At the end of May 1893, Mrs Sarah McGlynn or Higgins brought an action against William Baird & Co (Coalmasters). Sarah lived at McAlpine’s Buildings on Glasgow Road, Blantyre and was suing the mining company for the untimely death of her husband, who had been employed by them as a miner. The husband had died […]
Category: Blantyre Mining
Blantyre Mining School
I found this reference to “Blantyre Mining School” in a local newspaper of 1893. I’d never heard of a ‘Mining School’ until seeing this article and read with interest that it appeared to teach and qualify colliery management! Classes were to be held from 30th September in the Low Blantyre School at Stonefield on a […]
Experiencing being down a Pit
With the Centenary commemorations of the Blantyre Pit Disaster coming to a close in early November 1977, the three men responsible for the design and build of the memorial, had one thing left to do. Experience being down a pit for themselves! So bravely, in the first week in November 1977, Robert Sim who made […]
Pit Disaster Competition, 1977
These men had a real difficult job in front of them in October 1977 when they gathered in the High Blantyre Old Parish Church Hall to judge the efforts of the town’s young artists. For this was the climax of the competition, open to Blantyre schools, organised as part of the commemoration of the centenary […]
Evidence of John Watson, 1877
Evidence of Alexander Gardiner
Continuing a transcript of evidence given by Blantyre miners to the Blantyre Pit Disaster Inquiry in November 1877. On Page 187 is the evidence of local man Alexander Gardiner who was questioned by Mr Dickinson. Alexander said, “I am 59 years of age. I live in Auchenraith, High Blantyre, in the parish of Blantyre and […]
Pride in the New Memorial
These three men were among over a thousand people who came to High Blantyre Cross on Sunday 23rdOctober 1977 to pay tribute to over 200 miners who died in the Blantyre Pit Disaster 100 years earlier. They were there to take part in the unveiling of the monument behind them, built in memory of the […]







