Twenty-six miners saved as fire hits the No. 1 mine

Come Friday, it will have been 140 years since 26 coal miners were pulled to safety through an air shaft as the above-ground infrastructure of Whitebreast Coal & Mining Company's No. 1 mine burned at Cleveland, a mile west of Lucas. Exciting times.

Coal mining in Lucas County was in its infancy then and only about 150 miners were employed. A workable bed of coal had been discovered in the White Breast valley just two and a half years earlier, during January of 1876. A year later, by January of 1877, Mine No. 1 was operational and expanding. In June of 1878, the mining boom town of Cleveland, just west of the mine itself, had been platted.

After the fire, the mining company rebuilt quickly and by 1880, when the photo here was taken at the resurrected No. 1 Mine, everything had been rebuilt to a higher standard. By this time, about 400 miners were employed and the mine itself had become the first in the state to be lighted by electricity, generated on site.

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The big fire of August 3, 1878, also produced some darned good reporting on the part of The Chariton Patriot. The editor, upon hearing of the fire, jumped aboard the first passenger train west-bound from the C.B.&Q. Depot, alighted at Cleveland, collected his information, then returned to Chariton on an east-bound and published an "Extra" edition on Sunday, Aug. 4.

Copies of the Extra have not survived, but The Patriot reprinted the story in its edition of Wednesday, Aug. 7, adding a few details. So here is that report:

CLEVELAND'S CALAMITY!

The Whitebreast Coal & Mining Co's Works Completely Destroyed by Fire

Loss from $7,000 to $10,000

(From our Extra of Sunday, Aug. 4)

About six o'clock Saturday evening the report reached the city that the works of the Whitebreast Coal and Mining Company, at Cleveland, seven miles west of Chariton and one mile east of Lucas, were on fire. The news soon spread all over the city and all sorts of extravagant stories were told about the loss of life, &c. A Patriot reporter, in company with several other citizens, boarded the first train for the west and arrived at the scene of destruction a little before eight o'clock.

All the members of the company were away, most of them being in Burlington, but we soon found Mr. T.A. Francis, the pit boss, and Mr. Jacqua, who gave us all the particulars they could in regard to the origin of the fire, amount of loss &c.

The fire started in the roof of the engine house, around one of the large smoke stacks, about 4:45 o'clock, and the roof being pine, and the buildings of the same material, the fire spread rapidly, and in less than five minutes the whole thing was a mass of flames.

There were twenty-six men in the mines at the time, and they soon became aware of the fact that the works were on fire. The reader can perhaps imagine how he would feel to be three hundred feet under ground with all escape apparently cut off. Mr. Francis, as soon as he found it impossible to save the buildings, turned his attention to saving the men in the mines.

The air shaft is situated about 100 yds from the buildings. In the engine house was a large fan which forced a large volume of air through a large air passage built of plank along on top of the ground from the fan to the air shaft. This air passage was probably 3x4 feet in size. When the  buildings took fire the smoke was driven along this air passage into the shaft and into the mines. Mr. Francis had this air passage torn up near the shaft, and the fire over the shaft where the coal was taken out created a draft, drawing air from the mines and down the air shaft, which relieved the men below and assured them that all was safe. A rope was procured and let down the air shaft and the men drawn out without loss of life or limb. Some of them received a few scratches and bruises by coming in contact with the walls of the air shaft in their rapid ascent, as the boys jerked them out pretty lively.

The engine house, dump, blacksmith shop, cages, scales, sheds and everything in connection with the works above ground were totally destroyed, and the loss in the actual value to say nothing of the loss of time, trade, &c., will be somewhere from $7,000 to $10,000. The large and costly double engine and machinery put in new one year ago, is broken, warped and ruined.

All the members of the Company being absent we could not ascertain whether there was any insurance on any portion of the property destroyed. The loss falls heavy on the Company just at this time as they were about ready to commence a big run for the fall and winter trade. It will take at least six weeks or two months to get the works in good running order again.

A less number of men than usual were in the mines. Over fifty had gone down in the morning, but about half of them had quit work at noon and come out of the mine and were consequently on hand to help save those who were left below.

This is a heavy blow to the Company, and they will have the sympathies of numerous friends who will be glad to see them rise out of the ashes and build up again stronger than ever.

P.S. Since the appearance of our Extra, a Patriot reporter has been to Cleveland and learned from Mr. Osgood, one of the members of the Company, who came out from Burlington Saturday night, that they had an insurance of $5,800, and that a representative of the insurance company would be there on Monday to adjust the matter.

He also said that they would put a large force of men to work to get the mines ready for operation inside of four weeks, if possible. Two gangs of men have been put on the work --- one during the day and one at night, and it will be rushed to completion as soon as possible.

Four men went down into the mines on Sunday, and found the mules, 18 in number, all alive, and they were taken out on Monday.

In justice to the miners it should be said that they worked like heroes to save the property of the Company and rescue their comrades from the mines. When we visited the ruins on Saturday evening many of them were almost complely worked down, still they were at work putting out what remained of the fire and taking out what property could be saved.