| Reading Old Cemetery | |
|---|---|
 Section of Reading Old Cemetery | |
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| Details | |
| Established | 1842 |
| Location | |
| Coordinates | 51°27′12″N0°56′45″W / 51.4532°N 0.9459°W [1] |
| Size | 11.5 acres (47,000 m2) |
| No. of graves | 18,327 |
| Find a Grave | Reading Old Cemetery |
Reading Old Cemetery (originally Reading Cemetery) is situated in the eastern part of Reading, Berkshire, England. It is located immediately to the east of Cemetery Junction, a major road junction in Reading. The cemetery is Grade II listed. [2]
| Reading Cemetery Company Act 1842 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act for establishing a General Cemetery for the Interment of the Dead in the Parish of Sonning, near the Town of Reading, in the County of Berks. |
| Citation | 5 & 6 Vict. c. cix |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 30 July 1842 |
| Other legislation | |
| Repealed by | Berkshire Act 1986 |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
Reading Cemetery was set up by a private act of Parliament in 1842, establishing the Reading Cemetery Company. The first interment took place in 1843. [2] It was one of many cemeteries built in the Victorian era in response to the rapid population increase in the 19th century.
Reading Cemetery was built on farm land outside the existing borough boundaries at a site called Hattons Platt, which was owned by a Mr. Cholmeley. Initially, few people decided their family buried in the new cemetery until the 1850s, by time when the situation got so bad that the three cemeteries in the centre of Reading were closed.
The cemetery itself, and within it the entrance lodges and the Sarcophagus Monument, are all Grade II listed buildings. [3] [4] [5]
The cemetery originally included two chapels, one for Anglicans and one for Dissenters. Burials were also divided between the Anglican consecrated ground and the Dissenters' non-consecrated ground and a small wall marked the boundary between the two.
The cemetery was extended at its far end in the early 20th century and taken over by Reading Borough Council in 1959. Occasional burials still take place in plots purchased by families years ago. There are 18,327 grave spaces covering 11.5 acres (47,000 m2).
The cemetery contains the graves of most of the historically noteworthy occupants of the town during the period 1843–1970. The site is of great local historical interest with many large memorials, three of which are Grade II listed. The three listed memorials are:
The cemetery contains the war graves of 205 Commonwealth service personnel of World War I (besides one Serbian serviceman of the same war) and 41 of World War II. There is a large war graves plot in the back of the cemetery, in the right hand corner from the entrance. Here stands a Screen Wall memorial to those buried in Plot 72 and elsewhere in the cemetery whose graves could not be marked by headstones. [6] Many other memorials are in the cemetery including three Old Contemptibles who served in the British Expeditionary Force and survived the Great War:
Other notable memorials [7] are for Joseph Edward Sydenham, the founder of Reading F.C. who died in 1913, and that of William "Willie" Wimmera, an Aboriginal Australian boy who died in 1852, aged 11, from tuberculosis and peritonitis after missionaries brought him to Reading. [2] The grave of Mary Gordon Burnett and Hugh Edward Walford who set up the successful Reading Blind Aid Society are also there. Miss Burnett is buried in the family grave with her father Henry Burnett. The family are associated with Charles Dickens with Henry being his brother-in-law and inspired the character of Nicholas Nickleby.
Reading Borough Council maintains the cemetery on a conservation basis. The grass is cut, by strimmer, on four occasions per year and is raked off only if excess growth makes it necessary. The council also carry out interments in existing graves, there being no new graves available on this site. These burials, including those of cremated remains, are currently in single figures per year. Several Muntjac Deer live in the cemetery grounds. [8]
Kensal Green Cemetery is a cemetery in the Kensal Green area of Queens Park in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London, England. Inspired by Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris, it was founded by the barrister George Frederick Carden. The cemetery opened in 1833 and comprises 72 acres (29 ha) of grounds, including two conservation areas, adjoining a canal. The cemetery is home to at least 33 species of bird and other wildlife. This distinctive cemetery has memorials ranging from large mausoleums housing the rich and famous to many distinctive smaller graves and includes special areas dedicated to the very young. It has three chapels and serves all faiths. It is one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries in London.
West Norwood Cemetery is a 40-acre (16 ha) rural cemetery in West Norwood in London, England. It was also known as the South Metropolitan Cemetery. One of the first private landscaped cemeteries in London, it is one of the "Magnificent Seven" cemeteries of London, and is a site of major historical, architectural and ecological interest.
Brompton Cemetery is since 1852 the first London cemetery to be Crown property, managed by The Royal Parks, in West Brompton in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. It is one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries. Established by Act of Parliament and laid out in 1839, it opened in 1840, originally as the West of London and Westminster Cemetery. Consecrated by Charles James Blomfield, Bishop of London, in June 1840, it is one of Britain's oldest and most distinguished garden cemeteries. Some 35,000 monuments, from simple headstones to substantial mausolea, mark more than 205,000 resting places. The site includes large plots for family mausolea, and common graves where coffins are piled deep into the earth. It also has a small columbarium, and a secluded Garden of Remembrance at the northern end for cremated remains. The cemetery continues to be open for burials. It is also known as an urban haven for nature. In 2014, it was awarded a National Lottery grant to carry out essential restoration and develop a visitor centre, among other improvements. The restoration work was completed in 2018.
The General Cemetery in the City of Sheffield, England opened in 1836 and closed for burial in 1978. It was the principal cemetery in Victorian Sheffield with over 87,000 burials. Today it is a listed Landscape on the English Heritage National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens. It is also a Local Nature Reserve. It is owned by the City of Sheffield and managed on behalf of the city by a local community group, the Sheffield General Cemetery Trust.
Toxteth Park Cemetery is a graveyard on Smithdown Road, Liverpool, United Kingdom. It was opened on Monday 9 June 1856. It was the responsibility of the Toxteth Park Burial Board, which had been established by at least 1855.
St Pancras and Islington Cemetery is a cemetery in East Finchley, North London. Although it is situated in the London Borough of Barnet, it is run as two cemeteries, owned by two other London Boroughs, Camden and Islington. The fence along the boundary which runs west to east between the two parts of the cemetery has been removed, although the line of it is still marked.
The cemetery has had various titles including The Cemetery by the Common, Hill Lane Cemetery and is currently known as Southampton Old Cemetery. An Act of Parliament was required in 1843 to acquire the land from Southampton Common. It covers an area of 27 acres (11 ha) and the total number of burials is estimated at 116,800. Currently there are 6 to 8 burials a year to existing family plots.
Brockley and Ladywell Cemeteries were opened within one month of each other in 1858 and are sited on adjacent plots of previously open land. The two component parts are characteristic examples of the first wave of Victorian public cemeteries and are now part of the Brockley Conservation Area.
The City of London Cemetery and Crematorium is a cemetery and crematorium in the east of London. It is owned and operated by the City of London Corporation. It is designated Grade I on the Historic England National Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.
East Finchley Cemetery is a cemetery and crematorium in East End Road, East Finchley. Although it is in the London Borough of Barnet, it is owned and managed by the City of Westminster.
Locksbrook Cemetery is a municipal cemetery located in Lower Weston, Bath, England. It was opened in 1864 as Walcot Cemetery, and occupies 12 acres (4.9 ha), originally serving the parishes of Walcot, Weston and St Saviour's. The cemetery was closed for general use in 1937 with over 30,000 interments there, though additional burials in existing graves continue. The majority of the cemetery was for about 29,500 burials from Walcot parish, with the north of the cemetery for Weston and St Saviour parishes.
The English coastal city of Brighton and Hove, made up of the formerly separate Boroughs of Brighton and Hove in East Sussex, has a wide range of cemeteries throughout its urban area. Many were established in the mid-19th century, a time in which the Victorian "cult of death" encouraged extravagant, expensive memorials set in carefully cultivated landscapes which were even recommended as tourist attractions. Some of the largest, such as the Extra Mural Cemetery and the Brighton and Preston Cemetery, were set in particularly impressive natural landscapes. Brighton and Hove City Council, the local authority responsible for public services in the city, manages seven cemeteries, one of which also has the city's main crematorium. An eighth cemetery and a second crematorium are owned by a private company. Many cemeteries are full and no longer accept new burials. The council maintains administrative offices and a mortuary at the Woodvale Cemetery, and employs a coroner and support staff.
Weaste Cemetery is a public cemetery in Weaste, Salford, Greater Manchester, in England. Opened in 1857, it is the oldest of Salford's four cemeteries, covering 39 acres and containing over 332,000 graves.
Mortlake Cemetery is a cemetery in Kew in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is also known as Hammersmith New Cemetery as it provided burials for the then Metropolitan Borough of Hammersmith when Margravine Cemetery was full. The cemetery opened in 1926 and is still in use. It is now managed by Hammersmith and Fulham Council.
East Sheen Cemetery, originally known as Barnes Cemetery, is a cemetery on Sheen Road in East Sheen in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England. The cemetery opened in 1906 on what was previously woodland in a rural area of Surrey. Originally, only half the site was given over for burials while the other half was maintained as a nursery before it was converted in the 1930s and the whole site was renamed East Sheen Cemetery. It is today contiguous with Richmond Cemetery, though the original boundary is marked by a hedge. The cemetery's chapel is used for services by both sites, as Richmond Cemetery's chapel is no longer in use as such. The chapel was built in 1906 in the Gothic revival style by local architect Reginald Rowell, who was himself later buried in the cemetery.
Tiverton Cemetery is the burial ground for the town of Tiverton in Devon. The cemetery covers eight acres and is owned and maintained by Mid Devon Council.
Torquay Cemetery, also known as Barton Road Cemetery is a burial ground located in the town of Torquay, Devon, England. The first interment, which took place in the Nonconformist section, was in 1852. The cemetery has been Grade II listed since 2002.
Beckett Street Cemetery is a closed cemetery in Burmantofts, Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Founded in 1842, the site was officially opened in 1845 and is recognised as being one of England's first municipal burial sites. Although the cemetery was closed to interments in 2001, it remains open for visitors, and has two listed structures besides being a listed park itself.
