Miners Memorial
Miners Memorial
Back in 2004 the Society's then president, Mr. Fred Knox, lamented the fact that all trace of Gomersal Colliery had been removed from the face of the earth. The colliery buildings had stood where Oakwell Hall Country Park's car park and information kiosk can now be found, in the far flung eastern corner of Gomersal, at Nutter Lane. Starting mining as a young lad, Fred was a "Bevan Boy", and later worked at the colliery until it closed in 1972. Shortly afterwards Kirklees Council flattened the entire site, re-shaped the heaps of minespoil, planted thousands of trees and laid out the lovely Oakwell Hall Country Park country park. The colliery had vanished completely. There wasn't even a sign or a plaque.
The Society decided to commission a piece of public art to be located on the site where the colliery stood; to make an information board showing where the pit buildings and mineshaft once were; and to publish a book of reminiscences of the miners who worked there with recollections by their families and friends.
A grant was obtained from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Society achieved all it had set out to do. Some of the retired miners helped make "pavers" with individual messages to surround the imposing sculpture. On the opening day in August 2005 there was a bit of party attended by miners who had once worked at the pit, their relatives, and many local residents. A booklet of recollections was published entitled "Life Dahn't Pit". Please contact us if you want to buy a copy. You can find the memorial at Oakwell Hall Country Park WF17 9LG.