St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-09-30
BURIED In A MINE.
TWenty-Six Bodies That Will
Never Be Recovered.
AWFUL DISASTER I'M MICHIGAN.
Contents Of a River Emptied
Into an Ore Pit.
TWENTY MINERS ESCAPE DEATH.
The Mine Caved In From Top
to Bottom.
AWFUL DISASTER I'M MICHIGAN.
TWENTY MINERS ESCAPE DEATH.
s600,000 or PROPERTY LOST:

CRYSTAL FALLS, Mich, Sept. ga
mine casualty without parallel i'll the
annals of the mining industry of this
country, if not the world, occurred at
the Mansfield, the only producer of
Bessemer ore in the Crystal Falls min
ing district, and located six miles from
this city. at 9 o'clock last night. The
mine caved in from the top to the bot
tom, burying twenty-SiX workmen and
entailng a loss of S6OO,O00 The Mans
field shafts are located on the west bank
of the Michigamme river, and the work
ing levels of the mine ran directly un-
der the stream and parallel with it for
distance of several hundred feet. The
first level was thirty five feet below the
bottom of the river, and the lower lev
els, five IN number, ran parallel to the
first, the bottom being 42S feet below
the surface of the water. The five up
per levels have beeh sloped out in the
progress of the work, leaving only TIM
bers and pillars of ore to bear the
mighty weight OF the floors of ore above.
The accident is supposed to have been
caused by the giving away of the tim
bers on the fifth level. allowing those
above to follow, and at last the river to
pour in upon
TIE FATED MEN.
After the cave the river bed below
the mine was dry for an hour ana forty
minutes. Forty-eight men descended
the shaft last night OF this number
twenty escaped an awful death and
twenty-eight found watery graves.
Their bodies will never be recovered.
Most of the survivors were at work on
the bottom level, which had not yet
been sloped out, and consequently did
not cave when the levels above fell.
The men heard the crash of the cave
and started for the ladderway. All but
four OH this level reached the ladder
way before the torrent of water down
the shaft cut off their avenue of escape.
Tony Buletto, the skip tender, was
standing with Frank Rookie, night
boss. at the shaft on the fourth level.
They heard the crash, and realized what
was coming. Rocko went into the drift
to inform his men of their danger, but
did not return. Buletto came to the
surface in the skip alone. Andrew
Sullivan, another night boss or fore
man, was on the sixth level at the time
of the accident. He realized his dam
ger, and called to his men to follow him
quickly. All but four men OH this level
reached the ladderway in safety. AS
they assembled, however, they were
nearly sutfOcated by the water pouring
down the shaft, so great was
THE AIR PRESSURE.
They were able to breathe only as
each landing place was reached, and
they came to the surface more dead
than alive. Mine Inspector Roberts
states that his deputy has been en-
ployed in the mine and has given the
work daily attention. He also says that
he has visited the mine personally at
the required intervals, and that the
proper amount of timber has been
placed in position by the company. ut
is only a clear demonstration" SAID he,
that the timbering system of mining
cannot he employed i'll that sort Of
ground. The company has taken all
necessary precautions in the conduct of
the work" The lost miners are:
Samuel Peters, married; James Strong,
married; w. Ii. Pierce, married; Frank
Rocko, Swan Johnson, Mike Harring-
ton, Frank Johnson. Sam Johnson,
Sheltimo Zodra, Pete Tury, Nicolo Fon-
TAM, Charles Pohl, married; John Hol-
strom, BaX Forturali, John Kirruphu,
John Randall, John Warner, Oscar
Lundquist, Chiric ArcanZelO, Ant Ste
fano, August COlogna, Cd CONSTANT.
Vigils Zodra, Colisti Nezri, Altorez-
Zani. The Mansfield was developed
about six years ago, and has worked
continuously since. 1t was a producer
of high-grade Bessemer ore, and it is
estimated to have contained 100000
tons in sight when the accident oc-
CURED. Today it is worthless pit
only marked by a small bay sunk from
the natural bed of the Michigamme by
the cave.
The death of twenty eight men
marked the end of the Mansfield mine.
for unless the river be forced to seek
another channel, this rich deposit of
iron ore can never be worked again.
Eight Of the victims leave families of
children fatherleSs, and about half of
the remaining twenty were the support
of parents.
The news was slow in reaching the
outside world. The nearest telegraph
office is at Crystal Falls, six miles
away, and, though q railroad track runs
INTO the mine, 1t was only used to haul
out ore and haul in supplies. A cou-
rier carried the news to Crystal Falls
last night, but not until this morning
was the news flashed abroad.
In the number of lives lost this is be-
lieved to have been the greatest disas.
ter that ever occurred in the Lake Su-
periOr iron regions. What measures, if
any, can be taken to rescue the bodies
of the dead, are yet undetermined. The
careful survey of the ground by
competent engineers will have to be
made, for the first step toward getting
in the flooded workings must be to
divert temporarily or permanently the
course of the Michigamme river and
then pump out the mine.
John NJ. Longyear, of Marquette, one
of the chief owners of the fee OF
the property, said this afternoon that
the land had been leased to Calhoun &
Teny, of Chicago. and that they had
formed the Mansfield Mining company
Mr.. Lcngyear's belief is that the disas
ter was caused by ''robbing" the mine,
that is by working in reckless mannsl