Gelli Colliery roof fall, 1902

A big fall of roof killed two veteran timbermen working an extra half-shift at Gelli Colliery, Ystrad Rhondda, on 1 September 1902.

Cause

A fall of roof during repair work.

What happened

On Monday 1 September 1902 three timbermen, Thomas Hughes, 64, Thomas Watkins, 58, and Josiah Hill, were working an extra half-shift on repairs at Gelli Colliery after the day shift. Shortly after five in the afternoon a big fall came down and buried Hughes and Watkins. Hill escaped with slight injuries and walked home. Workmen dug out the bodies, which were brought up at about seven. Hughes had worked at the Gelli since it was sunk. The inquest returned a verdict of accidental death.

Recorded claims

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

• Two timbermen, Thomas Hughes, 64, and Thomas Watkins, 58, were killed by a fall at Gelli Colliery on 1 September 1902. ^1,2,3
• They were repairing, working an extra half-shift after the day shift, when a big fall came shortly after five in the afternoon; a third man, Josiah Hill, escaped with slight injuries. ^2,3
• The inquest at the Ystrad Hotel returned a verdict of accidental death. ⁴

Related terminology

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

• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “…killed two veteran timbermen working an extra half-shift at Gelli Colliery, Ystrad Rhondda, on 1 September 1902.”
• Roof Fall (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the summary: “A big fall of roof killed two veteran timbermen working an extra half-shift at Gelli…”

Sources

1. (secondary) Welsh coal mining fatalities, 1902 — Welsh Coal Mines
2. (primary) Rhondda colliers killed: buried beneath a fall in the Gelli pit (Evening Express, 2 September 1902) — Welsh Newspapers (National Library of Wales)
3. (primary) Timbermen killed: buried beneath a fall at Gelli (Cardiff Times, 6 September 1902) — Welsh Newspapers (National Library of Wales)
4. (primary) The double fatality at Gelli Colliery (Evening Express, 4 September 1902) — Welsh Newspapers (National Library of Wales)

Record created: 7 October 2026 · Last researched: 7 October 2026