James Parkin EM

b. ? d. ?

DATE OF EM ACTION: 25/10/1922 Hickleton Main Colliery, Thurnscoe, Yorkshire.

Very little can be traced about the life of miner James Parkin other than his actions at Hickleton Main Colliery, near Thurnscoe, Yorkshire on 25th October 1922.

 

EM CITATION:

On  the   evening  of  24th  October,   1922,  a miner  named  Bridges  was removing  timber  in the  Hickleton   Main   Mine,   near    Thurnscoe, Yorkshire,  when  a  fall  of  roof  occurred  which completely    buried    him.  His    workmates, Dawson  and  Mason,  heard  the  fall,  and  imme-diately  proceeded  to  his  assistance.  They  at once  sent  for  Aspinall,  the  deputy  in  charge of   the  district,  and  for  Parkin,  the   under-manager. They   succeeded   in   clearing    the debris   from   Bridges’   head,   thus   preventing his  being  suffocated,  but  further  falls  of  roof continued  to  occur,  and  rendered  the  work of rescue  very  difficult,  as the  rescuers  themselves ran   great  risk   of  being  buried.    The  rescue party   worked   continuously   throughout   the night,  sometimes  shielding  Bridges  from  the falling   stones   with   their   own   bodies,   and finally  succeeded  in  freeing   him  after   more than  sixteen  hours’  work,  though  he  unfortunately died from  the  shock  some hours later. All  the  men  concerned  in  the  rescue  were working  in  very  adverse  conditions,  and  they displayed  fortitude  and  courage  of a very  high order.

 

BURIAL LOCATION: UNKNOWN.

LOCATION OF MEDAL: UNKNOWN.