WITHYMORE. Rowley Regis, Staffordshire. 16th November, 1864.

The colliery was the property of Messrs. Edwin and Joseph Nock and eight colliers lost their lives in the accident. A skip containing eight men and boys was being raised at 6.15 p.m. when the chain caught on one of the horns of the drum, and in falling off one of the angles on the square drum shaft, snapped and the skip fell 70 yards and a length of 90 yards of chain fell on top of them. All of men and boys were killed on the spot.

An inspection of the winding apparatus after the event by Mr. Baker, the Inspector, revealed that the chain was a very good one and when tested had a breaking strain of 19 tons 3 cwt. but there was a serious defect in the pit frame that supported the pulley. It was about fifteen inches from the vertical and it was this that cause the chain to catch on the horns of the drum on the side towards which the frame leaned. From the wear on the horns, it was clear that this had been the case for some time. The engineman said the chain first caught on the point of one of the horns and as the drum revolved, fell off onto the square drum shaft, the sharp angle of which caused the chain to snap.

Those who lost their lives were:

  • Joseph Russell,
  • E. Stubbs,
  • E. Caperrell,
  • E. Greenfield,
  • B. Cooper,
  • Charles Crompton and two others.

There were three inquests held on the deaths of the men, one of these was presided over by Brook Robinson, coroner for Worcestershire and the other two by Edwin Hooper one of the Staffordshire coroners. Mr. Baker commented:

The cause of the accident was clear, but the juries, as is often the case, experienced considerable difficulty in ascertaining who was responsible for the defective state of the winding apparatus and the result was that each jury returned a verdict involving the charge of manslaughter, but in each case against different persons, the last which sat expressly exonerating the persons committed for trial on the finding of the juries which had previously sat.

It was fully proved at the inquests that the cause of the accident was that the frame which supported the pulley had been sinking for some considerable time. There had been a fire underground at the colliery which had caused subsidence on one side of the frame but not the other. The frame had been adjusted by raising one leg. There had been a strike at the colliery and all the Staffordshire collieries and work had been suspended for some weeks and during that time the subsidence had gone on to a considerable extent. The colliers said that it had been raised on several occasions after they had gone back to work. The Inspector commented:

It was evident that grievous neglect had been shown in not more carefully watching the subsidence which was well known to be going on, and in not taking effectual means to make the “pulley” frame firm and true.

The partner who was the general manager of the colliery was Edwin Nock and up to three weeks before the accident, there was a head engineer, Crispin Southall. He took responsibility for the engines and winding and pumping apparatus in the pit. He said he had been instructed to inspect the head frame and after the resumption of work, it was in good order.

At the first inquest Nock stated that Southall left his employ he employed an engineer named James Leedham and the jury evidently inferred that this man took Southall’s place as head engineer. The banks man stated that the frame was raised on the orders of Zechariah Mason, the manager of the colliery. The result of the first inquest brought in a verdict of manslaughter against Mason as manager of the colliery and Joseph Leedham as chief engineer.

At the second inquest, before Mr. Hooper the Staffordshire Coroner, Edwin Nock stated that Downing, the man in charge of the engine at the time of the accident was responsible for the machinery at the pit and that Mason was only the deputy or doggy. The result of this inquiry was a verdict of manslaughter against Edwin Nock.

The third inquest was also before Mr. Hooper, it was shown that Mason went down the pit on the morning of the accident and he said that the skip did not touch the side of the shaft. The banksman had told him that there was something working with the winding machinery but he did not think there was any danger. Mason had no recollection of the conversation. The jury returned a verdict of manslaughter against Francis Downing, the engineman and exonerated Leedham, Nock and Mason. All four men were awaiting their trials in March at the assizes and Mr. Barker could not comment further on the matter.

 

REFERENCES
The Mines Inspectors Report, 1864. Mr. Baker.
The Colliery Guardian, 3rd December 1864. p.444.

Information supplied by Ian Winstanley and the Coal Mining History Resource Centre.

 

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