Senghenydd Mining Disaster remembered on 112th anniversary

Hundreds paid their respects at the Senghenydd Mining Memorial on the 112th anniversary of the Universal Colliery Mining Disaster

Hundreds gathered in Senghenydd on Tuesday morning for a poignant service marking the 112th anniversary of the 1913 Universal Colliery mining disaster.

On October 14, 1913, an explosion tore through the colliery, killing 439 miners and leading to the death of one rescuer. This was, and remains, the worst mining disaster in British history.

The 81 people who died in the 1901 disaster at the same colliery were also remembered at the event, which was held on Tuesday October 14.

Residents, school pupils, and dignitaries gathered at the site of the disaster, where the National Mining Disaster Memorial for Wales now sits, to pay their respects.

Respects were also paid to the late Caerphilly Labour Senedd Member Hefin David, who passed away in August.

Plaid Cymru councillor Lindsay Whittle, who is chair of the Aber Valley Heritage Group – and by-election candidate to succeed Dr David – opened the event with a heartfelt tribute and said: “That man was an excellent friend to the Aber Valley Heritage Group. He will always be remembered with affection here.”

The service, organised by the Aber Valley Heritage Group, also included performances from Aber Valley Male Voice Choir and local schoolchildren, before wreaths and tributes were laid at the memorial.

Brigadier Robert Aitken CBE laying his wreath at the memorial — Brigadier Robert Aitken CBE laid a tribute at the memorial

Lord Lieutenant Brigadier Robert Aitken CBE, and the High Sheriff of Gwent Lt Col. Ralph Griffin were the first to lay wreaths, followed by Caerphilly MP Chris Evans, and later Gwent Police and Crime Commissioner Jane Mudd, Caerphilly County Borough mayor Dawn Ingram-Jones, and Labour Senedd by-election candidate Richard Tunnicliffe.

Aber Valley councillor John Taylor laid a wreath on behalf of South Wales East Senedd Members Delyth Jewell and Peredur Owen Griffiths, while wreaths were also laid on behalf of the community councils in Aber Valley, and Penyrheol, Trecenydd, and Energlyn.

Representatives from local churches, Senghenydd Community Centre, Big Pit, Aber Valley YMCA, Senghenydd RFC, Cardiff City Football Club, Aber Valley Male Voice Choir, and Gwent Police also placed tributes at the memorial, as did school pupils from Nant y Parc, Ysgol Ifor Bach, Cwmaber, Hendredenny Park, St Cenydd Comprehensive, and Ysgol Gyfun Cwm Rhymni.

‘We must always remember them’

Speaking to Caerphilly Observer after the event, Jill Jones, of the Aber Valley Heritage Group, said it was the “best service we’ve had”.

She praised the school children in attendance and reiterated the importance of the annual service: “The men that were killed must never be forgotten. They were from the valley, they were working in the valley.

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“For these children, it’s their grandparents and their great-grandparents – so we must always remember them.”

Cllr Whittle, whose great-grandfather, Evan Hopkin James, survived the 1901 disaster but was killed in the 1913 disaster, echoed this and said: “We just don’t want the village and the world to forget the biggest mining disaster in Britain.

From left: Cllr Lindsay Whittle, High Sheriff of Gwent Ralph Griffin, and Roy Noble

“My own great-grandfather was killed in the disaster, and I recall my grandfather, who was only 13 at the time, telling me all about the tough times that people experienced.

“We don’t want people to forget. If you look back, it’s hard to fathom how this valley even survived. The first disaster in 1901 killed 81 men. Then you had the second disaster in 1913. You had the First World War of 1914 to 1918. You had the 1920s and ’30s depression, then between 1939 to 1945, you had the second World War.”

Cllr Whittle was one of two Senedd by-election candidates to attend the event, the other being Labour’s Richard Tunnicliffe, who said: “The event was lovely. It was moving, especially the bespoke song that the children put together. It really struck home.

Labour Senedd by-election candidate Richard Tunnicliffe

“It’s so important that the events of October 1913 are never forgotten, and the lessons that we should learn from these sorts of things – the respect for the workers and the importance of looking after everyone, can’t be forgotten.

“And they aren’t being forgotten because of the excellent work that the community is doing and events like this, but also because of those at the Aber Valley Heritage Museum. I’ve got nothing but praise for the people who give their time and effort to this and long may it continue. And with the presence of the schools and the next generation learning and remembering, it won’t be forgotten.”

Gwent’s Police and Crime Commissioner, who has been supporting the Senghenydd Youth Drop-in Centre (SYDIC) through her community fund, told Caerphilly Observer it was “an honour and privilege” to attend the service. She said: “It was particularly moving to hear the children singing and to just look around at the ages of the people who were killed in the disaster on the tiles in the memorial garden.

Gwent Police and Crime Commissioner Jane Mudd

“It’s so important that we continue to come together and always remember what these communities have lost.”

‘Permeated into the bloodstream’

Broadcaster Roy Noble, patron of the Aber Valley Heritage Group, spoke about the impact the disaster has had on the community, both in the immediate aftermath and now 11 decades later.

“It has permeated into the bloodstream of the more mature people living in the area. Some of the families living here had family who were in the explosion.”

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A former school teacher in Senghenydd, Mr Noble was just seven-years-old when his own grandfather was killed in a mining disaster in west Wales.

He continued: “When you look minutely at the death toll, you get stories like the lady in Commercial Street, who had lost her husband the year before the explosion, she lost him in the mine. But in the explosion, she lost three others from her family, because that’s the way they were working – sons worked with their fathers in groups underground, so if there was an explosion in one area, the whole family went.”

Charlotte Bishop, Plaid Cymru councillor for the Aber Valley ward, highlighted the “fear and the despair” miners would have felt going underground.

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“And yet they did it every single day for their families,” said Cllr Bishop. “They knew they were at risk. They knew there were dangers, and yet they still did it because those family values were instilled in them.

“It goes to show how strong the men who came here to work in these mines are. It’s important for us to remember them and what they sacrificed. The men who survived also sacrificed with their health.”

Caerphilly’s Labour MP Chris Evans pointed to the area’s coal mining legacy and said: “Many of our communities were built around the collieries. The coal which brought so much prosperity could also bring terrible grief and tragedy.

“We must never forget all those who never returned home during each of the disasters, and pay tribute to the many hundreds of rescuers who risked their lives and saved many.”

The event was also poignant for Aber Valley Male Voice Choir. Having travelled across the globe singing over the years, the choir returned to its roots to perform at the service.

Alun Thomas, the choir’s secretary, said: “In our choir, we have a member whose grandfather actually perished in the disaster and he laid a wreath today on our behalf.

“It was a very emotional ceremony, it always is here, and it’s very important for us to remember our heritage and important for us to pass that on to the younger generations as well.

“It’s also very inspirational to be here with all the young children, knowing they will carry the memories of the disaster and its significance into the future.”