Monongah Mining Disaster (1907)

Fri Dec 06, 1907

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The Monongah Mining Disaster, described by mining lawyer Davitt McAteer as the “the worst mining disaster in American history”, took place on this day in 1907 in West Virginia, killing 362 of the 367 miners who worked there, most of them immigrants. The actual number may be higher because workers would often take family members (including children) into the mines to help with their work.

The disaster was caused by an explosion that occurred in Fairmont Coal Company’s No. 6 and No. 8 mines which destroyed the ventilation shafts and caused the roof to collapse. Rescue attempts were greatly hindered because the air was not fit to breathe - rescuers could not be in the mine for more than fifteen minutes at a time. Only one worker was rescued, another four escaped.

Chief Mine Inspector James W. Paul concluded that Fairmont Coal Company was operating within the bounds of state law. The disaster was one of the contributing events that led to the creation of the United States Bureau of Mines.

  • @RubberElectrons
    5•3 months ago

    Thanks for these. As a reminder to all, a lot of the regulations we’ve got have been written with blood.

    When corpos complain about regulation stifling the economy, remember that your life matters, and that you didn’t have a choice to be born into this system.