South Yorkshire Times June 29, 1957
’93 Strike Memories
When Wombwell Miners Went Berserk
“On Wednesday morning a crowd of over 600 left Wombwell to march to Denaby Main Colliery. At Wath-on-Dearne they raided public houses demanding drink, and filled their pockets with provisions ‘flogged’ from local shops. Now increased to 1,500 the mob were charged by 12 policemen who, heavily outnumbered, eventually had to dash for safety”.
On Record
This, as we say, occurred on Wednesday—BUT NOT THIS WEEK. The above describes one of many exciting phases of the riotous “goings on” associated with the miners’ strike of 1893, described for us by the Wombwell historian, Mr. Joss Hudson. Realising, that this phase of Yorkshire industrial history is rapidly passing out of memory, Mr. Hudson feels that the facts should be recorded. Mr. Hudson, a retired miner from Cortonwood remember these occurrences himself .
This is his story:
Troops In Wombwell
“A few of your readers will doubt-less remember the havoc wrought at collieries In this district by rioters in the miner’s strike of 1893. This was led by a fearless, burly fellow by the name of ‘Big-Pompey’. A company of the 1st Royal Dublin Fusiliers under the command of Captain Pearce was brought to Wombwell to restore order.
On Monday, September 4th, 1893 a crowd of more than 500 men and women gathered on the canal bridge at Mitchell Main waiting for those who had been at work coming out of the mine. These women severely treated a deputy and two workers.
“On the Tuesday morning about thirty men employed in the stack at Wombwell Main fled for their lives at the approach of the rioters. On Tuesday, September 5th about 2,000 miners attended a mass meeting in Wombwell Market Place, where a resolution was passed demanding that all men should be withdrawn from the mines. A further resolution condemned the filling of coal at Hoyland Silkstone Colliery, but a resolution that they should march in a body to stop this filling was lost by one vote.
Manager Cudgelled
Notwithstanding this, at the close of the meeting a crowd of over 700, armed with various missiles, marched in a body to Hoyland Silkstone Colliery, There some 25 men were filling coal into railway wagons, while others were helping to keep the machinery in repair. These workmen suffered severe injuries in making their way through the ranks of rioters who completely surrounded the colliery. The manager,(Mr. C. W. Fincken) tried to reason with the crowd but was struck on the head with a cudgel. At the sounding of a whistle all kinds of missiles were hurled through the office windows. The rioters then entered the offices, threw all books and valuable documents out into the open air and did considerable damage to the property. “Maintaining an orderly processesion the ‘insurgents’ then proceeded to Rockingham colliery where they smashed all the glass in the Flockton engine house. The lamp cabin was bombarded and hundreds of lamps were broken. Not one pane of glass was left in the offices. Thousands of spectators join the ranks of the rioters merely for the satisfaction of seeing the damage.
Wild Scenes at Hoyland
they made an unsuccessful attempt set fire to the clerk’s office, attack the ventilating engine house, lifted the brakes of a wagons and let others roll down the slopes of the muckstack to the road below. They also released the brakes of a train of thirty wagons, allowing them to tear into a blind siding. Hundreds of corves were hurled from the pit top to the ground below and the stables were set on fire.
“The worst came on Wednesday, September 6th, when a crowd of over 600 left Wombwell intent on reaching Denaby Main. On the way they decided to pay a visit to Wath Main, having heard in the meantime that railway trucks were being loaded with coal at the pit. They raided, the public houses demanding drinks and took provisions from small shops. After the abortive charge by 12 policemen with drawn batons the damage was Indescribable. They tipped up barrels of tar, smashed a loco engine and set fire to loaded wagons and coal carts. In an effort to pacify them Mr. Spedding Whitworth rolled out barrels of beer and cases of ginger beer!
Beer and Pork Pies
Wednesday night was a time of great anxiety for Wombwell tradespeople and the following morning the rioters took a big quantity of pork pies and other eatables from John Parkin’s shop in Park Street. and afterwards marched up to the old Sir George’s Arms at Wombwell Main demanding beer to wash the victuals down.
In connection with the riots at Wath Main 21 arrests were made, and the court proceedings were at Rotherham on September 19th. Among those against whom indictments were laid were the following locals: Taylor Elliott, Mitchell Terrace, Wombwell; Albert Dawes. Wombwell; John Keeling, Darfield; John Hall, Wombwell; William Smith, Low Valley; Benjamin Morritt, Wombwell; John Beck, Snape Hill (discharged); William Hancock Snape Hill; Charles Mangham, Wombwell; Issac Jones, Wombwell; Benjamin Venables, Wombwell; Ralph Mumford, Wombwell; Albert Illingworth, Wombwell, Reuben Turner, Concrete and William Dawes, Wombwell.”
And those, brother, “were the days” l