A STORY which appeared in the Chronicle last year helped piece together the essential information required for historians to work towards re-dedicating a renowned Barnsley man’s grave.

Herbert Smith, a former general secretary of the Mineworkers’ Federation of GB, died in 1938 at his desk in the NUM offices on Huddersfield Road.

The service for his funeral was held at Pitt Street Methodist Church in Barnsley and his coffin was then processed to Castleford, with miners lining the roads.

His obituary was extensively covered by the Chronicle on June 18, 1938.

Castleford Civic Society raised funds to clean up his gravestone prior to the re-dedication and throughout the year there will be other events to mark his memory.

The service took place at Castleford’s Healdfield Road Cemetery and was undertaken by the Rev Kerry Tankard, district chair of Yorkshire West Methodist Circuit, on May 12.

Members of Herbert’s family were present, along with Coun Janine Moyes, representatives of the NUM, Unite the Union, Leeds Trades Council, former miners and their families and Castleford Civic Society members.

Castleford Male Voice Choir sang Abide With Me and Tegwen Roberts sang the Miners’ Hymn.

Kathryn Stainburn, the society’s heritage lead, said: “Without the help of Councillor Janine Moyes and the Barnsley Chronicle we could not have re-dedicated the grave of Herbert Smith.

“We made the decision last year as part of the 1926 General Strike commemorations to Herbert’s grave, but we could not do this without the permission of a family member.

“The Barnsley Chronicle ran a front-page article featuring Coun Moyes asking for anyone who knew the location of Herbert’s family to contact her.

“Within a few hours of the newspaper coming out a school friend of Herbert’s granddaughter got in touch with Janine.

“As a result, we were able to make contact with Herbert’s family and received their permission for the re-dedication service to go ahead.

“If anyone from Barnsley wants to come along and visit Herbert’s grave, we would be happy to make arrangements via our email address, castlefordcivicsociety@gmail.com.”

Herbert - whose father died in a pit accident and his mother died within a few days of his birth - started work at Glasshoughton Pit in Castleford at the age of ten.

At 17 he was a member of the miners’ union committee and rose through the ranks to become the president of the Miners’ Federation of Great Britain from 1922 to 1929.

He always spoke up on behalf of the most vulnerable in society and moved with his family to live in offices on Victoria Road so he could more easily fulfil his role.

On April 30, 1926, in response to the mine owners’ demand to cut wages by 25 per cent and increase the working day, he told the Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin ‘nowt doing’.

That comment saw the owners locking out miners and the nine-day General Strike - which involved millions of workers across the country - followed.

He died suddenly at his desk in the miners’ officers in June 1938 and his funeral attracted crowds of people.

When the cortege reached Healdfield Road Cemetery in Castleford, the footpath was ‘five deep’ with mourners.

Coun Moyes added: “Herbert was well-known for his blunt, uncompromising style, whether speaking to Prime Ministers or coal owners.

“He also served on Barnsley Borough Council with his two sons, Arthur and Harold, and at the time of his death was survived by four daughters and three sons.

“It’s been a fascinating project to follow and I’m thrilled his grave has been re-dedicated.”