Hecatomb at Castle Gate, Utah March 8, 1924

By PHILIP F. NOTARIANNI; photos from the collection of Bill and Albert Fossat

Two explosions rocked the silence on Saturday morning, March 8, 1924, in the coal-mining town of Castle Gate, Utah. The entire work force of 171 men "were victims of two violent explosions that shot through the mine turning the main tunnels into gigantic cannon barrels." 1 Frantic townspeople, hearing and feeling the reverberations, hurried to the portal of the Number 2 mine. Soon, rescuers rushed to the site from other Carbon County towns to embark on a difficult task. In the rescue process, one other man succumbed to the deadly gas, bringing the total dead to 172. Grieving widows, children left without fathers, and distraught family, friends, and neighbors remained to attend funerals or accompany bodies to other locations. Graves dug in the cemetery at Castle Gate peppered the landscape, and wooden coffins were stacked in readiness near makeshift morgues. The entire site played as a gruesome reminder of the dangers of coal mining and the frailty of human life.

This photographic essay, comprised of images from the collection of Bill and Albert Fossat of Helper, Utah, focuses specifically on the aftermath of the explosion. The rarely seen photos, many first published in the Salt Lake Tribune, help to chronicle scenes of individuals gathered in hopeful-fearful anticipation, the mine entry and recovery process, funeral preparations, and burial procedures. The images speak for themselves. Captions assist in providing context and interpretation. Excerpts from the Deseret News and the Salt Lake Tribune provide contemporary accounts of the disaster.

Philip F Notarianni is the public programs coordinator for the Utah State Historical Society

1 Allan Kent Powell, The Next Time We Strike: Labor in Utah's Coal Fields, 1900-1933 (Logan: Utah State University Press, 1985), 141 This volume contains the best overall account of the Castle Gate explosion.

2 Salt Lake Tribune, March 10, 1924

3 Deseret News, March 8, 1924.

4 Salt LakeTribune, March 10, 1924

5 Ibid.

6 Deseret News, March 11, 1924.

7 Salt LakeTribune, March 10, 1924

8 Ibid

9 Deseret News, March 13, 1924

10 Ibid., March 10,1924

11 Salt Lake Tribune, March 11, 1924

12 Ibid, March 10, 1924.

13 Deseret News, March 12, 1934.

14 Salt Lake Tribune, March 11, 1924

15 Deseret News, March 10, 1924

16 Salt Lake Tribune, March 11, 1924.

17 Deseret news, March 11, 1924.

18 Salt Lake Tribune, March 11,1924

19 Deseret News, March 11,1924

20 Salt Lake Tribune, March 11, 1924.

21 Ibid.