The explosion changed the lives of many people, none more so than the widows of the men who died. There were 23 widows, 20 of whom claimed assistance from the relief fund. Mrs Dugdale, Mrs Pogmore and Mrs Horton Snr. had their own means and did not claim. By 1891 two of the widows had died. Sarah Parker, wife of the manager John Parker, and Ann Day, wife of William, one of the trapped miners both died in 1886. Eleven others had remarried. This is a list of the 18 widows as they appear on the 1891 census.

1. EMMA ARCHER - now married to William Archer, cousin of her first husband.

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
Bingham Row, Atherstone	William Archer	Head	M	37	Coal miner	Grendon
	Emma Archer	Wife	M	38	Hat trimmer	Baddesley Ensor
	Ada Archer	Dau	S	16	Hat trimmer	Atherstone
	Mary Archer	Dau		10		Atherstone
	Emma Archer	Dau		6		Atherstone
	Maud Archer	Dau		3		Atherstone
	Beatrice Archer	Dau		1		Atherstone

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
Church Row	Joseph Chetwynd	Head	M	39	Coal miner	Baddesley Ensor
Baddesley Ensor	Eliza Chetwynd	Wife	M	40		Baddesley Ensor
	Joseph Chetwynd	Son	S	18	Coal miner	Baddesley Ensor
	George Atkins	S/son		14	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor
	Frank Atkins	S/son		12	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor
	Alfred Atkins	S/son		9	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor
	Arthur Chetwynd	Son		5	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
57 Lime Street, Walsall	Harriet Ball	Head	Wid	55		Walsall
	Mary J Ball	Dau	S	30		Baxterley
	Joseph J Ball	Son	S	24	Carpenter	Baxterley

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
17 Baxterley Hall Cottages	Charles Whitmore	Head	M	57	Coal miner	Baddesley Ensor
Baxterley	Hannah Whitmore	Wife	M	41		Baxterley
	Charles Whitmore	Son	S	17	Coal miner	Baddesley Ensor
	Ambrosine Whitmore	Dau	S	16		Baddesley Ensor
	Antony Whitmore	Son		9	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor
	Katie W Whitmore	Dau		9mths		Baxterley
	Arthur W Bates	S/son	S	21	Coal miner	Baxterley
	George Bates	S/son	S	17	Coal miner	Baxterley
	Edward Bates	S/son		9	Scholar	Baxterley
	Gertrude Bates	S/dau		4		Baxterley

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
No 8 Baxterley Hall Cottages	Annie Besson	Head	Wid	47		Higham on Hill LEI
Baxterley	Elizabeth Besson	Dau	S	24	Laundry woman	Baxterley
	Joseph Besson	Son	S	22	Coal miner	Baxterley
	William Besson	Son	S	21	Coal miner	Baxterley
	Alfred Besson	Son	S	16	Coal miner	Baxterley
	Arthur Besson	Son	S	13	Ag lab	Baxterley
	Henry Besson	Son		11	Scholar	Baxterley
	Walter Besson	Son		9	Scholar	Baxterley

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
Back 133 Wainwright Street	Samuel Hewitt	Head	M	36	Coal labourer	Birmingham
Aston, Birmingham	Eliza Hewitt	Wife	M	33		Aston
	Louisa Hewitt	Dau		2		Aston
	Samuel Hewitt	Son		7 m		Aston

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
Grendon Common	Sarah Boonham	Head	Wid	56	Farmer	Polesworth
	John Boonham	Son	S	19	Clerk at colliery	Grendon
	William Boonham	Son	S	15	Ag lab	Grendon

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
Speedwell Row	Absolom Hough	Head	M	69	Grocer	Atherstone
Baddesley Ensor	Elizabeth Hough	wife	M	53		Attleborough
	Sarah Clay	S/dau	S	23	Hat trimmer	Baxterley
	Joseph Clay	S/son	S	18	Coal miner	Baxterley
	Florence A Clay	S/dau	S	14	Hat trimmer	Baxterley

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
Baddesley Ensor	Abraham Sweet	Head	M	35	Coal miner	Baddesley Ensor
	Ann Sweet	Wife	M	46		Baddesley Ensor
	William Henry* Sweet	Son		12	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor
	Joseph Thomas* Sweet	Son		10	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor
	Francis John* Sweet	Son		8	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
Plump Hill, East Deane	Emma Evans	Head	Wid	41		Elbwood GLS
Gloucestershire	Thomas Evans	Son	S	20	Coal miner	East Deane GLS
	Clara Evans	Dau	S	16		East Deane GLS
	Samuel Evans	Son	S	14	Tin plate worker	East Deane GLS
	Fanny Evans	Dau		9		Ansley WAR
	Eliza Duarizy	Niece		9		Derbyshire

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
13 Baxterley Hall Cottages	Charles Smith	Head	M	28	Coal miner	Baddesley Ensor
Baxterley	Mary Smith	Wife	M	34		Baddesley Ensor
	John Smith	Son		5	Scholar	Baxterley
	Henry Smith	Son		3		Baxterley
	Frederick C Smith	Son		2		Baxterley
	Mary A Evans	S/dau		13		Atherstone
	Frederick C Evans	S/son		9	Scholar	Baxterley

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
No 1 Baxterley Hall Cottages	William Clay	Head	M	28	Coal miner	Baddesley Ensor
Baxterley	Sarah A Clay	Wife	M	33		Baddesley Ensor
	William Clay	Son		10 m		Baxterley
	Joseph Evans	S/son		11	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor
	Alice F Evans	S/dau		8	Scholar	Baxterley

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
Church Street, Atherstone	John Sandal	Head	M	29	Coal miner	Baddesley Ensor
	Mary Sandal	Wife	M	44		Baddesley Ensor
	Benjamin Horton	S/son	S	22	Coal miner	Baddesley Ensor
	Mary E Horton	S/dau	S	18	Hat trimmer	Baddesley Ensor
	Lavinia Horton	S/dau	S	16	Hat trimmer	Baddesley Ensor
	Edith Horton	S/dau	S	11	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor
	Alice F Horton	S/dau		8	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor
	Arthur J H Sandal	Son		1		Atherstone
	Michael Wood	Brolaw	M	33	Coal merchant's	Baddesley Ensor

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
No 11 Baxterley Hall Cottages	Charles Wood	Head	M	30	Coal miner	Orton-on-Hill LEI
Baxterley	Elizabeth Wood	Wife	M	41		Witherley
	Ada Wood	Dau		5		Baxterley
	Margaret Wood	Dau		3		Baxterley
	Bertha Wood	Dau		4 m		Baxterley

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
Waste Hill, Grendon	George Wood	Head	M	40	Engine stoker at coal mine	Grendon
	Mary A Wood	Wife	M	36		Grendon
	Catherine Radford	M/L	Wid	56	Living on own means	Atherstone
	Eliza A Wood	Dau		8	Scholar	Grendon
	Emma Rowley	Lodger		12	Scholar	Atherstone

Name of Street Place or Road

and name or number of house

Name and Surname of each person

in the house

Relation to

head of family

Condition

Age

Rank profession or

occupation

Where born

Watling Street Road

Emma Ross

Head

Wid

Polesworth

Dordon

William Ross

Son

Coal miner

Dordon

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
Hall End, Polesworth	Samuel Chetwynd	Head	M	55	Coal miner	Baddesley Ensor
	Emma Chetwynd	Wife	M	53		Bentley
	Dick Chetwynd	Son		13	Coal miner	Hall End
	Henry Large	Orphan		9		Manchester

Name of Street Place or Road and name or number of house	Name and Surname of each person in the house	Relation to head of family	Condition	Age	Rank profession or occupation	Where born
Dordon	John Smith	Head	M	25	Coal miner	Dordon
	Mary Smith	Wife	M	26		Warton
	John William Smith	Son		2		Warton
	Elizabeth Smith	Mother	Wid	55		Atherstone
	Joseph Smith	Son	S	20	Coal miner	Dordon
	Henry Dennis	G/son		11	Scholar	Baddesley Ensor
	William Smith	Lodger/Head	Wid	35	Coal miner	Atherstone
	Violet Smith	Dau		5	Scholar	Dordon
	Maud Smith	Dau		1		Wilnecote