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 2 of 50 pages (2497 entries).
| Surname | Given Name(s) | Year |
County |
Mine | Cause |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| McNeil | John | 1927 | Inverness | Inverness No. 1 | Crushed by full boxes of coal |
| Doucet | J. S. | 1941 | Inverness | Inverness | Fall of stone |
| LeBlanc | Joseph | 1923 | Inverness | Inverness No. 1 | Found dead in boiler room; may have fallen |
| McDougall | Daniel | 1924 | Inverness | Inverness No. 1 | Fall of stone; 1 of 4 killed |
| Merritt | John | 1903 | Inverness | Port Hood | Riding trip coupling broke hurling boxes against roof |
| Fraser | Robert | 1909 | Inverness | Inverness | Fall of roof coal; bled to death from injuries |
| MacDonald | Alexander | 1922 | Inverness | bootleg pit | Methane gas poisoning; 1 of 3 killed |
| McIsaac | Neil | 1924 | Inverness | Inverness No. 1 | Fall of stone; 1 of 4 killed |
| Muise | Patrick | 1946 | Inverness | Inverness | Killed by haulage |
| Fraser | John Clarence | 1938 | Inverness | Port Hood or Henderson | Fall of stone |
| MacDonald | Donald R. | 1922 | Inverness | bootleg pit | Methane gas poisoning; 1 of 3 killed |
| McIsaac | Archibald A. | 1924 | Inverness | Inverness No. 1 | Fall of stone; 1 of 4 killed |
| Poirier | Joseph | 1941 | Inverness | Inverness | Crushed between machine amd chock pack |
| Aird | Finlay | 1907 | Inverness | Inverness | Fell from riding rake on main slope |
| Gilliam | Robert | date unknown | Inverness | Inverness | cause not recorded |
| MacDonald | James | 1922 | Inverness | bootleg pit | Methane gas poisoning; 1 of 3 killed |
| McIsaac | Daniel C. | 1924 | Inverness | Inverness No. 1 | Fall of stone; 1 of 4 killed |
| Powelle | (Bulgarian) Unknown | 1908 | Inverness | Port Hood | Explosion on No. 3 level south; 1 of 10 killed |
| Assiff | Joseph | 1921 | Inverness | Inverness | Hit by rake on level, died 2 days later |
| Gillies | Angus | 1878 | Inverness | Port Hood | Explosion of steam boiler; 1 of 2 killed |
| MacDougall | Peter | 1934 | Inverness | Inverness No. 1 | Gas explosion |
| McIsaac | Daniel A. or Danile | 1936 | Inverness | Port Hood | Killed by file shot |
| Quigley | Thomas | 1906 | Inverness | Mabou | Jammed between box and pillar |
| Dunlap | Robert | 1928 | Colchester | Kempton or Riversdale | Fell off tub in shaft |
| Long | William | 1901 or 1902 | Cumberland | Jubilee, River Hebert | Bankhead under construction fell on him |
| McPhee | David | 1913 | Cumberland | Chignecto | cause not recorded |
| McAloney | Robert L. | 1920 | Cumberland | Maple Leaf | Struck by runaway box, died 6 days later |
| McCallum | William | 1931 | Cumberland | Victoria No. 4 (Bright Light Mine) | Went over surface dump with car |
| Muckle or Muckie | David | 1943 | Cumberland | Bayview | Run over by trip |
| Haslam | James | 1885 | Cumberland | Syndicate | burned by explosion of powder; 1 of 3 killed |
| Burchill or Birchill | William | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Carter | Willard | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Findlayson | Daniel | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Livingstone | Henry | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| McLeod | Rory | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Mott | Ernest | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Ripley | Clifford | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Vance | Alexander | 1891 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 1 & No. 2 | Gas and coal dust explosion |
| Horne or Horone | William | 1895 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 2 | Fall from roof |
| Melanson | Dosithe | 1902 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 3 | Cause not recorded |
| Bratcher | George | 1907 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 2 | Suffocated by gas |
| Gillespie | William | 1913 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 2 | Caught between box at 4700 bottom |
| Blue | Duncan | 1919 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 2 | Struck by runaway rake |
| Smith | George | 1923 | Cumberland | Springhill Surface | Cause not recorded |
| Schwinghammer or Swinghammer | Fred | 1929 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 7 | Fall of stone |
| Ross | Edward | 1939 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 2 | Fall of rock, died 4 days later |
| Rushton | William A. | 1944 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 2 | Fall of coal |
| Crosson or Crossin | Harry | 1950 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 4 | Killed by haulage |
| Cottenden | William J. | 1953 | Cumberland | Springhill (Cumberland Railway & Coal) | Electricity, on surface |
| Alderson or Anderson | Ephriam | 1956 | Cumberland | Springhill No. 4 | Electricity-fired coal dust explosion |