Vancouver Coal Company
As part of the Chinese Historical Wrongs Legacy Initiative, we’ve digitized a small selection of inquests and inquiries from 1872 to 1934, found in series GR-0431. These were chosen to reflect the experiences of early Chinese immigrants to B.C. – their living and working conditions, and their unfortunate accidental or unusual deaths. They range from a woman working in a brothel in Barkerville who died of natural causes to three sawmill workers who died from malnutrition. Learn more.
*All transcriptions are provided by volunteers, and the accuracy of the transcriptions is not guaranteed. Please be sure to verify the information by viewing the image record, or visiting the BC Archives in person.
*Please note that archival source materials are original historical documents that have not been censored, reviewed or otherwise altered by the Royal BC Museum. Some materials may contain content that is racist, sexist or otherwise offensive. The Royal BC Museum is only the custodian of archival materials; the content does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Royal BC Museum.
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32 broke down. It was put up at once. I would put it up as soon as was notified. Bratticing was always replaced as soon as possible after it was down. There might be an instance where it has been down twenty minutes but miner may linger. The brattice is sometimes broken by a shot or a fall of coal or rock falling from the roof might break the brattice down. Some parts of the slope are pretty dusty It was pretty dusty at number three but more so at number four To Mr Drake [2. L.?]. Miners are supposed to repair their own brattice as fast as possible – in case of accidents. They are not supposed to wait for me to arrive and do it. They will fix inf it up until they got word to me. On the third of May the brattice was all intact and there were no accidents to [?throw] it down. I knew of nothing which would lead me to suppose that there was an accumulation of gas in the slope that day. If there was any gas and it collected in the roof I would find it out in going on the roof to repair the brattice with my [nailed?] light on my head.
To Mr Young. I have heard Mr Martills evidence in regard to the manner of putting in the stoppings. All of them in the slope have been put in in the same way as described by him. I went round occasionally. Say once a week, to examine these stoppings. I examined them four days before the explosion. It was about two feet between the timbers and the roof at the cross cut at the foot of the diagonal slope. This space was filled up with [laggin?] I did not see any [?drous] put in or in there. I have seen the dust watered in the mine. I do not remember the last time it was watered. To my own knowledge it was only watered once but it might have been watered oftener. It was watered the time I [?attende] to at night-time.
To the Coronier I never found any leaking stoppings. They were always good and tight