Having a walk around today we managed to find Wardsend Cemetery near Owlerton. It's a fascinating place, as nature is rather quickly reclaiming it. There is a project to restore it however, but nothing appears to have been done yet as the place is so overgrown.
Some more infos:
On with the pics...
Looks like someone had been down there, or something had come from there... muhahahah! Kinda creepy though...
Funny how on the way back we noticed a load more graves that we hadn't seen on the way there...
Fantastic place, will definetely be going back for a further explore, there's loads to see. There must be thousands of graves there, it's so cramped you literally coudn't fit any more in.
Some more infos:
Wardsend Cemetery has a distinct military influence due to its close proximity to Hillsborough Barracks. The obelisk monument commemorates the soldiers of 6th, 19th, 24th, 33rd, 51st, 55th Regiments of Foot, Victorian Army, who died whilst at Hillsborough Barracks during the period 1866 - 1869.
A separate grave belongs to Lieutenant George Lambert V.C., an Irishman, born in Markethill, County Armagh, in December 1819. A sergeant in the 84th Regiment (York & Lancaster Regiment), he was promoted twice without purchase, and was awarded his Victoria Cross for conspicuous bravery during the Indian Mutiny at Oonao in 1857. His death was due to the breaking of a blood vessel on the parade ground of Hillsborough Barracks on February 10th 1860.
There are also memorials to several soldiers who gave their lives during both world wars.
Some of the 240 victims of The Great Sheffield Flood of the night of 11th/12th of March 1864, when the Dale Dyke reservoir at Bradfield, collapsed, were laid to rest in Wardsend Cemetery, including the children of Paymaster Sergeant Foulds, Isabella, aged 5 and John, aged 3, of Hillsborough Barracks, also Mr. Joseph Goddard and his wife Sarah, of Malin Bridge.
Of the 213 bodies which were found, there were 35 which were buried without being identified. In addition to the 240 people who were drowned there were 50 horses, 38 cows, 8 donkeys, 258 pigs, 267 fowls and 72 tame rabbits allegedly lost!!
Other epitaphs of interest are dedications to a number of Bible readers, one a member of the Philadelphian Wesleyan church; the Secretary of Sheffield Angling Association; widows referred to as relicts, and a reference to a 15 year old boy tragically killed at work in a colliery accident.
Wardsend dates back as far as 1161 and was then called wereldesend.(relating to a forest clearing), by 1336 the spelling had been changed to Werlsend and by 1388 it was call Wordesent.
Wardsend House was built on this site in 1477 and stood for 400 years,before being demolished in 1957.
By 1901 there had been some 20,000 interments on the site and the new area was concecrated in 1859 by Archbishop musgrave of York.
It is said to be the only cemetry in the uk with a railway running through it.
It was also frequented by grave robbers,who sold the bodies to the medical school.
The final burial took place in 1977,when the re-internment of remains from a building site close to the Cathedral took place.
It was officialy closed in 1988.
On with the pics...
Looks like someone had been down there, or something had come from there... muhahahah! Kinda creepy though...
Funny how on the way back we noticed a load more graves that we hadn't seen on the way there...
Fantastic place, will definetely be going back for a further explore, there's loads to see. There must be thousands of graves there, it's so cramped you literally coudn't fit any more in.