coghill. Col
ored: Richard Morgan, Robert
Benford, Samuel Cox, Pleasant
Steamer, Joseph Cullon, Benz.
Brooks, Alex. Logan, Peter Hopper,
Mayor Pollard, - Coleman, John
Greer, Lewis Hobbs, d. Harmon, Ike
Groves, Thos. Samuels, Albert
Hughes, James Mills, JEFF. Coleman,
Fred. Anderson. The shaft in which
the explosion occurred is nearly 600
feet deep, running about three-quars
ters of mile in a lateral direction.
The mines belong to the estate of
the late II. Fl. Burrows, of New York,
and cost, twelve years ago, between
forty and fifty thousand dollars.
RICHMOND, Va, February 4.-The
information received here this morn>
ing from the Midlothian mine dis~
aster is of a most discouraging ma
ture. There is no earthly hope that
any of the entombed are now alive.
Every effort is being made to enter
the pit, but it will be impossible to
reach the point where the men are
for days, and, perhaps, weeks. The
explosion destroyed all the apparat-
us, including that used for ventila.
ton, and this will have to be rep aced
before successful operations can be
resumed. AS may be sup posed, this
frightful calamity has cost the
deepest gloom over the village oi
Midlothian, where most of the miners
have their homes. A majority of the
victims were married men, and il
many cases their families are left
without support and dependent upor
, charity. William H. Marshall, thu
bottom boss, was the son of an ole
| English miner, brought here by al
, English company operating the mines
fifty years ago. He was aged Al
, and had wife and four children
James E. Hall, deputy bottom boss
} was native of Chesterfield County
| and was about 45 years of age. Th,
two Jewells were young men ant
1 sons of English an miner. JOSEPH
t CONNER was of Welsh extraction
: His father was killed in an explosion
3 in the same shaft in 1876. JOIN
. Mooris, aged 20, was the son of /
: blind Engishman who lost his eye
: in the pits.