1923 — May 9, Explosion & Fire, J.K. Hughes Co, McKie Oil Well, near Corsicana, TX– 13

Compiled by Wayne Blanchard; last edit 4-8-2025 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/

–13  Blanchard. On the day the fire was put out, May 20, the oil well company’s official count                      

         was 13, listing the fatalities. No more remains found. We choose to use this number.

—     16  Abilene Daily Reporter, TX. “Corsicana Death List Is Raised To 16.” 5-10-1923, p. 1.

–14-15  AP. “12 Boilers Will Throw Steam On Oil Well Blaze.” Denton Record-Chronicle, 5-11-1923, 1.

—     14  Corsicana Daily Sun, TX. “Officials In Charge Situation.” 5-11-1923, p. 1.

—     14  Galveston Daily News, TX. “Steam to be Shot on Oil Fire Today.” 5-12-1923, p. 1.[1]

—     13  AP. “Funeral Service For Victims of Oil Field Fire.” Brownsville Herald, 5-20-1923, p.1

—     13  Mexia Daily News/UP, TX. “Hughes-McKie Fire Put Out Sunday Night.” 5-21-1923, p1

—     12  AP. “Efforts to Put Out Oil Well Fire…Are Futile.” Galveston Daily News. 5-16-1923, p. 1.[2]

—     12  Corsicana Daily Sun. “Another Body Recovered Near Burning Oil Well.” 5-14-1923, 1.

—     12  Corsicana Daily Sun, TX. “Unidentified Bodies Held Local Morgue.” 5-14-1923, p1.[3]

—     12  NFPA.  “The Hughes-McKie Oil Well Fire,” NFPA Quarterly, 17/1, July 1923, p.76.

Narrative Information

National Fire Protection Association: “Twelve lives were lost as a result of an explosion and fire at the J. K. Hughes Development Company’s McKie No. 1. well in the East. Navarro County field, eleven miles southwest of Corsicana, Texas, at 2:45 o’clock on the afternoon of May 9 1923.

 

“The well came in late the night before and was flowing 5,000 barrels of pipe line oil a day. At ten o’clock on the morning of Wednesday, May 9th, the control head burst and a gang of men were at work putting in a new head. The fire was probably caused by a spark made by pebbles thrown. from the well coming” in contact with the new steel control head. The clothing of the men at the well was saturated with oil and they were almost, instantly burned to death at the first flash from the well. The flames from the well shot 100 feet high and about 1,000 barrels of oil which had accumulated about the well forming two large pools, each covering more than an acre, also ignited.

 

“Great difficulty was experienced in recovering the bodies and in extinguishing the fire. All of the men familiar with the well perished in the flames. For three clays no progress was made.  Twelve steam boilers were assembled and the steam was turned on Tuesday, May 15th, but without effect on the fire. On Sunday and Monday, May 13th and 14th, a rescuer, clad in an asbestos suit, succeeded in gathering the remains of the twelve bodies.

 

“Steam, foam, water and dynamite were all tried on the fire but with­out avail. The fire was finally extinguished on Sunday, May 20th. A T-shaped pipe with two gate valves was used. The diameter of this pipe was about one inch larger than that of the pipe out of the ground. This T-shaped pipe was suspended in the air and pulled over the well with wire cables. At the same time four hose streams were directed at the well so as to drive the blaze higher up. The pipe was pulled over the fire with the top gate valve open and the gate valve in the side pipe closed. After the pipe was in place sacks of dirt were piled around it to weight it down and then the side pipe gate valve was opened. The oil was in this manner separated from the flame. The pipe from this valve led into tanks at some distance away. The top gate valve was then closed slowly by means of a long key and the fire went out as simply as a gas jet being turned off.” (NFPA. “The Hughes-McKie Oil Well Fire,” NFPA Quarterly, V. 17, No. 1, July 1923, 76.)

 

Newspapers

 

May 10: “Corsicana, Tex., May 10. – Thirteen identified bodies, three skeletons smouldering in a lake of burning oil about 300 feet in circumference, and possibly a score of others fated to be uncovered momentarily today tells a tale of tragedy wrought by the explosion late yesterday of the giant gusher of the J. K. Hughes Development company (McKie No. 1 well).

 

“Three hundred feet of flame, a blaze across the horizon, with attendant leaps and starts, ominously signalize the fire for fifty miles around. At Corsicana, eleven miles from the belching monster, billows of black smoke clouds continued their advance this morning.

 

“The huge producer, which came in late Tuesday, flowing 15,000 barrels of pipe line oil, is a veritable funeral pyre.

Identified Dead. [We alphabetize and number.]

(Names highlighted in yellow are those noted in Corsicana Daily Sun of May 14.)

 

  1. P. Allen, Corsicana, company field superintendent. Funeral service May 20.[4]
  2. Emmett Byrd, Corsicana.
  3. [L.? ]C. Cook, 30, Kerens. Funeral service May 20.[5]
  4. C. Cooper, Corsicana. Funeral service May 20.[6]
  5. Jack Cooper, Corsicana. Funeral service May 20.[7]
  6. Fred Craig, Corsicana.
  7. A. Hicks, Wortham, Texas, head driller for the development company.
  8. Max Meissner, 30, Kerens, Texas. [Not on May 20 company list of deaths.]
  9. Travis Owens, 30, Kerens,
  10. Ban Phillips, 35, Kerens, Texas.
  11. James [William?] Phillips, 32, Kerens, Texas. Funeral service May 20.[8]
  12. P. Sheek, Dallas.
  13. O. Turner, Norris, Miss.
  14. [Charles Walker, Henrietta][9] Funeral service May 20.[10]     

Three unidentified skeletons.

 

“Owens and Byrd died last night at a hospital here….Byrd almost escaped death when he jumped in a nearby creek shortly after the gas and oil caught fire.

 

“A spark from friction of a hammer as the control valve was being changed at the well ignited the oil and gas from the gusher and when the blast came sixteen of the fifty odd men in the two crews were sucked in the sheet of flame….

 

Several “escaped by running thru oil knee deep, some distance from the well and falling flat to the ground.

….

“L. C. Cook, head driller of one of the crews was seen to dash away and jump into some water nearby. He died on the way to the hospital.

 

“Six of the bodies are being held by an undertaking company here. Three skeletons, unidentified, are smouldering in a lake of oil surrounding the well, which caught fire from the gas flame coming from the well and the woods for 200 yards around are burned to stumps.

 

“J. K. Hughes, head of the development company, said he was not able to obtain definite information of the disaster….

 

“Some of the crew which was relieving the day crew at the well had just come from Mexia a few hours before. Other members of this and a roustabout crew working in the vicinity of the well were reported missing in confusion and the personnel list makes it impossible to ascertain just how many are dead, missing and unaccounted for Mr. Hughes said.

 

“Steam will be used today to extinguish the flames, company officials announced. Boilers and fire fighting apparatus are being rushed to the scene.

….

“Oil field workers this morning frequently worked their way near the fire in hopes of recovering the bodies of some comrade but gushes of flame and the intense heat drove them off. Once they were within fifteen feet of the skeletons but a spurt of flame sent them scurrying over the smoking stumps.

….

“B. B. Simmonds, representative of the J. K. Hughes Development company, an eye witness to the blast, was on the derrick floor and miraculously escaped by running. He said the men were engaged in taking off the control head and putting on a gate valve when gas blew the valve up a bit and it fell back out of line. They were trying to adjust it, and about five men, subsequently cremated, were in the pit at the time. ‘I was standing on the derrick floor handling waste to the workers to wipe oil out of their eyes, which was spewing from the valve,’ Mr. Simmonds said. ‘When the valve fell back, I saw a tiny spark caused by friction of the metals striking, and sensing disaster I ran from the well just a moment before the explosion, which sent showers of burning oil in every direction. It seemed as though I was being pursued by the great burst of flames, when a terrific gust of heat swept past me.’

….

“Seventeen steam boilers were being assembled today about the ill-fated well, the flame oil from which covers an area of about four acres….” (Abilene Daily Reporter, TX. “Corsicana Death List Is Raised To 16.” 5-10-1923, p. 1.)

 

May 11, UP: “Corsicana, May 11….The fire…took a known death toll of eleven men. Thirteen men were on the rig at the time, witnesses said. Seven bodies have been recovered, leaving six men unaccounted for. Four skeletons can plainly be seen in the flames, beyond reach of workers. Some workers reported seeing in the fire a fifth charred skeleton, hidden from view except when the wind blows a certain way….” (United Press. “Fund For Families.” Denton Record-Chronicle, TX. 5-11-1923, p. 1.)

 

May 12: “Corsicana, Tex., May 12. – Two more bodies, bringing the total to ten, were recovered this afternoon from near the burning Hughes-McKie oil well 11 miles southeast of here. K. T. Kinley of Tulsa, Okla., wearing a suit made of asbestos approached to within twenty feet of the blazing oil and gas and removed the bodies. Another body can be seen.

 

“One of those recovered today is believed to be that of S. P. Allen, the field superintendent of the Hughes Development company. The watch found on it was said to have been Allen’s. The time piece had stopped at 2:55 p.m. and the glass crystal was not broken.” (Abilene Daily Reporter, TX. “Asbestos-Clothed Man Rescues Two Bodies From Fire.” 5-13-1923, p. 1.)

 

May 14: “According to the records of Bank Sutherland, undertake4r, six of the twelve bodies recovered from the big oil well blaze have been positively identified and buried. They are:

 

  1. G. Byrd, Eureka;
  2. P. Sheek, Dallas;

Travis Owens,

William Phillips, both of Kerena;

  1. A. Hicks, Corsicana;

Fred S. Craig, Chatfield.

 

“The other six bodies of the fire victims are held at the undertaking establishment awaiting possible identification. The bodies are thought to be those of

 

  1. C. Cook,

S.P. Allen,

  1. O. Turner,
  2. C. Cooper, Jack Cooper, and

Ban Phillips.”

 

(Corsicana Daily Sun, TX. “Unidentified Bodies Held Local Morgue.” 5-14-1923, p. 1.)

 

May 14: “Another body has been rescued from the burning area of the Hughes-McKie oil well, 10 miles southeast of here, bringing the total number of the dead accounted for in the big blaze which started last Wednesday up to 12. It is said at least one, and possibly two more bodies are yet to be brought out.

 

“At 11 o’clock Monday morning, K. T. Kinley, for the fifth time defied the heated flames of the gigantic blow torch and walked within a few feet of it and picked up what is left of one of the dead men. Only the skull, the shoulder blades, parts of the ribs and arm bones remains. The body was picked up almost at the edge of the derrick floor between the engine and the water pump. The only means of identification of the body is by personal trinkets and overall buttons. Dick Claunch, member of the night drilling crew, declared he believed the body to be that of M. O. Turner….”

(Corsicana Daily Sun, TX. “Another Body Recovered Near Burning Oil Well.” 5-14-1923, p. 1.)

 

May 15, AP: “By Associated Press.

“Corsicana, Tex., May 15. – All efforts to extinguish the giant Hughes-McKie oil well fire had failed early this evening. Steam, gas, dynamite and water were of no avail and the blaze was leaping higher in the air than at any other time. According to oil men, the well is drilling itself in and the flow of oil and gas is increasing hourly. No further casualties have occurred since the explosion of the producer in the East Navarro field near here las Wednesday, and the death list remains at twelve accounted for and the possibility of two other bodies still near the fire. Work will continue throughout the night in an endeavor to cut off the flames.” (Associated Press. “Efforts to Put Out Oil Well Fire Near Corsicana Are Futile.” Galveston Daily News. 5-16-1923, p. 1.)

 

May 20, AP: “(By The Associated Press)

“Corsicana, Texas, May 19. – The funeral services for S. P. Allen, Charles Walker, Jim Phillips, J. M. Cooper, E. C. Cooper and L. C. Cook, fire victims of the burning Hughes-McKie oil well here will be held at the First Methodist church here tomorrow afternoon.

 

“W. S. Banks, attorney for the J. K. Hughes Development Company, announced today that the remains of all six bodies will be interred in one casket in a specially provided lot in the Oakwood cemetery.

 

“Seven of the perished crew who were caught in the flames of the oil well were recovered shortly after the blaze started. Each was positively identified and all were buried. Banks declared today the six remaining bodies have been sufficiently identified to justify giving out the names of each. He stated that the official casualty list made by the company places the number known to be dead and accounted for at thirteen. The list follows:  [We list names in separate lines.]

 

  1. P. Allen,
  2. C. Cook,
  3. O. Turner,

Charles Walker,

Travis Owens,

  1. F. Phillips,

Jim Phillips, L. Sheek, W. A. Hicks,

  1. M. Cooper,

Emmet Byrd,

Fred Craig,

  1. C. Cooper.”

(AP. “Funeral Service For Victims of Oil Field Fire.” Brownsville Herald, 5-20-1923, p. 1.)

 

May 21: “The J. K. Hughes Developing company’s McKie gusher which came in Tuesday night, May 8, and which caught on fire the next day, was exterminated at 7:20 Sunday night. In all it burned a few minutes over 11 days and four hours, baffling several attempts to exterminate it, during which time thousands of dollars went up in climbing clouds of black smoke.

 

“It was a fitting close to the day on which the last of its victims had been laid ‘at rest’ and rejoicing is general throughout the section today, as a consequence….The official count of those who lost their lives on the afternoon of the catastrophe, Wednesday May 9, shows that there were 13 killed. Early reports were that there were 16 who lost their lives on that occasion and there is much gratification that the official count shows three less than that.

 

“Last Tuesday B. B. Simonds and E. S. Edwards secured the material which was used in the successful efforts of Sunday afternoon…A ‘T’ shaped mechanism was resorted to after steam and other methods had failed….” (Mexia Daily News (United Press Full Leased Wire Service), TX. “Hughes-McKie Fire Put Out Sunday Night.” 5-21-1923, p. 1.)

 

Sources

 

Abilene Daily Reporter, TX. “Asbestos-Clothed Man Rescues Two Bodies From Fire.” 5-13-1923, p. 1. Accessed 4-7-2025: https://newspaperarchive.com/abilene-daily-reporter-may-13-1923-p-1/

 

Abilene Daily Reporter, TX. “Corsicana Death List Is Raised To 16.” 5-10-1923, p. 1. Accessed 4-7-2025 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/abilene-daily-reporter-may-10-1923-p-1/

 

Associated Press. “12 Boilers Will Throw Steam On Oil Well Blaze.” Denton Record-Chronicle, TX. 5-11-1923, p. 1. Accessed 4-7-2025 at:

https://newspaperarchive.com/denton-record-chronicle-may-11-1923-p-1/

 

Associated Press. “Funeral Service for Victims of Oil Field Fire.” The Brownsville Herald, TX. 5-20-1923, p1. Accessed 4-8-2025: https://newspaperarchive.com/brownsville-herald-may-20-1923-p-1/

 

Corsicana Daily Sun, TX. “Another Body Recovered Near Burning Oil Well.” 5-14-1923, p. 1. Accessed 4-8-2025 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/corsicana-daily-sun-may-14-1923-p-1/

 

Corsicana Daily Sun, TX. “Officials In Charge Situation.” 5-11-1923, p. 1. Accessed 4-7-2025 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/corsicana-daily-sun-may-11-1923-p-1/

 

Corsicana Daily Sun, TX. “Unidentified Bodies Held Local Morgue.” 5-14-1923, p. 1. Accessed 4-7-2025 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/corsicana-daily-sun-may-14-1923-p-1/

 

Denton Record Chronicle, TX. “Fire Victim Brother of Miss Mamie Walker of CIA Faculty.” 5-11-1923, p. 1. Accessed 4-7-2025 at:

https://newspaperarchive.com/denton-record-chronicle-may-11-1923-p-1/

 

Mexia Daily News (United Press Full Leased Wire Service), TX. “Hughes-McKie Fire Put Out Sunday Night.” 5-21-1923, p. 1. Accessed 4-8-2025 at:

https://newspaperarchive.com/mexia-daily-news-may-21-1923-p-9/

 

National Fire Protection Association. “The Hughes-McKie Oil Well Fire,” Quarterly of the National Fire Protection Association, Vol. 17, No. 1, July 1923, pp. 76-77.

 

United Press. “Fund For Families.” Denton Record-Chronicle, TX. 5-11-1923, p. 1. Accessed 4-7-2025 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/denton-record-chronicle-may-11-1923-p-1/

 

 

[1] “The list of dead and missing, which has been variously reported from eleven to eighteen, was reported today as a positive fourteen.”

[2] Twelve recovered bodies. Notes “possibility of two other bodies still near the fire.”

[3] These were six identified and six unidentified bodies. Another article, same page, column 1, notes possibility of two other bodies being near the fire.

[4] Associated Press. “Funeral Service for Victims of Oil Field Fire.” The Brownsville Herald, TX. 5-20-1923, p. 1.

[5] Associated Press. “Funeral Service for Victims of Oil Field Fire.” The Brownsville Herald, TX. 5-20-1923, p. 1.

[6] Associated Press. “Funeral Service for Victims of Oil Field Fire.” The Brownsville Herald, TX. 5-20-1923, p. 1.

[7] Associated Press. “Funeral Service for Victims of Oil Field Fire.” The Brownsville Herald, TX. 5-20-1923, p. 1.

[8] Associated Press. “Funeral Service for Victims of Oil Field Fire.” The Brownsville Herald, TX. 5-20-1923, p. 1.

[9] “Charles Walker of Henrietta, who was among the men burned to death in the Corsicana oil well fire Wednesday, was a brother of Miss Mamie Walker, a member of the faculty of the College of Industrial Arts, it was learned Friday morning….The bodies of Walker and [S.P.] Allen were among those still unrecovered Thursday night….Walker is a brother-in-law of S. P. Allen.” Denton Record Chronicle, TX. “Fire Victim Brother of Miss Mamie Walker of CIA Faculty.” 5-11-1923, p. 1.

[10] Associated Press. “Funeral Service for Victims of Oil Field Fire.” The Brownsville Herald, TX. 5-20-1923, p. 1.