Aberpergwm Colliery (Ladysmith level) roof fall, 1905

On Tuesday 6 June 1905 a heavy fall of roof in the Ladysmith level of Morgan Stuart Williams's Aberpergwm collieries at Glyn-Neath killed three repairers. The under-manager heard the roof crack and shouted a warning; he and two others escaped, but Evan Morgan, Jenkin John Jenkins and Walter Barnaby were buried three yards short of safety.

Cause

A heavy fall of roof in the main road of the level, about a hundred yards from its mouth, during repair work that had been going on for some days.

What happened

The under-manager, Mr Llewellyn, and five men were repairing the roof of the main road in the Ladysmith seam, a level opened at about the time of the relief of Ladysmith and worked together with the neighbouring Pwllfawr level, when he heard a rumbling and crackling. He shouted to them to clear out, and he and two others got away. A huge mass of stone fell on the other three. Their bodies were found about three yards inside the fall: one more second and they would have been clear. Two of the men's watches had stopped at 10.35. The roof there had always been thought good, and no fatality had happened at the level before.

Rescue & recovery

A band of about thirty men worked for some four hours to dig the three out, and the bodies, crushed beyond recognition, were brought out through the Pwllfawr seam at about 2.30 in the afternoon. They were identified by the things they carried and taken to their homes followed by hundreds of colliers.

What's uncertain

Points where sources disagree or the record could not be settled; both accounts are kept. All open questions in the archive.

• The Welsh Coal Mines list gives the date as 5 June 1905; the newspapers place it on the Tuesday, 6 June. (disputed) ⁴

Recorded claims

Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.

• On the morning of Tuesday 6 June 1905 a heavy fall of roof in the main road of the Ladysmith level at Glyn-Neath killed Evan Morgan, Jenkin John Jenkins and Walter Barnaby. ^1,2,3
• The under-manager heard a rumbling and crackling, shouted to the men to clear out, and escaped with two others; the three killed were found about three yards inside the fall. ^4,2,3
• About thirty men worked from about 10.30 a.m. until about 2.30 p.m. to recover the bodies, which were brought out through the Pwllfawr seam. ^2,3
• The level, worked in conjunction with Pwllfawr and employing 500 to 600 men with the Pwllfawr level, belonged to Morgan Stuart Williams of Aberpergwm. ^1,2,3
• The Welsh Coal Mines list gives the date as 5 June 1905; the newspapers place it on the Tuesday, 6 June. (disputed) ⁴

Related terminology

Mining terms this disaster is structurally linked to, with the nature of the relationship.

• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s summary: “…roof in the Ladysmith level of Morgan Stuart Williams's Aberpergwm collieries at Glyn-Neath killed three repairers. The under-manager heard the…”
• Level (contextual relationship)
  Named 5 times in this record, first in the summary: “On Tuesday 6 June 1905 a heavy fall of roof in the Ladysmith level of Morgan Stuart Williams's Aberpergwm collieries at Glyn-Neath…”
• Roof Fall (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “On Tuesday 6 June 1905 a heavy fall of roof in the Ladysmith level of Morgan Stuart Williams's Aberpergwm…”
• Undermanager (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…Aberpergwm collieries at Glyn-Neath killed three repairers. The under-manager heard the roof crack and shouted a warning; he and two others…”

Sources

1. (primary) The Cardiff Times, 10 June 1905: Three miners killed: crushed by a fall at Glyn Neath — The Cardiff Times (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)
2. (primary) Evening Express, 7 June 1905: Smashed to a pulp: Neath colliers mangled — Evening Express (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)
3. (primary) The Cambrian, 9 June 1905: Glyn-Neath disaster: three men crushed to death — The Cambrian (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)
4. (secondary) Welsh colliery fatalities, 1905 (Welsh Coal Mines) — Welsh Coal Mines website

Record created: 20 October 2026 · Last researched: 20 October 2026