New London School Explosion - Texas Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

New London, Texas, was known as the richest independent school district in the United States. Due to its oil wealth, the district constructed a state-of-the-art school to house grades K-11.

On March 18, 1937 students were preparing for an Inter-scholastic meet in Henderson. At 3:17 p.m. an instructor in the shop class turned on a sanding machine which sparked, igniting accumulated natural gas from a leak in a crawl space beneath the school. In an instant, a good part of the building disintegrated in an explosion that could be heard for miles. Almost 300 students and teachers died in the blast.

Experts from the United States Bureau of Mines concluded that the connection to the residue gas line was faulty. The connection had allowed gas to leak into the school, and since natural gas is invisible and odorless, the leak went unnoticed. To reduce the damage of future leaks, within weeks of the explosion the Texas Legislature began mandating that thiols (mercaptans) be added to natural gas. The strong odor of many thiols makes leaks quickly detectable. The practice quickly spread worldwide.

A cenotaph of Texas pink granite was designed by Donald S. Nelson, architect, and executed by Herring Coe, Sculptor. Erected in 1939, it can be found on the median of Texas State Highway 42. Engraved on the stones facing the cenotaph are the names of the known victims by school grade.

MORE READING:
Official New London School site (visit link)
Many vintage photos on Lana Bird's site (visit link)
wikipedia New London School Explosion (visit link)

Marker Number: 11023 Marker Text: New London School Explosion on March 18, 1937, a massive explosion destroyed the New London Junior-Senior High School, instantly killing an estimated 296 students and teachers. The subsequent deaths of victims from injuries sustained that day brought the final death count to 311. The explosion was blamed on a natural gas leak beneath the school building. Within weeks of the disaster the Texas Legislature passed a law requiring an odor to be added to natural gas, which previously was odorless and therefore undetectable. This memorial to victims of the explosion was erected in 1939. (1989)

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