Dysart Colliery fall of coal, 1890

At half past ten in the morning of 25 April 1890 a fall of coal in the Earl of Rosslyn's Dysart Colliery, Fife, killed two miners, William Duncan and William Watson.

Cause

A fall of coal at the face.

What happened

Duncan and Watson were five hours into their shift when the coal came away and killed them both.

Recorded claims

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

• At about 10.30 a.m. on 25 April 1890, in the fifth hour of the shift, a fall of coal at Dysart Colliery killed two miners, William Duncan and William Watson. ^1,2
• Duncan was 42 and Watson 58. ²
• The colliery then belonged to the Earl of Rosslyn. 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: “At half past ten in the morning of 25 April 1890 a fall of coal in the Earl of Rosslyn's Dysart Colliery, Fife, killed two miners,…”
• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s summary: “…of 25 April 1890 a fall of coal in the Earl of Rosslyn's Dysart Colliery, Fife, killed two miners, William Duncan and William Watson.”

Sources

1. (secondary) Scottish Mining Website — 1890 Deaths — Scottish Mining Website
2. (primary) Durham Mining Museum: Dysart Colliery — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 21 October 2026 · Last researched: 21 October 2026