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The Home Office,

Whitehall, London. S.W.,

31st January, 1911.

Sir,

I beg to state that in obedience to the instructions I received from you I have held a formal investigation in accordance with Section 45 of the Coal Mines Regulation Act, 1887, into the causes of and circumstances attending the explosion and fire which occurred in the workings of the Wellington pit of the Whitehaven Colliery on the evening of Wednesday, May 11th, whereby 136 persons lost their lives, and I have the honour to report as follows :—

It was determined to hold the Inquiry concurrently with the Coroners Inquest, with the idea that the combination of the two investigations would result in a saving of time and expense and be to the convenience of all the parties concerned. The smoothness attending the working of the two Inquiries must be attributed to the wisdom, discretion and courtesy of the Coroner, Mr. Edward Atter.

On the morning of November 15th, the Inquiry was opened at the Town Hall, Whitehaven, at 10.30 a.m., it being the twentieth attendance of the Coroner and jury, and the hearing of evidence occupied the whole of that day and was continued on the following dates, viz. :— November 16, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 29, 30, December 1 and 2 — that is occupied eleven full days in all, which time no less than 16,805 were put to witnesses.

The evidence was heard by the Coroner for West Cumberland and myself and a jury of eighteen persons.

There were also present :—

Mr. S. Pope (Barrister-at-law) representing H.M. Secretary of State for Home Affairs.
Mr. J. B. Atkinson (H.M. Inspector of Mines for the District).
Mr. H. A. Abbott (H.M. Junior Inspector of Mines for the District).
Mr. Rigby Swift	(Barristers-at-law), instructed by Mr. Helder of Messrs. Brockbank, Helder and Ormrod	representing the Whitehaven Colliery Company
with
Mr. T. E. Boddell
Mr. Chapman of Messrs. Chapman and Baxter, representing the Management of the Mine
Mr. Andrew Sharpe, J.P. (Secretary of Cumberland Miners Association),		representing the workmen and relatives of the deceased.
Mr. T. Cape (Assistant Secretary),
Mr. John Hanlon (Local Miner's Agent),
Mr. T. Richards, M.P. (Secretary of South Wales Miners Federation)
Mr. Herbert Smith (an Agent of the Yorkshire Miners Federation)

Forty-four witnesses were summoned and examined in the following order at the Inquiry, viz. :—

1.	John Brannen (Lampman).
2.	Robert Richmond Blair (Asst. General Manager).
3.	Thomas Hall (Deputy or Fanman).
4.	Daniel Benn (Rope Splicer).
5.	Joseph Walker (Roadsman).
6.	Stephen Gregory (Roadsman).
7.	John Wear (Collier).
8.	George Kenmare (Collier).
9.	Jeremiah Skelton (Banksman).
10.	Thomas Graham (Overman).
11.	James Dunlop (Master Wasteman).
12.	Grayson Laidlaw (Assistant Deputy).
13.	Henry Steele (Collier).
14.	William Skelly (Collier).
15.	William Crooks (Collier).
16.	Gilbert Kilpatrick (Trailer).
17.	William Nixon (Collier).
18.	John Wilson (Deputy).
19.	William Campbell (Deputy).
20.	George McLennan (Onsetter).
21.	Thomas Douglas (Roadsman).
22.	Thomas Swinburne (Deputy).
23.	Fletcher Young (Collier).
24.	John Mulholland (Collier).
25.	John Thomas Mather (Collier).
26.	M. Douthwaite (Police Inspector).
27.	J. B. Atkinson (Inspector of Mines).
28.	H. A. Abbott (Junior Inspector of Mines).
29.	John Hanlon (Miners' Agent).
30.	Richard Walker Moore (Mineral Agent for Lord Lonsdale).
31.	A. D. Nicholson (Inspector of Mines).
32.	Robert Steele (Colliery Manager).
33.	Henry Louis (Professor of Mining).
34.	George Garrigan (Collier).
35.	Edward Mason (Collier).
36.	Thomas Bray (Collier).
37.	John Branton (Collier).
38.	Clifford Ewing (Collier).
39.	Robert McDonald (Deputy).
40.	Christopher Gregory (Deputy).
41.	James Henry (Under Manager).
42.	William Galloway (Consulting Mining Engineer).
43.	C. J. J. Harris (Colliery Doctor).
44.	W. C. Blackett (Consulting Mining Engineer).

By the time that the Inquiry was completed 134 bodies or the remains of bodies had been recovered, and at the time of writing (20th January, 1911) all the bodies have been recovered, and all the bodies have been identified with but three exceptions.

The Coroner in his summing up submitted 11 questions to the jury for their finding, and then read out a number of suggestions which had been made or indicated during the course of the Inquiry, asking the jury to pronounce the same. But as Mr. Pope has dealt fully with these in his report I need not here repeat the questions and the answers given to them by the jury. The findings were unanimous on the part of the 18 persons forming the jury.

On the conclusion of the inquest I declared the Inquiry closed, as, from my underground inspections of the Wellington Pit and from the evidence which had been submitted or called, I had gleaned sufficient facts to enable me to report fully on the whole case. The holding of the two inquiries together was in my opinion thoroughly justified by events.