Houldsworth Colliery Cage Accident (1906)

The winding engineman lost control while lowering thirteen men in the cage at Houldsworth Colliery, Patna; the cage was violently re-raised on landing, crushing two men to death.

Cause

The winding engineman lost control of his engine while lowering the cage; the valve gearing became reversed, so that on landing at the pit bottom the cage was immediately raised again by around thirteen feet.

What happened

Thirteen men were being lowered together in the cage at Houldsworth Colliery, near Patna, when the winding engineman lost control of his engine partway down the shaft. The valve gearing became reversed, and the cage, on landing at the bottom, was at once raised again some thirteen feet. James McDermont, a 62-year-old miner, and John Scott, a 22-year-old drawer, were crushed between the cage and a beam at the doorheads; contemporary accounts record that Scott was crushed in this way and that McDermont was either similarly crushed or fell from the cage during the sudden movement. The oversman who was travelling with the party in the cage was also injured in the accident. The Durham Mining Museum, drawing on official Mines Inspector reports for the period, catalogues this as a two-fatality colliery disaster in the 'Shaft Accidents: While ascending or descending by Machinery' category.

Recorded claims

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

• The cage's valve gearing became reversed while thirteen men were being lowered, causing it to be immediately re-raised some thirteen feet on landing at the pit bottom; James McDermont (62, miner) and John Scott (22, drawer) were crushed and killed, and the oversman travelling with them was injured. ^1,2

Related terminology

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

• Cage (contextual relationship)
  Named 9 times in this record, first in the summary: “The winding engineman lost control while lowering thirteen men in the cage at Houldsworth Colliery, Patna; the cage was violently re-raised on…”
• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the summary: “…lost control while lowering thirteen men in the cage at Houldsworth Colliery, Patna; the cage was violently re-raised on landing, crushing two…”
• Putter (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…James McDermont, a 62-year-old miner, and John Scott, a 22-year-old drawer, were crushed between the cage and a beam at the doorheads;…”
• Shaft (contextual relationship)
  Named twice in this record, first in the narrative: “…the winding engineman lost control of his engine partway down the shaft. The valve gearing became reversed, and the cage, on landing at the…”

Sources

1. (primary) Houldsworth Colliery [AYR] — Durham Mining Museum (drawing on Mines Inspectors' Reports and List of Mines government returns)
2. (primary) Disasters - Names: Houldsworth, 2 September 1906 — Durham Mining Museum

Record created: 30 August 2026 · Last researched: 30 August 2026