Blackburn Cemetery

Blackburn Cemetery, sometimes known as Blackburn Old Cemetery, is a public cemetery in the town of Blackburn, Lancashire, which lies on Whalley New Road with views over the town. It opened on 1 July 1857. ^[1]

Noteworthy interments

• James Dixon (1855–1936) – philanthropist, known as "The Blackburn Samaritan", he founded the Ragged School and the orphanage at Wilpshire ^[1]
• Jack Hunter (1851-1903) - footballer ^[2] )
• Frederick Kempster, the "English Giant" or "Blackburn Giant" (1889–1918) – over 7 feet tall and worked in showbusiness as a "giant" ^[1]
• Elizabeth Anne Lewis (1849–1924) – celebrated as the "Temperance Queen" or "Drunkard's Friend" ^[1]
• John Lewis (1855–1926) – football referee and founder of Blackburn Rovers ^[1]
• James Pitts (1877–1955) – Victoria Cross recipient, a hero of the Siege of Ladysmith in the Boer War ^[1]
• Fergus Suter (1857–1916) – Arguably the first recognised professional footballer ^[3]
• Thomas Thwaites (c. 1809–1871) – owner of Thwaites Brewery ^[1]
• George Dewhurst (1789-1857), Radical, Reformer and Reedmaker. "One of Blackburn's most remarkable sons". ^{[4] [5]}
• June Anne Devaney (1944-1948) – three-year-old victim of murder, which resulted in the first-ever mass fingerprinting operation in history ^[6]

The cemetery contains the war graves of 269 Commonwealth service personnel from both World Wars which are scattered throughout the cemetery. After the First World War the Commonwealth War Graves Commission erected a Cross of Sacrifice opposite the main entrance in honour of those buried here. ^[7]

References

1. "Remarkable Burials at Blackburn Old Cemetery". Emma Jolly. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
2. "Jack Hunter". Englandfootballonline.
3. "History of Football – The Global Growth". FIFA Official Website. Archived from the original on 28 March 2013. Retrieved 29 August 2021.
4. Blackburn Standard, 28 April 1858
5. Manchester Courier, 1st May 1858
6. "The History of the First Mass Fingerprinting Operation". mentalfloss.com. 25 October 2015.
7. "Blackburn Cemetery". cwgc.org. Retrieved 10 January 2026.

External links

• Blackburn with Darwen Council
• Blackburn Cemetery, a.k.a. Whalley New Road Cemetery at Find a Grave

53°46′00″N2°28′14″W / 53.76667°N 2.47056°W / 53.76667; -2.47056