Maritime Colliery cage accident, 1899

Two colliers fell about two hundred yards to their deaths on 17 April 1899 when the cage bringing men up the Maritime Colliery's upcast shaft, in use because the downcast rope had failed, caught and tilted.

Cause

The cage caught on something about three-quarters of the way up the upcast shaft and tilted, and the two men at its ends fell out.

What happened

On the afternoon of Monday 17 April 1899 the rope in the downcast shaft of the Maritime Colliery, Pontypridd, had to be replaced, so at the end of the shift the men were brought up the upcast shaft at Penrhiw, about two hundred yards away, which was not normally used for men. The cage had made fourteen journeys, eight men and boys at a time. On the fifteenth, carrying three men and five boys, the cage caught and tilted when most of the way up, and Edwin Parish and Evan Evans, who had taken the ends of the cage to keep the boys in the middle, fell to the bottom. One boy, George Turner, slipped nearly out and was pulled back by Henry Bedgood. Evans's body was found at the pit bottom and Parish's, after a long search, in the sump.

Investigation & inquiry

The inquest opened at the Court House, Pontypridd, on 20 April before the coroner E. B. Reece, with the inspector of mines Mr Robson present. The owners, the Great Western Colliery Company, said they would not dispute liability under the Workmen's Compensation Act. The hitcher said the cage had not been used for men before and the guide ropes were new.

Recorded claims

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

• Edwin Parish, 50, collier, and Evan Evans, 56, repairer, were killed at the Maritime Colliery, Pontypridd, when they fell out of the cage near the surface when it tilted. ¹
• With the downcast unavailable, the men were being brought up the upcast shaft at Penrhiw; over a hundred had reached the surface when the cage tilted about eighty yards from the top and Parish and Evans fell about two hundred yards, their remains being found in the sump. ²
• At the inquest the hitcher said the cage had made fourteen journeys of eight men and boys and was carrying three men and five boys on the fifteenth; Evans and Parrish had gone to the ends to keep the boys in the middle. ³
• The colliery belonged to the Great Western Colliery Company, which said at the inquest that it would not dispute liability under the Workmen's Compensation Act. ^2,3

Related terminology

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

• Cage (contextual relationship)
  Named 6 times in this record, first in the summary: “…about two hundred yards to their deaths on 17 April 1899 when the cage bringing men up the Maritime Colliery's upcast shaft, in use because…”
• Downcast Shaft and Upcast Shaft (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “…17 April 1899 when the cage bringing men up the Maritime Colliery's upcast shaft, in use because the downcast rope had failed, caught and tilted.”
• Journey (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…which was not normally used for men. The cage had made fourteen journeys, eight men and boys at a time. On the fifteenth, carrying three men…”
• Onsetter (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s investigation: “…not dispute liability under the Workmen's Compensation Act. The hitcher said the cage had not been used for men before and the guide ropes…”
• Sump (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…found at the pit bottom and Parish's, after a long search, in the sump.”

Photographs & further reading

This page doesn't try to reproduce everything — these are the best original sources found for this disaster.

Sources

1. (secondary) Welsh mining fatalities, 1899 — Welsh Coal Mines
2. (primary) Cage accident at Pontypridd: terrible deaths at the Maritime Colliery - Evening Express, 18 April 1899 — Welsh Newspapers (National Library of Wales)
3. (primary) The Pontypridd cage accident: inquest on the victims - Evening Express, 20 April 1899 — Welsh Newspapers (National Library of Wales)

Record created: 2 October 2026 · Last researched: 2 October 2026