A Tragic Labor Tragedy at the Port Gamble Mill
A young laborer, driven by economic necessity to work beyond his experience, loses his life in a mill accident.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
A terrible accident occurred at Port Gamble a few nights ago in which a young man employed in the mill was caught by the edger table and hauled up into an unsafe position. He was crushed in the machine and died from his injuries. He had been a laboring man, but while on the road, he found no employment in his business and went to work in a sawmill. Not being accustomed to such work, he exposed himself with the fatal result. He was a steady young man and had sufficient means to defray his funeral expenses. His sister in Ireland had been notified of his death in the old country, but when he had secured his life insurance, he had changed his name to 'Finnigan'.
“Not being accustomed to such work, he exposed himself with the fatal result.”
This 1888 account highlights the recurring reality of immigrant labor and the dangerous, often unregulated, working conditions in Washington's industrial history. Today, while we have stronger labor protections, the struggle of vulnerable, transient laborers in high-stakes environments remains a resonant issue.
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