By William “Skip” Deegans
Located a short distance south of Rainelle, the former Fayette County mining town of Layland was the site of one of West Virginia’s worst mining disasters. Now nearly deserted, the town once had company store, school, restaurant, two gas stations, movie theatre, churches and a two-story Moose Lodge.
On the morning of March 2, 1915, an explosion in the Layland No. 3 mine shook the town. How many men were in the mine was unclear at the time with estimates of more than 200. On the day of the explosion, seven men were rescued. Forty-five bodies were recovered by March 5.
On March 6, five men walked out on their own accord and indicated there might be more survivors. Ninety-five hours after the explosion, the U. S. Bureau of Mines, using “oxygen helmets,” rescued 41 miners who had secluded themselves in a small section of the mine.
To sustain themselves, they drank water they gathered on the mine floor, and ate bark carved from mine posts and leather cut from their boots.
Outside of the mine, nearby homes had been turned into makeshift morgues with some 150 wooden caskets piled up. Temperatures had dropped and it snowed. Bonfires were lit to warm families waiting on news of the miners. A large number of immigrants, especially from Italy and Russia, worked in the mine.
On March 9, the Italian Royal Vice Consul arrived to assist the Italian families. By then, 28 Italians were reported dead.
In total, 111 men were killed in the mine. Ab Cooper, an African American, who was delivering goods from the company store to homes above the mine was also killed.
One of the saddest stories was of Mack Caldwell. He was 17 and perished after working only one day in the mine. Two of his uncles were also killed.
Shown in the photo are a group of survivors. The mine was owned by Philadelphia’s Berwind White Company. Founded in 1886, the company is still in business. Known as the Berwind Company, it is an investment firm and continues to be owned by the Berwind family.
The cause of the explosion was never determined with any certainty.
Sources: Fayette Tribune, Hinton Daily News, The Independent-Herald, The Raleigh Herald.
