ALL OUR Plans for a memorial to 139 killed in tragic mining accident
PLANS are being put forward to honour miners killed in a historic pit blast, one of the worst Yorkshire has ever seen, which killed 139 men and boys. The victims of that fateful explosion, caused by a naked flame, have never been officially recognised, as the majority were buried in unmarked graves at Thornhill Parish Church, Dewsbury.
The tragedy at the Combs Colliery in Thornhill, in July 1893, left the community and surrounding towns and villages devastated. Only seven men survived the tragedy.
Now, 127 years later, business leaders in Dewsbury are proposing a lasting monument and are working on plans to erect a huge mining wheel in Dewsbury town centre, along with a roll of honour listing dead miners from several tragedies to be installed in Dewsbury Town Hall.
There are also plans for a memorial wood to be planted in Thornhill, providing a suitable location can be found.
The memorial plan will include remembering the dead from explosions at the Combs Colliery as well as other tragedies, which happened in and around the Dewsbury area.
A naked flame igniting an accumulation of gas had caused the horrific underground explosion at The Combs Colliery, in 1893.
A mass burial took place with 110 victims placed in unmarked graves in Thornhill Parish Churchyard and others in nearby locations.
Paul Ellis, president of the Dewsbury Chamber of Trade, said: “Out
WELVE was the age deemed suitable for youngsters to go down the pit to earn a living. The smaller boys could crawl into smaller spaces into seams of coal.
Of those who died, 110 were buried in the Thornhill Churchyard, 16 at Whitley, three at the Baptist Chapel churchyard, Thornhill, one at Dewsbury, one at Flockton, one at Middlestown and one at Outwood.
of the 139 dead, 46 of them were under 16. And seven of the 46 were only 12.
“The victims have never been officially remembered and a lasting memorial is needed. This has been
Most of the men had died not as a result of the explosion, but as a result of inhaling the dreadful after-damp which every miner feared.
As news of the disaster spread, a crowd of around 20,000 gathered on the Combs in Thornhill as the bodies were brought up from underground, one by one, until 139 were laid out on the hillside.
They were all buried in the village churchyard on the same day in unmarked
a project of more than 20 years in the planning and it is something which still runs deep in our town, which was once home to this mining community.
“It was an unprecedented disaster at the time, on such a huge scale, leaving the community in a state of shock.
“We have tried for many years to have the memorial in Thornhill itself, but this has not proved possible due to location, safety and no permission to build at the colliery site or the church which is a Grade 1 listed building.”
A huge mining wheel, rescued from Denaby Main Colliery in South Yorkshire, could be installed in the centre of Dewsbury.
A funding bid is being submitted to the Heritage Lottery Fund to finance the project, which is expected to cost up to £40,000.
Support for the Dewsbury plan also comes from businessman Andrew Hutchinson, who salvaged graves. The pit owner has arranged for them to have coffins but no name marking their existence.
An inquiry later revealed the explosion has been caused by a naked light igniting a small amount of gas which has accumulated at the bottom of the pit shaft.
A trust fund was set up nationally and around £30,000 was collected, equivalent to almost £4m today.
The pit was working until 1971.
the mining wheel, along with backing members of Dewsbury Forward, which promotes business and positivity for the town and support from Kirklees Council.
But after the plans were recently announced, a separate group from Thornhill said the memorial should be in Thornhill.
A public meeting is planned to discuss the matter on February 21 at 7.30pm at Thornhill Edge WMC.
A statement from the Thornhill campaign, headed by Shaun Maddox, said: “With news that Dewsbury Forward have applied for lottery funding to erect a memorial to Thornhill men killed in the Thornhill pit disasters 1893/1947, a public meeting has been called.
“We believe it’s a travesty to put a memorial to Thornhill men in Dewsbury town centre and we are campaigning to have it located in Thornhill, where it belongs, in memory those that lost their lives
and to celebrate our villages mining heritage.
“We invite you to have your say and discuss the next steps in bringing the memorial to Thornhill.”
The mining wheel was rescued by Dewsbury salvage and demolition expert Andrew Hutchinson and has been in storage for two decades. It is currently being painted and restored.
Clr Eric Firth (Lab, Dewsbury East) added: “This has been a long time coming and it will honour those who died and the families affected.
“This explosion had such a devastating impact on communities in Thornhill and surrounding areas such as Whitley, Briestfield and Middlestown, Horbury and into Dewsbury.
“We have the full list of all names, ages with some local surnames we recognise. Descendants will have had great grandfathers and relatives lost in the explosion.”