Ynyshir Colliery roof fall, 1889

On 12 October 1889 three men died under a fall of roof at the Standard Colliery, Ynyshir, in the Rhondda: David Jones, 39, Joseph Jones, 16, and Thomas Griffiths, 37.

Cause

A fall of roof at the working face.

Contributing factors

The roof broke away along a natural slip despite double timbering and cogs.

What happened

David Jones, aged 39, Joseph Jones, aged 16, and Thomas Griffiths, aged 37, were killed together under a fall of roof. The fall was in a stall turning off a heading, double timbered and cogged, in the Two Feet Nine seam, worked longwall: the roof came away from a slip parallel to the rib and knocked out two cogs and several pairs of timbers.

Investigation & inquiry

The inquest at the Ynyshir Hotel on the Tuesday, before the coroner Mr Rhys and with the inspector Joseph Robson present, returned a verdict of accidental death. The jury gave their fees to David Jones's widow, Mr W. H. Mathias added a pound and the coroner ten shillings. Robson recorded the deaths in his 1889 report (C 6015), South Wales District, page 35.

Recorded claims

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

• David Jones, 39, Joseph Jones, 16, and Thomas Griffiths, 37, died under a fall of roof at Ynyshir Standard Colliery on 12 October 1889. ^1,2
• The fall was in a stall turning off a heading that was double timbered and cogged, in the Two Feet Nine seam worked longwall; the roof fell from a slip parallel to the rib and knocked out two cogs and several pairs of timbers. ¹
• The inquest returned accidental death, and the jury gave their fees to David Jones's widow. ³
• The deaths are recorded in the 1889 Mines Inspectors' Report (C 6015), South Wales District, by Joseph T. Robson, page 35, accident 146. ⁴

Related terminology

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

• Colliery (contextual relationship)
  Named in this record’s summary: “…turning off a heading in the Two Feet Nine seam at Ynyshir Standard Colliery, killing three: David Jones, thirty-nine, Joseph Jones, a collier's…”
• Longwall (contextual relationship)
  The seam was worked longwall.
• Roof Fall (direct cause)
  A fall of roof in a stall.
• Stall (contextual relationship)
  The fall was in a stall off the heading.

Sources

1. (primary) Ynyshir Colliery — Durham Mining Museum
2. (secondary) Ynyshir Standard Colliery — Welsh Coal Mines
3. (primary) South Wales Daily News, 16 October 1889: The Colliery Disaster at Ynyshir — South Wales Daily News (Welsh Newspapers Online, National Library of Wales)
4. (primary) David Jones, Ynyshir, 12 October 1889: individual page with the inspector's report reference — Durham Mining Museum
5. (secondary) Glamorgan colliery fatalities, 1889 — Welsh Coal Mines website

Record created: 10 September 2026 · Last researched: 31 October 2026