Dollar Mine roof fall, 1961

Two Sauchie miners were killed by a fall of coal from the roof at Dollar Mine on 9 January 1961, a few weeks after the reopened mine had begun producing again.

Cause

A fall of coal from the roof.

What happened

The National Coal Board reopened Dollar Mine in the later 1950s, driving new mines from 1956 to supply Kincardine Power Station, and production began again in December 1960. On Monday 9 January 1961 two miners from Sauchie, James Moffat Blair McGrath and Peter Mitchell, were struck by a fall of coal from the roof and killed.

Recorded claims

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

• On 9 January 1961 two Sauchie miners, James McGrath and Peter Mitchell, were killed at Dollar Mine when they were hit by a fall of coal from the roof. ^1,2
• The mine lay in the parish of Muckhart. ²
• The mine belonged to the National Coal Board. ²
• Production at the reopened mine had begun again in December 1960. ¹

Related terminology

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

• Coal (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “Two Sauchie miners were killed by a fall of coal from the roof at Dollar Mine on 9 January 1961, a few weeks after…”
• National Coal Board (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “The National Coal Board reopened Dollar Mine in the later 1950s, driving new mines from 1956…”

Sources

1. (secondary) A Walk in the Past: History of Dollar Mine — Alloa Advertiser
2. (secondary) Accident record: James Moffat Blair McGrath, Dollar Mine, 1961 — Northern Mine Research Society

Record created: 4 October 2026 · Last researched: 8 October 2026