Words fail to describe the wreckage and havoc which had been wrought. The great timbers, towering in the pyramidal form skywards, had been riven and splintered and flung here and there as if a powder mine had burst under them. Up amongst the jungle of crazy spurs and twisted steelwork the skeleton of the iron cage could be seen. It had been shot clean up there from the level of the platform. The gaping maw of the shaft was choked with a lacework of timbers, iron plates, dislodged slates and bricks, and snake-like coils of steel gearing. Half of the roof above had been blown right away some distance into the yard. The windows of the cabin and engine-house were smashed in. Huge iron plates had been torn up: corves filled with coal were heaped one upon another – all was desolation.
Day before the disaster, Wednesday 29th April 1896
Ordinarily a shift of 250 to 260 men out of 400 miners employed at Peckfield would descend at 6am to get out coal; and a second shift of 35-40 men who work on repairs from 10pm to 6am. A maximum of 260 men plus 23 horses were allowed in the pit at any time, to match against the air flow. However, on Wednesday night, the buzzer sounded in Peckfield mine. This was the signal for the men finishing their shift that Thursday would be a ‘laik’ or play day, so no coal was to be removed; consequently no miners would be paid. Miners had only been doing 3 paid days a week for the past few weeks, and things had generally been bad since the Miners’ strike of 1893. Men worked with picks by the light of tallow candles (which they had to buy, pictured below) and were paid 2s 3d for every ton of coal they hewed.
The Downcast shaft was used to transport coal, supplies, and men, and only went to the Beeston Bed. The upcast shaft was used solely to transport men and was sunk to both the Beeston and Black Bed. A drift in the East level, about 320 yards from the downcast shaft also gave access from the Beeston to the Black Bed. From the bottom of the shaft, the mine stretches approximately one mile in all four directions. Ventilation was drawn through the seams by a Waddle fan at the top of the Upcast shaft, and the ventilation had removed the 11 instances of small escapes of gas since 1891. The last two were discovered in the James Plum Gate on 17 and 23 December 1895 via a crack in the roof. This was in the East Level . No gas had been found in the New North Road or Goodall’s Gate in the West Level. Blasting was only done at the working faces, not in the intakes; and none had taken place in the Beeston Bed for more than 24 hours.
On Wednesday night, Tom Edwin Whitaker has permission to go down the mine on Thursday, but transferred the permission to his elder brother George Henry Whitaker instead. Alfred Webster saw his close friend James Wilson in Kippax. Brothers Joseph and Walter Jackson of Garforth were with their father Richard. Brothers Fred, George and Arthur Benson of 23 Crescent were also with their father James. William Sheldon was at his brother-in-law’s house, Isaiah Evans (31 East View). Joseph Johnson paid a visit to his daughter-in-law Ada Maggs and her husband Edwin Charles Maggs. At 8:30pm, Robert Westerman was with his brother George in the Boot & Shoe Inn, Ledsham.
At 9:00pm, Joseph Backhouse, who had been Night Deputy for 5 years, descended into the pit with George Hopkinson. He had a clanny lamp with him. The undermanager and 5 deputies carried safety lamps, whilst nearly all the men carried naked lights with them. Candles were used for lighting, except at the foot of the shaft which had oil lamps installed. The oil (paraffin) was stored near the offices. Joseph had discovered gas twice previously on the Old North Road, in Robertshaw’s bank from a fault six months previously, which he bratticed and cleared. George Hopkinson had also been a night deputy for 5 years, and had also found gas twice previously, on 16th December 1895 at James Plumb’s gate following a crack in the roof, which he cleared, and again one week later whilst the area was still fenced off, which the underground manager, William Radford, had cleared. Gas had only been reported 11 times in the last 5 years. At 9:50pm, Joseph Lillyman, the third night deputy, descended in the lift. He had worked at Peckfield for 13½ years. 6 months ago, 4 or 5 tubs of coal dust were removed, and he considered the mine needed clearing of dust again.
30th April 1896
Between 4am and 7am, Joseph Lillyman, George Hopkinson, and Joseph Backhouse inspected the Beeston Bed with their safety lamps, and reported in each of their sections that gas was clear, ventilation was good, roof and sides safe and general safety were good. Backhouse checked the Old North and No.1 Rise Bord. Hopkinson examined the East Level. Lillyman examined the New North Road and South Dips. Joseph Lillyman placed his white chalk mark (the date) on the side of John Goodall’s Gate to indicate that it was safe.
At 5:30am, George Carter Cawood of 13 East View, and 5 others were already descending the shaft ready for work. Rayner Scrimshaw, recently married, and living in East Garforth, leaves for work. At 5:45am, Arthur Simpson (24) of Garforth leaves his brother-in-law Joseph Simpson, and heads for work. At 5:50am, Thomas Longdon (43) of 35 Crescent, leaves for work. At 5:55am, Henry Edward Tallett (41) of Garforth, leaves for work, leaving his wife Mary Ann in bed.
At 6am, Louis Pickard (19) and his uncle Fielding Pickard of 27 Robinson Lane, Kippax, leave for work. James Shillito (deputy, aged 50) of 3 Bland’s Row, leaves for work. Joseph Lillyman signs the Ventilation Record Book.
At 6:05am, George Simpson (21) of Garforth leaves for work. At 6:15am, William David Wilks (47) of 2 Crescent, leaves for work. At 6:20am, William Francis Dean (37) of 18 Crescent, leaves for work, seen by his brother George. George Edwin Dunnington (20) of Newthorpe, also leaves for work. Robert Hicks (47 Crescent) leaves the pit after working the night shift. His brother George Hicks will soon descend.
At 6:30am, Arthur Howson (18) and his friend Alfred Wilson (17) of Aberford, leave for work. Arthur passes his father, James Howson, and brother Edward Howson, who have just left the pit to come off the night shift. Joseph Day is with his brothers-in-law, Herbert, Joseph and Walter Winfield at the pit top. They descend the shaft together, parting at the bottom, with the brothers going towards the No.3 Dip. George Hicks arrives and descends in the lift.
At 6:40am, Amos Whitaker (32) of 12 Bland’s Row, leaves for work. Samuel Godber (16) of 44 Crescent leaves for work, seen by his father John. At 6:50am, Arthur Howson and Alfred Wilson take another lad’s pony who wasn’t working that day from the stables because the pony was better. At 6:53am, two of the Night Deputies Joseph Backhouse and George Hopkinson leave the mine and sign the Ventilation Record Book.
At 6:55am, Caleb Atack (33) of 19 Crescent and Isaiah Evans (35) of 31 East View go down the lift and make their way to No.1 Beeston Bed. It’s now 7:00am, and Josiah Godber (58) of 13 Bland’s Row, descends and makes his way to the East end of Beeston Bed. The buzzer sounds as John Charles Ball is riding down the shaft. He greets his Deputy James Shillito, in the East Level Main Road, but James notes he’s late, so instead of lingering a while to get accustomed to the dark, Ball strikes a match, lights his candle and hastens to his work place.
It’s now 7:05am, and a team of 94 men (Datallers and miners) had descended into the upper seam (Beeston Bed, 175 yards deep) for repairing, driving roads, filling tubs, and basically ensuring greater productivity for tomorrow, plus a further 11 men were working in the lower seam (Black Bed 240 yards deep). The shale dust generated by the ponies drawing the tubs, and any lumps of coal falling from those tubs was usually swept from the roadways during the evening by the night shift. The Roadways were also periodically watered from tubs, the last occasion being a fortnight previous. The dust on the roofs and sides though were not watered, and only periodically swept, the last occasion being 6 months previous. Thin films of dust, at most 1/16 of an inch had been seen on the props and doors, and further dust would have been found behind the timbering, plus the roofs and sides. The deputies had noticed the accumulation of dust and the roads were to be watered on the 30th. Dust was to be placed on the New North Road, and then removed.
At 7:10am, William Flowers (57) of 8 East View, has been smoking his pipe, waiting at the foot of the shaft for Charles Oxtoby from Garforth to turn up. Charles has overslept but is on his way. As they needed to work in pairs, William gives up waiting and joins Night Deputy Joseph Lillyman in the lift, and makes his way back out. They’re joined by Albert Steel, engineman who is heading to the joiners shop as he had forgotten to take a pulley for his work below.
7:17am, miners are reaching their work stations. George Henry Whitaker leaves his pony in the New North Road and Goodall’s gate, and walks past the No.1 Gate beyond the fresh air current with his candle, in order to relieve himself. He is 943 yards from the Downcast shaft. A slight fall in the roof which was not apparent when Lillyman inspected the mine has occurred, and a small quantity of gas (firedamp) escaping from the crack in the roof is ignited by Whitaker’s candle.
7:20am, the flame of the small explosion reacts with the coal dust, prompting further coal dust to be loosened from the roofs, sides and props, and a violent explosion is generated. Whitaker is blown backwards and killed instantly, half of his head is blown away, and he is extensively burnt. His pony, a few yards away, is also blown off its feet and slammed into the east side of the New North Road, and is killed. Standing closest to George Henry Whitaker is John Simpson and his pony, and both were killed, with Simpson being burnt and his face bruised. The force of the explosion then carried it in two directions. Going North, Henry Edward Tallett was killed and burnt. Directly behind him, Thomas Longdon initially survived being burnt, but the back of his hand was bleeding and his throat was scratched, so he was likely killed by the force of the explosion. North East, was Job Millership at a T junction. He was found on top of props and broken tubs, lying on one side, burnt, cap against mouth. He’d survived the explosion long enough to be killed by afterdamp. The impression that the explosion hadn’t gathered huge force in this confined area is further supported by 9 men close by who were not found burnt. Next to Job Millership was Herbert Winfield, and his face was crushed, likely by roof fall. To his left (going towards the explosion) were William Sheldon and Edward Goodall. Sheldon’s head was swollen, and one side of Goodall’s face was scratched. Slightly North East of these 8, five further men were killed by afterdamp, Samuel James, David Shillito, James Wilson, George Edward Daniel Taylor and Joseph Wilson Snr. They had time to gather together to discuss what to do, but had no means of escape
A dull flame progresses southerly down New North Road against the air flow, causing very little damage, but expands when it hits the air in the West Level main intake, and gathers into a roaring flame. Part of the explosion travels down the No.5 Dip, round and back up the No.4 Dip. Walter and Joseph Jackson, Amos Whitaker, Elias Clark, Thomas Oakley and William David Wilks are working in corridors between No.4 and No.5. There are no doors, so they will see the explosion travel down past their left, and then up past their right. They are not killed by the force of explosion however. This explosion rejoins the West Level. William Holden is travelling down the West Level, 100 yards from the main shaft and sees the wall of fire rushing towards him. He is thrown against the wall, cutting his head, and is burnt all over. He survives, but remembers nothing of the explosion. Part of the explosion travels up Old North Road, and travels a considerable distance before it kills Alfred Norton, and then dissipates. The main force of the explosion though continues to expand and travels through the stables, killing and burning the horsekeeper Charles Shepherd plus 12 of the 14 pit ponies. The two pit ponies who survived were in the middle, partly sheltered by the other ponies. John Sutton, deputy, is killed between the Stables and the Office.
The explosion carries on into the office, where George Hicks has just entered to get his lamp. His wife Myra said that 3 weeks ago he’d fallen into the sump, and had barely recovered from those injuries. Hicks sees William Radford the Underground Manager sitting at a small desk writing, with John Wallis, a deputy opposite him, completing paperwork. Hicks remembers a wall simply collapsing and seeing flames. He thought the fire had been caused by the oil stored in a building, but this was apparently unaffected. Hicks is partially blown, and partially fights through the flames with his hands to escape the office, and takes refuge in a hole between two props, severely burnt. His next memory is of two men helping him into the cage. The explosion also throws Radford and Wallis together, and they fall with their heads jammed together. Both are burnt and killed. Joseph Whitaker is killed at the bottom of the shaft. Arthur Simpson, the brakesman, who had his left arm amputated after an accident in the pit when he was aged only 14 and was crushed by 2 waggons he was trying to stop, and George Shillito, a deputy are also killed. The explosion travels up the shaft, and blows the cage into the headgear. There are two cages in the shaft, with one winding up as the other goes down. The second cage is blown down into the sump. Some of the splintered woodwork of the headgear was hurled 60 yards away on to the railway sidings. The sound of the explosion is like a cannon, and is heard at Crossgates, Stanks, Garforth, South Milford Junction, Sherburn and by a cyclist at Bramham. Henry Holden is the engineman operating the lift. After Lillyman, Steel and Flowers leave the pit, Holden had just started eating his breakfast when the explosion happens: “the world had apparently come to an end” he reported. He instantly secures the levers before fleeing the engine-room as debris rains down. Albert Steel is heading back towards the lift with his pulley, and also has to flee to avoid falling debris. John Moakes and John Riches, banksmen, are also on surface duties and escape the debris. Riches (42) is the most senior, and runs to inform the manager Charles Houfton, the engineer Samuel Clough, the police and others.
A second explosion is subsequently generated by the first, and occurs in the No.1 Rise Bord. The second brakesman George Simpson is killed at his post, at the bottom of the No.1 Rise Bord, and the explosion gathers force as it travels north. It has travelled a considerable distance when it bursts upon Fred Benson who is later found burnt in one of the tubs. His father James Benson, a deputy was close by, but is thrown back, burnt, and was found between a tub and the wall. The explosion carries further North and kills Louis Pickard and Fred Bellerby.
A third explosion is also generated by the first. It travels in the opposite direction from the second, down the No.1 dip, where it kills Richard Shepherd and George Edwin Dunnington, who has the skin ripped from both hands and is later found lying 473 yards from the shaft, against the neck of his scorched pony.
20 miners therefore were killed in the three explosions showing signs of burning. This leaves 85 men alive in the mine. 9 of these men are killed as already described close to the origin of the explosion, and only William Holden survives on the West side. The other men on the North East, East and South East side of the mine and the 7 in the Black Bed now have a matter of hours to escape.
Robert Henry Nevins (39) Black Bed Steward, is with Edward Simpson (49), Fred Atkinson (35), Thomas Nutton (19), Henry Hague, Sidney Revis (19), Fred Shillito (24). They’re fixing a road. William Camply (26), Thomas Freeman (36), Joe Wilson (19), and Thomas Nutton (10) are also in the Black Bed I believe in a separate group, although Joe Wilson is seen with both. Fred Atkinson is stood on a platform supervising the work of three men. Nevins had just reported everything was fine when the explosion happened, a loud booming followed by a fall of roof. The force of the blast is felt all around the mine including the Black Bed, where Joe Wilson is hit by a flying trap door, and Edward Simpson and Thomas Nutton are blown to the floor. Fred Atkinson hears a terrific clap and is thrown from the platform against a mass of coal. They’d not left the Black Bed when the first wave of afterdamp sent them all to sleep for an hour. When they woke again they felt fresh air, Sidney Revis found Nevins’ lamp, and Nevins lit it. The boys were in such despair, they asked Nevins to pray for them. “I am not such a good-living man after all, but I prayed for them with all my heart“, Nevins said. The group realises they cannot escape up the lift, so they leave the Black Bed through the stone drift, which is a sloping ventilation tunnel cut through stone, which connects both mines. Atkinson is partly concussed, and just remembers crawling on his hands and knees in the direction of the upcast shaft. He encountered a heap of ‘dead bodies’, which may well have been the Black Bed group who were unconscious at the time. Dazed, half gassed and confused, in complete darkness as all the lights had been blown out, Atkinson remembers great heaps of coal stopping his progress, until he’s joined by others from the Black Bed trying to feel their way out. From out of the darkness he remembers seeing some lights coming towards him from a rescue party, and although they were themselves overcome by afterdamp, they managed to help him towards the upcast shaft until they were forced to abandon him to save their lives. Once, the Black Bed group had reached the Beeston Bed, they were instantly overcome by afterdamp again, 600 yards from shaft. The men tried to carry one another, until they were all violently ill. Fred Atkinson cannot walk any further, and the group have to leave him behind, as they can barely walk themselves. They continue towards the shaft.
Thomas Crosthwaite (36) of 49 Crescent only walked 800 yards from the shaft to get to his station in the No.1 Dip, with about 14 men nearby. He had just started working when a blast of wind blew out nearly all the candles, and blew a trap door against him. He didn’t hear an explosion. Fearing an explosion, the men got their clothes back on and ran into the Roadway. Roads had fallen in and tubs were piled on top of each other, trap doors were blown to pieces. Then the afterdamp was so strong, it was fit to stifle them, so they retreated, and the 15 men sat down for 15 minutes and debate their next moves. Crosthwaite uses a brattice sheet across a shattered trap door to try to turn the air and stop or reduce the afterdamp. He then volunteers to clear the way to the shaft as the afterdamp increases, and he has to climb over broken tubs and rubble with William Dobson to clear the way, return to get the others, and then all 15 head towards the shaft bottom. Although the air was purer, he almost lost consciousness. The group pass the bodies of George Hayes holding a pit pony, and George Dunnington similarly burnt. They crawl 400 yards further and are found and rescued by Charles Houfton and George Robertshaw. Although it was then easier to get to the shaft, Crosthwaite was exhausted, and almost passed out again when hit by fresh air at the shaft bottom.
Caleb Atack and Isaiah Evans have just reached their point in No.1 Beeston Bed when the explosion occurs. Atack’s cap is blown off, and his shirt is blown over his head. He falls to the ground and his lamp is extinguished. “Let’s be going, it’s fired” he says to Isaiah, and the men on the East side begin to congregate together.
William Appleyard (41) of 2 Davisons Row is in the East Level and has just stripped to get ready when all the lights are blown out by the explosion. He gets dressed again and rushes towards the bottom of the shaft with around 4 others, but afterdamp soon stops them. He dives into Pharoah’s Bord where he meets 10 other survivors. Both parties learn from the other that the way they were heading is effectively blocked by afterdamp. Their next option also fails, so they make their way right around the workings, which took an hour. They don’t recognise the shaft bottom when they arrive. It was only when they hear and go to the aid of a man crying for help that they realise where they are, because it was George Hicks who was a hanger-on at the bottom of the shaft whose job was to put curves into the cages.
John Charles Ball turns to his left hand side and goes through a big trapdoor that parted the intake air and the return air; walks on a bit further and turns right into the place where he and his father Charles worked. John works for his father, who paid him 4s 6d a week. His father claimed to have been working for five minutes, but his son describes him smoking his pipe, waiting for his arrival. He’s talking to his father, and at the same time taking his jacket and waistcoat off. John then puts his two bottles of ginger beer to the side, and is putting his shirt on, when they both begin to hear a big rumbling noise at the other side of the pit. The noise and the wind increase, until the door explodes like cannon. The wind went down the return air way and back to the upcast shaft, and the other explosions happened. John keeps his shirt wrapped around his head as debris flies about them. Charles moves his candle about to prevent the wind from extinguishing it. When the noise dies down, John says to his father “there’s something gone wrong somewhere.” His father replied, “It‘s an explosion, lad.” They decide to go out into the main Bord to see if they could hear or see anyone else. When they get to where the door had been, they see only the two door posts stuck up amongst the bricks, and they climb over the debris. As a consequence of the dust, they cannot see half a yard ahead, and in the main East Bord they could hear other men talking, but could not see their lights. At John’s suggestion, Charles shouts up to ask if all the men are alright, and the men come over to them. The group decide to look in two more places, with two men walking up one Gate and three up the other Gate. When the party of nine were together, Caleb Atack says to John, “Well you‘re the youngest Jack. You better go and find the Deputy, and see what‘s gone wrong.” John replies, “You had better lend me your little hand lamp, and all stop here in one place so that I know where to find you when I come back.” John sets off back down the board that he had come up in the morning, still only being able to see half a yard ahead with the dust, and after just over 300 yards, he trips head-first over a bar which had blown out. His hair stands on end, as he believes he’s tripped over a dead body, and having dropped both lamps when he fell, he’s now in complete darkness. Remaining on his knees, he retrieves his matches from his pocket, and uses them to find and light the candle and then the lamp. Satisfied he’d fallen over a bar and not a body, he walks on but round the next corner, he’s suddenly halted again by a terrific heat. The air was red hot, and fighting for breath, John scrambles back to where the air was a little better, and sinks to his knees to get his breath back. He later reflects that if he had been much older, he would never have got away from the heat. Returning to the party, he reports the way is blocked, and that they should take the opposite direction and use a road on the return air way, and that they’d better be quick, as the heat will travel and likely smother them. Setting off on the return air way, they pass the Ball’s Gate, and John says to Charles, “I am going back in our place to fetch my coat and bottles. I will catch you up before you get out on the main engine plain.” Returning to the party, they were expecting to go through two doors but the force of wind had taken them out on the main road, and they became lost. John got his feet entangled in the bell wires, at which point he realised and announced that they were in the main road, and should keep to the right in order to reach the pit bottom. Still unable to see for dust, they walked in convoy, with John Sissons leading, Charles Ball second, and the others following on. After only a few yards, John Sissons exclaimed “O Lord, there‘s a man there.” No-one else could verify the claim, but Sissons repeated, “I know there is, I had my foot on him and was trembling all over him.” John Ball got down on his knees and scraped all the dust away from where Sisson’s feet had been, and discovered the body of James Shillito, the Deputy he’d passed earlier and had been sent to find. John Ball and John Sissons made their way to the pit bottom, leaving his father and the other men gazing on the body of James Shillito. Sam Grimbley reported that Shillito had his head blown off, and Charles Ball simply stated: “It’s no use stopping, he’s dead enough.”
Approaching the pit bottom, John Ball finds everything to be still and quiet. Still they could not see due to the dust, but he had his left hand on the wall, so he could tell when they were at the far end. He says to Sissons, “Come back to me Jack, we are in the pit bottom.” And together they find their way to the shaft. It is however completely blocked, and Ball surmises by the look of it “we should not get out in a month‘s time”. There was nothing with which to signal to the pit top so at Ball’s suggestion, Sissons calls up to see if anyone could come down. They don’t get an instant reply from the top, but instead their shouting receives a response from a man in the West Side. Soon they get an answer down the shaft, but they could not see the condition of the pit bottom to reply. Instead they shout in response that the rescuers should try the No.2 shaft, and the pit top reply in agreement. The rest of the party have now caught up with them. But before heading to the No.2 shaft, they go in search of the man on the West Side who had been shouting. It turned out to be George Hicks, who was burnt and still lying between the props. As he is so parched John Ball gives him his ginger beer which he had retrieved earlier. Sam Grimbley said Hicks’ hair and whiskers had been burnt and he wrapped a handkerchief around his head. Caleb Atack gave him his shirt as a bandage. Atack and Grimbley know they’re near the offices and head there to look for the Undermanager. Arriving, they see the trapdoor and brattice sheets all destroyed, and the bodies of Radford and Wallis. They then hear a strange noise, and upon investigation, it turns out to be some of the pit ponies in the stables nearby. They’re rolling on the stable floor in agony. At the shaft bottom they hear a rescuer shout to come round to No.2 shaft, so they return to the clearer atmosphere on the return airway. At the bottom of No.2, they meet up with the Black Bed group, and were chatting to them when two were overcome by afterdamp and started vomiting. They rubbed their backs, and gave them some drink. Around 11am, they’re able to get 3 or 4 men at a time into the cage to escape. They send the sick and injured up first, and informed the rescue party about Fred Atkinson, and Caleb reports that his brother William is in the mine. Fred Atkinson has stayed conscious and has continued to crawl until he reaches the shaft and is rescued.
Rescuers
Joseph Lillyman had worked 13½ years at Peckfield. He had just recovered from illness, had asthma and had a weak heart. Having left the pit from his night shift with William Flowers and Albert Steel, he had just taken a little dog into the shed near his house on the site, to catch a rat, when the explosion occurred. He advised his son, and then ran back to the pit.
At 8.15 am Robert Routlege, Manager of Garforth Colliery hears that something serious had occurred at the Micklefield Colliery. He gets the horse into the trap set off at once. Arrived at Micklefield about 8:50 am, found the No.1 pit the downcast a complete wreck, the keep baulks, flooring flat sheets, roof all blown away; one of the cages was stuck up in the headgears, the other was in the sump, and this pit was upcasting like a furnace.
He finds Charles Houfton and Samuel Clough the engineer on the top of the no.2 or upcast shaft. The covering of this had been very much damaged; also the steam pipes which brought the steam from the boilers to the fan engine. The cage at the bottom was jammed by the shock and resisted all efforts to dislodge it, so the rescue parties only had the top cage to work with. At 8:30am, the 3 night deputies Lillyman, Hopkinson and Backhouse launch the first rescue attempt. They descend the No.2 shaft, but progress is stopped 18 feet from the bottom by a broken wrought iron steam pipe which blocks their descent. This steam pipe carried the compressed air down and had been partly blown across the pit. It drove the ventilation, which has consequently stopped.
Charles Houfton and Samuel Clough the engineer went down and with a little manoeuvring they got the cage past this obstruction and got down to the Beeston Seam. Here they found several men who were brought up at once, three badly injured and were attended to. Charles Houfton then asked Robert Routledge to accompany him down. They first went to the cabin and found Radford and Wallis lying dead, the cabin a complete wreck, and a great many of the papers burnt. He then proceeded with Lillyman the night deputy to the No.2 dip bord. Here they found two men alive who were sent out at once. They then proceeded as far as No.3 dip, but were driven back by the afterdamp. Routledge then had great difficulty to get Joseph Lillyman back, but after getting Lillyman to a place of safety, he then explored the stables, being accompanied by two men. Only two ponies out of those left in the stables remained alive. It was in the stables the horsekeeper Charles Shepherd was discovered at the far end, quite dead and badly burnt. After leaving the stables, Routledge then with three men proceeded to explore the East level. Here they found the deputy James Shillito who had been killed 100 yards from the bottom. He was lying on his back face inbye. Then going forward found another man Samuel Godber, also dead. This man was lying with his head in-bye, nothing on but boots and part of his singlet badly burnt. The next move was forward through the stone drift to the far dip bord. Here the air divides and finding the afterdamp so strong they were compelled to withdraw. The empty tubs here smashed into matchwood. Next they explored the straight North road and found a man dead, George Simpson, together with another man, Arthur Simpson (the latter having only one arm), underneath the engine house. Going forward from here they proceeded as far as the Overcast and finding the planks blown off and the afterdamp being so strong they retired, and were busy the remainder of the day getting the cage in order.
The rescue parties couldn’t wander far from the pit bottom until the ventilation had been restored. Backhouse, George Moakes and William Ball went down No.1 drift, and passed the 15 men, then into the New Drift, and found the bodies of boys and their ponies; then into the old drift where they found 3 more bodies, and then they got into the No.2 Airway, then No.3 Airway. Backhouse had to be dragged back, and George Moakes was also exhausted. Heavy roof falls were found in the No.1 Dip (third explosion) and in the West Level.
At 3pm, the cage which had been stuck in the workings was repaired sufficiently to get it back down to the level of the pit mouth. 20 safety lamps had to be brought from Garforth, and 40 more were brought in the afternoon. At 6:00pm, the temporary overcast was completed, and at 6:30pm, the ventilation fan was now working sufficiently to clear the air at the bottom of the mine.
The main rescue parties went down at 9pm. There were six rescue parties, consisting one man in charge and 7 other helpers to each party. At 10:13pm, the Cage and head gearing of the Downcast Shaft were repaired, and the rescue parties descended again to recover bodies.
Friday 1st May 1896
At 8am, Robert Routledge descended the shaft and examined the stables in company with his nephew Joseph Routledge. They found strong signs of flame having been there, and the smell from the horses was very strong, so they advised the horses to be removed. Leaving the stables they went forward to the exploring party in the district known as the No.3 dip in the West level where Mr John Parkin was in charge of several men, busy timbering some bad stone. From here they proceeded down the No.3 dip and found three men, Walter and Joseph Winfield & Edwin Charles Maggs, all lying with their faces towards the shaft bottom and not burnt in anyway. Going a little lower down Joseph Johnson was found on his knees and doubled up with his face towards the working faces. This man was not burnt in any way whatever. They left this district and headed to the pit bottom with Frank Wardell, Charles Houfton and John Plowright Houfton. Robert Routledge and John Houfton formed another exploring party and found a boy and his pony both dead and burnt. Hurrying forward to the pit bottom nothing more was found, so they went further down No.1 South and found another three men together not burnt. They went further forward and found William Stead and William Barker lying just beyond Barker’s old gate. These men were both on their knees and their faces in direction of the working face.
By noon, 12 bodies had been recovered. 23 had been recovered by 3:30. James and Fred Benson were added to the total by 4:30pm, and 2 more (Noah Ball and Charles Swift) were recovered by 9pm.
Robert Routledge and John Houfton went down again at 3pm with 12 men to explore the No.1 rise bord. Here they find a tremendous fall of stone, some thousands of tons. The empty run had evidently been going up when the explosion occurred and smashed the tubs to pieces. In one of the tubs, a boy, Fred Benson, was found burnt and dead. A little further up, Routledge found his father James Benson, burnt and wedged in between the first full tub and the wall side in the passbye. Going forward past the No.2 East level to the No.6 East level and about 30 yards on, the rescue party found a dead horse, then a little further discover Noah Ball. He was lying with his head towards the pit bottom. He was not in any way burnt. Walking forwards Charles Swift was found with his head towards the bottom. This man was also not burnt. Exploring to the end of No.6 level and going straight up for 200 yards and finding it blocked, the party explored a road to the left, but found no more bodies.
Saturday May 2nd
Robert Routledge went down and along the West level, and saw that No.3 and 4 dips were properly canvassed off. Then going to the bottom of the new North, he put canvas straight on the level beyond the new North Road. The company consisted of W J Simpson, Henry Cawood Embleton, J L Routledge, Fred Wilson, Mr Halliday, William Mills, Henry Firth Rawnsley, Jess Mosby, Henry Goodall, Isaiah Evans, George Turner and George Carter Cawood. They went forward up the North Bord and found a pony and George Simpson just past crossgate to the left, both badly burnt. The horse had evidently been driven inbye with the force. The horse’s body was struck against a prop that Simpson had laid, with his head outbye. Going forward, the next bodies discovered were Henry Edward Tallett and Tom Longdon who were in their own gate and 35 yards from the face. A hole had been drilled in the ripping, but evidently not fired.
Robert Routledge came out to report at 11am to Frank Wardell and Charles Houfton and arranged with them for some more men to descend and help to carry the bodies out. They took Dr Griesbach down and left him at the bottom of the new Bord. Going forward up the bord, Robert Routledge found his nephew Joseph Routledge, Halliday and Fred Wilson who were at the end of the crossgate. Robert Routledge and Fred Wilson (Inspector) went on the crossgate and found five men at the bottom of James’ gate: Joseph Wilson 39, Dan Taylor 40, Sam James 41, David Shillito 42, and James Wilson 43. Then going forward with Fred Wilson and Charles Oxtoby to the fan end of the crossgate, they went down a fault of about 20 feet and turned to the right 24 yards and then went up a crosscut 100 yards. Everything met was quite clear.
There was still one man missing, George Henry Whitaker. Fred Wilson and Robert Routledge went up a crossgate opposite when they found his horse. About 20 yards on this road they found Whitaker having had half his head blown off. They then went forward up the gate to the face and found it alright. They recognised this area as being the site of the initial explosion.
30th April 1896. The Peckfield Colliery Disaster at Micklefield 