| Individual Details | Individual Details | |||
 |
 |
|||
Frederick Wigham
| Age: | 25 |
| Died: | 22nd Feb 1895 |
| Accident: | 22nd Feb 1895 3:55 PM, 6th hour of shift |
| Year Born: | abt. 1870 |
| Colliery: | Wingate Grange |
| Company: | Owners of Wingate Grange Colliery |
| Occupation: | Hewer |
| Notes: | a broken coupling chain of a set caused an alarm, and he ran through the shaft for safety, but the cage came down at the time and killed him |
| Buried: | [not known] |
| Category: |
 |
 |
| Description | |
|
|
Number 9 on the list occurred at Wingate Grange Colliery, on the 22nd February, at about 3.55 p.m., causing the death of Frederick Wigham, a coal hewer.
Deceased was waiting, along with some other men, to be sent to the surface, and at the time a full set of tubs was coming over the kip, when a coupling chain broke and let ten tubs amain down the shaft landing ; he was alarmed by the noise thus caused, and attempted to rush across the shaft, but was caught by the descending cage and instantly killed.
The tubs to get to the shaft have to go round a curve, and as long as the main hauling rope is attached to them, as it was at the time this accident occurred, it is impossible for the tubs to get to the shaft.
In this particular case the ten tubs, which came amain as soon as they got to the curve points, were sided over by the rope into the rope drift leading to the hauling engine house.
One of the men who was appointed to examine the place under General Rule 38, section 49, of the Coal Mines Act, on behalf of the workmen, gave evidence at the inquest, and stated that he did not think there was sufficient room at the shaft if any full tubs happened to be standing round the curve, and an accident of this kind occurred, if men were about, as the tubs which ran amain would catch those standing on the curve and force them amongst the men. The manager, however, said it was their custom in such a case to keep the sets back until the curve was clear.
I suggested to the management that in future, if men came out of ascend the shaft and had to wait, as they had in this instance, they should be sent into an engine-house there is close to the shaft, and be kept there until it was time for them to get into the case ; and it was agreed that this should be done.
It is really impossible for a set of tubs to get into the shaft, and if this man had stood still and not lost his self-control he would have, in all probability, been alive now. The other men who were along with him did not move, and took no harm.
|
|
| Sources | |
|
|
- 1895 Mines Inspectors Report (C 8074), Durham District (No. 4) by Thomas Bell, H.M. Inspector of Mines, Page: 13 Where to find this report
- 1895 Mines Inspectors Report (C 8074), Durham District (No. 4) by Thomas Bell, H.M. Inspector of Mines, Page: 25, Accident Number: 9 Where to find this report
|
|
| Researchers | |
|
|
If you are researching Frederick Wigham (e.g. for family tree purposes) and you would like to hear from others with the same interest then please complete the details in the following form. We will show the information you provide on this page so that you can be contacted.
Return
Return to Top
Contains public sector information licensed under the 
