d a personal check from Senator Marcus A Hanna for $1,000. In a brief note Mr. Hanna tendered his sympathy to the bereaved.
An appeal for funds for the benefit of the families of the 184 miners killed a few days ago in the Harwick Mine was received yesterday by Mayor McClellan. The telegram to the Mayor was dated from Cheswick, Penn., and said.
One hundred and eighty-four miners' killed and families destitute. The committee urges immediate and generous aid.
The Mayor at once announced that he would be glad to receive and forward any contributions.
(from "The New York Times," New York, NY, Jan. 30, 1904.)
IDENTIFY ONLY A FEW BODIES
WORK ONCE MORE IMPEDED.
Ice Forms in the Shaft and Renders Descent Difficult and Dangerous.
SECOND BIG FUNERAL TODAY.
Discover Cause of Explosion to Have Been a Poorly Tamped Power Blast.'
CHESWICK, Pa., Jan. 29, 1904.
Second Funeral Today.
The second funeral of the victims will be held this afternoon. But three positive identifications of corpses were made this morning. The work of establishing the identity is both slow and difficult, on account of the bodies. The mine shaft was again plugged with ice accumulation this morning, and three hours chopping was necessary before the cage could lower the thirty-eight rescuers into the mine. It is reported that gas in considerable volume has been found in the south course, where the searchers are now working, and some apprehension is felt for their safety.
Total Number 132.
CHESWICK, Pa., Jan. 29. -- At 12:30 p. m., the cage brought
from the mine a number of bodies, some of which were much mutilated. The
total number now out of the mine is 132.
TO BURY THEM IN ONE GRAVE
CHESWICK, Pa., Jan. 30, 1904.
No Funerals Tomorrow.
About twenty-eight funerals will be held today. No bodies
will be buried tomorrow. The unidentified bodies will be held until Monday,
and then buried without further delay. The dead pit mules in the mines will
be brought out this afternoon. Manager George N. Scheets stated this morning
that the list of dead may exceed 184; that several men answered a call to
work in the mines the day before the explosion. The extra service men were
checked, but the mine officials are uncertain as to their exact number. Seven
additional identifications of victims was affected this morning.
|January 12, 1938
Harwick Mine Explosion,
This was an idle day at the mine and 38 maintenance workers were in the mine. ( 38 in the official report, 46 in the Pittsburgh Press Report, other says 35 workers 11 bosses). Normally 445 men would have been working in the Harwick Mine.
|Good Old Days at Harwick Mine are
recalled by, left to right, W. A. Hixenbough, Stanley Starr and Mine Suot.
Tony Kavel. The two miners hold pieces of coal from the last load removed
from Harwick befroe it closed on June 20. Back in th e1950's, 500 men
were employed in the diggings, which are located under the Cheswick - Springdale
area. About 65 men are now dismantling machinery in the shafts, a job
that will be completed within two weeks.
(Photo courtesy of the Pittsburgh Press, July 1, 1970.)
|Light Firm Shuts Harwick Mine,
Once Leading Source of Power
Duquesne Light Co., has closed its Harwick Mine. "It's worked out," said an official of the power company. "For us, it's the end of an era," The huge mine, which underlies vast stretches of the Cheswick-Springdale area, was shut down June 20, 1970.
Coal for Power
The Harwick diggings once supplied most of the coal which fueled steam-driven generators at Duquesne Light's power stations in the Pittsburgh district.
"We employed as many as 500 men here back in 1950," said Tony Kavel, mine superintendent. Automation brought a gradual decrease in the number of miners employed at Harwick. Today, there are about 65 men at work in the shafts, dismantling machinery and stripping hardware from the mine. "It'll take two more weeks to finish this cleanup work," said Kavel.
Most to Colfax
In recent years, Harwick's production went mostly to the Colfax power station about two miles south of the mine. When all the equipment is finally removed from the mine