The Naomi Mine explosion occurred on December 1, 1907, in the Naomi Mine, approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) from Fayette City, Pennsylvania. The incident resulted in the deaths of at least 35 miners and left no survivors.[1][2]
Naomi Mine
editThe Naomi Mine was operated by Hillman Coal and Coke Company.[3] It was situated east of the Monongahela River. The mine was built to exploit the Pittsburgh coal seam, which was positioned at a depth of 160 feet (49 m) below the surface of the mine. Coal was hauled out of the mine with carts that were equipped with electric motors.[4]
From 1870 (the earliest year records were kept) to December 1, 1907 (the day the mine closed), a total of 63 men were killed in the Naomi Mine.[5]
Events and aftermath
editThe explosion happened at about 7:15 on the night of Sunday, December 1, 1907. Inadequate ventilation allowed pockets of explosive gas to accumulate in the interior of the mine. The gas was most likely ignited by an open light or electric arc, both of which would have been present at the time.[4] [6]
Several miners who lost their jobs in the closing of the Naomi Mine would soon find work in the Darr Mine located in nearby Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. On December 19, 1907, many of these displaced miners would be killed in the Darr Mine Disaster, the deadliest coal mining disaster in Pennsylvania history.
All of the miners killed were immigrants from eastern Europe, including Rusyns, Hungarians (including Slovaks from Gemer and Abov - then part of Austria-Hungary), Austrians, Germans, Poles and Italians.[7][8][9][10]
References
edit- ^ "Naomi Mine Victims. 34 Dead in Pennsylvania-28 found" (PDF). New York Times (December 8). 1907. Retrieved 2008-11-08.
- ^ "Naomi Mine Explosion". Archived from the original on 2008-05-17. Retrieved 2009-05-24.
- ^ Chris DellaMea. "A Scrapbook of Appalachian Coal Towns".
- ^ a b Adams, Thos, K (July 27, 1908). "Recent Mine Explosions and Their Lessons". Industrial World. 30. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Susa, Jenny (December 2, 2007). "Naomi Mine disaster recalled". Uniontown Herald Standard. Archived from the original on July 7, 2014. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
- ^ "Work Frantically to Save Victims of Explosion". The Pittsburg Press. December 2, 1907.
- ^ "Darr Mine Disaster Historical Marker". explorepahistory.com. Retrieved 2021-12-16.
- ^ "Remembering the Darr Mine Disaster: the American Hungarian Federation – Founded 1906". www.americanhungarianfederation.org. Retrieved 2021-12-16.
- ^ "Centennial—Jacobs Creek".
- ^ Moskala, Eric (2019). From Freeport to Fayette City: A History of a Small Town in Southwestern Pennsylvania from Its founding in 1800 to its Zenith in the 1920s. ISBN 978-1696421089.