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FOREWORD
By John Doxey
Reginald Gray [ Pictured above seated centre with
hands clasped ] was perhaps the most successful leader
of the Silverwood band, born in Rotherham the son of a Welsh Miner. People
like Reginald were without doubt the givers in local communities, taking a
great pride in what they did, and giving up their time , the end result being a
gift and treasured memory for the whole community.
This is,
Reginald's story.
[ Please note that some of the census information
below has to be verified. ]
1881
30 Caroline St Ystradyfodwg, Glamorgan, Wales we find a young James Gray future father of Reginald.
William Gray Head 35 ;born in Ireland Coal Miner Banksman
Mary Ann Gray Wife 39 born in Merthyr, Glamorgan, Wales
James Gray Son unmarried age16 born in Merthyr, Glamorgan, Wales Coal Miner Haulier
Anna Gray Daughter age14 born in Merthyr, Glamorgan, Wales General Servant
Sarah Ann Gray Daughter age 10 born in Ferndale, Glamorgan, Wales Scholar
Public Records Office Reference RG11Piece / Folio 5300 / 7 Page Number 8
Cliffe Terrace Upper Hallam, York, England we find
the future wife of James Gray, Bertha Depledge
Thos. Spencer Nowill Head age 34 born in Sheffield, York, England Cutlery & Electro Plate Manufacturer
Ellen Matilda Nowill Wife age 27 born in Sheffield, York, England
Gordon Spencer Nowill Son age 5 born in Sheffield, York, England
Mary Margarett. Nowill Daughter 1 born in Sheffield, York, England
Bertha Depledge unmarried age 21 born in Swinton, York, England General Servant
Public Records Office Reference RG11 Piece / Folio 4628 / 10 Page Number 11
Approximately 1884 James Gray a miner born in 1863 at Ebbwvale Wales met and married Bertha a girl born in 1860 at nearby Swinton
South Yorkshire. We can assume like many people that James had arrived in
Yorkshire to work in one of the many coal mines. You will note from the
information above the birthplace of James differs on the census records.
The newly weds settled in nearby Kilnhurst where James
may have worked at the Thrybergh Hall Colliery. Three children were born
during the families time at Kilnhurst
Mellia Gray born in 1885, Alfred Gray born in 1887 who became a Iron Works Labourer by 1901
Elsie Gray born in 1891.
By 1893 the family had moved into Rotherham
presumably James had gained employment in one of the Rotherham collieries.
The family was to increase with the birth of Florence Gray in 1893, three
years later Lily Gray was born in1896.
The year 1898 was to welcome into the world Reginald Gray the future Miner, Musician, and Bandleader.
Two years later Jessie Gray was born in 1900.
1900 onward
Young Reginald was found to have a wonderful musical aptitude and mastered
the Tenor Horn, however like many others at the time despite his talented
abilities young Reginald needed an income. At the age of 13 in 1911 he
started employment in the mining industry, he remained a miner until his
retirement in 1962.
Joining the Silverwood Brass Band Reginald was at least able to pursue his
love of music, and his obvious talents led to him eventually becoming
Bandmaster. A position he accepted with great relish. Under his leadership
the band developed a very real presence in a very competitive musical arena.
This resulted in the Band playing at an international level with their
appearance at Amersfoort which in itself was a great accomplishment,
shadowed only by one of the golden moments in the bands history when under Reginald's
leadership they appeared at the Royal Albert Hall to compete in the national
finals.
Reginald was a hewer at the coal face
for many years, and then as his health began to fail ( he died from
emphysema) he ended up driving the engine underground which brought the coal
back from the coal face. All tough work. He would always work
morning shifts, which began at 5am, in order to accommodate band practice and
so forth in the afternoons. Like most miners Reginald for many years, and
particularly during World War 2, worked 7 days a week.
HIGH NOTE
 Reginalds favourite tune was "Bonny Mary of Argyll"
and he named a daughter Mary after that tune.
Mary to the delight of her father went on to study music at the
Royal Academy in London, and became a very successful
teacher. [ Another local achiever ]
LOW NOTE
Playing with the band sometimes had its downside on
occasions, and much to the irritation of Reginald's wife on Christmas Day
when they were instructed to play carols at the Pit Managers house on
Hollings Lane Thrybergh. Which
meant the band had to walk all the way from Dalton with their instruments, not to
mention the fact that they were missing out on valuable time with their
families.
The colliery owned the band instruments and this of course to a large extent had a leverage on the band members
and their time. [ Say no More ]
CANINE CROONER
 The Grays had a pet dog whose name was Darkie, a much
loved family pet. Often Darkie would accompany Reginald to band practice,
and much to everyone's amusement the dog would start howling to the music,
now that must have been quite a sound a brass band with a canine crooner!
Despite his efforts Darkie was made to go outside until the band had
finished practice, a sad end to what could have been a promising career.
Yorkshire
Region Championships
Silverwood Colliery on Saturday, April
23rd, 1949 Led by R.. Gray gained fourth place Fourth Section
Saturday, May 6th 1950
Silverwood Colliery led by R. Gray entered the Fourth Section
Saturday, April 18th 1953
Silverwood Colliery led by R. Gray entered the Third Section
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1900 - 1994
