MineArchiveEskett Pit Fall of Roof, 1873
Two miners, Thomas Cameron and Peter Hughes, were killed by a single fall of roof at the Eskett iron ore workings on 16 September 1873. The Durham Mining Museum files the accident under Salter & Eskett, with the company given as Fisher and Co., and the local papers reported it as two men killed at Frizington.
| Date | 16 September 1873 |
|---|---|
| Mine | Eskett Pit |
| Region | Cumbria |
| Type | Collapse / Roof Fall |
| Fatalities | 2 (Thomas Cameron, 25, and Peter Hughes, 18, both miners. The museum's accident page for the day gives two lives lost from the one fall.) |
| Injuries | None recorded beyond the two deaths. |
| Context | During active mining |
Cause
A fall of roof in the workings.
Contributing factors
Nothing further is recorded. Falls of roof and of ore account for most of the twenty-one recorded deaths at these workings, the haematite being taken from the sides of chambers held up by timber sets.
What happened
Little is recorded beyond the fact. Two miners, one twenty-five and one eighteen, were killed together by a fall of roof on 16 September 1873. The workings are entered in the museum's accident index as Salter & Eskett, a metalliferous mine under Fisher and Co., which is a different owner from the Eskett Iron Ore Co. that appears against the pit in the 1880s returns.
Rescue & recovery
Nothing is recorded of the recovery.
Investigation & inquiry
The accident appears in the Durham Mining Museum's index of colliery accidents for 1873 with the cause given as fall of roof and two lives lost. The museum also lists two contemporary newspaper reports which have not been read: 'Two Men Killed at Frizington' in the Cumberland Pacquet of 23 September 1873 and 'Two Men Killed Near Whitehaven' in the Ulverston Mirror of 27 September 1873.
Legal & regulatory aftermath
No proceedings are recorded.
Changes to practice & legislation
Nothing recorded.
Memorials & commemoration
No memorial specific to the accident is known.
Recorded claims
Individual factual claims, each attached to the source(s) that support it below. Where sources disagree, both are kept.
- Thomas Cameron, 25, and Peter Hughes, 18, both miners, were killed by a fall of roof on 16 September 1873, the museum's accident page giving two lives lost. 1,2
- The Durham Mining Museum indexes the accident under 'Salter & Eskett (Metalliferous)' with the company given as Fisher and Co., while its Eskett Pit record gives the Eskett Iron Ore Co. as owner in the 1880s. 1,2
Related terminology
Mining terms this disaster is structurally linked to, with the nature of the relationship.
- Colliery (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s investigation: “The accident appears in the Durham Mining Museum's index of colliery accidents for 1873 with the cause given as fall of roof and two…” - Haematite (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s contributing factors: “…for most of the twenty-one recorded deaths at these workings, the haematite being taken from the sides of chambers held up by timber sets.” - Iron (contextual relationship)
Named in this record’s summary: “…and Peter Hughes, were killed by a single fall of roof at the Eskett iron ore workings on 16 September 1873. The Durham Mining Museum files…” - Roof Fall (contextual relationship)
Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “Two miners, Thomas Cameron and Peter Hughes, were killed by a single fall of roof at the Eskett iron ore workings on 16 September 1873. The Durham…”
Sources
- (primary) Eskett Pit (Iron Ore) — Durham Mining Museum
- (primary) Colliery accident, Salter & Eskett, 16 September 1873: two miners killed by a fall of roof — Durham Mining Museum, from the mines inspectors' records
Record created: 4 September 2026 · Last researched: 4 September 2026