200th Anniversary Service (Stargate Pit Disaster Commemoration)

Name: 200th Anniversary Service (Stargate Pit Disaster Commemoration)
Start: 2026-05-30T15:00:00+01:00
Location: Holy Cross Church, Ryton, NE40 3, United Kingdom

Schedule

Sat, 30 May, 2026 at 03:00 pm

UTC+01:00

Location

Holy Cross Church, Ryton, NE40 3, United Kingdom | Horsley, EN

The 200th Anniversary of the Stargate Pit explosion will be commemorated at Holy Cross Church. Please come and help us to honour the memory of the 38 men and boys who lost their lives. The oldest was 60 and the two youngest were 10 years old.
The Stargate Pit disaster was a mining explosion that occurred on May 30, 1826, at the Towneley Main Colliery, also known as the Stargate Pit. A firedamp (methane) and coal dust explosion in the early hours of the morning killed 38 people—20 men and 18 boys.
The victims of the disaster were largely forgotten for many years, with most buried in unmarked graves. In recent decades, local heritage groups have spearheaded efforts to properly memorialise them:
- Holy Cross Church : A memorial stone was placed in the grounds of Holy Cross Church in Ryton in 1993, but it did not list the names of the victims.
- Replica pit tub : In 2018, a new memorial—a replica colliery tub—was unveiled near the site of the former pit. This memorial includes the names of all the men and boys who died, ensuring they would not be forgotten.