My Object Highlight is a medal for bravery, the Order of Industrial Heroism, which was awarded in 1925 to Samuel Stewart, a coal miner from Douglas Water, Lanarkshire.
On 2 July 1925, Samuel Stewart and a fellow miner, John Gray, were working in the shaft of the Lord Dunglass pit at Douglas Water, which was 780 feet deep. Due to an iron pin giving way, Mr Gray plummeted down the shaft, landing on some iron piping 32 feet below. Stewart called for assistance but then descended the shaft himself and managed to get the unconscious miner into the cage and back to the surface. Unfortunately, Mr Gray died in hospital a few days later.
The Lanarkshire Miners’ Union recommended Samuel Stewart for the heroism medal, which was presented to him in Douglas Water miners’ welfare hall by Robert Smillie, the Lanarkshire miners’ leader.
The medal was donated to the National Mining Museum Scotland in 2024 by his great-granddaughter. She had been looking for more information about Mr Stewart, in particular a photograph which she knew had been taken by the Daily Herald newspaper, and she had posted a request on the Scottish Collieries Facebook page. I contacted her initially because both my grandfather and great uncle worked at Douglas colliery at the time of the accident and would almost certainly have known Mr Stewart.
By using the resources of the museum and Internet searching, I was able to find out that the archives relating to the Order of Industrial Heroism are held at London Metropolitan University. The University was kind enough to send me a copy of the record relating to Mr Stewart’s award, including the missing photograph.
Mr Stewart’s great granddaughter was delighted to obtain the additional information and she and her uncle, who actually held the medal, offered it to the museum as a donation, where it is now proudly held in our collection.
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