1889 - 1934: The Union Pacific Coal Company's No. 2 Mine at Hanna, Wyoming

Page by Bob Leathers

The Union Pacific Coal Company's No. 2 Underground Mine in Hanna, like the No. 1 Mine, was developed in 1889 and 1890. In 1891, the mine produced 38,507 tons of coal for outside use. The mine itself used all the coal produced prior to 1891. The mine was then idle for 3 years, 1892 through 1894. In 1895, the No. 1 Mine caught fire and was forced to temporarily close. The shutdown of No. 1 forced the No. 2 back into production. When the No. 1 Mine recovered from the fire late in 1895 the No. 2 Mine when back to idle status. The No. 2 Mine went idle for the next nine years, 1896 through 1904. The No. 2 produced 31,131 tons of coal in 1895. In 1904, the No. 2 Mine was forced back into production because of the June 30, 1903 explosion of the No. 1 Mine. In 1906 the No. 2 Dump / Tipple burned and a new Dump was built. The slope and entrance of the No. 2 Mine was moved from running west and east to running north to south to access a new seam of coal. June 9, 1922, the No. 2 dump, boiler house and powder house were once again destroyed by fire. A new tipple was built and the No. 2 Mine was back in production by November 13th of the same year. The No. 2 Mine was closed permanently on April 20, 1934 when all the coal had been removed. The No. 2 Mine produced 6,206,201 tons of coal over 31 years of production. During the mine’s lifetime, the highest number of workers was 633 in 1918 and the low number of workers was 280 in 1930. The Hanna Basin Mines (Hanna, Elmo, Carbon, Sampo and Dana) experienced a total of 372 Miner deaths. The No. 2 Mine in Hanna was responsible for 27 of the 372 deaths.

• More at: 27 men killed in the Union Pacific Coal Company's No. 2 Mine in Hanna

Hanna Miners on the Hanna No. 2 Dump. (Hanna Basin Museum)

Union Pacific Coal Company's Hanna No. 2 Mine, 1930's. (Wyoming State Archives)

Hanna No. 2 Mine

​Hanna No. 2 Mine was opened on a seam 15 to 30 feet in thickness which was located 1,350 feet lower in the strata than the No. 1 coal seam. This mine was placed in the development stage about the same time as the No. 1 Mine, i.e., in the spring of 1889, but the operation of the mine was intermittent due to lack of business and other causes until the spring of 1905, when dewatering of the mine workings began in earnest. As the work progressed, heavy steel was laid on slopes and entries, and 42-inch gauge mine cars having a capacity of 2.5 tons were installed, and the mine again resumed operations. From this time until April 20, 1934, this mine was continuously in operation, producing more than 6,000,000 tons of coal. During the period of heavy demand it produced 2,200 tons of coal daily. On June 9, 1922, the preparation plant, boiler house, and old power house were completely destroyed by fire and a large-capacity new tipple was constructed and placed in operation by November 13, 1922. This mine, like No. 1 Mine, was operated under the room-and-pillar system, with rooms driven up the pitch and with coal shot off the solid. Owing to the heavy pitch and the desirability of undercutting the coal, the mining system was changed during 1912 to a panel system on which the rooms were driven on the strike, and electric mining machines and drills were installed. Prior to that time, electric haulage locomotives had been placed in service on the main haulage roads. Permissible powder and electric cap lamps were put in service as safety measures, because in the lower entries of this mine large amounts of explosive gas were given off, and the coal was subject to spontaneous combustion, with fires apt to break out at any time, day or night, which must be taken care of immediately. Permissible powder was substituted for black powder in the Hanna mines about 1912. This mine was worked out and abandoned April 20, 1934. (UPCCEM, November 1940)

Union Pacific Coal Company's Hanna No. 2 Town and Mine

Hanna No. 2 Town, 1890's, (University of Wyoming - Heritage Center)

Hanna No. 2 Town, Looking from west to the southeast. (While Family Collection from Bob Leathers)

Union Pacific Coal Company's Hanna Mine Office and Mule Barn located between the No. 1 and No. 2 Mines (Wyoming State Archives)

1910:​ Not long after the clean up of the March 30, 1908 Explosion of Union Pacific Coal Company's No. 1 Mine in Hanna the underground stables at Hanna were removed from the mines. The livestock were now kept outside at the Mule Barn. The mules and horses were taken to the mine each morning and returned to the barn each evening. This move eliminated the need for flammable materials in the mine. The underground stables that caught fire during the 1903 and 1908 explosions significantly affected the No. 1 Mine, adding to the raging inferno. 

The Union Pacific Coal Company rebuilt the No. 2 dump in 1906 after a fire burn the ramp. ( (The Butvier Collection from Sally Hafdell and David Eriksson in Sweden) (Hanna Basin Museum Website)

1906: The Union Pacific Coal Company's No. 2 dump ramp burned and a new dump was built to replace the old one. The original slope ran from west and east to running north to south.

Hanna Mine No, 2 being rebuilt in 1906. A new dump and support building were completed. (The Butvier Collection from Sally Hafdell and David Eriksson in Sweden)

Union Pacific Coal Company's New dump completed at Hanna No. 2 Mine in 1906. (The Butvier Collection from Sally Hafdell and David Eriksson in Sweden) (Hanna Basin Museum Website)

O. G. Sharrer - Center - with Transit at Entrace to Hanna No. 2 Mine. ABOUT 1910. (Sharrer Family Collection)

O.G. Sharrer Far Right. About 1910. Union Pacific Coal Company's Hanna No 2 Mine (Sharrer Family Collection)

Union Pacific Coal Company Mine Development for Hanna No. 2 mine. (The Butvier Collection from Sally Hafdell and David Eriksson in Sweden) (Hanna Basin Museum Website)

Hanna Mine No. 2 PowerHouse. IMG_4806. (The Butvier Collection from Sally Hafdell and David Eriksson in Sweden) (Hanna Basin Museum Website)

Visitors to the Union Pacific Coal Company's No. 2 Mine in Hanna. (University of Wyoming, Heritage Center, Samuel H. Knight Collection)

1934

​No. 2 Mine Hanna Abandoned
By T.H. Butler

The closing of No. 2 Mine, Hanna, on April 20, 1934, removed the last of the early day operations in the Hanna district. No. 2 mine was opened in the spring of 1889, under the direction of Mr. L.R. Meyer, then Mine Superintendent of the Carbon mines, and Mr. Joseph Cox, Mine Foreman, supervised the work underground. It continued in operation until May 1, 1891, at which time it was closed down on account of No. 1 Mine supplying all the needs of the Railroad and commercial trade. In February, 1895, it was reopened to provide railroad fuel for a short time owing to No. 1 Mine being closed temporarily on account of mine fire. The reopening of the mine was under supervision of Mr. E. S. Brooks, Mine Superintendent, and Mr. John Battle, Mine Foreman. In April, 1895, during the shutdown period, the tipple at No. 1 Mine was burned down, making it necessary to build a temporary tipple to operate the mine until a permanent tipple was completed. Work being resumed in No. 1 Mine the latter part of April, 1895, No. 2 Mine was again closed down and all material and track removed and the mine entrances sealed, the mine allowed to fill up with water. In the spring of 1905, the dewatering of No. 2 Mine was commenced. Heavy steel was laid on slopes and entries, and 42-inch gauge cars with a capacity of 2 1/2 tons were installed, and the mine again resumed operation under the direction of Mr. Brooks, with Mr. Alfred Dodds as Mine Foreman. From the year 1905 until April 20, 1934, this mine has been continuously in operation, producing 6,256,157 tons of coal. During the period of heavy demand, it produced 2,200 tons daily. June 9, 1922, the tipple, boiler house and old power house were completely destroyed by fire. A new tipple was put into operation November 13, 1922. In opening this mine, it was operated under the room and pillar system, but, owing to the heavy pitch and the desirability of undercutting the coal, the system was changed during 1912 to the panel system, electric mining machines and drills were installed, and prior to that time electric locomotives had been placed in service. Permissible power and electric cap lamps were put in service, as safety measures, because in the lower entries of this mine a great deal of explosive gas was given off and the coal was subject to spontaneous combustion. During the operation of No. 2 Mine, the following Superintendents were in charge: Mr. L.R. Meyer, Mr. E.S. Brooks, Mr. Alexander Briggs, Mr. T.H. Butler, Mr. William Hartman, Mr. William Cowdrey and Mr. O.G. Sharrer. The first three named are now deceased. The following Foremen have been in charge of the mine: Mr. Joseph Cox, Mr. John Battle, Mr. James While, Mr. Alfred Dodds, Mr. Thomas Wakely, Mr. W.B. Rae, Mr. Charles Higgins, Mr. Edward Brooks, Mr. John Kinghorn, Mr. William Hughes, Mr. J.G. Crawford, Mr. Herbert Chadwick, and Mr. J.V. McClelland. Of these, Messrs, Cox, Battle, While, Dodds and Rae died several years ago. The residents of Hanna, particularly those who grew up with the mine and the town, will regret the passing of this land mark. Following the policy of The Union Pacific Coal Company when mines are shut down, twenty-five of the men displaced in this mine were transferred to No. 4 mine, Hanna, and twenty-five men were transferred to other operations of the Company in the Rock Springs field. (UPCCEM, June 1934)

Union Pacific Coal Company's Hanna No. 2 Mine Maps

Union Pacific Coal Company's No. 2 and No. 4 Mines (MAP COLLECTION FROM THE HANNA BASIN MUSEUM WEBSITE)

Map of the Union Pacific Coal Company Mines in Hanna, Wyoming (Map Collection from the Hanna Basin Museum Website)

The Union Pacific Coal Company's Hanna No. 2 underground mine (MAP COLLECTION FROM THE HANNA BASIN MUSEUM WEBSITE)

Map of the Union Pacific Coal Company's Hanna No. 2 Mine (Map Collection from the Hanna Basin Museum Website)

 A Visit to the Union Pacific Coal Company's No. 2 Mine Site in Hanna, Wyoming

2021 June 10: Bob Leathers and Gary Beaver traveled for the Hanna Basin Museum Website to the Union Pacific Coal Company's Hanna No, 2 Mine site. We wanted to determine the exact location of the mine and document what might still remained there. The following are our images and notes of what we found and experienced. (Bob Leathers)

The Google Earth's location for the Union Pacific Coal Company's No. 2 Dump / Tipple in Hanna: