Memorial refreshed before disaster anniversary
A COLLIERY wheel installed as a memorial at the Great Houghton pit site is being given a make-over ahead of the 50th anniversary of a disaster which claimed the lives of five miners.
The wheel was installed after the closure of the colliery on the site of the old bus stop, which remains in use as the terminus for buses serving Middlecliffe.
But time had taken its toll on the half-wheel, which is mounted in a brick base, so Cllr Kevin Osborne, and former collier Kevin Haynes - who worked at neighbouring Dearne Valley Main pit - have been taking the time to strip and re-paint the wheel.
Barnsley Council staff helped clean up the base, which had been marked by sealant used to attach poetry to mark the centenary of WW1, more than a decade ago.
They will be back to trim shrubs ahead of anniversary date, of June 12, when five men died and another was seriously hurt in 1975.