By Ray Collett

Hello Readers, It has been a few weeks but my shoulder is healing nicely, rehab is painful but it has to be done. I am driving so that takes some of the headache off of Gennell. Thanks for the emails, cards, and phone calls. I received an email from Wanda Thomas (Class of 1958). Wanda had this to say..
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"Ray, Thanks for the article about the 1926 coal mine explosion. I copied a report from the corporate minutes of the Roane Iron Company regardng the first coal mine explosion in 1925 the best I could, as I only had a scanned image to work with, and the records were probably very old. There seems to be a discrepancy, as the article states that killed were William Snow and nine other men, but the article only lists William Snow and six other men. It also says, "all eight bodies". Would appreciate anything you can do to clear up this discrepancy. The article follows:

Wanda

ROCKWOOD MINE EXPLOSION - 1925

According to the October 27, 1925 corporate minutes of Roane Iron Company, “On July 23, 1925, a severe gas explosion occurred on Rodgers Run in the company’s coal mine at Rockwood, killing Superintendent William Snow and nine other men who had been extinguishing a fire in the mine at Bryson’s Dip.”

That part of the mine was promptly bratticed off for three months, at which time the mine was opened back up and found to be free of fire. At that time, all eight bodies were recovered and the mine was cleared of all gas.

Earnest Brandon and Carl Kirby survived the explosion, so these men and special editors of the Rockwood Times provided details of the terrible accident.

The men who were killed in this explosion were:

Sam Givens
Roy Linbury
Tom Green

Jim Wilson
T. J. Sullivan
William J. Snow

John Green

Mr. J. H. Booth of Lamb and Coulter Undertaking Company set up a temporary morgue inside the mine and as the bodies were prepared for burial, each was placed in a steel casket which was hauled out on a coal car. Funerals were held on Sunday and Monday thereafter." Thanks Wanda. I knew there was an explosion in 1925, earlier than the one I wrote about a few weeks ago, but haven't been able to do a lot of research on it. I will certainly see what I can find out about it.

An interesting tidbit, Johnny Lawson (Class of 1949) sons were in town recently, and while the tableful of people at the Rockwood Golf Course was enlightening the Lawson boys on their dad's accomplishments on the football field (and there were many), Leland Hill added this memory of Johnny. Leland remember a "donkey baseball game" for charity when Johnny came to bat, got a hit and picked up the donkey and carried it around the bases. He could probably still do it.

Judy Owings Wassom just called and informed me that WVLT's Allen Williams will feature Rockwood's Bob Abston on his program "Tennesse Traveler" ,today, Monday March 08, at 6pm. Bob is a blind piano tuner who attends Asbury Church in Rockwood and is quite a talent. I understand that Virginia Teague Evans, (Class of 1946) while on a cruise to Hawaii last month informed Allen, who headed up the trip about Mr. Abston. It will be an amazing story I am sure.

One other thing, In December I got a call from the VA clinic telling me that a kidney test I had came up showing something wrong and recommended that I see a urologist. I made an appointment with the Oak Ridge Urologist Center and went for more test. The urologist came in the room and told me, "Ray, everything looks fine...I will check you again in a few months." "Whew Doc, that is a relief I replied,"because I am having shoulder surgery next week." The Doctor told me that he had the same surgery and showed me his scar on his shoulder. While walking down the hallway, the urologist and I to make me another appointment, he was still talking about his shoulder surgery. We stopped at the appointment desk and he asked the lady to make me an appointment in three months. He said to me, (still talking about the shoulder surgery)..."It's going to hurt..., It will be in a sling for a while....There is a possibility that it might be in a cast for a couple of weeks.."...If you could have saw the look on the lady's face...it was priceless, not to mention the look on my wife's face.......Until next week......Ray