Cornish Knockers

In other posts on this blog stories about American western mine spirits known as Tommyknockers are shared here and here.

The belief in these spirits originated with tin miners in Cornwall, England. Cornish miners called these mischievous spirits Knockers because they were heard

Cornish Knocker

deep within tin mines knocking.

These Knockers lived in the darkest part of mines and were described as thin-limbed, two feet tall with long hooked noses. To miners they liked, they would appear. They were described as wearing miniature versions of miners’ clothes.

Cornish miners to appease these spirits would share part of their meal with them. In Cornwall, miners ate pasties, which are a spiced meat and potato mixture enclosed in a pastry. Often at one end, an apple mixture was placed inside as well--making the pasty a complete meal.

This pastry was turned over and crimped at the edges. It is said the miners would touch their pasty just along this crimp with their dirty hands--thereby keeping the rest of their meal clean. They would then throw the soiled crimped part down for the knockers.

Cornish Pasty

When it was time to eat “Oggy Oggy Oggy” would be shouted down the mine shaft by a maiden above, then the miners would call back, “Oi Oi Oi.” Oggy means pasty.

When this knocking was heard, it was a good omen. For where 

Tin Miners in Cornwall

these spirit's knocks were heard showed the miners --rich new veins. These knocks also warned miners of impending danger.

One Cornish story, about a Knocker told the story of a man who bought a home in the mining district. It wasn’t long before he began to awake to the sounds of heavy boots walking up and down his stairs. When he looked out of his bedroom, he saw no one.

When these noises persisted, he questioned his servants. One young maid told him what he was hearing were just Knockers. They were alerting people to the fact that there was a lode under his house that needed to be worked. This turned out to be true for under this man’s house was one of the richest tin lodes found.

One Cornish miner working deep within a tin mine was wielding a heavy hammer. He heard a sharp voice calling his name between each stroke he took. When this crying became urgent, he threw down his hammer and walked in the direction of the noise.

After he had taken a dozen steps, he heard a loud crash behind him. In the spot where he had been hammering a large number of rocks had fallen down.

One superstition connected to Knockers states if a person hears them outside a mine it is a warning a death is about to occur.

A night watchman was working at an accounting house in the village of Breage in West Cornwall when he heard the distinct sounds of knocking. This was followed by what sounded like someone turning over a trash bin.

When this worker looked out, he saw nothing disturbed. When he told his friends about this the next day, they listened and nodded their heads gravely. Within days this night watchman fell ill and died.

Geevor Tin Mine

With the decline of tin mining, reports of encounters with Knockers have diminished. But people believe even today that they still reside in the deepest parts of abandoned mines.

Cripple Creek: Mamie R. Mine Ghosts

The Mamie R. Mine located near Cripple Creek; Colorado has a very unique history. Some believe this mine was shut down as a direct result of malicious tommyknockers. 

In a previous post here, I describe what mine tommyknockers (mine spirits) are and miner’s belief in them. 

What is unusual about the tommyknockers at the Mamie R. Mine is they were not the typical “knocker” that was helpful or at most mischievous. Instead, these knockers were evil in nature.

The Mamie R. Mine is considered one of the most haunted mines in the west. 

In addition to this haunted history the original Welsh, Cornish and Irish miners who worked in this mine were very superstitious. They believed that a series of cave-ins were caused by tommyknockers. 

The miners at the Mamie R. claimed to see and hear these knockers —using their hammers or talking in the distance. They felt these spirits were out for revenge. 

When heard, these knockers so terrified the miners they left the Mamie R. and refused to work there again. 

Legend states this is why the Mamie R. Mine was forced to close down operations but this is not accurate—at least not at the beginning.

The Mamie R. Mine after losing its’ original crews, lured less superstitious miners, that had the desire for wealth, into its tunnels. 

But soon after, unusual accidents started to happen. Two of these accidents resulted in the mine being haunted by the dead men's spirits. 

One day a miner by the name of Hank Bull heard a voice of what he thought was a small boy coming from a newly dug tunnel that was still unshored. (An unshored mine tunnel is one that has not been secured with boards to hold the ceiling in place.)

Bull headed down this tunnel—ignoring fellow miners' warnings—in search of what he thought must be a lost child.

After a few minutes, the miners heard Bull’s scream. As they rushed to the tunnel entrance, the unshored ceiling collapsed on Bull, killing him. The story of this accident spread quickly, and several miners left to work in “less dangerous mines.” 

This left the Mamie R. Mine with a minimal crew. The few miners who remained began to report hearing voices and whispers in areas where no one was. Several saw a dark shape pass them only to see it disappear as they watched.

Two Man Windlass

At this time, another eerie thing happened involving the mine’s windlass. (A windlass along with a rope is used to lift a bucket filled with ore, rocks and/or men out of the shaft.)

Attached to this windlass was a bell that would ring three times to alert the men above that the bucket was full and ready to come to the top. 

Many times this bell would ring, and the bucket was pulled up--only to find it empty.

Shortly after Hank Bulls' death, another accident occurred in November of 1894, that killed yet another miner. This accident involved the windlass. 

It was not uncommon for the bucket to fall when the ropes that secured it gave way, but tragically this time the bucket fell on a miner’s head crushing his skull. 

What perplexed the miners and their bosses about this accident was they could not find a logical reason why the bucket fell. The knot on the rope that held the bucket was still intact and tied tightly.

After this second accident, more specific sightings began to be reported. Hank Bull's spirit started to appear in the deepest parts of the mine. 

Several of the miners who had worked alongside him reported seeing him in this area. 

The miner who died when the windlass hit him was seen in the bucket. Miners operating the windlass spotted his crushed head appear over the top of the bucket, he was then seen stepping out of the bucket just to disappear. This strange sight was witnessed more than once.

In December of 1894, everything came to a head--literally. On Christmas Eve the mine flooded. 

So on Christmas day the miners were busy hauling out buckets of water. 

Three men were turning the windlass up top when suddenly it broke. But it did more than just break—it flew apart—pieces of it landed everywhere. 

When it broke, the heavy bucket fell back down into the mine, one of the three men became tangled in the rope that was now loose. This rope tightened so quickly around his neck it decapitated him.

This was the “last straw” for the miners that worked in the Mamie R. Mine. They were now all firm believers in the idea that the mine did indeed have malicious tommyknockers. 

Originally not superstitious, they now believed these knockers were responsible for the deaths of these three men. The miners left, and no other men would work in the Mamie R. Mine. In January of 1895, the mine shut down for good.

Mine Spirits: Knockers

Many miners in the 19^th century both in the United Kingdom and America believed in the existence of helpful mine spirits.

This folklore began in Cornwall, England, where miners believed in spirits that lived and worked in mines, especially tin mines, these spirits were called "Knockers." 

They were considered to be friendly and helpful, they could also be mischievous, but they were not evil or malicious like the German Kobold mine spirits. They sometimes stole miner’s unattended tools and food. 

Knockers went by many names: Buccas, Knackers, Nickers, Nuggies, and Spriggans. In America, these mine spirits were known as tommyknockers.

Cornish Miner

Knockers were so named because of the knocking sounds they make in mine shafts as they work. 

In Cornwall, they were considered to be the ghosts of Jews who worked in the mines. Some believed these Jews were sent by the Romans to work in the mines to punish them for the death of Christ. 

It is said because of this, knockers cannot tolerate the sign of the cross, so miners avoided making anything with a cross or an X. 

According to the legend, knockers were very industrious—they were seen working through the night. They are most often associated with rich lodes of ore; thus, miners would pay close attention to where they heard these supernatural knockings. 

Miners reported hearing laughter and footsteps, and sometimes they reported seeing them. They were most often described as very small in stature and wearing tiny versions of standard miner’s garb. Miners recounted seeing them working alongside the living.

They were known to help miners in trouble. It is stated that whistling offended knockers, so miners believed it to be unlucky to whistle in mines. 

It was also believed that miners should leave food offerings for knockers so they would not cause trouble. Miners were known to carry extra food in their lunch pails.

In American mines, tommyknockers behaved similarly to their Cornish counterparts. Though a few were attributed with traits more similar to the vicious German Kobolds. 

In the late 19^th Century, the Mamie R. Mine, in Cripple Creek, Colorado, was supposedly haunted by malicious tommyknockers.

Miners believed these spirits lured them into a shaft and then they would jump up and down on beams until they collapsed upon these men. 

These tommyknockers were also blamed for snapping cables and for premature blasts; they were heard laughing at the miners as they did their evil deeds. In another post, I write more about this Cripple Creek story.

Cornish miners during the California Gold Rush of 1848, were much sought after. They were often referred to as “Cousin Jacks.” 

This is because mine owners would ask their workers if they knew of other miners that were willing to work. These miners would reply, “Well me cousin Jack over in Cornwall will come, if ye can pay the boat ride…” 

The Cousin Jacks were notorious for losing tools as they were diving out of shafts just before they collapsed. 

They always credited their Knocker friends for saving them and refused to go back to work until assured by the management that the knockers were already back working. 

Belief in knockers lasted well into the 20^th century. 

When one large mine was closed in 1956, the owners sealed the entrance. Then several generations of Cousin Jacks circulated a petition calling on the mine owners to free the Knockers so they could move to other mines. The owners complied.

Throughout the southwest, including other mines in Colorado, friendlier tommyknockers were described as protective and helpful. 

Miners, in general, viewed these supernatural companions with fondness, and told many stories about them—miners were known to make room for them at the bar at the end of their shifts. 

Tommyknocker stories were frequently written about in local newspapers. While doing research on western mines and miners; I often find references to tommyknockers.

Today these spirits are believed to haunt abandoned mines.