People/miner, victim

Henry Swift

Henry Swift (1848–1891), miner, victim, from United Kingdom. Linked to coal.

The lucky break

Went down a Lancashire pit at 12 and on 5 March 1890 became general manager of the large Springhill mines in Nova Scotia.1

The downfall

Killed with 124 other men and boys in the powerful explosion in the East Slope at Springhill on 21 February 1891; he died the day after writing his last words.1

Legacy

Seen by some as a self-made man and by others as an autocratic boss; criticism grew during a bitter 1890 strike that miners won by flooding the lower levels.1

Story cards

Sources

  1. SWIFT, HENRY Dictionary of Canadian Biography

From the Prospector Trails mining history dataset: each fact links to the source it was checked against. Figures are as the source gives them, in the money of their day. Not investment advice.

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Cover photos from Wikimedia Commons: Super Pit, Kalgoorlie by Kgbo, CC BY-SA 4.0; Haul trucks by Lechhabmed, CC BY-SA 4.0.