MineArchiveCwmpennar Colliery incline collision, 1886
On the evening of 9 December 1886 men riding up the Powell Duffryn Company's self-acting incline at Cwmpennar to the George Pit were run into by descending coal wagons when a stone jammed the points. Five died and several more were injured; the inquest found the evidence of how the stone got there inconclusive.
| Date | 9 December 1886 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Lower Duffryn Colliery |
| Region | Rhondda Cynon Taf |
| Type | Haulage / Transport |
| Fatalities | 5 (Michael Miskell, 17 or 18, killed on the spot; David Davies, 20 or 21, who died before reaching home; Daniel Crowley, 36 or 38, and Richard Thomas, 18 or 21, who died at home; and Samuel Thomas, 53 or 54, Richard's father, who died on 15 December.) |
| Injuries | John Llewellyn, 18, William Hughes, 53, John Thomas and John Davies, the last three slightly. |
| Context | During active mining |
Cause
A stone wedged in the self-acting points at the passing place turned the ascending empty wagons, in which the men were riding, onto the line of two descending loaded coal wagons.
Contributing factors
Riding the wagons was forbidden: men had been fined at the office and prosecuted before the magistrates for it, and a policeman was posted to take the names of riders, but he was not at the foot of the incline that evening. The George Pit lay a long way from the populous part of the valley, and the men rode the empties to save the climb. The points had failed once before, about six months earlier, when a nut from a fang bolt lodged in them and wagons collided.
What happened
The incline, within a few yards of a mile long, ran up the side of the Merthyr mountain from the Upper Cwmpennar Pit to the Powell Duffryn Company's George Pit. It worked by gravity, the loaded wagons coming down drawing the empties up, on a single line with a double parting midway where self-acting points, held by a balance lever in a locked box, let the two journeys pass. At about half past five on the evening of Thursday 9 December 1886 between seven and fifteen men, by different accounts, mostly night-shift men going up to work, climbed into the empty wagons. A stone between the points sent the empties onto the line of two full wagons coming down, and in the collision the leading empty wagon was smashed to splinters. Some men jumped clear, among them a man with a wooden leg; Michael Miskell was killed on the spot and others were crushed between the wagons, some with legs almost severed. David Davies died on the way home, Daniel Crowley and Richard Thomas after reaching home, and Samuel Thomas six days later, the third death in his own household.
Rescue & recovery
The injured were carried home; Dr R. W. Jones and Dr D. Roberts attended them.
Investigation & inquiry
The inquest was held by the coroner R. J. Rhys at the Bruce Arms Inn, Mountain Ash, from 13 December, with Mr Martin, chief inspector of mines for South Wales, attending. Joseph Greenhow, the company's mechanical engineer, found the head blocklayer Dan James standing with his foot on a smooth, water-worn stone lying between the point and the rail, unlike the sharp-edged building stone carried up the incline, and judged it must have been put there by hand; the George Pit's manager, Nehemiah Phillips, agreed. The coroner directed that placing a stone on a railway to damage rolling stock, with death resulting, would be murder. On 20 December the jury found that the men died of injuries from a collision caused by a stone between the points which prevented their working, but that the evidence of how the stone got there was not sufficiently conclusive.
Legal & regulatory aftermath
Within a day of the collision the Powell Duffryn Steam Coal Company offered a £10 reward for information leading to the conviction of whoever had maliciously placed the stone in the points. No conviction is recorded.
Changes to practice & legislation
The jury recommended that a man be stationed at the points while the incline was working, and that a footpath be made so that men living in Mountain Ash could walk to and from work.
Recorded claims
Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.
- On 9 December 1886 a collision on the George Pit incline at Cwmpennar killed five men riding up to work. 1,2,3
- A stone between the self-acting points turned the ascending empties onto the line of the descending loaded wagons. 1,2,4
- Riding on the incline was prohibited, and men had been fined or prosecuted for it. 1,4
- The Powell Duffryn Steam Coal Company offered a £10 reward for the conviction of whoever maliciously placed the stone. 2
- The inquest jury found the collision caused by the stone but the evidence of how it got there not sufficiently conclusive, and recommended a man at the points and a footpath. 4
Related terminology
Mining terms this disaster is structurally linked to, with the nature of the relationship.
- Coal (contextual relationship)
Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…incline at Cwmpennar to the George Pit were run into by descending coal wagons when a stone jammed the points. Five died and several more…” - HM Chief Inspector of Mines (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s investigation: “…the Bruce Arms Inn, Mountain Ash, from 13 December, with Mr Martin, chief inspector of mines for South Wales, attending. Joseph Greenhow, the company's…” - Incline (contextual relationship)
Named 5 times in this record, first in the summary: “…of 9 December 1886 men riding up the Powell Duffryn Company's self-acting incline at Cwmpennar to the George Pit were run into by descending coal…” - Journey (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s narrative: “…points, held by a balance lever in a locked box, let the two journeys pass. At about half past five on the evening of Thursday 9 December…”
Photographs & further reading
This page doesn't try to reproduce everything — these are the best original sources found for this disaster.
The resumed inquest: the evidence on the stone, the coroner's direction and the jury's verdict and recommendations.
View sourceSources
- (secondary) Welsh mining fatalities, 1886 — Welsh Coal Mines
- (primary) 'The Cwmpennar disaster: foul play suspected', South Wales Daily News, 11 December 1886 — Welsh Newspapers Online (National Library of Wales)
- (primary) 'The accident on the Cwmpennar incline: another death', Western Mail, 16 December 1886 — Welsh Newspapers Online (National Library of Wales)
- (primary) 'The recent disaster on the Cwmpennar incline: resumption of the inquest, verdict of the jury', Western Mail, 21 December 1886 — Welsh Newspapers Online (National Library of Wales)
- (primary) 'Cwmpennar incline disaster' (letter from Watkin Price), South Wales Daily News, 29 December 1886 — Welsh Newspapers Online (National Library of Wales)
- (primary) 'Shocking accident on Cwmpennar incline', South Wales Echo, 10 December 1886 — Welsh Newspapers Online (National Library of Wales)
- (primary) 'The recent disaster on the Cwmpennar incline: opening of the inquest', Weekly Mail, 18 December 1886 — Welsh Newspapers Online (National Library of Wales)
Record created: 11 October 2026 · Last researched: 11 October 2026