Memorial to 37 miners who died at colliery to be unveiled
Nation.Cymru staff
A permanent memorial to 37 miners who lost their lives while working at a Welsh colliery is to be unveiled later this month.
The memorial will be installed at the Llanelli and Mynydd Mawr Railway at Cynheidre, which occupies part of the former Cynheidre Colliery site in Carmarthenshire.
It will carry the names of the 37 men who died while working at the colliery and will also commemorate miners whose lives were cut short by illnesses caused by years spent working underground.
The memorial will be unveiled during a commemorative ceremony on the morning of Sunday, August 23, with relatives of the men being invited to attend.
The site will then open to the public from midday, when visitors will be able to see the memorial as part of a special open day.
The railway will also officially open a new heritage woodland project designed to tell the story of Cynheidre Colliery and the generations who worked there.
Information boards will explore the site’s mining and industrial history, while recordings of former colliery workers will allow visitors to hear their memories first-hand.
Around 20 former employees were interviewed for the project, with their voices and recollections becoming a permanent part of the visitor experience.
The woodland project was supported by an £85,000 grant from the Welsh Government and the Heritage Lottery through the Woodland Investment Grant.
Mark Thomas, chair of the Llanelli and Mynydd Mawr Railway, said: “We are incredibly proud to finally be unveiling this permanent memorial.
“Cynheidre has a proud mining history and, as a charity located on part of the former colliery site, we feel a real responsibility to make sure that history and the stories of the people who worked here are preserved for future generations.
“The new memorial, together with our heritage woodland and the memories recorded by former colliery workers in their own voices, will help us to do exactly that.”
‘Special day’
He added: “We hope that as many people as possible will join us from 12pm on Sunday 23rd August to see the memorial, explore the woodland and help us mark what will be a very special day for Cynheidre.”
The railway has been developing the former colliery site since 1999.
Entry to the public open day, which runs from midday until 4pm, will be free, with free train rides available between midday and 3pm.
Relatives of any of the 37 miners who wish to attend the morning’s commemorative ceremony are being asked to contact the railway in advance.
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