New Hartley Disaster.
(Hester Pit).
January 16th. 1862 was the day of the disaster,
21 tons of cast iron falling faster, and faster.
A pumping beam snapped and down the shaft it fell,
Below, it must have sounded like something from hell.
Many sections were dislodged from the shaft lining,
One shaft was the only way out for those, coalmining.
The shaft was blocked off, the miners' entombed,
It wasn't known then but these miners' were doomed.
Rescuers worked tirelessly for several days on end,
Trying to save, father, son, brother and friend.
But gases built up quickly in the mine working,
It caused miners' to sleep, stopped them from talking.
When the rescuers entered the mine; far too late,
They first found John Galligar; death was his fate.
He looked normal and seemed only to be sleeping,
The scenes that followed would start brave men weeping.
Men and boys, lying, sitting or kneeling, unable to roam,
Brothers locked in each other's arms thinking of home.
Motionless, lifeless; sons with heads on dad's shoulder,
Death silently took them; they'll never grow older.
In the pocket of overman Mr. Amour, a book was found,
It noted a prayer meeting that took place underground.
Plus, Friday half past two, Gledson and others, extremely ill,
Their faith remained; did they ever question God's will?
Personal items were recovered and placed in a heap with a nod,
On one tin flask a message was scratched, "Mercy, O God!"
On another, "Friday afternoon. My Dear Sarah---- I leave you,"
He was resigned to his fate; there was nothing else he could do.
Nearly every home in the village lost a breadwinner,
No longer would they come home for their dinner.
Rivers of tears flowed, which could have filled a lake,
Many lives changed, evermore suffering heartache.
Thousands of people attended the funerals to mourn,
They lined the streets where the coffins were drawn.
Most miners were buried in the churchyard at Earsdon,
Others buried at Cramlington, Cowpen, Seghill and Horton.
If there had been two shafts and not one, in this coalmine,
Those trapped below would have had a lifeline.
The disaster led to the introduction of a new Parliament Act,
It was too late for these poor souls, and that's a sad fact.
Footnote:-
A memorial stands in St. Albans church in Earsdon,
Inscribed are these words.
To the memory of 204 miners who lost their lives in Hartley Pit
by the fatal catastrophe of the engine beam breaking.
1862, January 16th.the date of the New Hartley disaster,
a mineshaft incident that killed 204 miners.
At the top of the shaft was a cast iron beam weighing
43 tons, half of the beam projected over the mouth of the shaft.
The beam snapped in two and fell down the shaft, 21 tons of
uncontrollable cast iron, which dislodged sections
of the shaft lining as it fell.
The shaft was blocked off and the miners were entombed.
Tremendous efforts to rescue them failed.
The shaft was their only way out, the disaster led to the
introduction of an Act of Parliament making it compulsory
for every colliery to have two shafts.
Bill Riley. 2003.
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