Coal Mining Fatalities
This database contains 2498 known Nova Scotia coal mining fatalities. Names, dates, places, mines, and causes of death have been painstakingly compiled. Despite this, it is by no means a complete list. Fatalities occurred before records were kept; descriptions of incidents and those involved were lost along with coal company records. Official recording of multiple deaths may have missed some names; in some cases, names are misspelled. However, this is likely the most complete list that exists. Please contact us if you know names to add.
Displaying page 29 of 50 pages (2498 entries).
| Surname |
Given Name(s) |
Year | County | Mine | Cause |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baxter | James | 1913 | Pictou County | Acadia | Fall of roof |
| Wilson | James | 1902 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 2 | Fatally injured by full rake of boxes |
| Lammond | James | 1872 | Cape Breton County | Sydney Mines Colliery (Queen pit) | Fall of stone |
| Christie | James | 1920 | Cape Breton County | Colonial No. 4, engine house | Caught in belt that operates hoist, lived 9 hrs |
| Morris | James | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Rose | James | 1928 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 2 | Fall of stone |
| Jacobs | James | 1900 | Cape Breton County | Reserve | Fall of coal while loading in room |
| Maloney | James | 1973 | Cumberland | River Hebert Coal Mine, formerly Cochran | Died of natural causes in mine |
| Lennon | James | 1880 | Pictou County | Foord pit | Devastating methane explosion |
| DeGrace | James | 1902 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 3 | Cause not recorded |
| Martel | James | 1958 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 20 | Construction |
| Royal | James | 1938 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 4 | Struck by tub of coal |
| Gleason | James | 1892 | Cape Breton County | Sydney Mines (Princess?) | Fell down shaft while working there |
| Doolan | James | 1930 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 14 | Struck by runaway box |
| McEachran or MacEachern | James | 1883 | Pictou County | Vale | Drawbar broke, crash of runaway slope rake |
| Geddes | James | 1953 | Pictou County | McBean | Haulage accident |
| Lennon | James | 1926 | Pictou County | Allan Shaft | Fall of stone |
| Porter | James | 1914 | Cumberland | Black Diamond | Thawing Samsonite (possibly a powder brand) |
| Wallace | James | 1970 | Cape Breton County | Princess Wash Plant, Surface | Squeezed in a chain conveyor |
| MacDonald | James | 1922 | Inverness | bootleg pit | Methane gas poisoning; 1 of 3 killed |
| Spellman | James | 1912 | Pictou County | Drummond mine (Intercolonial) | Runaway empty box on Drummond #1 slope; 1 of 2 killed |
| Gillies or Gillis | James | 1883 | Pictou County | Vale | Drawbar broke, crash of runaway slope rake |
| Quigley | James | 1943 | Inverness | Inverness No. 3 | Crushed between engine drum and rope |
| Snellgrove | James | 1930 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 4 | Painter; injured by ventilating fan |
| MacLeod | James | 1903 | Pictou County | Acadia | Died 15 February |
| Steele | James | 1936 | Cape Breton County | North Sydney Pier | Falling into pocket |
| Pembroke | James | 1942 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 16 | Struck by rake |
| Wilson | James | 1903 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 2 | Fatally hurt by a full rake of boxes |
| Stevenson | James | 1943 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 2 | Coal tank platform tilted, threw man down shaft; 1 of 4 killed being lifted in coal shaft |
| Turner | James | 1924 | Cape Breton County | Princess | Fall of stone |
| Russell | James | 1934 | Cape Breton County | Princess | Heart failure |
| Stanton | James | 1892 | Pictou County | Albion | Under engine hit by hoppers and run over |
| Shea | James | 1867 | Inverness | Port Hood | Crushed by machinery |
| Flynn | James | 1917 | Pictou County | Greenwood | Fall of stone |
| Conn | James | 1839 | Pictou County | Storr pit | Methane explosion; 1 of 2 killed |
| Handrahan | James | 1912 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 1 | Fall of stone from roof |
| MacEachern | James | 1935 | Pictou County | Allan Shaft | Shot blew back exploding methane and coal dust; 1 of 7 killed; asphixiation by carbon monoxide |
| Devoe | James | 1924 | Cape Breton County | Florence | Killed by box on main deep |
| Napier | James | 1934 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 6 | Fall of stone |
| Johnston | James | 1908 | Cape Breton County | Reserve | Fatally injured by air pipe bursting, died a month later |
| McGill | James | 1918 | Cape Breton County | Princess | Runaway car |
| Stevenson | James | 1918 | Pictou County | Allan Shaft | Devastating methane explosion |
| Doyle | James | 1920 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 14 | Struck by empty trip |
| Nairn | James | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Dunsmuir | James | 1924 | Cape Breton County | Princess | Fall of stone |
| Burton | James | 1915 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 3 | Fall of stone |
| Stewart | James | 1934 | Cape Breton County | Colonial No. 1 | Struck by coal boxes |
| Walker | James | 1937 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 10 | Fall of stone |
| Frost | Jacob | 1902 | Cape Breton County | Caledonia | Fall of coal rolling on him |
| Bozzan | Jacob | 1913 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 9 | Fall of stone |