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edges of the cemetery are lined with the gravestones that were
moved from the centre of the cemetery during renovation work. |
"Cemetery
History
The cemetery began life as a quarry called Quarry Mount whose sandstone
was used in the building of the dock walls and town hall. It was
renamed St James’ Mount in 1775 after the building of the selfsame
named church in Parliament Street. By 1825 there was no stone left
and the council employed architect John Foster to design a cemetery
based on the Pere-la-Chaise in Paris.
William Huskisson
Said to be the most famous resident of the cemetery, William Huskisson
is the first railway accident fatality. MP for Liverpool he died
during the Rainhill trials of 1829 at Parkside Station, where he
fell beneath a train.
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The
tombs in the catacombs
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The
inscription above the spring
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Liverpool's
only running spring
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The
Spring
The cemetery contains Liverpool’s only running spring. Noted in
1773 by surgeon James Worthington who recommended it for 'Rickets,
weak eyes, crudities of the stomach and lowness of spirits.' The
inscription above the spring reads: Christian reader view in me,
An emblem of true charity, Who freely what I have bestow, Though
neither heard nor seen to flow, And I have full returns from Heaven,
For every cup of water given.
Graves & Gravestones
Many children who died at the orphanages and hospitals in Liverpool
were laid to rest here including 14 children from the Bluecoat hospital
between 1867 and 1887. Burials continued in the cemetery until July
1936, when, after 57,774 burials, the old cemetery was considered
full. During the Victorian era the cemetery was being filled at
the rate of sometimes eight burials a day.
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Captain
Elisha Lindsay Halsey of South Carolina, USA, who, aboard
the ship Thomas Bennett, came to an untimely death in the
Bay of Biscay in 1844
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Kitty
Wilkinson - 'indefatigable and self-denying, she was the
widow's friend, the support of the orphan, the fearless and
unwearied nurse of the sick, the instigator of Baths and Washhouses
for the poor'
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David,
James and Thomas Keay, all lost while away at sea. It
would seem that this was a family of seafarers, their father,
Captain Alexander Keay, died ten years after his sons, and
joined them in their grave.
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The
Cathedral
In 1903 the properties on the Mount were purchased for £11,300 and
on the 19th July 1904 the Anglican Cathedral's foundation stone
was laid by King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra.
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This
picture shows the cemetery in 1902.
Image courtesy of Mike Faulkner |
Hearse
Tunnel
This tunnel’s roof is made from quality brickwork and is thought
by many to have been used by hearse traffic. It emerges at the junction
of Rodney, St James and Duke Street.
Quarrymen's
Tunnel
Carved into the walls by the tunnels is a large amount of graffiti,
including some dating back as far as 1797 possibly done by quarry
workers.
Pedestrian
Tunnel
About 10 feet wide and 12 feet high this tunnel has been called
a 'natural arch' by some Ordnance Survey maps. However chisel marks
on the walls and roof are visible. The tunnel can been seen on drawings
dating from 1830. It is thought because of its winding nature that
this tunnel was only used for pedestrian access. Today the tunnel
walls are decorated by gravestones which were moved during the transformation
of the cemetery to a public garden. "
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