Maerdy Memorial To Our Miners
The Maerdy Gateway Memorial will incorporate the original winding wheel from the colliery
The once-thriving coal-mining heritage of the Rhondda Valley is to be forever remembered with the official unveiling in January of the Maerdy Gateway Memorial and official opening of the Memorial Garden.
Three years after residents of Maerdy launched an appeal to create a lasting memorial to the proud coal-mining past of the area, a special ceremony will take place involving the whole community.
The new Maerdy Gateway Memorial and the Memorial Garden, situated at the foot of the mountain road linking Maerdy with Aberdare, will be a fitting tribute to all of those who lost their lives while working in the coal industry over the years.
Incorporated in the area will be the former pit wheel from Mardy Colliery, along with masonry from the recently-demolished Maerdy Workmens’ Hall.
The Maerdy Gateway Memorial is a joint initiative of Maerdy Archive and Maerdy Communities First, supported by Rhondda Cynon Taf Council. It is a tribute to all those who died whilst at work as well as those who have died following the conditions they worked in.
Cllr Keiron Montague, Ward Member and Cabinet Member for Service Delivery, Communities and Housing, who has worked closely with the organisations throughout the memorial project, said: “The closure of the Mardy Colliery at the end of 1990 truly was a sad day for the community, and it was a loss that was felt throughout the whole of the area that was once known as the South Wales Coalfield.
“The coal produced in the Rhondda Valley became synonymous with Wales, providing a quality mineral that was sold all around the world.
“This wonderful memorial in Maerdy will be a fitting reminder of the sacrifices made by generations of workforces who worked in often treacherous circumstances such as through two World Wars and the 1885 colliery disaster.”
David Owen, author, local historian and Secretary of Maerdy Archives, said: “This will be such an historical and important day for the people of Maerdy, the Rhondda Valley, and indeed the whole of South Wales.
“This memorial is an integral and essential feature of our heritage for today and future generations.
“Our heritage is all around us. We live our lives, consciously or not, against a rich backdrop formed by historic buildings, landscapes and other survivals from our past, which we add to day-by-day, creating a sense of place and local pride, and providing a context for everyday life.
“We hope as many people of all ages will come along to mark this historical occasion with us.”
Mardy Colliery, which was sunk and opened in 1875, was the main employer in the area for many decades, going on to become the last deep mine in the world-famous Rhondda Coalfield, which was once home to a staggering 79 coal mines.
In the late 1950s and early 1960s, around 13,000 miners worked at 13 Rhondda collieries, producing almost 3m tonnes of coal a year.
Mardy Colliery, at the peak of the coal industry in the Rhondda, produced almost 10 million tonnes of saleable coal. At that time, a staggering 500 tonnes of coal left the Rhondda Valley every 10 minutes during the working day as a result of the hard toil of 40,000 miners.
Mardy Colliery was also the scene of one of the biggest mining disasters in the Rhondda Valley when at around 2.40pm on Wednesday, December 22, 1885, there was an explosion deep underground, resulting in the tragic deaths of 81 miners.
The colliery re-opened in January the following year and went on to survive the year-long Miners’ Strike of 1984/85.
But the end of an era truly came in 1990, with the final shift taking place at Mardy Colliery on December 21, bringing the curtain down on the coal industry in a community which was once at the heart of the South Wales Coalfield.
The last dram of coal raised at Mardy Colliery is situated at the Rhondda Heritage Park and is proudly on show to all visitors.
The official unveiling of the Maerdy Gateway Memorial and official opening of the Memorial Garden takes place at 10am on Saturday, January 24, with a community march from Maerdy Community Primary School to the Maerdy Gateway Memorial, led by Tylorstown Brass Band.
There will be performances by Maerdy Community Primary School, Pendyrus Male Choir and Cor Meibion Morlais, along with a Display of Banners which will include the South Wales Area; Mardy NUM Lodge; Maerdy Womens’ 1984/85 Strike, Maerdy branch Royal British Legion; Mines Rescue; St John Ambulance; Ferndale Brownies and 1st Pontygwaith Scouts.
Among the speakers will be Rhondda Cynon Taf Mayor, Cllr John Watts, Cllr Keiron Montague, Ward Member and Cabinet Member for Service Delivery, Communities and Housing; Arwyn Williams, Chairman of the Maerdy Archive, Professor Tony Griffith, Chairman of Amgen Environmental Body Ltd.
Ivor England, a former miner at Mardy Colliery, will also be giving his recollections of many years working underground, followed by prayers and readings led by Pastor Andrew Scully.
This will be followed by a ‘Moment of Calm and Silence’ introduced by David Owen, then a tribute to the Miners of South Wales from Hawys Glyn James.
The Maerdy Gateway Memorial will be unveiled by Wayne Thomas, Secretary of the National Union Of Mineworkers (NUM) South Wales and David Owen, former Mardy Colliery miner and Secretary of The Maerdy Archive.
The official unveiling of the Maerdy Gateway Memorial and official opening of the Memorial Garden takes place at 10am on Saturday, January 24. All are welcome.
AberdareOnline more information on links
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/south_east/7921927.stm
http://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/local-news/times-tears-tragedy-joy-his...
http://webapps.rhondda-cynon-taff.gov.uk/heritagetrail/english/rhondda/m...
- Log in to post comments