Frank Weide

• Note - I cannot find a Frank Wiede in any other records besides this death record, which has no useful information in idenifying this man.

Michigan Death Record- https://michiganology.org/uncategorized/IO_b62f4b00-0257-42bf-b455-...

Accident No. 4, December 23rd. - Frank Weide, working with the timber gang in the South Hecla branch of the Calumet & Hecla mine fell from the 16th level to the 24th level in No. 11 shaft, a distance of eight hundred feet and was dead when found.

Joseph Lesh testified as follows at the inquest, held before Justice Fisher: “I am a Timberman. I knew Frank Weide and was with him yesterday at the time of the accident. We had taken out an old armature and had it in a box close to the shaft for the skip to send it to the surface. The armature had slid out of its place in the box and we opened the box to push it back. We were all standing around the box looking at the armature and when we turned around Frank was gone. We went down through the shaft to the bottom and found Frank but he was dead when we got there. I saw Frank as he tried to catch hold of Dominick, but did not know then who it was."

Mike Stark has sworn and examined said: “I work for the Calumet & Hecla Mining Company and am boss of a timber gang. Frank Weide was working with us yesterday at the time of the accident. We had been working at the 27th level of No. 11 shaft, South Hecla, and went up to the 16th level to get down a new armature and send the old one to surface. As we pulled it along the level the armature slid forward in the box. We opened the box and put it in place again. A couple of men took hold of it and pushed it back; the rest of us were standing around the box. Weide was at the back end of the box away from the shaft and he walked behind the men around the box and walked towards the shaft. No one saw him fall, but Dominick, who was at the end of the box nearest the shaft. He felt him catch hold of him as he fell into the shaft. We looked around to see who was missing and thought first that it was a man we called Little John but he called out that he was all right. Then we found out that it was Frank. There was no call for help and he made no cry whatever. There was no fooling going on around the shaft and no work being done; we were waiting for the skip to come. I went to the telephone and called the pump men at the 24th level and asked them if anything fell down the shaft and they answered yes, a man fell down and is dead in the skip hole. "

Two other witnesses corroborated the testimony given above.

The jury returned the following verdict: “We, the jury, find that Frank Weide came to his death on the 23rd day of December, A.D. 1899, by accidentally stepping into the shaft at the 16th level, No. 11 shaft, South Hecla mine.”