Elemore Colliery roof fall, 1906

A single mass of post stone fell on two brothers hewing in the Main Coal at Elemore Colliery on 22 January 1906, moments after the deputy had set a prop and remarked he could have gone to sleep in the place.

Cause

A sudden fall of post stone in one mass at a well-timbered face.

What happened

On 22 January 1906 two brothers, John Gaffney, 27, and Thomas Gaffney, 22, were hewing in a loose-end place in the Main Coal seam at the Hetton Coal Company's Elemore Colliery. The lift was 18 feet wide, well timbered with chocks and pairs of gears, under a roof of post stone. The deputy had set a prop and plank and was just leaving when a very heavy fall came down in one mass, about 18 to 20 feet long, 12 feet wide and 14 to 15 feet thick, burying both brothers and knocking him down.

At the inquest the deputy said the roof had been perfectly quiet while he was there, so safe that he had remarked he could have gone to sleep in it. A local inspector, one of the men appointed by their fellows to inspect under General Rule 38, had worked the place on the fore shift and left about an hour and three-quarters before the fall; he too had found nothing to suggest danger and thought no more timber could have been set. The inspector of mines judged it a case no human foresight could have prevented.

Investigation & inquiry

Inquest; the H.M. Inspector's report for 1906 judged the fall unforeseeable.

Recorded claims

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

• On 22 January 1906 a fall of stone killed two brothers at Elemore Colliery. ^1,2,3
• The dead were John Gaffney, 27, and Thomas Gaffney, 22, hewers. ^1,2,3
• The fall came down in one mass about 18 to 20 feet long, 12 feet wide and 14 to 15 feet thick. ¹
• The fall was 8 or 9 yards wide and 12 feet thick. ^2,3
• The inspector judged that no human foresight could have prevented it. ¹
• The colliery was owned by the Hetton Coal Co. Ltd. ^1,2

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: “A single mass of post stone fell on two brothers hewing in the Main Coal at Elemore Colliery on 22 January 1906, moments after the deputy had…”
• Coal Seam (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…and Thomas Gaffney, 22, were hewing in a loose-end place in the Main Coal seam at the Hetton Coal Company's Elemore Colliery. The lift was 18 feet…”
• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…post stone fell on two brothers hewing in the Main Coal at Elemore Colliery on 22 January 1906, moments after the deputy had set a prop and…”
• Deputy (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “…Main Coal at Elemore Colliery on 22 January 1906, moments after the deputy had set a prop and remarked he could have gone to sleep in the place.”
• HM Chief Inspector of Mines (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…suggest danger and thought no more timber could have been set. The inspector of mines judged it a case no human foresight could have prevented.”

Sources

1. (primary) Durham Mining Museum: Elemore, 22 January 1906 — Durham Mining Museum
2. (primary) NMRS Coal Mining Accidents and Deaths: John Gaffney, Elemore, 1906 — Northern Mine Research Society
3. (primary) NMRS Coal Mining Accidents and Deaths: Thomas Gaffney, Elemore, 1906 — Northern Mine Research Society
4. (primary) Elemore Colliery (Durham Mining Museum) — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 18 October 2026 · Last researched: 18 October 2026