Henry Swift

Henry Swift started his career as a child miner and ended it as the manager of the Springhill mines. Sadly, he was among those killed in the first Springhill mine disaster. Here is his story.

Swift was born in Bickerstaffe, in northern England. His father was a coal miner and young Henry received only “a meagre education” before starting work for the Rainford Coal Company, according to “The Great Colliery Disaster,” a book published by H. A. McKnight in Springhill in 1891. Swift was 12 years old at the time.

While child labour is shocking to us today, it was common in that era. Children worked in mines and other industries, such as agriculture and manufacturing, to help support their families. They were seen as an important part of the work force. According to Robert McIntosh’s article, “The Boys in the Nova Scotian Coal Mines: 1873-1923,” there were 5000 people employed at Nova Scotia’s mines in 1890, and over 1100 of them were under 18 years of age.

In 1869, at the age of 19, Swift left England for the United States where he worked as a coal miner.

Before long, he immigrated to Nova Scotia where he worked in Stellarton’s Albion Mine. He married there and later moved to Springhill where, over 16 years, he rose from miner to mine manager, a remarkable example of upward mobility in that era and a testament to his abilities.

On February 21, 1891, one of the worst disasters in Nova Scotia’s mining history took place at the Springhill mines when accumulated coal dust caused a horrific explosion which swept through Nos. 1 and 2 Collieries, leaving 125 dead and dozens more injured.

While government and company inspections of mines were routine even in that era, an inspection of the No. 1 was done on February 19 for a remarkable reason: A fortune teller in Stellarton called Mother Coo had predicted that there would be an explosion at the Springhill mines. The prediction was hard to dismiss because Mother Coo had apparently successfully predicted explosions at the Drummond mine in Westville and at the Foord Pit in Stellarton.

The inspection was done to ensure the mine was operating safely and to put miners’ minds at ease. It found everything in good working order.

A government inspector did his regular monthly inspection the following day, February 20, and also found everything was as it should be. Swift wrote to his boss that day, saying, “All in order So far as I Know.”

Despite these efforts at ensuring safety, the disaster took place the following day.

Swift was among the 125 dead. His body was found about 500 feet from the site of the explosion. Rescuers believed he had been talking to two miners when the explosion occurred, and that he was knocked down by its force. He got up again but was either overcome by after damp (carbon monoxide) or knocked down again by falling stone. They determined this because there was fallen stone both under him and on top, which suggests that he got back to his feet before falling down a second time on top of fallen stone.

His body was the last one removed from the mine and his funeral was the last of the many that followed the disaster.

Swift’s funeral was “of the nature of a public funeral; it was largely attended,” according to H. A. McKnight. “The procession was nearly three-quarters of a mile long, and the streets were lined by hundreds of sorrowful people, many of whom followed the remains on foot to the grave. The Masons took charge of the remains, which were buried according to their rites. The procession was headed by the 93rd Battalion Band, reinforced by members of the Cumberland Cornet Band, and played a mournful dirge. The closing scene of the calamity will long be memorable.”

After his death, a publication called the Colliery Engineer, in Scranton, Pennsylvania, published an obituary about Swift. It concluded by saying, “Professionally, he ranked very high as a successful colliery manager, and he possessed the good-will and respect of all his subordinates, as well as the confidence and esteem of his superior officers in the directory of the Company. When this is said of a man who has managed successfully interests as large as those of the Cumberland Railway and Coal Company, and has had control of a small army of workmen, it furnishes such an index of his character and attainments that nothing more need be said.”

Swift, 42 years old at the time of death, left a wife and five children.

Historical accidents are a key reason why the modern mining industry is so safety-focussed. Nova Scotia’s mining and quarrying industry has reduced its injury rate by 90% since the Westray inquiry report was released in 1997. We believe the most important thing to come out of a mine is the miner, and our modern safety record reflects this.

Henry Swift

The 1891 disaster.

The 1891 disaster.