Canderrigg Colliery explosion, 1906

An old electric lamp fitted above a box of gunpowder and gelignite burst when switched on at Canderrigg Colliery's Broomfield No. 4 pit on 8 August 1906, setting off the explosives and killing three of the four men in the room.

Cause

Explosives set off by a fragment of a bursting electric lamp falling into the open box beneath it.

Contributing factors

Explosives kept directly beneath a lamp being tested in the office.

What happened

On 8 August 1906 Robert Elder, a joiner of 28 who had charge of the explosives at James Nimmo and Company's Broomfield No. 4 pit, part of Canderrigg Colliery, came back from the magazine with a box holding 27 lb of compressed gunpowder and 2½ lb of gelignite. On the way he had picked up an old electric lamp from a manure heap.

In the office, he and the overman took down the lamp in use and put the old one in its place, with the box of explosives beneath it. When the current was switched on the lamp burst, and a piece of fused glass or wire dropped into the box. The explosives went off. All four men in the room were hurt and only one lived: the overman Samuel Leckie, 31, the engineman William Earle, 27, and Elder were killed.

Investigation & inquiry

Described by the inspector of mines in his report for 1906.

Recorded claims

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

• On 8 August 1906 gelignite and gunpowder exploded in a bothy at the Broomfield No. 4 pit of Canderrigg Colliery, Lanarkshire, killing three of the four men inside. ^1,2
• The dead were the overman Samuel Leckie, 31, the engineman William Earle, 27, and the joiner Robert Elder, 28. ^1,2
• Elder, who had charge of the explosives, had found an old electric lamp in a manure heap and fitted it in the office above a box of 27 lb of compressed gunpowder and 2½ lb of gelignite; when the current was switched on the lamp burst, and fused glass or wire falling into the box set off the explosives. ¹
• The colliery belonged to James Nimmo and Co. Ltd. ^1,2

Related terminology

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

• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…box of gunpowder and gelignite burst when switched on at Canderrigg Colliery's Broomfield No. 4 pit on 8 August 1906, setting off the explosives…”
• HM Chief Inspector of Mines (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s investigation: “Described by the inspector of mines in his report for 1906.”
• Overman (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the narrative: “…an old electric lamp from a manure heap. In the office, he and the overman took down the lamp in use and put the old one in its place, with the…”

Sources

1. (secondary) Fatal accidents in Scottish mines, 1906 — Scottish Mining Website
2. (secondary) Mining deaths 1900-1909, surnames L, part 2 (Ian Winstanley) — Healey Hero (Ian Winstanley's mining deaths lists)

Record created: 8 October 2026 · Last researched: 8 October 2026