Hastings Cemetery
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Year established | 1856 |
| Location | The Ridge |
| Coordinates | 50.881561, 0.592549 |
| Size | 87 Acres |
| Website | Hastings Borough Council - Cemetery |
| Find a Grave | Hastings |
In 1856, the Town Council, constituting itself a Burial Board for the Borough, purchased a large piece of ground known as Gatemans Field[1] (originally off what was the London Road, now The Ridge) in the parish of Ore, from W. D. Lucas Shadwell, Esq, for the purpose of constructing a cemetery. The Gothic chapels in it are to designs drawn by Mr. H. Carpenter. The cemetery was originally divided into two parts. One part was consecrated by the Bishop of Chichester, on the 28th day of November, 1856[2], and the other is unconsecrated.[3]
First Burial and Monument
The first burial was John (Yorky) Smith, a builder, who was known for constructing the martello towers between Bexhill and Eastbourne and many properties around Hastings & St. Leonards. The ceremony took place at plot AB K24 on the 28th of November 1856, with the Mayor part of the funeral party[4]. The first monumental stone erected was also in the same year; it being for Major-General Cox, who had died at St. Leonards. The sculptor was Mr. Henry Vennell[5].
The Gothic chapels were subsequently linked and converted into a crematorium during the 1950s[6]
19th Century Tourism
A visitor's guide published in the Hastings & St Leonards Observer during 1869 states the following[7]:
Cemetery. About two miles from Hastings, near Ore Church, an elevated and picturesque site, and provided with chapels, ornamental walks, monumental tombs,&c
Images
- Images
At-the-cemetery-turning-point-1956.
References & Notes
- ↑ Brett Manuscript History Vol. 5 Chap. 54
- ↑ Brett Manuscript Histories Vol. 6 Chap. 55 pg. 17
- ↑ Osborne's Visitor's Guide to Hastings and St Leonards c1854 3rd ed. Pg. 76 Google Books
- ↑ Yorky Smith, accessdate: 31 May 2020
- ↑ Brett Manuscript Histories Vol. 6 Chap. 55 pg. 25
- ↑ Hastings & St Leonards Observer 15 December 1951 pg. 6
- ↑ Hastings & St Leonards Observer 12 March 1869 pg. 4
