This sad scene was a very busy funeral cortege as Blantyre suffered another terrible mining tragedy in 1930. Six men lost their lives at Auchinraith Colliery on 30th August 1930 and a few days later the dead were buried.

Mass crowds lined Auchinraith Road to pay their respects, of which those pictured represented just some of the huge crowds of onlookers. With the collieries gone, it’s a little difficult to put the location into context so I’ll provide some help. The group to the immediate left are standing at the entrance to the former Auchinraith Bakery at the junction with Craig Street. Today this would now be the Auchinraith Shop. The large field in view is now the timber houses. This funeral in particular was for Fireman Sprott.

The pit rows and Auchinraith Collieries 1&2 are pictured.

This was a sad and dark day for Blantyre as the town received yet another reminder of the dangers of working underground. The colliery permanently closed a year after this photo was taken.

This is the location now, nicely showing just how many changes have taken place in 92 years.