William Henry Hodges

"Blasted; Found beneath a pile of rocks, crushed beyond recognition at the 48th level, between shafts 6 and 7 Hecla branch"

• Residence: Michigan, United States - 1870
• Residence: Houghton, Keweenaw, Michigan, United States - 1880
• Residence: ED 170 Calumet township, Precinct 1, Houghton, Michigan, United States - 1900

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ACCIDENT No. 36. July 3. - William H. Hodges, employed in the Hecla Branch of the Calumet & Hecla Mine as a blaster. He went down in No. 6 Shaft and got off the cage at the 38th level and started to go through the drift toward the No. 7 Shaft. The drill boy was stationed at No. 6 Shaft, to prevent anyone from going to No. 7 shaft as the miners who were working in cutting-out stope were blasting a number of holes. Hodges was told by the boy but he thought he could get through before the blast went off or he could signal the men he was coming; but the miners had set fire to the fuse and left the stope and the explosion took place just as the unfortunate man reached the stope.

An inquest was held before Coroner Fisher:

Louis Baingendahl testified as follows: “I am a miner; work for Calumet & Hecla Company at No. 6 Shaft, Hecla; was working there on the night of the 3rd at 48th level be tween No. 6 and No. 7 shafts. I have known the deceased for years. I heard about half past eight Thursday night that he was missing. Heard this from Gerry, a Finlander miner. He told me that Hodges was lost and that two or three men were looking for him. I work on the 3rd stope and went up and started to work. Worked until 10 o’clock and then went down to the level for a set of drills and I asked if they had found Hodges yet and they said no, not yet. The man I spoke to went over the dirt pile and I started to go further down for the drills and then said to myself I wonder if he is under this dirt pile. There was a big dirt pile there and I turned over two or three rocks and then I saw something blue and thought it was a piece of a shirt. Then I put my hand in the hole and got hold of something that I found to be a man’s hand and then I knew he must be there. I jumped over the dirt pile and called to the men that were on the other side and they came over and started to work. This was at the 48th level between No. 6 and No. 7. I do not know how he went in there. I don’t think he was blasting there. He generally came down to No. 6 shaft and got out there and went from there to No. 7. I don’t believe he had been over to No. 7 yet. His business was to cap fuse and attend to the powder, and in the 48th level there had been none of thạt done. There was quite a bit of rock on top of him; most of it was fine dirt next to his body and on top of the fine dirt there were two big rocks; it took six or seven men to turn them over. I believe the rock must have been blasted out; I don’t think it fell down; I don’t think any man would say that the dirt on top of him fell down. The day shift men had been working there, they did the blasting there. They blast about 5 o’clock. Hodges generally went down on the first cage in the evening and generally came to No. 6. It looks as though he was going from No. 6 to No. 7. It was all vein rock that came down.”

Dennis D. Shea testified as follows: “I first learned of the accident 2 o’clock yesterday morning. I work in the stope in the same shaft. We had orders to blast there from Captain Harper. We had 15 holes to blast, but did not blast more than 11. We were working close to the timber and so had to blast the holes singly, so as not to break the timber. In blasting the first 4, I always went to No. 6 shaft and my partner to No. 7, but it got so smoky and hot that I decided to go to No. 7 after that, so I called the drill boy and stationed him at No. 6 and told him to let no one go through until we got back and that we would not come back until we got through blasting. The boy is a good boy and we always relied upon him. We then blasted the other holes and both my partner and I went to No. 7 shaft each time. After we got through we went back to No. 6 and the boy was there. Captain Hocking was there when I told the boy not to let anyone in. We have only been working there a week and I do not know whether Hodges made a practice of going through that or any other level. We made 7 rounds out of the holes. Our box is at No. 7. Hodges had not been there because we had to cap the fuse ourselves. We started to blast shortly after 4 o’clock. The cage was coming down for the second trip when we got back to the shaft about 5 o’clock. We did not see the man at all. The boy said nothing of anyone going in and we did not know of anyone going in.”

Dennis O’Neil testified as follows: “I work at the 48th level between No. 6 and No. 7, and am partner to last witness, D. D. Shea. We blasted the holes as my partner said and for the first four he went towards No. 6 and I went to No. 7. Then my partner said he was not going back that way again as it was too hot and that the boy would do the business. I said that would be all right and after that we both went to No. 7. When we got back to No. 6 after blasting it was about 5 o’clock. Did not see anyone as we came through, it was very smoky and the dirt pile was very high and I could not see very well whether there was any loose rock or not.”

Thomas McCabe testified as follows: “I am 17 years old and work as drill boy with Mr. Shea. I was working on the 3rd of July. I was told not to let anyone go in as they were blasting. Hodges came out of the cage and I told him not to go in. He said, “Are they just starting at the holes?” I said, “yes”. He said, “Maybe I’lll have time and I’ll wave my lamp for them to wait.” I told him to be careful and he went in. I did not notice whether he waved his light or not. He came down in the first cage. Captain Hocking was just getting in the cage when I was talking with Mr. Hodges. There were miners working on the north side of the shaft, I was on the south side. The miners working on the north side knew they were blasting on the other side. I heard a hole go off shortly after Hodges went in. He was walking pretty fast when he went through. The holes were pretty near to No. 7. and I was at No. 6. I think he should have been pretty near through the cutting-out when I heard the holes go off. I stayed there until my partners came out. I said nothing about Hodges going in, and thought no more about it until we were going up in the cage when I saw he was not there, but I did not think then he had been blasted. I supposed he got through all right.”

Ernest Oliver testified as follows: “I am a miner, work at 48th level No. 7 shaft. I can add nothing further than Mr. Bringendahl has said. I was working night shift, and assisted in taking the body out. I corroborate what Mr. Bringendahl said concerning the rock on him. I should think the big rock came from the hanging side of the vein. I walked by the dirt pile maybe a half a dozen times, but saw nothing of him; saw no blood or anything until we found him. The dirt around him was mostly fine rock except the big rock on top. I cannot tell whether it was blasted down or fell down.”

James O’Brien testified as follows: “I worked with Mr. Oliver the night of the 3rd. Worked until about 10 o’clock when a miner from the other stope, Louis Bringendahl, came down and said “here he is.” We did not know what he meant. Walked over to the other side of the dirt pile, and saw a man’s shirt sticking out through the dirt. Of course, we realized what was there then, and helped to get the body out. I went over that pile of dirt several times during the night, but saw nothing. It was about 10 o’clock when we discovered the body.”

Verdict of the coroner’s jury: “We find that the said W. H. Hodges came to his death on the 3rd day of July 1902, by a blast at the 48th level, between No. 6 and No. 7 shaft, Hecla Branch of the Calumet & Hecla mine,after being warned by a drill boy not to go into the level.”