# Was there a Real New York Mining Disaster in 1941? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 14, 2003, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517 "2003-01-14T15:25:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![El\_Zagna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@El\_Zagna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Zagna)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/1 "2003-01-14T15:25:11Z")
The death of Maurice Gibb has reminded me of the Bee Gees first big American hit, “New York Mining Disaster 1941”. Was the song based on an actual event? I’ve googled without success. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/2 "2003-01-14T15:47:31Z")
No. ---
**Author:** ![El\_Zagna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@El\_Zagna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Zagna)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/3 "2003-01-14T15:49:47Z")
Oh. ---
**Author:** ![garius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e19b73/32.png) [@garius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garius)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/4 "2003-01-14T20:49:18Z")
well that was a short and concise thread. ---
**Author:** ![Splanky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b2d939/32.png) [@Splanky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Splanky)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 9:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/5 "2003-01-14T21:01:17Z")
To keep a dying thread alive, if there wasn’t a New York mining disaster in 1941, why’d they write a song by that name? Was it completely random? Were they high off their ass and it popped out of someone’s head? An inside joke? ---
**Author:** ![El\_Zagna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d2c977/32.png) [@El\_Zagna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Zagna)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/6 "2003-01-14T21:36:47Z")
At this point, maybe we should move it to Cafe Society. Mods??? ---
**Author:** ![Capiam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b5a626/32.png) [@Capiam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capiam)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/7 "2023-05-17T20:22:01Z")
The song was inspired by the Aberfan disaster in Wales in 1966. There actually was a mining disater in New York in 1939. According tho the BeeGees, They felt New York sounded better for the song lyrics. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/8 "2023-05-17T21:38:19Z")
Welcome Capiam! And the song: [https://www.youtube.com/results?search\_query=“New+York+Mining+Disaster+1941”](https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=%E2%80%9CNew+York+Mining+Disaster+1941%E2%80%9D) ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/9 "2023-05-17T22:06:40Z")
At least, Robin Gibb reportedly _said_ they were inspired by a 1939 mining disaster in NY. Can’t find any record of it in brief Google excavations. ---
**Author:** ![Jaycat.again](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jaycat.again/32/11525_2.png) [@Jaycat.again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaycat.again)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/10 "2023-05-17T22:47:34Z")
The disaster came later, when they went all Disco Duck. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2023, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/11 "2023-05-17T22:52:53Z")
It was actually a New York _Miming_ Disaster. But no one ever spoke about it. ---
**Author:** ![Richox](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@Richox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richox)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2023, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-there-a-real-new-york-mining-disaster-in-1941/148517/12 "2023-05-18T14:18:21Z")
I’m glad to see @El_Zagna is still an active user and after twenty years will have their question answered