Anniversary of the 1860 Mining Disaster

The Commemoration of the 150th Anniversary of the 1860 Mining Disaster

At the meeting of the Burradon & Camperdown Forum (“Forum”) held on 7th October 2008 the residents decided that the village should commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the Burradon Colliery mining disaster on 2nd March 2010.

The disaster claimed the lives of 76 men and boys and had a devastating affect on the all the families in the village and even today the events still resonate in the community, as we endeavour to preserve the memories of the victims.

Northumbria University successfully restored the original scroll which was commissioned in 1895.

It was agreed that we commission a piece of contemporary artwork and local artist Paul Allan was appointed to work in partnership with the community and in particular the children at the local school. We feel that the artwork will renew our bond with our past and the children’s research of the disaster will ensure the events have a genuine poignancy and relevance.

There will be a memorial ceremony on Tuesday 2nd March 2010 at Burradon Primary School and the local community and dignitaries will be invited to the remember the tragic events.

We desperately require the assistance of former miners to recount their lives working at Burradon Colliery and to visit the school and work with Paul Allan and the school children. Photographs of the village would also be appreciated to supplement the photographs in the village albums and the website (the photographs will be copied and returned immediately).

Former miners wishing to participate or residents with photographs are requested to contact Ms Hunter, Deputy Headmistress at Burradon Primary School on 2008345.

At a meeting at Burradon Primary School on 13 November, Paul Allan presented a series of design proposals which portrayed his vision of the Commemorative Project which would blend his own artistic representations of the evolution of Burradon during the 150 years since the tragedy. The visions and ideas of the schoolchildren, depicting the development of “Burradon of the future" during their own lifetimes.

The names of the 76 men and boys who lost their lives in the Burradon disaster would be displayed in etched format, on a clear, commemorative panel suspended over a section of the visual montage.

After hearing Paul's presentation, all present at the meeting felt that the overall impression of the display would be one of great respect, history, and its contemporary design would ensure the memorial was relevant to the children and young people.

Paul explained that the display piece (which is intended to measure 4m long x 1.2m tall) would be constructed wherever possible using environmentally friendly materials and construction methods, and would be professionally erected by one of the Astley Signs fitting teams. He also mentioned that Astley Signs' Directors had shown great interest in becoming involved in such a landmark project for the North East, which is consistent with its existing community development policy.

The design will be discussed at the meeting of the Burradon & Camperdown Forum on Tuesday 3rd February 2009 and local residents are welcome to attend with a view to becoming involved with the project.