THE village of New Cumnock is preparing to mark the 75th anniversary of its darkest day with a memorial service taking place this weekend.
For those involved, the message is clear: the victims of the 1950 Knockshinnoch disaster will never be forgotten.
Three-quarters of a century ago, on September 7, a normal working day for the local miners turned into one of the biggest local rescue missions in living memory.
A day and night of torrential rain had turned the ground at Wilson’s field above the Number 5 Heading into a mass of saturated sludge and unleashed a chain of events that would entomb 116 men and kill 13.
As time passed, hope faded and sadly, 13 men did not make it out alive.
John L Dalzell, James D Houston, Thomas G Houston, William Howat, William Lee, James M Love, William McFarlane, John P McLatchie, Samuel W Rowan, John Smith, Daniel McF. Strachan, John Taylor and John I White all lost their lives and are remembered to this day.
Every year, the village comes together to think of the 13 men, as well as those who were lucky enough to make it back above ground.
The 75th anniversary service held at the Knockshinnock memorial, from 1pm on Sunday, September, has been organised by the local Loyalist Orange Lodge group.
Group member Iain Burgoyne has helped lead the memorial efforts for the last few years.
Iain said: “It’s such an important day in New Cumnock’s history, whichever way you look at it, so it’s important we remember those who were lost.
“A big part of it is ensuring youngsters growing up in the community are aware of what happened, because it’s likely that everyone will have a grandparent or great-grandparent who was probably involved in some way.
“The plaques were in our minds at the development trust for the last year or so. Because it’s the 75th anniversary, we thought it was the perfect time to get them done."
“We’ve also got a big plaque of a silhouette of a miner with their pick, which has been another great addition.
“William McFarlane, who was killed in the disaster, was the master of the Orange Lodge at that time, so it was actually the lodge that started the services all those years ago and it’s just grown from there. It’s great to see people still remembering to this day."
There will be a wreath-laying ceremony, with the public welcome to attend the service.
First-person accounts of those who remember that fateful day have been covered in the Chronicle in the past, in editions for the 20th anniversary of the disaster, as well as the 50th in 2000.
Mr George Sanderson was the deputy on the day shift at Knockshinnoch Castle Colliery.
He recalled: “New Cumnock has had its share of mining incidents.
“A visit to Afton Cemetery would soon make any person aware of this; all too many of the gravestones bear the legend ‘accidentally killed’ at ‘such and such’ a colliery'.
“But when New Cumnockians talk of the disaster, nobody is in any doubt as to what mining accident they are referring.
“About eight o’clock on the Thursday night, stories began to circulate through Connel park that the ground had fallen in somewhere up behind the pit.
“Half past 10 came and the pit horn didn’t sound. Something was wrong.
“Going to the door of the house, the message was being conveyed from one neighbour to another that there had been a ‘cave in’ at the Castle and none of the afternoon shift men were up the pit."
Mr Sanderson continued: “In the early dawn light, the enormity of the ‘crater’ was seen for the first time.
“The area where the field had collapsed was like the crater of a volcano - a gaping chasm, as if a bomb had exploded in the soft earth.”
Fans were installed down the mine for ventilation for the rescue efforts and by six o’clock on the Saturday evening, men started being retrieved from the mine.
The first man to reach the surface was 19-year-old Gilbert McAughtrie of New Cumnock. More men were freed in groups, aided by the rescue teams expertly trained in the use of the 50 sets of breathing apparatus that were sent down the mine.
The remaining men followed at regular intervals, either walking or being stretchered out and were quickly examined by doctors and medical assistants.
And by 1.30am on that weary Sunday morning, the last of the 116 men trapped at the junction of the belt reached the cool, fresh September air.
“Gradually, between the happy mood, questions began to be asked about the 13 men still missing," George continued.
“These men had worked up the steep headings where the inundation took place and nothing more had been seen or heard of them.”
Rescue attempts continued on the Sunday morning near the ‘crater’.
That night, Coal Board officials issued a statement saying ‘Though rescue work was continuing, no false hopes could be held for the 13 men still missing’.
Despite working around the clock to save workers, it was more than three months before the first of the 13 bodies was brought out, and July before the last victim was found.
Survivor Matthew Sanderson, who sadly died back in 2000, was one of the last to make the half-mile walk to freedom.
He said: “When my turn came, the 116 men had been reduced to 13, I remember a brigade man leading us beyond the slope road that went to the hole. We carried on down Waterhead Dook until we were soon crawling out of the barrier.
“As I left the base, I met my brother George and we walked together to the man riding station on the main Bank Six mine, where I got a lift to the surface in a rake of small hutches."
However, Matthew's memories were, of course, not full of hope and positive thoughts.
He added: “One sad event at this time was on the afternoon shift at the end of January. Prior to this day, it had become common knowledge that two older men who had worked at transfer points on the approaches to the Number Five District, John Dalziel and William Howat, had survived the inrush but were cut off from the pit bottom when the sludge burst through at the South Boig road-end.
"Messages written in chalk had been seen at different points, indicating they had been alive for more than a week, and hoping for a friendly shout that never came.
"Eventually, they lay down together at number Twenty-One road-end in the South Boig.
"I was in a stretcher party sent to recover their bodies. They were lying close together with their boots off."
Mr John Clapperton, of New Cumnock, worked at Knockshinnoch but, luckily, was at the cinema on the night of the disaster.
He, too, recalled the story of the two men lying next to each other so they had company in their last moment.
Mr Clapperton said: “The dead men were all identified by their lamp numbers.
"Two of the men had been cut off near the bottom of the shaft and possibly lived for a week before they took off their boots, lay down and died together.
"Another man’s wife had just had a baby when he went down for his shift on that fateful night. He never saw his baby.”
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