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Over the years, many miners lost their lives while extracting the ore from deep within the bowels of the Captain's Flat mine. It is said that one miner died for every year that the mine was open, a terrible price for any town to pay for its industry. On Sunday 1 October 2000, after many years of planning, a memorial was unveiled to honour those men whose lives were sacrificed in the pursuit of their trades. The memorial's main structure consists of a tall steel frame, topped with a ginny wheel, the same kind that was used on top of the Captain's Flat mine poppet for many years. This stands in the centre of a small landscaped area, encircled by a hand-built stone wall, constructed from stones similar to those extracted from the mine itself. Set inside the wall, are three diaramas depicting mining life. These were designed and crafted, fittingly, from copper by a local artist. A copper plaque listing those who perished in the mines is also set into the wall. The ceremony was attended by many ex-miners and their families. A particularly poignant moment was the placing of lit miners lamps at the foot of the memorial, to honour each man who died. These were allowed to burn out as the afternoon wore on, just as the town itself died down after the mines were closed. After the official speeches, Mr Dumbrell, an ex-miner spoke about life underground during the town's heyday and Mrs Doreen Borrow spoke on behalf of the wives and families who lost loved ones underground. |
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Copyright (c) 1998 Gregory S Davies. All
rights reserved. |
