Durham Mining Museum - Newspaper Articles (original) (raw)

14th September 1922

Whitehaven Pit Disaster

The Last Body Recovered

Impressive Funerals

Not until Sunday afternoon did the tired rescue parties recover the body of George Watson, thirty-ninth and last victim of the terrible explosion in Haig Pit on Tuesday week. Appended is the complete list of those who were killed:

Solemn Last Rites

Friday was one of the saddest episodes in the history of Hensingham, the straggling hamlet picturesquely perched on the crest of the steep hill overlooking Whitehaven. It was a village of the dead, more than a dozen of the pick of its manhood having been included in the long death-roll. Not even the infinitely greater catastrophe at Wellington Pit in 1910 had inflicted such a staggering blow upon its inhabitants. Ten of the victims (Robert and Thomas McDowell, Samuel Coulter, Thomas Corlett, Robert Denwood, Jas. Graves, John and Thos. Moore, Jackson Sparks, and William Carter) were reverently buried side by side in one huge grave in the tiny cemetery, in full view, across the St. Bees valley, of the ill-fated mine wherein they met their doom. Military honours were accorded the dead by the local Territorials, and several thousands of sympathisers assembled outside the parish church and cemetery, where moving and impressive scenes were witnessed. The funeral was beautifully arranged, and many women spectators completely broke down as the coffins were being borne from the church by comrades of the dead to the melancholy strains of the Dead March.

All denominations were represented at the united service in the little church, the centre aisle of which was completely filled by the coffins, and the seating accommodation of 250 was almost wholly occupied by relatives, many of whom fainted. The religious ceremony was conducted by the Vicar, the Rev. E. Freeman, and the address was delivered by the Rev. J. Cannell Harrison, Wesleyan minister at Whitehaven. The service was choral, "Brief life is here our portion" and "On the resurrection morning" were sung with much feeling, and as the coffins were carried from the church the organist, Mr. Glenn, played "Oh rest in the Lord." At the graveside the scenes were truly distressing. Several minutes after the final volley and Last Post had sounded the relatives lingered near the grave of their loved ones, and only with difficulty did friends lead them away through a mutely sympathetic throng.

Amongst those present were the Mayor of Whitehaven, the Town Clerk, Mr. Myles Kennedy, High Sheriff of Lancashire; Mr. J. A. Grant, M.P., Mr. Tom Cape, M.P., Col. J. A. Jackson, Mr. J. G. Muir Ritchie, Mr. H. W. Walker, Mr. H. C. Reynalds, Mr. R. Steel, Mr. A. Kilpatrick, Mr. J. H. Laverick (representing the Institute of Mining Surveyors), Mr. O. F. Ormrod, Mr. E. L. Nanson (representing Lord Lonsdale), Mr. E. H. Evans, and Mr. T. Stephenson (of the Miners' Executive), Moresby.

A Week-End Of Funerals

Sombre mourning attire predominated in Whitehaven and district over the week-end when numerous funerals, both military and civilian, took place. At all the churches on Sunday feeling reference was made to the disaster by the clergy. John Moore, of Thwaiteville, was buried with military honours from St. Begh's Church in the Whitehaven cemetery; sad scenes marked the interment at Arlecdon of George McCreadie and his two sons, and Moses Huddleston Tyson and Leonard H. Hellon; Sylvester McAvoy and Bernard Murphy were laid to rest at Cleator Moor; Thos. Telford, of Harras Moor, was accorded a military funeral from St. James' Church, the Rev. J. W. Hartley officiating; the final rites over Thomas Haig were pronounced by the Rev. F. E. Cole, of St. Nicholas' Church, the Rev. H. Robinson taking the church service; Albert Powe was interred at Moresby after service at Hope Hall; three more victims were buried with military honours at Hensingham on Sunday in the presence of thousands of sympathisers; and the funeral of John Carson Brewster took place amid many manifestations of sorrow at the Presbyterian Church Whitehaven on Monday. The Rev. J. V. McNeill conducted the service. In no case were the chords of human sympathy so touched as at the funeral of Douglas James Michael Fell on Saturday, his bereaved father, the Vicar of Holy Trinity Church, conducting both the church and graveside services with wonderful self-control. Later victims were also buried soon after the recovery of their bodies. At all the funerals the Colliery Company, Corporation, and Miners' Association were officially represented.

A Comforting And Inspiring Address

The mourners present at the combined funeral at Hensingham much have found true solace in the inspiring address delivered by the Rev. J. C. Harrison, who said that meeting that afternoon under the deep shadow of a great calamity it was not desirable that the service should be unduly prolonged, though it was thought that the service would not be complete without someone voicing the feelings that were in all their hearts that day. Words are a poor medium, continued the minister, to describe the sorrow which has entered out homes, and the warmest and tenderest speech is altogether inadequate to express our sympathy. We tarry here for a moment in order that the Divine Spirit may suggest to us some sources of comfort. We have a proverb that speaks of the silver lining behind the dark cloud. We have a poetic expression which speaks of the smiling face behind a frowning Providence. We have examples from real life of faith unshaken amidst the greatest losses. The example of Catherineand Crawford Tate springs at once to our mind. An infectious disease carried off five of their children in a very short time and the broken-hearted parents erected a memorial and inscribed upon it "Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Thy sight."

The 29th Psalm provides us with an interesting example of how differently the same event may be viewed from earth and from Heaven. It is known as "The Ode of the Thunderstorm." The writer exhorts the angels in the opening sentence to give glory to God, and then describes the thunderstorm that had impressed him. Breaking out in the north, it sweeps over the country, throwing down the cedars, terrifying the cattle, and finally fades away in the wilderness of the south, and as the echoes of the thunder die away the writer hears the angels of the Presence singing the glory song. Whilst the earth trembled and the inhabitants were terrified the angels sang. We have a hymn which expresses the same idea, "Mortals say a man is dead, angels sing, a child is born," and out faith suggests that if we could view this dread calamity from the other side we should see possibilities of eternal gain.

We would assure our friends with us that as they tread the path of sorrow, the Man or Sorrows is with them. The Cross of Christ is the outstanding example of tragedy turned to triumph. The crucified Christ is now the living Christ, and says "I am with you always." But we need not turn to the past or to literature to find the silver lining. There are bright spots in the darkened firmament of to-day. One of our poets says "Where pain ends, gain ends too." The history of the world's progress is the history of the world's strife. Out of the Gethsemane of suffering the world's best things have come, and there are no nobler pages in the annals of heroism than the pages written of the heroes of the mine. We do not speak of the daily heroism which wins out domestic comfort and lays the foundation of our national wealth, but of that day of danger and disaster when the ordinary man becomes a superman, doing exploits. Not under a sudden impulse or in an hour of glorious abandon or stimulated by excitement, but the miners' heroism is stern, resolute, calculated. He fights an unseen and subtle foe, compassed about the manifold dangers, and the old, old story of the heroism of would-be rescuers has been told again this week, making a new and glorious page in the annals of the town. We do not begrudge the military heroes one iota of their distinction, but we claim for the heroes of the mine a foremost place in the follow-ship of the brave.

Lastly, we think of the home. An Englishman's home is said to be his castle. It is rather his sanctuary, and under the shadow of its portals we read "Put off thy shoes from off thy feet for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground." I count it one of the privileges of my life that I have been permitted to enter nearly all the bereaved homes represented here to-day. A British General once said "The men are splendid," and I desire to testify in my closing sentence to the brave spirit of the bereaved women who are worthy of the highest praise.

Royal Sympathy

From throughout Great Britain letters and telegrams expressing deep sympathy have been received. Amongst these the following arrived at noon on Thursday:—

Balmoral Castle.

Manager, Haig Colliery, Whitehaven.

The King and Queen were grieved to hear of the terrible disaster at the Haig Colliery, and desire to express their heartfelt sympathy with the families of those who have been killed, and to know how the injured are progressing. Their Majesties would be thankful if you could telegraph any further information and give the number of fatal cases.

Stamfordham.

Newspaper transcript kindly provided by
West Cumbria Mines Research.