One Hundred Years of Federal Mining Safety and Health Research

3. that the mine owners introduce improvements with a view to increasing safety and
reducing waste of resources as rapidly as the practicability of such improvements is
demonstrated; and
4. that the miners and mine managers cooperate both in making and in enforcing safety
rules and regulations as rapidly as these are shown to be practicable.
These policies continued through the Bureau’s history except for the gradual transfer of
responsibility for mining regulation and enforcement from the states to the federal government as
a result of subsequent legislation.
The Bureau’s fifth annual report [USBM, 1915] began with a note announcing the death of Dr.
Joseph A. Holmes, the first Bureau Director, in Denver on July 13, 1915, in his 56 th year. Poor
health had forced him to leave Washington in the summer of 1914, but he continued to direct
Bureau policy until shortly before his death. Appendix A contains a short biography of Dr.
Holmes.
The Bureau had accomplished much in its first five years, summarized by a brief pre-Bureau
history and a listing of its accomplishments in the opening pages of the Bureau’s fifth annual
report [USBM, 1915]. In this report, the following categories were used to summarize early
Bureau research:
• Study of coal mine explosions;
• Investigations of explosives used in coal mining;
• Investigation of use of electricity in mining;
• Investigation of mine lighting;
• Use of rescue and first aid apparatus;
• Study of safety and health problems in metal mines;
• Inquiries as to waste of metals, ores, and minerals in treatment and use;
• Petroleum investigations;
• Compilation of mining laws and regulations.
Note that seven of these nine major headings relate to safety and health of miners, particularly in
coal mines. Further, it is noteworthy that as of mid-1914 nearly 100 men had been rescued from
mines by Bureau employees, with many more saved by Bureau-trained rescuers [USBM 1914].
One method employed by rescuers was the use of a collapsible cage to carry miners to the
surface (see Figure 19).
Additional highlights of the Bureau’s work in its first five years included:
• Coal dust was proved to greatly increase the magnitude of mine explosions over those
involving methane alone.
• Use of permissible explosives tested by the Bureau had reduced the danger of coal mine
explosions caused by the use of explosives.
• Bureau work had led manufacturers to produce safer electrical apparatus and cap lamps
for miner use in gassy coal mines. Recommendations of the Bureau led several states to
enact stricter laws regarding electrical equipment.
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