With the Anniversary of the Blantyre Pit Disaster this coming Sunday, it’s time to reveal what we’ve been up to these last few months.
Fresh from unveiling new named memorials for the miners who died in the 1877 disaster, Blantyre Telegraph has teamed up again this year with Blantyre men, Jimmy Small and Andy Simm to commission a public notice board to tell the story of the tragedy.
The project has been months in the making, with nearly £2,000 successfully raised to buy the large lockable cabinet, posts, rails and displays. £400 of this was from our Simm Endeavour funding ensuring the project could go ahead and create a permanent, lasting display to last generations.
The new cabinet was approved by authorities during the Autumn and working closely with the council, we chose a site at the entrance to the High Blantyre Cemetery. The cabinet is now being erected ahead of the Anniversary this Sunday, 22nd October.
Bereavement Services and the Cemeteries Council staff have been fantastic this week. Working very hard especially in this weather. The Cemetery is looking fantastic, grass all cut, edged and strummed. Box hedges and shrubs cut back, paths weeded and cleared, potholes filled in, and all areas around each gravestone cleaned up and edged. With thanks to Joe Connor and his team.
A permanent display telling the sad but respectful story of the Blantyre Pit Disaster has now been created by Paul Veverka’s Blantyre Project, and will be unveiled imminently, available for the whole community to read at their leisure.
