Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1891-01-31
Appalling Disaster In the Pennsyl--
vania Coke Regions.
One Hundred and Ten Miners Ush-
cred Into Eternity without
Moments Warming.
Frightfui Results of an Explosion OF
Fire-Damp in N. G. Frick & Co.'s
Mammoth Mine.
The Mine Badly Wrecked and Fragments
of the Mems Bodies Piled In a Solid
Mass In the Shaft-Not One Es-
capped to Tell the Story of
the Disaster.

the DlSaSters
MOUNT PLEASANT, Pa, Jan. 29.-A
terrible explosion occurred Tuesday
morning in the shaft of the mine at the
II. c. Frick Mammoth works. 1t is very
difficult to get much in the way of de-
tails. The Mammoth works are on the
Sewickley branch of the Southwest
Branch railroad and are about half way
between Latrobe and this place. At
the time of the accident there were no
men at work in the shaft, which is not
very deep. There was q sudden explo-
sion of gas at the point where the men
were at work
Mine Boss Eaton, who escaped about
one minute before the explosion, is the
only individual remaining to relate the
story. An order for eighty coffins was
given to u Mount Pleasant undertaken
yesterday afternoon. John Boles, whose
brother is in the fatal shaft, was here
last evening and relates the following
story:
'About nine o'clock Tuesday morning
we heard a loud report in the direction
of the shaft. We Immediately started
to the opening, only to find suffocat-
ing volume of smoke and gas gushing
therefrom and at once knew what was
wrong. We began the work of subdu-
ing the flames and clearing the shaft OF
gas This we accomplished by starting
the large fans. l am convinced that
every man who was in the shaft at the
time was killed, either by falling tim
bers or by the after-damp. Whan 1 left
the mine in the evening fifty persons
were known to have been killed"
District Master Workman Wise has is
sued an appeal to the miners and coke
workers throughout the coke regions
for prompt contributions in aid of tho
unfortunate victims of the disaster.
The names of those so far identified
are as follows: August Lunk, Jr.; Mike
Stonyek, Sr.; Mike Stonyel1, Jr.; Will
lam Burchell, Stephen Swatz, Steve
Horen, James Duple, James Dori, Will
lam Snaitt, Patrick Lumbley, Priz
Newell, Louis Lewis, William Lewis,
James Murphy, Jacob Meyers, John
Kocher, Martin Brannon, George Will
son, Mike Kelley, Frank Keskey, John
Eaton and David Gordon.
The other bodies taken from the mine
iIc oO ulldU biCy Cdh
not be identified. AS they are brought
out the bodies are removed to one of the
company's houses and prepared for
burial. Several undertakers are en-
gagged at this work. The Westmoreland
County coroner is at the scene and is
preparing for an investigation.
PITTSBURGH, Jan. 2S.-A special rep
resentative of the United Press now at
the scene of the accident telegraphs from
Youngwood, Pa, as follows:
Zone hundred and ten men were
killed in the mine explosion at Mann
moth mine No. 1. Sixty of the bodies
have already been recovered. The mine
is on fire and it is thought that many of
the unfortunates will be burned before
it is possible to reach them. An army
of men are at work in the pit endeavor-
ing to stay the fire and recover the dead
bc1ies. They are making but little head
way"
One hundred and ten men were en-
ployed in that part of the mine in which
the explosion occurred and not one was
left to tell the story of the disaster. Not
more than fifty of the men were killed
by the explosion. The others were
overcome by the after-damp, and while
some of the bodies are horribly torn,
burned and mutilated, others were
found with their teeth clinched on the
iron track of the pit road. Others were
found with faces plunged into the wa
ter and not few were found upon their
knees as if engaged in prayer.
Fire Boss Sheath was identified by his
gum boots. His body was scattered
about in a dozen places. His head was
torn from his shoulders. Both legs were
torn off and that part of his body recov-
cred was roasted and blackened. His
left hand clutching his lamp was found
over 100 feet from the trunk of his body.
One of his boots was found fifty yards
away. One of his feet with part of a leg
attached was found also. When the
parts of his body were collected and
sent in a sheet to the pit mouth they
were identified by an engineer recog-
nizing the boots.
There is little information regarding
the horror. Everybody in the pit was
killed. The position of their bodies
told the story of their end The force
of the explosion was felt for miles
around and caused a panic among the
| pupils in the township school house
nearly mile away. The men en-
ployed in the Mammoth No. 2, sepa-
rated by 100 acres of coal, felt the shock
and Were the first to sound the alarm.
The scenes around the shaft mouth
are indescribable. Mothers, sisters,
children and old men crowd about eager
to recognize their loved ones. Their
wailings and shrieks of anguish strike
terror to the stoutest hearts. Scarce a
house in the hamlet but is in mourning,
and this work of carrying out the dead
continues.
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