Allanton – The Miner

Situated on Allanton Road and across from the entrance to the Miners Welfare Social Club is a memorial that is dedicated to the men who lost their lives in the Kingshill pits, which were near to the villages of Allanton, Shotts and Forth.

The first of the three Kingshill collieries was opened in 1919 by the Coltness Iron Company, followed by Kingshill No.2 in the 1940’s, with each providing mass employment to local miners as well those who travelled from further afield. Kingshill No.3 opened in 1952 and was the first NCB colliery in Lanarkshire. Collectively, all three pits supplied coal to the nearby iron and steel foundaries, as well as coal for domestic fires and power stations. The pits closed in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, with Kingshill No.3 being the last to close in 1974.

Conditions in these pits were dark and very dangerous with the collieries being prone to accidents, including fires, gas poisonings and roof falls that often buried mineworkers. Sadly, many miners lost their lives during those episodes in 1921, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1949, 1954, 1955, 1957, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1965 and 1968.

This memorial was unveiled in 2017 and is one of many miners memorials in this area of Lanarkshire. Similar ones can be found in Harthill, Shotts and Forth.

It was sculpted by John McKenna in association with members of Allanton Tenants and Residents Association (ATRA).

To visit John McKenna’s website, click HERE.