Two Men Electrocuted at the Ashford Mine; Coroner Orders an Inquest
Arthur W. Charlson and John R. Ohrstrom were killed in the Pierce County mine accident. Coroner G. D. Shaver returned to Tacoma to open an inquiry as Ohrstrom’s funeral was set for the Danish Lutheran church.
Coroner G. D. Shaver will return from the Ashford mine disaster, where he has been for three days, late this afternoon, and steps will be taken immediately for an inquest into the deaths of Arthur W. Charlson and John R. Ohrstrom, electrocuted yesterday morning.
Edward B. King, second deputy coroner, has prepared everything for the inquest, and if the coroner wishes it, the examination will be held this evening.
The funeral of Ohrstrom will be held Thursday afternoon at 1 o’clock from the Danish Lutheran church, South Thirteenth and K streets. Interment will be in Tacoma cemetery.
“Steps will be taken immediately for an inquest into the deaths of Arthur W. Charlson and John R. Ohrstrom, electrocuted yesterday morning.”
In 1909, a fatal electrocution at a Pierce County mine was handled through a coroner’s inquest and a church funeral; today workplace deaths trigger state Labor & Industries investigations. The story is a reminder that the resource economy beyond Tacoma’s downtown carried lethal risks for the workers who powered it.
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