The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1901-08-30
Big CAVE-lN
AT The SIBLEY
TWO HOUSES BADLY DAMAGED
BY THE SETTLING.
Dam Was Broken Inside the Mine
and Workmen Had to Flee to Es-
cape Death by Drowning-Water
in Creek Disappears, But a
Neighboring Well Retains Its Con-
tension One Lot the Pitch of the
Surface Was Reversed - Mine
Thrown idle.

one of the most extensive mine cave
ins ever recorded i'm the anthracite re-
gion occurred late Wednesday night in
the Sibley mine, owned and operated
by Elliott Mcclure K 60.
The Sibley mine is located on what
is known as the Back road, in Lacka-
wanna township, and is about two
miles west from Jermyn & Co.'S store
at Rendham. A number of settings
have occurred in the mine, but none
of them have been so noticeable be-
fore and this is the first instance, as
far as is known that any property
has been damaged.
The settings have practically ruined
the frame dwelling house, fronting or
the Back road. which was occupied by
Eugene Beagle and family, and the
adjoining property, owned and occu-
pied by George +. Wade, is also separ-
ated from its foundation and damaged
considerably.
The Beagle family were about to
retire for the night, when they heard
a rumbling noise, which shook the
house from it's foundation. The
father and mother hastily gathered UP
their three children and fled from the
house to a place OF safety. When
they deemed it safe to make an inves-
tigation. it was discovered that the
foundation and the house had dropped
several feet from it's original position,
and large fissures were found at var
ious points in the yard, which were
wide enough to insert sticks three
inches wide.
The ground adjoining the Beagle
house. which was originally on an in
cline from the rear of the yard 10
the front, has dropped several feet at
the center while the earth from the
front yard now slants towards the set
tling, which is the reverse of what
1t originally was. The house is
pitched clean out of plumb, and the
| foundation walls beneath il are
cracked and ruined beyond repair.
STOPPED THE CLOCK.
The doors and windows in the build
| ing are all out of place. and the paper
on the walls inside is cracked and torn
| peculiar incident in connection with
| the occurrence is that the clock in tn,
| Beagle house stopped at 1870 p. m.
| the time the settings occurred.
The force of the fall broke the dan
Of water inside the mines at tha
| point, and the men on the night shift
| were compelled To flee for their lives
| one of the mules was caught in tn,
! flood and Is supposed to have beer
drowned. The mine was idle yestar
| day, and the extent of the inside work
| ings has not yet been determined.
A force of men was put to work yes
| "a al 10 IA.
Beagle house, through which the com
pany expects to reach the flooded par
Of the mines and pump the water out
The place where the settling occurred
was in abandoned workings, and tn
ground at that point has been con
sldered unsafe for some time
The settings extend Rr up the hill
side behind the Beagle house, and a
several points can be seen opening
big enough to swallow up hors
and wagon easily. The surface veil
runs out above the point of the pres
ent cave-in. and the coal has long ag
been worked out there.
In the front yard of the Beagle resi-
dence, several large cracks are notice
able, and the fence surrounding tn
lot is all out of place by reason of tn
settings. The front gate is severa
inches out of plumb. Another peculia
thing is that the water remains in ,th
well on the premises, while the watel
which usually courses through a cree
running between the Beagle and Wad
houses. has disappeared. The bolt q
the inside of Beagle's side door wa
broken off by the jar it received.
Is BADLY TWISTED.
The foundation wall looks as II
mason had been at work with a sledg
hammer, knocking holes in it, and IN
house has the appearance Of havin
been raised at one end and lowered a
the other. The supporting pillars /
the cellar were knocked out of plac,
and the fSsures extend through tn
cellar floor at various places.
The Beagle family have vacated tn
premises and refuse to go back. q
they are afraid of additional settllnj
The Wade family are away from hon
and as the house is all locked up III
interior damages could not be learne,
The exterior damage to the Wat
property consists Of cracks in the -four
dalton, which has settled several inchC
at different places. The ground hs
also settled some, and the fences an
barns on the rear of both lots hay
been damaged. In all proba ability II
Beagle house will have to be tor
down.
\ large number Of people visited Il
scene of the cave-in yesterday, ar
: doubtless many more will go dow
that way today. Operations at II
Sibley mine have been suspended as
result, and 1t is not known now whe
they will resume.