TRIBUTES have been paid to the ten people who died following a shaft incident at Houghton Main Colliery 137 years ago.

On December 30, 1886, many of the afternoon shift had been raised to the surface in a three-deck cage when Allen Beresford, the engineman, was winding men up the shaft.

When the cage was about 150 yards from the surface he heard a crash on the drum, and the last he remembered was that a piece of wood had hit him on the head and knocked him out.

The wood had come from the roof and the winding house and had been shattered.

The cage fell 535 yards down the shaft with the men in it.

Those who died were Joseph Walker, Sam Walker, Charles Walker, James Hardcastle, Alvin Hardcastle, Joseph Pearson, Joseph Pearson Jr, Edward Baxter, William Manning and William Barton.

An inquest found the men had been killed by falling down the shaft when they had been ‘overwound’ by Beresford.

He was charged with manslaughter but a jury found him not guilty after three minutes of deliberation.

Coun Kevin Osborne said: “The industry that extracted coal from across Barnsley has a long and tragic history of mining accidents - the ‘Ten Men Disaster’ of 1886 was just one of many that impacted our community.

“I was honoured, on behalf of the whole Darfield community to commemorate the event this week.

“May those that perished rest in peace.”