East Pool (Metalliferous)

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Austead, John, 28 Oct 1886, aged 28, Miner, Whilst driving an end by boring machine an explosion took place killing Austead. It is supposed that the drill penetrated into an old socket containing some remnants of unexploded dynamite left from a previous blast

Beadle, Daniel, 19 Nov 1875, aged 28, Trammer, Fell down shaft while riding up on a skip, being knocked off by a stone falling on him [More information ...]

Bray, Joseph Charles, 01 Mar 1912, aged 16, Miner, They were underhand stoping a piece of ground 18 foot wide directly over a deep gunniss formed many years ago. At the time of the accident they were drilling a vertical shot-hole on the bottom bench or "point" of the stope, said to be 9 feet thick at the end, when the ground on which they were standing fell away, precipitating them 60 fathoms into the gunniss below. The shot-hole was about 2 feet 6 inches from the hanging wall. The hanging wall was slippery, and between it and the lode there was a leader 5 inches thick. The lode was jointy and full of slips. In addition, the circumstances were such that the thickness of the "point" could not be ascertained. Apparently the "point" was so weak that the jarring due to drilling the shot-hole broke it down. Life lines were supplied to the men but they did not use them. The use of these lines under such circumstances is obviously essential [More information ...]

Caddy, Isaac, 19 Oct 1903, aged 58, Miner, While engaged throwing ore down a stope from the 212 fathom level, he slipped, and rolled about 12 fathoms, receiving such injuries as to cause death

Coad, William James, 30 Mar 1909, aged 36, Trammer, In climbing down the ladders from the 160-fothom level to the 170, through a gunniss on his way out to the shaft on completing his shift, he appears not to have noticed that the sollar at the bottom of the ladder, some 7 or 8 feet above the 17O-fathom level, had been carried away, and on — as be thought — stepping on to it, he fell away past the 170 and was found dead at the 190-fathom level. The ladder and sollar appear to have been in good order when deceased and his comrade went by the same road to their work, but evidence of roof having fallen was noticeable at a height of about 24 feet above the soliar, and a piece, weighing about 3½ cwts., was found with the short ladder near the body. The part of the sollar remaining indicated that the timbers were sound

Collins, John Henry, 06 Nov 1913, aged 19, Miner, Killed in the mine

Craze, Edward, 14 Nov 1908, aged 47, Miner, Fall of ground from the face of a stope in the back of the 190-fathom level. The stone or rock had been loosened or shaken the day before by a shot. Deceased and his comrade saw that it was so and tried to get it down with a bar, but failed, and left it, considering it safe, which afterwards proved to have been a mistake. The "shift boss" examined the place generally the day before with a "flare" or "platinum wire" light, but on the day of the accident he only asked the men if all was right, and receiving a reply in the affirmative he went on to the next place

Curnow, James, 14 Feb 1912, aged 21, Miner, He and another were driving a "side tie" on the hanging wall along the edge of a wide gunniss. During the shift, three shots had been fired and the men had returned to clear the ground, when that part of the hanging wall on which Curnow was standing fell away, precipitating him into the gunniss below, down which he fell 48 fathoms. After the fall it was seen that a slippery face formed the back of the ground which fell

Davey, William, 19 Jul 1882, aged 16, Miner, While passing through the 100 fathoms level he found the trammer with his waggon run off the rails whilst helping him to replace it he fell backwards on some boards at the side of the level, which gave way, and he fell to the 170 fathoms level. On examining the boards they were found to have been attacked by dry rot

Doidge, Malachi, 19 Mar 1900, aged 20, Shaftman, While engaged examining and repairing in Agar Shaft he fell away from the ladders at about the 120 fathom level, and was picked up dead at the 150 fathom level

Ferrill, Henry, 12 Aug 1901, (accident: 30 May 1901), aged 13, Miner, Fall of stone from the back of the level, fractured his leg. He was supposed to be going on satisfactorily towards recovery, but on the 12th August, he died suddenly. A post-mortem examination was made which proved that death was the result of the accident

Gill, Robert, 10 May 1906, aged 15, Miner, Gill was striking a drill with a comrade on a temporary staging in the back of the 170-fathom level, and stepping on to the end of a loose plank fell with it about 6 fathoms. The men should be more careful in erecting these temporary stages than they are as proved by repeated accidents resulting from them

Harris, Ada, 09 Jan 1897, (accident: 29 Dec 1896), aged 8, [Child], Having accompanied her sister with her Father's dinner to the East Pool Dressing Floors, where he was employed, strayed from the footpath and getting on top of the Arsenic Flues, fell through receiving injuries from which she died on the 9th January 1897. The iron plates covering the flues seem to have been corroded and were not fenced off from the footpath this however has since been done. Not Compromised

Hicks, Thomas, 12 May 1875, aged 45, Miner, Fell down a winze, while sawing a piece of timber, from the breakage of the plank on which he was sitting

Hocking, Joseph, 12 Jan 1911, aged 14, Trammer, When working by night with another youth, aged 16, a part of the roof at the foot of a pass fell upon him and killed him. Apparently no one had ever taken the trouble to examine the roof or its unsound condition would have been detected. At the inquest, the shift-boss in charge of this part of the mine was severely censured by the Coroner at the request of the jury

Honeychurch, W. J., 12 Oct 1909, aged 17, Miner, In going from the 252 level to the 265 on his way to the shaft, he appears to have slipped on the ladder and fell to the platform below, a distance of some 22 feet. He had only been in this level a short time, and his light went out just as he was about to enter upon the ladder, which was somewhat below the Level. In order to reach it safely a chain is provided for holding by. It would have been more correct to have had a sollar at the top of the ladder. He left his working place with some other boy who was more experienced in the mine than he was, instead of waiting for his responsible comrade. The accident came about through various coincidences

Hugo, James, 05 Aug 1905, aged 20, Miner, When erecting a staging in a stope above the 160 fathom level he overbalanced, and falling forward down the stope received fatal injuries

Kemp, Frank, 18 Nov 1907, 10 a.m., 4th hour of shift, aged 16, Miner, He with five others was working in a stope about midway between the 228 and 240-fathom levels on a stage. While drilling, a stone fell from the back of the 228-fathom level and struck the stage, carrying it away and precipitating all the men but one (who clung to a chain) to the 240-fathom level. The stone is alleged to have burst off suddenly as the result of an air-blast, as it is said to have shown no signs of being loose two or three days before when examined by the under agent

Kent, William, 05 Dec 1884, aged 40, Miner, Accidentally boring into an old socket containing unexpoded dynamite, the existence of which was quite unknown

Knuckley, Joseph, 08 Mar 1899, aged 21, Miner, Fell down the shaft when attempting to get into the gig, at the 190 fathom level, the arrangements at the place not being satisfactory

Langdon, William, 03 Nov 1882, aged 37, Shaftsman, Deceased with others was engaged fixing a plunger lift at the 200 fathoms level he was standing on a plunger case stay handing boards to his comrades, who were cutting some ground from the side of the shaft about 6 feet above him, to make room for the columns on crossing over to the ladder read he inadvertently stepped under the main rod the end of which struck him on the head and fractured his skull

Lawrey, Alfred, 08 May 1903, aged 50, Filler, When engaged filling a tram at the 212 fathom level, a piece of ground fell away from the 180 fathom level, which, hitting him, caused fatal injuries

Liddicoat, Thomas James, 01 Mar 1912, aged 19, Miner, They were underhand stoping a piece of ground 18 foot wide directly over a deep gunniss formed many years ago. At the time of the accident they were drilling a vertical shot-hole on the bottom bench or "point" of the stope, said to be 9 feet thick at the end, when the ground on which they were standing fell away, precipitating them 60 fathoms into the gunniss below. The shot-hole was about 2 feet 6 inches from the hanging wall. The hanging wall was slippery, and between it and the lode there was a leader 5 inches thick. The lode was jointy and full of slips. In addition, the circumstances were such that the thickness of the "point" could not be ascertained. Apparently the "point" was so weak that the jarring due to drilling the shot-hole broke it down. Life lines were supplied to the men but they did not use them. The use of these lines under such circumstances is obviously essential [More information ...]

Merrett, John, 26 Mar 1897, Engineman, Died on the 26th March from natural causes

Middleton, Henry A., 28 Feb 1906, aged 17, Miner, He was engaged tramming stuff on the 170-fathom level, and was putting his tram on the road rails when he fell, through a wire rope fence, down to the 200-fathom level and was killed. The fence was not intended nor suited for a person to lean against as he apparently did while lifting a tram, although sufficient for ordinary purposes

Oates, Thomas, 02 Jun 1910, aged 26, Trammer, He, with two others, was going along a disused tram-road, which had been fenced off, when he tripped, and falling sideways clear of the road, went down headlong through the open gunniss to the 212 fathom level. It appeared to be doubtful whether the fence was actually in position across the disused tram-road on the day of the occurrence, but it had been so previously, and this man and comrades were well aware that travelling along the road was forbidden

Orpie, Thomas, 04 May 1892, aged 15, Miners boy, A small stone fell from the level above and struck him on the head while working in a stope

Pascoe, Richard, 31 Dec 1875, aged 30, Trammer, Fell down shaft while trying to jump on to the skip as it passed the plat where he was standing [More information ...]

Paull, Henry, 05 Apr 1892, aged 17, Miner, When going down a footway from the 190 to the 200 fathom level through an old "gunnis," he slipped and fell about six fathoms. He was carrying some nails down to a comrade who was in the 200-fathom level repairing a chuck or pass, and seems to have kept them in his hand which prevented his having a firm grip of the ladder which was in good repair though steep underlying about 9 to 12 inches to the fathom

Plint, Thomas, 07 May 1907, 10.15 p.m., 9th hour of shift, aged 23, Miner, A stone fell or rolled part way down in the shaft and appears to have ricochetted, upon striking against something, and struck him in the level where he was working, five yards from the shaft

Reynolds, George, 13 Jul 1880, aged 13, Miner, Stepped out of cage before it had come to rest, and fell from the 130 fathoms level to the 180 fathoms level

Richards, Edward, 26 Mar 1904, aged 20, Miner, He was killed in an end, at the 212 fathom level, by an explosion of gelignite which he had brought from the surface in two tins. The gelignite, which had only just been brought down the shaft from the surface, in some unexplained way received a shock and exploded. It was most probably frozen, but no definite information as to the cause of the explosion could be obtained from his comrades and others who had seen him a few minutes before on his way to his working place

Rosewarne, Henry, 07 Apr 1905, aged 27, Miner, When working on a stope below the 200-fathom level a fall of rock from above occurred, which striking him fractured his skull, causing death in a few hours

Sherman, Edward, 25 Aug 1881, aged 15, Miner, Tried to enter the bottom compartment of the "gig" at the 130-fathoms level when it had its full number of 4 men in it, and the signal had already been given to wind up, he fell a distance of 50 fathoms on to the "pent-house" at the 180-fathomns level

Simmons, Thomas, 25 Feb 1908, aged 53, Shaftsman, While engaged with others in the pumping shaft at the 270-fathom level on a fairly good stage for the purpose, he appears to have thoughtlessly stepped back into the opening left for the capstan rope to work in, and fell 8 or 9 fathoms. He died before being brought to the surface

Thomas, Arthur, 04 Mar 1914, aged 20, Assistant Electrican, Apparently he was standing on a wooden ladder in a sub-distribution room while connecting some dead wires to some overhead bare conductors, when he received a fatal shock. The bare conductors were electrically charged with an alternating current at a pressure of 440 volts. Contrary to the Electricity Regulation 28, (Factory and Workshop Acts), he was doing the work unaccompanied, and apparently he had exceeded the instructions given to him by the chief electrician

Thomas, Samuel, 22 Jun 1876, aged 30, Miner, A shot from a winze blew through into the level where the deceased was standing waiting for a signal which his comrade had forgotten to give before firing [More information ...]

Trevithick, William, 30 Oct 1884, aged 46, Miner, Whilst going down to his work slipped out of the ladders, and fell a distance of about 9 fathoms on to an arch of ground

Tucker, Frederick, 09 May 1907, 9 a.m., 3rd hour of shift, aged 21, Miner, Fell from a temporary stage upon which he and others were working at the face of a stope. His comrades could or would give no definite information as to the cause of his falling. These stages are, as a rule, far too flimsy and not erected properly, but this does not appear to have been so in this case

Tucker, Thomas, 26 Apr 1911, aged 27, Filler, He, with two others, was lowered into water at the 265 fathoms level in the skip. The two others escaped, but he was drowned. The water had come through a dam from Wheal Agar during the night. The empty skip should have been lowered through the shaft before these men descended in it

Uren, William, 09 Jan 1924, 8.0 a.m., 1st hour of shift, aged 36, Miner, Deceased and his partner were working in a rise at the 907 ft. level. The preceding shift had blasted the cut and deceased and his partner on reaching their working place examined the ground and found it unsafe. They began to fix a plank across the rise to stand on for the purpose of taking it down and, whilst doing so, a slab of rock about 2 ft. long and 10 ins. thick in the middle, tapering to 1 in. thick at the ends, became detached and fell, striking deceased on the head and killing him instantly

Veasey, Reginald Lewis, 01 Mar 1912, aged 19, Miner, They were underhand stoping a piece of ground 18 foot wide directly over a deep gunniss formed many years ago. At the time of the accident they were drilling a vertical shot-hole on the bottom bench or "point" of the stope, said to be 9 feet thick at the end, when the ground on which they were standing fell away, precipitating them 60 fathoms into the gunniss below. The shot-hole was about 2 feet 6 inches from the hanging wall. The hanging wall was slippery, and between it and the lode there was a leader 5 inches thick. The lode was jointy and full of slips. In addition, the circumstances were such that the thickness of the "point" could not be ascertained. Apparently the "point" was so weak that the jarring due to drilling the shot-hole broke it down. Life lines were supplied to the men but they did not use them. The use of these lines under such circumstances is obviously essential [More information ...]

Waters, William, 24 Aug 1898, aged 66, Miner, He fell over the edge of a stope between the 160 and 180 fathoms levels receiving fatal injuries. Whether in consequence of his becoming giddy or of his stepping too near the edge is doubtful but probably the latter was the case. The place where he was working appeared to be suitable and safe

Wells, George, 10 Oct 1908, aged 35, Skip Filler, When filling the skip at the 170-fathom level he put his foot on top of it, and as a bolt, fastening a chain on which it (the skip) rested, gave way the skip dropped a few feet and he fell into the shaft

Whear, Thomas, 09 Sep 1892, aged 19, Miner, Suffocated by fumes from 15 dynamite shots which had been fired in a rise and into which they returned without making use of the means at their disposal for ventilating the place. His comrade, Parsons, after several hours of unconsciousness recovered [More information ...]

Williams, Daniel, 24 Sep 1898, (accident: 13 Sep 1898), aged 64, Miner, In consequence of more of the ground at which he was working with a pinch-bar coming away than he expected and breaking the staging on which he was standing he fell distance of 4 or 5 fathoms and was so seriously injured that he died the 24th

Wills, James, 19 Feb 1891, aged 23, Timberman, He was engaged putting in timber in the 212 fathom level when the stage on which he was standing gave way. He fell to the 228 level and sustained a compound fracture of the skull from which death ensued. There was nothing to account for the breaking of the timber

Wills, William, 29 Oct 1905, aged 51, Shaftman, While engaged with others about the 80 fathom level replacing a broken pump rod he appears, in stepping from a stay to a sollar 2½ feet below, to have either slipped or made a false step and fell down the shaft to the 252 fathom level