What Is The Cherry Coal Mine Disaster?
Down, down the men go, descending into the mine to go to work. Little do most families know, they might not see the important men in their life again. The Cherry Coal Mine Disaster is greatly known as one of the worst mine disasters in America taking the lives of over 200 people and leaving many families devastated. As a result, mine safety regulations were regarded. Being a miner was a very common occupation for men back in the 1900’s, over 500 men and boys went to work at the Cherry Coal Mine, located in Cherry, Illinois, and owned by the Chicago, Milwaukee, and St. Paul railroad. A large number of these men were immigrants, mainly Italian. Boys as young as 11 years old relied on this mine to make money. In the early years of mining, very
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few safety regulations were put in place by the state. Most mines showed little care for their workers because replacements could be found easily among immigrants coming from Europe. The mine was organized in three horizontal veins that were connected by two vertical shafts. Each shaft contained wooden stairs and ladders. A large fan that pushed fresh air into the mine was positioned off to the side of the second shaft. The first level in the mine supplied poor quality coal and was eventually boarded up in favor of the second vein. The Cherry Coal Mine was one of the only mines in the country that had electricity. Electrical shorts were uncommon in the mine, but they did occur every so often. One day, the electrical system suffered a short circuit which caused lights out for one month. Because the mine still had to be in operation, lit kerosene torches were placed along the walls. In order to fix the lighting problem, replacement wiring had to be ordered, and it was ironically delivered the morning of the disaster. Communication was also a common problem, not every miner spoke English, so nods and gestures were the preferred method of communication. Small fires in the mine were common, so it was no shock when this fire started on November 13, 1909. The fire first started when a cart filled with hay to feed the mules, stopped under a lit torch. Hot oil dripping from one of the torches, ignited the hay, and soon the fire was out of worker’s control. Many workers tried to move the car out of danger, but they ended up worsening the fire by spreading it. Soon enough, heat and smoke filled the mine and became overpowering. Instead of warning men and trying to get everyone out, a lot of time was wasted trying to extinguish the fire. The large fan used in the mine was reversed by men, in an attempt to try and blow out the fire. This was unsuccessful and eventually caused the fan house to catch on fire. Many miners became trapped when escape ladders and stairs caught on fire. Water was dumped into the mine by volunteer firemen, but sadly, this was not enough. Another way men tried to put out the fire was by closing off two of the shafts, to try and smother the fire. Because there were still men in each of the shafts, many men suffocated because of this. Soon enough, a ‘black damp’ built up in the mine. Black damp is a suffocating mixture of carbon dioxide and nitrogen. Many people who escaped from the burning mine, stayed around to help rescue others that were trapped in the mine. One team of 12 rescuers made six successful trips into the mine, saving many lives on every trip, sadly on their seventh trip, they burned to death when signals were miscommunicated and they were brought to the surface to late. A total of 200 men and boys made their way to the surface using escape shafts and hoisting cages that hadn’t already burned. Many people gathered around the mine, anxiously waiting to see if their family members made it out, there were so many people gathered there, that the national guard was called in to control the crowd. One thing particularly interesting about the disaster is that a group of men actually survived in the mine for eight days following the disaster.
This group of about 22 men survived by building up a wall made of mud, rocks, and timbers. This wall was built to block out poisons, like the black damp. The men stayed there in total darkness, with only a small pool of water, leaking from a coal seam, to drink from. These men were trapped without food, only water. Many of the men trapped in the mine wrote letters to their loved ones in case they never made it out. George Eddy, mine manager, wrote a letter to his wife telling her where to bury him. The letter reads “Well Elizabeth, if I am found dead, take me to Streator to bury me and move back.” It turns out, George Eddy’s wife didn’t need the letter because the men made it out of the mine and they survived. On the day of the rescue, volunteers had gone down in to the mine to bring up the dead, but instead they brought up the living. News of the men spread through the town quickly. The whole community was shocked. Up until that point, all hope had been abandoned that any men could still be alive in the mine. Once the men were out of the mine, they were taken to sleeping cars in the village and were immediately taken care of by nurses. Their heads were covered with canvas to protect them from bright sunlight. The men were also fed small quantities of soup to help them regain their strength and respirators were also provided. Because there was no way to mark the passing of time, most men thought they had only been imprisoned for a single day. After the rescue, doctors said that the minds of the men were temporarily unbalanced by the horrors they had just experienced. Many families in the town of Cherry refer to this rescue as a miracle and thank God for
it.
few safety regulations were put in place by the state. Most mines showed little care for their workers because replacements could be found easily among immigrants coming from Europe. The mine was organized in three horizontal veins that were connected by two vertical shafts. Each shaft contained wooden stairs and ladders. A large fan that pushed fresh air into the mine was positioned off to the side of the second shaft. The first level in the mine supplied poor quality coal and was eventually boarded up in favor of the second vein. The Cherry Coal Mine was one of the only mines in the country that had electricity. Electrical shorts were uncommon in the mine, but they did occur every so often. One day, the electrical system suffered a short circuit which caused lights out for one month. Because the mine still had to be in operation, lit kerosene torches were placed along the walls. In order to fix the lighting problem, replacement wiring had to be ordered, and it was ironically delivered the morning of the disaster. Communication was also a common problem, not every miner spoke English, so nods and gestures were the preferred method of communication. Small fires in the mine were common, so it was no shock when this fire started on November 13, 1909. The fire first started when a cart filled with hay to feed the mules, stopped under a lit torch. Hot oil dripping from one of the torches, ignited the hay, and soon the fire was out of worker’s control. Many workers tried to move the car out of danger, but they ended up worsening the fire by spreading it. Soon enough, heat and smoke filled the mine and became overpowering. Instead of warning men and trying to get everyone out, a lot of time was wasted trying to extinguish the fire. The large fan used in the mine was reversed by men, in an attempt to try and blow out the fire. This was unsuccessful and eventually caused the fan house to catch on fire. Many miners became trapped when escape ladders and stairs caught on fire. Water was dumped into the mine by volunteer firemen, but sadly, this was not enough. Another way men tried to put out the fire was by closing off two of the shafts, to try and smother the fire. Because there were still men in each of the shafts, many men suffocated because of this. Soon enough, a ‘black damp’ built up in the mine. Black damp is a suffocating mixture of carbon dioxide and nitrogen. Many people who escaped from the burning mine, stayed around to help rescue others that were trapped in the mine. One team of 12 rescuers made six successful trips into the mine, saving many lives on every trip, sadly on their seventh trip, they burned to death when signals were miscommunicated and they were brought to the surface to late. A total of 200 men and boys made their way to the surface using escape shafts and hoisting cages that hadn’t already burned. Many people gathered around the mine, anxiously waiting to see if their family members made it out, there were so many people gathered there, that the national guard was called in to control the crowd. One thing particularly interesting about the disaster is that a group of men actually survived in the mine for eight days following the disaster.
This group of about 22 men survived by building up a wall made of mud, rocks, and timbers. This wall was built to block out poisons, like the black damp. The men stayed there in total darkness, with only a small pool of water, leaking from a coal seam, to drink from. These men were trapped without food, only water. Many of the men trapped in the mine wrote letters to their loved ones in case they never made it out. George Eddy, mine manager, wrote a letter to his wife telling her where to bury him. The letter reads “Well Elizabeth, if I am found dead, take me to Streator to bury me and move back.” It turns out, George Eddy’s wife didn’t need the letter because the men made it out of the mine and they survived. On the day of the rescue, volunteers had gone down in to the mine to bring up the dead, but instead they brought up the living. News of the men spread through the town quickly. The whole community was shocked. Up until that point, all hope had been abandoned that any men could still be alive in the mine. Once the men were out of the mine, they were taken to sleeping cars in the village and were immediately taken care of by nurses. Their heads were covered with canvas to protect them from bright sunlight. The men were also fed small quantities of soup to help them regain their strength and respirators were also provided. Because there was no way to mark the passing of time, most men thought they had only been imprisoned for a single day. After the rescue, doctors said that the minds of the men were temporarily unbalanced by the horrors they had just experienced. Many families in the town of Cherry refer to this rescue as a miracle and thank God for
it.