Coal Mining Fatalities
This database contains 2497 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 1 of 50 pages (2497 entries).
Surname |
Given Name(s) | Year | County | Mine | Cause |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zyales | Stainslaw | 1913 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 15 | Fall of stone |
| Zyales | Stainslaw | 1914 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 15 | Fall of stone |
| Zusic or Zusie | Thomas | 1933 | Pictou County | Allan Shaft | Fall of coal |
| Zomoskie | Peter | 1918 | Pictou County | Allan Shaft | Devastating methane explosion |
| Zanicol | Barnado | 1912 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 1 | Fall of coal from face |
| Young | Michael F. | 1979 | Cape Breton County | DEVCO No. 26 | Methane explosion, sparked by coal shearer hitting stone; 1 of 12 killed |
| Young | Alex | 1949 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 4 | Haulage |
| Young | Walter | 1943 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 16 | Fall of stone |
| Young | Thomas | 1870 | Pictou County | Drummond mine (Intercolonial) | Fall of coal |
| Young | Michael | 1900 | Cape Breton County | Sydney Mines (Princess) | Run over by trip while trying to get on it |
| Young | Alexander | 1893 | Cape Breton County | Gowrie | Fall of roof coal, died 6 days later |
| Young | John A. | 1956 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 12 | Fall of timber |
| Young | Daniel | 1960 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 20 | Fall of stone |
| Young | James | 1927 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 12 | Squeezed between prop and trip |
| Young | Thomas | 1908 | Cape Breton County | Sydney Mines (Princess) | Struck by runaway box |
| Young | Ninian | 1919 | Inverness | Inverness | Injured by dynamite shot; died a day later. |
| Young | Fred | 1942 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 1B | Fall of coal |
| Young | Archie | 1904 | Cape Breton County | Sydney Mines Colliery; Nova Scotia Steel & Coal | Fall of coal |
| Young | George | 1927 | Cape Breton County | Colonial No. 1 | Fall of stone |
| Yorke | Eugene I. | 1932 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 7 | Fall of stone on Longwall |
| Yakubaski | John | 1940 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 4 | Fractured ankle, infection and shock, died 27 days later |
| Yak | Nicholas | 1916 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 15 | Fall of roof |
| Yacick | Thomas | 1911 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 4 | Fall of coal, head and back hurt, accidental death |
| Wynn | Richard | 1909 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 3 | Pick boy; Run over by full box |
| Wry | Edgar | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Wry | Henry | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Wright | William | 1933 | Pictou County | Allan Shaft | Asphixiated by methane gas |
| Wright | James | 1952 | Pictou County | McGregor | Methane explosion (localized); 1 of 19 killed |
| Works | Howard | 1918 | Pictou County | Allan Shaft | Devastating methane explosion |
| Woodland | Herbert | 1942 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 12 | Struck by trip |
| Woodfine | Solomon | 1943 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 14 | Gas asphixiation; 1 of 2 killed |
| Wooden | John | 1918 | Pictou County | Greenwood | roof fall |
| Wood | David Edgar | 1924 | Cumberland | Strathcona | Fall of roof |
| Wood | Arthur or Thomas W. | 1910 | Cumberland | Chignecto | Explosion |
| Wood | George | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Wood | Jasper E. or R. | 1919 | Cumberland | St. George | Fell down slope, died 1 day later |
| Witstanley | John T. | 1920 | Cape Breton County | Florence | Fall of coal |
| Winton | Robert | 1918 | Pictou County | Allan Shaft | Devastating methane explosion |
| Winters | Daniel | 1956 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 4 | Electricity-fired coal dust explosion |
| Winter | Edward | 1872 | Cumberland | Victoria; or Cape Breton County | Fall of coal |
| Winter | Edward | 1872 | Cape Breton County | Victoria | Fall of roof coal; possibly in Cumberland County |
| Wilson | David | 1898 | Pictou County | Drummond mine (Intercolonial) | Struck by falling roof prop |
| Wilson | George | 1935 | Pictou County | Drummond (Intercolonial) No. 2 Scott slope | Fall of coal |
| Wilson | James | 1902 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 2 | Fatally injured by full rake of boxes |
| Wilson | John | 1885 | Cumberland | Syndicate | burned by explosion of powder; 1 of 3 killed |
| Wilson | Robert | 1909 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 9 | Fall of stone |
| Wilson | James | 1903 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 2 | Fatally hurt by a full rake of boxes |
| Wilson | Nelson | 1907 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 1 | Killed on surface by haulage rope used to convey cars under screens |
| Wilson | Thomas | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Wilson | Henry J. | 1934 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 16 | Struck on head by stone |