3.63mi Silkstone Circular Walk

Jul 24

3 min read

Updated: Oct 23

Silkstone is a South Yorkshire village west of Barnsley, where the countryside still holds traces of an earlier mining landscape. Our recorded 3.63-mile circular walk runs through the area south of Silkstone and towards Silkstone Common, returning close to its starting point.

Walk at a Glance

Distance: 3.63 miles.

Route: Circular; the GPS recording finishes within a few metres of its starting point.

Area: Silkstone and countryside near Silkstone Common, west of Barnsley, South Yorkshire.

Start and finish: Shown on the original Komoot recording at the top of this article.

About the Walk

This is a recorded loop through the southern part of the Silkstone area rather than a walk around the village centre alone. Its setting is closely connected with the history of the local coalfield, even where the older industrial features are no longer obvious.

Silkstone's Waggonway and Mining History

Mining helped shape Silkstone long before the large collieries of the later industrial age. Local coal was prized for the heat it produced and the relatively small amount of ash it left behind. Moving it to customers further afield was a challenge until the development of the canal and early railway networks.

The Silkstone Waggonway began in 1809 as a horse-drawn railway connecting the local collieries with Barnby Basin on the Barnsley Canal. Loaded wagons took coal towards the canal, while goods and equipment could be brought back to the mines and other local businesses. The route was extended towards Moorend and Silkstone Common in 1830.

It was not a steam railway. Horses hauled wagons along iron rails supported by stone blocks, some of which remain visible on surviving sections of the line. The local history group Heritage Silkstone has documented the Waggonway and the people who worked around it.

The Waggonway is part of the wider Silkstone landscape, not a claim that our particular GPS circuit follows every surviving section. For the historical account, see Heritage Silkstone's Silkstone Waggonway history.

The Huskar Pit Disaster

Silkstone is also remembered for the Huskar Pit disaster of 4 July 1838. During a severe summer storm, floodwater entered mine workings as children attempted to escape through a sloping passage. Twenty-six children, aged between seven and seventeen, lost their lives.

The disaster drew national attention to the dangers of child labour in mines. It formed part of the pressure leading to the Mines and Collieries Act of 1842, which prohibited underground work for women and girls and for boys under ten. A memorial to the children stands in Silkstone churchyard.

Heritage Silkstone has recorded the events of that day in its Huskar Pit history. The disaster site and memorial are important places in the local story; the original Komoot track should be used to establish whether any individual feature is on this particular circular route.

Silkstone Today

The area's older transport history remains visible beyond the village. Silkstone Parish Council describes a path through Conroyd Wood that follows part of the historic Waggonway, with Silkstone Beck running through the wood. These are useful places to explore separately, without assuming they are stops on this recorded route.