NOTE 14

Lanarkshire, Scotland

ROBERT (1) LATTA

Robert Latta was born abt. 1806 in Ireland, and died in 1870 in Duddingston & Portobello Edinburgh, in the City of Midlothian. He married Hannah Coyle. She was born abt. 1816 in Co. Antrim, Ireland. Children:

11 November 1873 - Melancholy occurrence - Two Men Killed In a Coal Pit - Yesterday morning, about half-past five o'clock a melancholy accident occurred in No 4 Coal Pit, Eastfield, parish of Rutherglen, belonging to Mr Jas. Buchanan, coalmaster, whereby two colliers, named Allan Maxwell, residing a 43 Mill Street Rutherglen, and James Speirs residing at Eastfield, were deprived of life. From inquiries made by the police, it appear, that Maxwell and Speirs and other two men named John Latta collier, residing at 15 Cathcart Street, Rutherglen, and Michael M'Cue, drawer, residing at 13 Ferrie Street, Rutherglen, went into a cage at the mouth of the pit for the purpose of being lowered down the shaft to their work. It is said that the pitheadman called to the engineman that all was ready; and it it alleged that the latter failed to raise the cage so that the "snakes" could be opened to allow the cage to descend; but that he set the engine in motion the reverse way, which caused the rope to slacken on the pirn. The pitheadman, it is said, again called to him to stop his engine and reverse it, so that the snakes might be opened. The engine was then stopped and reversed, and the cage was lifted off the snakes, and raised in the usual way. The engine was then set in motion for the purpose of lowering the cage down the shaft, and when it had descended about 10 fathoms the rope slipped off the pulley on the platform, and at the same moment the spokes of the pirn broke. The result was that the cage dropped down the shaft with a sudden jerk, and Maxwell and Speirs were thrown out, and fell to the bottom from a height of about 23 fathoms, Maxwell was killed on the spot, and Speirs died in about two hours afterwards. The cage was thrown out of the slides by the force of the jerk, but fortunately Latta and M'Cue succeeded in holding on, and saved their lives. Latta was slightly injured on the right knee and thigh, but luckily M'Cue escaped scathless. Maxwell and Speirs were each about 18 years of age, and unmarried. The county police are making inquiries into the sad occurrence. [Glasgow Herald 12 November 1873]