Crowd awaiting news after the 1887 explosion

Abstract

When news of the explosion reached the town, a large crowd gathered at the mine to wait for news. Despite the heroic attempts of rescue crews, only seven miners escaped with their lives. 150 men died from suffocation or fire, and many of the bodies were never recovered. The mine was finally flooded in July to prevent the fire from spreading to other coal seams. The disaster left 46 widows and 126 children without fathers who were given free housing and fuel by the company as compensation for their losses.