The Day the Smelter Blew: Peter Williams and the Seattle Explosion
A carpenter’s routine repair job ends in tragedy when a blowpipe explodes at Selhy’s Smelting Works, killing him instantly.
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 terrific and fatal explosion occurred at 12 o'clock today at Selhy's Smelting Works. A carpenter named Peter Williams was engaged in doing some work around a large blow-pipe, when it exploded with great force, instantly killing him. Portions of the blow-pipe went through the roof.
Industrial accidents like this were common in 1876 Seattle, where safety regulations were virtually non-existent. The death of Peter Williams at Selhy’s Smelting Works highlights the extreme dangers faced by early laborers in Washington’s burgeoning heavy industry, a stark reminder of the human cost behind the city's rapid industrialization.
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