Parc Colliery shaft collapse, 1882

About nine feet of the side of a ventilation shaft being sunk at Parc, Cwmpark, fell in on six sinkers on the evening of 21 February 1882; two got out, and four were buried and drowned, their bodies recovered ten days later.

Cause

The unwalled side of a sinking shaft in loose ground gave way about five yards above the drainage level, burying the men in the water at the bottom.

What happened

In February 1882 David Davies and Company's Ocean collieries were sinking a new ventilation pit for Parc Colliery on the mountain between the Rhondda and Ogmore valleys, about 1,300 yards from the colliery office at Cwmpark. Twenty-four sinkers worked it in three shifts. The shaft was about 38 yards deep, in ground said to be loose; it had not been walled but was carefully timbered, and a level had been driven in about five yards above the bottom to drain water.

About a quarter past six on the evening of Tuesday 21 February six men were at the bottom, where there was a good deal of water. Finding the sides dropping, David Williams climbed into the bowk to see what was wrong, and some nine feet of the side fell in and buried the five below him. Williams came up in the bowk. David Jones was left up to his neck in rubbish and water, his head kept clear by falling timber; Henry Harries went round by the drainage level and, on a rope, brought him up alive with broken ribs about half an hour later. The other four lay under about two yards of soil and timber. They were Edward Owen, 32, of Cwmpark, John Rowlands, about 33, whose family lived at Llanbrynmair and who was standing in for an absent man from another shift, Thomas Davies, 47, of Treorchy, and John Davies, 26, of Pentre, all married.

The bodies were brought to bank one at a time, standing in the bowk, on the morning of Friday 3 March, before hundreds of people. They were almost unmarked: the men had drowned. The beams had come to rest against the far side of the shaft and left a hollow beneath, and Jones said he had talked with them under the fall, so it was believed they lived at least half an hour.

Rescue & recovery

Henry Harries, on a rope from the drainage level, rescued David Jones within about half an hour. The other bodies could not be reached until the shaft was secured and were recovered on 3 March.

Investigation & inquiry

The coroner, George Overton, opened the inquest at the Pencelli Hotel, Cwmpark, with Treharne Rees, deputy inspector of mines, present, and adjourned it.

What's uncertain

Points where sources disagree or the record could not be settled; both accounts are kept. All open questions in the archive.

• One of the dead was Thomas Jones of Treorchy. (disputed) ⁴

Recorded claims

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

• On 21 February 1882 the side of the shaft being sunk at Park New Pit collapsed, killing four sinkers; two others got out. ^1,2,3,4
• The dead were Edward Owen, John Rowlands, Thomas Davies and John Davies. ^3,5
• One of the dead was Thomas Jones of Treorchy. (disputed) ⁴
• The shaft was a ventilation pit being sunk for Parc, about 38 yards deep, timbered but not walled. ^3,4
• David Jones was rescued alive by Henry Harries, who went down on a rope from the drainage level. ³
• The bodies were recovered on the Friday ten days later; the men had drowned, and were believed to have lived at least half an hour under the fall. ⁵
• George Overton opened the inquest at the Pencelli Hotel with Treharne Rees, deputy inspector of mines, present. ⁶

Related terminology

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

• Deputy (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s investigation: “…the inquest at the Pencelli Hotel, Cwmpark, with Treharne Rees, deputy inspector of mines, present, and adjourned it.”
• Kibble (contextual relationship)
  Named 3 times in this record, first in the narrative: “…water. Finding the sides dropping, David Williams climbed into the bowk to see what was wrong, and some nine feet of the side fell in and…”
• Level (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the cause: “…shaft in loose ground gave way about five yards above the drainage level, burying the men in the water at the bottom.”
• Pithead (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s narrative: “…John Davies, 26, of Pentre, all married. The bodies were brought to bank one at a time, standing in the bowk, on the morning of Friday 3…”
• Shaft Sinking (contextual relationship)
  Named 4 times in this record, first in the summary: “…of a ventilation shaft being sunk at Parc, Cwmpark, fell in on six sinkers on the evening of 21 February 1882; two got out, and four were…”

Sources

1. (secondary) Welsh coal mining fatalities, 1882 — Welsh Coal Mines
2. (secondary) Parc Colliery, Cwmparc — Welsh Coal Mines
3. (primary) The Pontypridd Chronicle and Workman's News, 25 February 1882: Fatal sinking accident at Cwmpark — The Pontypridd Chronicle and Workman's News (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)
4. (primary) Monmouthshire Merlin, 24 February 1882: Fatal colliery accident — Monmouthshire Merlin (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)
5. (primary) The Pontypridd Chronicle and Workman's News, 4 March 1882: The Cwmpark colliery accident: recovery of the bodies — The Pontypridd Chronicle and Workman's News (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)
6. (primary) South Wales Daily News, 27 February 1882: The fatal accident to Cwmpark sinkers — South Wales Daily News (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)

Record created: 17 October 2026 · Last researched: 18 October 2026