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 49 of 50 pages (2497 entries).
| Surname | Given Name(s) | Year |
County |
Mine | Cause |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| McDonald | Dan | 1930 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 12 | Fall of stone |
| MacDonald | Vincent | 1931 | Cape Breton County | Florence | Struck by coal from a shot |
| McPherson | Malcolm I. | 1932 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 1B | Struck by box |
| MacNeil | Malcolm P. | 1934 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 1B | Fall of stone |
| Napier | James | 1934 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 6 | Fall of stone |
| Hickey | John | 1936 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 2 | Fall of stone |
| Head | Walter | 1937 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 12 | Crushed between box and chock |
| Burgoyne | Nelson | 1937 | Cape Breton County | Princess | Struck by runaway trip; 1 of 3 killed |
| Rollins | John | 1938 | Cape Breton County | Princess | Broken cable on riding rake; 1 of 21 killed |
| Campbell | John | 1938 | Cape Breton County | Princess | Broken cable on riding rake; 1 of 21 killed |
| Semenuk | Mike | 1940 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 2 | Fall of coal |
| Patten | John | 1941 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 11 | Runaway trip |
| Cann | William | 1942 | Cape Breton County | Princess | Struck by trip |
| Dorando | Albert | 1943 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 16 | Struck by runaway box |
| Saltys | Joseph | 1944 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 4 | Strick by flying timber from tram |
| Devison | Hector | 1946 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 20 | Caught between box and stopping |
| Briggs | George | 1946 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 2 | Bump (more than 2 miles offshore); 1 of 4 killed |
| McIsaac | James | 1948 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 12 | Haulage |
| Hayes | Matthew | 1949 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 4 | Haulage |
| Raggar | Max | 1951 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 18 | Fall of stone |
| Sampson | William | 1953 | Cape Breton County | Florence | Haulage |
| McKinnon | Colin | 1954 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 18 | Haulage |
| Vickers | Leonard | 1956 | Cape Breton County | Franklin | Fall of stone |
| Bates | Willis | 1957 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 12 | Haulage |
| Boyd | Clarence | 1959 | Cape Breton County | Princess | Fall of stone |
| Young | Daniel | 1960 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 20 | Fall of stone |
| Hines | Chesley | 1963 | Cape Breton County | Electrical Dept, DOSCO | Miscellaneous |
| Kelloway | William | 1965 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 20 | Haulage: Struck by box |
| White | Wallace | 1968 | Cape Breton County | DEVCO No. 12 | Haulage: Struck by arch boom |
| MacLean | Lester | 1971 | Cape Breton County | DEVCO No. 12 | Natural Causes |
| Young | Michael F. | 1979 | Cape Breton County | DEVCO No. 26 | Methane explosion, sparked by coal shearer hitting stone; 1 of 12 killed |
| Kelly | Thomas | 1984 | Cape Breton County | Lingan | Heart Attack |
| Hoyt | Henry | 1866 | Cape Breton County | Lingan | Fall of coal |
| McKinnon | J. | 1871 | Cape Breton County | Sydney Mines Colliery (Queen pit) | Fall of coal |
| Bonar | John | 1877 | Cape Breton County | Sydney Mines (Princess) | Fall of stone |
| Shanahan | James | 1882 | Cape Breton County | Little Glace Bay | Fall of stone from roof |
| McDonald | John | 1890 | Cape Breton County | Sydney Mines (Princess?) | Run over by empty trip, died next day |
| Campbell | Peter | 1894 | Cape Breton County | Little Glace Bay | Caught by full tub against pillar |
| McPherson | James | 1897 | Cape Breton County | Sydney Mines (Princess?) | Struck by falling piece of coal while hauling |
| Simpson | William | 1899 | Cape Breton County | Caledonia | Afterdamp from methane explosion; 1 of 11 killed |
| Bishop | George | 1900 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 4 | Stone fell on him down shaft during sinking |
| Frost | Jacob | 1902 | Cape Breton County | Caledonia | Fall of coal rolling on him |
| Power | James | 1902 | Cape Breton County | Reserve | Fall of coal, hung shot |
| McNeil | Michael L. | 1903 | Cape Breton County | Reserve | Methane explosion No.5 S level, French slope |
| McNeil | Stephen | 1904 | Cape Breton County | Caledonia | Killed by fall of roof coal |
| Genter | Frank | 1906 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 2 | Fall of coal from face |
| Brown | Frank | 1907 | Cape Breton County | Caledonia | Fall of stone |
| Campbell | John A. | 1907 | Cape Breton County | Reserve | Fall of stone |
| Lee | John | 1908 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 3 | Fall of stone |
| Philpot | Nicholas | 1907 | Cape Breton County | Dominion No. 2 and No. 9 Surface plant | Boiler explosion; 1 of 3 or 4 killed |