The Lykens Standard of April 1, 1910 provided a description of the fatal accident which took the life of a young miner at the Short Mountain Colliery, Bear Gap, near Wiconisco, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, on March 30, 1910:
Falls 1160 Feet to His Death
John Wagnerowski, a miner employed at Short Mountain Colliery, was instantly killed at 7:00 a. m. Wednesday at Bear Gap Slope. In getting off the accommodation car his foot slipped and losing his balance he fell from the pocket on the slope to the bottom, a distance of nearly 1160 feet, the pitch being 48 degrees. He leaves a wife and three children, the oldest being six years and the youngest four months. Mr. Wagnerowski recently purchased the Romberger farm at Pumpkin Hill, a short distance west of town, and was making important improvements. The funeral will take place at 9 o’clock this morning.
Records state that he was an immigrant from Germany.
The grave marker at Our Lady Help of Christians Cemetery, Lykens, Dauphin County, indicates that the surname was spelled “Wegnerowicz.” [Photo by David Hause].
Previously, in a blog post here on fatal mine accidents at Short Mountain Colliery, his name was given as Joseph Wagonowski – based on a printed list in a 1922 book.
Descendants have since abbreviated the surname to Wegner.
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Obituary from Newspapers.com.
Corrections and additional information should be added as comments to this post.