March 18, 2018 - A former UK Member of Parliament is helping efforts to raise money for a memorial to the victims of an "unknown" mining disaster.

David Hinchliffe said five men and five boys, including one of his ancestors, died in the 1821 Norcroft Colliery disaster, near Barnsley.

The former Wakefield Member of Parliament said: "It's an unknown disaster, with unmarked graves, it has been forgotten."

It is hoped to have a memorial in place by the bicentenary of the disaster in 2021

He is hoping to raise £1,500 to fund a memorial to six victims buried at All Saints Church in Cawthorne.

The disaster saw a chain break as a group of 11 men and boys were ascending a mineshaft after a shift.

They plunged about 180ft (55m) to the bottom, with just one surviving.

Nine of the group died within a day, with the other person dying after "lingering a fortnight", according to a contemporary letter.

Six of the ten victims are buried at All Saints Church in Cawthorne

Former Labor Member of Parliament Mr Hinchliffe said permission had been granted to put the stone memorial in the churchyard and the location of their unmarked graves were "roughly known".

The youngest who died was eight-year-old John Hinchliffe who was the eldest child of Hinchliffe's great-great-grandparents.

Hinchliffe, who was Wakefield's Member of Parliament between 1987 and 2005, said despite the connection with his ancestor he knew "nothing about it" until he was researching his family history.

"We had a very successful fundraising evening on Friday with about 100 attendees, so we're currently about a third of the way to our target," he said.

It is hoped a memorial will be in place by the bicentenary of the 1821 disaster, he added. 

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