Today, 22nd October 2016 is the 139th Anniversary of the Blantyre Pit Disaster at Dixon’s Colliery in High Blantyre . At 8.50am that morning in 1877, over 200 Blantyre men and boys were killed, sending shockwaves of grief through Blantyre.

Today, via Blantyre Telegraph, I placed on behalf of us all a beautiful memorial wreath at the foot of the Disaster Monument at High Blantyre Cemetery. Focus in recent years has been on the modern monument at Kirkton. However, I felt it appropriate to place these flowers and a small note here at the old cemetery monument, as many of the miners are actually buried nearby. You will remember recently that John Dunsmore renovated the monument writing, ahead of this day, so altogether, a fitting tribute.

Our little Cemetery Committee is still awaiting permissions from South Lanarkshire Council, if we can trim back and cut down the modern conifers surrounding the monument, which amongst other species over the last 100 years have grown considerably and now overshadow the monument. I will keep you posted on this.

At the request of various expats, and to acknowledge writing about some of these miners, two and a half lumps of coal were placed there too, symbolising over 200 lives lost. A large lump of coal for each 100 lives.

This was done in remembrance and left with sentiments from us all here on this page.