Ferrymoor Riddings Branch of the Yorkshire Area of the National Union of Mineworkers

The branch organised mineworkers at Ferrymoor Riddings Colliery, created from the merger of Ferrymoor Colliery and Riddings Drift in 1973. The collieries were north east of Barnsley. Although the colliery was very successful for much of its life, in later developments it suffered severe geological problems which resulted in the pit closing in 1988.

The banner’s first outing was the 1977 Yorkshire Gala. It replaced an earlier banner that was ripped on a march a few years before. The Branch gave Jim Badics of Barnsley a freehand on the design of the front, which depicts underground workings and, possibly uniquely, the spoil heap, which is painted on a panel of canvas. The border and back appears to be wool. The back is a separate sheet and the letters are formed from thick felt. It is reported to be heavy to carry and worse when wet. The top pole loops are missing from this image. The height is 201 cm and the width is 200 cm.

The characters on the back are the basis of the font called “Ferrymoor” designed by Office of Craig and often used by the Orgreave Truth and Justice Campaign. https://otjc.org.uk/

Thanks to Northern College for enabling the banner to be photographed and Paul Darlow, Chris Skidmore and Eddie Downes for information.

Thanks to the Yorkshire Area of the National Union of Mineworkers for permission to photograph and reproduce this banner. Image copyright NUM.

If you have any information about this or any other banner please tell NUM or Past Pixels.

National Justice for Mineworkers Campaign

Our objectives are to keep the issue of victimised miners to the forefront of the labour and trade union movement and to raise money to alleviate hardship among the families of the victimised men.

By the end of the strike in March 1985, 200 mineworkers served time in prison or custody, 20,000 people had been injured and 966 mineworkers had been sacked by the NCB.  Two miners were killed on picket lines; David Jones on the 15th March 1984 and Joe Green on the 15th June 1984.

The 966 men were originally sacked for no more than honouring picket lines, defending their jobs and pit communities, their class and the future of their children. Only a small number had been dismissed for offences against the person or damage to property. Many miners subsequently cleared by the courts were not re-instated and neither were many more who successfully won their cases for unfair dismissal at Industrial Tribunals. Many were even blacklisted from getting any work outside the coal industry.

NJMC is supported by the NUM, Labour Party, TUC conferences and many national & regional unions.

National Justice for Mineworkers Campaign
2 Hilden Street
Leigh
WN7 4LG
www.njfm.org.uk
01942 606 828

Produced to support NJMC

Photography by Martin Shakeshaft. Digital retouching by Adrian Hawes.

Photography, design and print by unionised labour.
www.martinshakeshaft.com   www.kavitagraphics.co.uk    www.rapspiderweb.co.uk

Past Pixels, P.O. Box 798, Worcester WR4 4BW 
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