MR. HENRY PARRY, HANOVER, LUZERNE, PENNSYLVANIA.
A Terrible Accident at Ashley, Pennsylvania.
TWENTY EIGHT MEN ENTOMBED.Several Dead Bodies Already Removed and Scarcely a Hope That the Remainder Are Alive - One Hundred Men Working Hard to Rescue Their Fellow Workmen - A List of the Imprisoned Men.
WILKESBARRE, PENNSYLVANIA, May 16th. - The mining town of Ashley in Luzerne county, was visited by a terrible calamity at noon yesterday. An extensive cave in occurred in No. 8 mine, of the Lehigh and Wilkesbarre Coal company. The number of men in the mine at the time is estimated at twenty eight. The cave in was caused by weakening of the props supporting the surface.
The cave in extends over a half mile square and includes a portion of the thickly settled village called Moffett's Patch. A large number of houses have gone down with the surface, but only a few of them have been badly damaged.
Superintendent Dow, with one hundred men, at once went to work to rescue the imprisoned miners, but the debris blocked up the gangway and made it impossible to make any headway. Despite the heavy fall there was a good current of air passing through the mines.
At 5 o'clock it was announced that one of the rescuing parties had succeeded in breaking through one of the chambers beneath the cave. It was 6.30 however, before they reached the first of the victims. He was lying at the bottom of a fifty foot plane, and in order to rescue him it became necessary to lower a miner down with a rope. This was done, and the charred and blackened form of Anthony Froyne, the first victim was hoisted to the surface. He was still alive, but his injuries are considered fatal.
When the news spread that froyne was burned a feeling of gloom came over the old miners present, for they realized that there was little hope of his companions having escaped death. Froyne is supposed to have wandered away from the others, and while trying to find a way out caused an explosion of gas in some old chamber. If this explosion extended to where the other men were the chances of escape are very slight.
The official list of those imprisoned is as follows :
Ellis D. Williams, aged 60, married, seven children; resides at Hanover township.
Harry Parry, aged 50, married, five children, resides Newport township, and Owen Parry, his son aged 17.
Michael Henry, aged 42, married, two sons; residence Ashley.
Thomas C. Davis, aged 60, married, eight children; residence Ashley.
John Scally, brother, aged 20, the support of a widowed mother; residence Ashley.
Michael Scally, brother, aged 27; resides Ashley.
Daniel Sullivan, aged 45, married, seven children, one an invalid; residence Wilkesbarre.
John Hanson, aged 23, single, residence Moffett's Patch.
John Allen, assistant underground, residences at Ashley, aged 35, married, three children; taken out seriously burned 8.30pm.
Robert W. Roberts, aged 37, married, no children, resides at Ashley; brought to the surface at 9.00pm, fatally burned.
Harry Jones, labourer of former, aged 35, married, three children; residence, Newtown.
Robert X. Pritchard, aged 30, married, one child; resides Hanover.
Charles James, aged 52, married, five children; residence Hanover.
Anthony Froyne, married, one child, residence at Ashley Plane; rescued at 7 o'clock badly burned.
John James, aged 32, married, two children, family in Wales; resides in Ashley.
John Williams, aged 35, married, six children; residence Newtown.
Jonathan Williams, aged 30, married, two children; residence Newtown.
Richard Jones, aged 30, married, two children; residence Newtown.
William Edwards, aged 28, married, two children; residence Wilkesbarre.
Thomas J. Williams, aged 30, married, one child, residence Ashley.
Thomas Clauss, aged 35, married, no children; residence Newtown.
Owen Williams, aged 49, married, one adopted child; residence Ashley.
John Hempsey, aged 42, single; residence Moffett's Patch.
Frank Gallagher, aged 29, single, and two Hungarians named Butts.
John Renning, aged 38, single.
This makes twenty-eight in all who were in the mine.
The opening through which the rescuing party entered into the gangway at 9 o'clock last night, is on the north side of a deep wooden ravine. The space in the immediate vicinity of the opening is lighted with locomotive headlights, torches and lanterns, that shed wearied and fitful gleams of light into the yawning cavern, where squads of brawny miners labor in the hope of rescuing their fellow workmen. Outside of this small circle all is darkness.
The hundreds of anxious relatives and friends stand weeping around the lights. About 9 o'clock there was a shout, and the crowd eagerly pressed forward. Two miners were coming out, bearing a limp form on a stretcher. The rescued man proved to be Fire Boss John Allen. He was unconsious and badly burned, but will probably recover. It is said that Allen's lamp set fire to gas and caused an explosion.
At 9.40pm o'clock Robert Roberts was brought out. He is so badly burned that he can hardly recover. Anthony Froyne was the only other man taken out. He is badly burned and otherwise seriously injured. At midnight the rescuing parties were driven out of the gangways by the gas. They left their safety lamps outside and went in again, but as they could only grope around in the darkness they could accomplish nothing. An effort is being made to change the current of air so as to drive the gas away from where the victims are supposed to be.
The latest reports from the scene of the disaster, at 8 o'clock, is to the effect that the rescuing party has penetrated to within sight of two dead bodies, but the gas is so thick that they were driven back to the surface. The place is full of black damp and further approach in the direction of the victims is impossible, even with a safety lamp. As it looks now very little hope is entertained that any of the men will be resued alive. The men entombed are nearly all married, and have large families all dependent upon them for support.
The scene around the mouth of the pit is a heartrending one. Wives and mothers crowd close up to the dark opening and peer in as if their love would dispel the darkness of the fatal depths, while the cries of the little ones calling for their fathers make the heart sick with pity. The men who form the rescuing parties are strangers to fear, and if it is within the bounds of possibility to reach the men inside they will be rescued alive or their bodies restored.
The Richmond Item (Richmond Indiana) May 16th, 1890.
MR. HENRY PARRY, HANOVER, LUZERNE, PENNSYLVANIA.
THE ASHLEY MINE DISASTER.
Large Crowds Attend the Funerals of the Victims.The dawning of Sunday in Asley, Pennsylvania, was bright and cheerful and not a single incident served to mar the day. Almost with the dawn came crowds of curious people from all parts of the country. The streets throughout the town were lined with carriages and pedestrians and every passenger train that entered borough carried cars full of people to add to the throng. About 1 o'clock the crowd was at its high in point of numbers and within a circle bounded by the Ashley cemetery the fatal pit and the borough itself there must have been 10,000 people.
Every available space was occupied in the cemetery and the road leading to it was crowded with vehicles of all kinds.. A little after 2 the funeral arrangements were completed and the last sad offices were performed over the dead. At that hour the following victims were buried; Joshua Williams, John S. Williams, Elias D. Williams, Henry W. Jones, William Edwards, Richard Jones, Henry Parry, Owen Parry, Thomas D. Carroll and Thomas Davies.
Brief services were held at each of the houses. The funeral of Daniel Sullivan was conducted separately and internment was at the Catholic cemetery in Hanover. The remains of Fire Boss John H. Allen were taken to Plymouth for internment in Shupp's cemetery. Another victim's funeral is to take place today and then the curtain will have been lowered upon another terrible calamity.
The burgess of Ashley has issued an appeal for aid from the charitable public for the families of the miners killed in the disaster. He solicits contributions of food, clothing and money, which may be sent to R. Thomas, burgess; Martin Dooley, president of the borough council, or E. Lindermuth, treasurer, at Ashley, Luzerne county, Pennsylvania.
Evening Star (Washington, District of Columbia) May 19th, 1890.
MR. HENRY PARRY, HANOVER, LUZERNE, PENNSYLVANIA.
WILKESBARRE, May 18th.The funerals of a number of the victims of the Hartford mine look place this afternoon. Every available space was occupied in the cemetery, and the road leading to it crowded with vehicles of all kind containing sight-seers. A little after 2 o'clock the funeral arrangements were completed and the last sad offices were performed over the dead.
At that hour the following victims were buried : Joshua Williams, John S. Williams, Ellis Williams, Henry W. Jones, William Edwards, Richard Jones, Henry Parry, Owen Parry, Thomas D. Carroll, Thomas Davies. Brief services were held at each of the houses by Revs. Thomas and Davies, of Wilkesbarre, Hughes, Miller and Carter, of Ashley, and H Edwards, of Kingston. The services consisted of singing and paying and in some cases short addresses. The scenes at the houses were heartrending in the extreme.
The funeral of David Sullivan was conducted by Father McAndrews, of Wilkesbarre, and internment was in the Catholic cemetery in Hanover. The remains of Fire Boss John Hallen were taken to Plymouth for internment.