Suffocation at Elsecar
6th December, 1853Mr. T. Badger, coroner of the Sheffield district, held a judicial inquiry at Elsecar into the circumstances attending the deaths of Phoebe Sadler, aged 53; her daughter and son, Ann Sadler, aged 19, and John Sadler, 15; and a lodger named Warrick, aged 48; all of whom were suffocated in their bedrooms during the night of Thursday last.
Elsecar is a populous village situate between Rotherham and Barnsley. The Elsecar iron-works are close to the village, and about a mile distant are the Milton iron-works. Both properties belong to Earl Fitzwilliam, and are occupied and worked by Messrs. W. H. and G. Dawes. The most northern of a short row of houses abuts upon one of the blast furnaces at the Elsecar iron-works. This house was occupied by the four deceased persons and Benjamin Sadler, aged 12, son of Phoebe Sadler. Benjamin Sadler is employed at the Milton iron-works, and, being on the "night shift," left home to go to his work a little after 6 o'clock on Thursday evening. The rest of the family retired to rest about 10 o'clock, being then in their usual health. Mrs Sadler and her daughter and son, the latter of whom was lame, occupied a bed in the front bedroom, and Warrick, the lodger, slept alone in the back bedroom.
Benjamin Sadler returned from his work at half past 7 o'clock on Friday morning. His knocks for admittance received no answer, and after alarming some of the neighbours he entered the house through the kitchen window, and went upstairs. The spectacle which there met his sight smote his young heart with dismay. Mother, sister, brother, and lodger, - all were corpses. The lodger was lying upon his back on the floor at the foot of his bed; Mrs Sadler and her son John were lying at the foot of their bed, clasped in each others arms; the sister lay on the bed, having, to all appearance, passed undisturbed from the slumber of repose to that of death. All the rooms were filled with white vapour, and the air was strongly impregnated with sulphur. Several persons who entered the house shortly after the boy observed white vapour issuing from crevices in the wall just above the floor both of the house and kitchen. The bodies appeared to have been dead 5 or 6 hours. The following is the evidence of Mr. James Haywood, professional chemist, Sheffield:
"I have this (Saturday) afternoon examined the premises where the dead bodies are lying. The house consists of two lower rooms and two bedrooms, the north wall of the lower rooms being built against the side of the stack of the blast furnace, and the same wall of the upper rooms being connected with the furnace by an arch and a quantity of brickwork three feet thick. The level of the ground is about 20 feet from the bottom of the furnace. At this point, immediately connected with the house wall, there is a large crack, discharging vapour, in which I could recognise the odour of cyanide of potassium. There is another crack in the brickwork of the house wall, through which also this vapour is passing. The brickwork of the wall is so loose that any discharge of vapour or gas from the furnace might find its way not only through this crack, but through many others. I have no doubt, from the evidence I have heard, as well as from having detected cyanide of potassium, that the deaths of these persons have resulted from inhaling the vapour of cyanide of potassium. My opinion is confirmed by the following facts:
There being a fire burning in the house all night would show that they have not died from inhaling combustible gases, as the fire would have inflamed any such gases issuing from the furnace in a sufficient quantity to cause death; and to my knowledge there is always a large quantity of vapour of cyanide of potassium in the lower part of a smelting furnace, which vapour is highly poisonous. A very small quantity - I should say one ounce - of cyanide of potassium, converted into vapour, would kill the deceased."
The furnace stack is old and dilapidated, being screwed together with girder rods, to prevent its opening from being expanded with heat, but it does not appear that any annoyance had been previously suffered by the inmates of the house from sulphur.
The jury returned a verdict that death had been caused by inhaling the vapour of cyanide of potassium.
