Welsh Mining Disasters

[j.r-ahde]

Hello you all!

And one addition to these endless MJK speculations;

MJK could also have added her friend's story to her own one...

All the best
Jukka

[claire]

Yes, that's kind of my approach these days--desperate speculation... There's sod all in the remaining records of the churches round these parts...although they're a million miles from complete. I've got to the point where I am contemplating pulling out the fireplaces in my house, convinced I'll find the marriage photo...

[Sam Flynn]

Chava, I know that I've been down these lists and checked possible spouses, and I believe that Gareth has done the same (and probably better). I didn't find anything convincing, and I don't think Gareth did (Gareth??).

Hi Claire & Chava

I have a couple of books listing the dead of most of the fatal accidents of the South Wales coalfields, and the redoubtable Chris Scott has done some research in this area too, I believe. Speaking for myself, I've not found any plausible candidates for a "Mr MJK" amongst these martyrs to the mines... sadly.

Of course, as these lists (and/or newspaper reports) tend to focus on tunnels collapsing, landslides or gas explosions, it's faintly possible that "Mr MJK" died in another kind of accident, a more "individual" disaster, perhaps. I've speculated previously - out of desperation! - that "an explosion" could have referred to an accident with (say) a detonator above-ground, which wouldn't necessarily have been reported in the press - certainly if it were only "Mr MJK" who was thus killed.

[claire]

Chava, I know that I've been down these lists and checked possible spouses, and I believe that Gareth has done the same (and probably better). I didn't find anything convincing, and I don't think Gareth did (Gareth??).

As I'm actually living in Abercarn right now (parents have been here for years), I've had the opportunity to check local sources for info on that particular disaster, but came up empty handed. Of course, being 1878, if Mary (and I checked anyhow since it is such a big if) was being honest about her age, she would have only been 14 or 15 when the event occurred...seems unlikely that she could have been married for a couple of years at that juncture).

Am currently checking out other coal/steel locations in the area...

[Chava]

So I've given up searching for Mary Jane Kelly in Free BMD. At least for the time being

But if anything in her story is true it might lead us to her. And I've started checking mine explosions to see if I can find her husband. This is a useful but horrifying and saddening list. You'll see that most of these terrible events are not explosions per se but collapses and equipment failure. However one of the worst actual explosions occurred at the Prince of Wales Colliery in Abercarn in 1878, and is a pretty good candidate for the event that killed Mary Jane's husband. No fewer than 268 miners were killed in horrific circumstances during and after an explosion probably caused by a safety helmet igniting gas.

The following age-appropriate Davies/Davis men died in that tragedy:

WH Davies 16 Alfred Davis 18 Daniel Davis 24 David Davis 21 Edward Davis 23 James Davis 29 Thomas Davis 16 William Davis 18.

It might be worth checking to see who these men were married to.