I believe that the practice of zoning burial grounds came in with municipal cemeteries. In earlier times almost all burials were done in churchyards. Most were done by the Church of England (C of E) because the C of E assumes responsibility for all who live in a parish, including those who do not attend any church. Other denominations had their own burial grounds and their members were buried in these. Around the mid nineteenth century churchyards of all denominations began to run out of space. This was due to the increasing population and its concentration into towns. As a result town councils started to provide burial grounds. In the latter half of the nineteenth century large Municipal Cemeteries were created in most Cheshire towns. This was at a time when other denominations (particulary Methodists) had built up a strong following, and Catholics had gained legal rights for long denied. There was pressure from all these denominations to divide the new Municipal Cemeteries into zones. On visits to a number of Municipal Cemeteries in and around Cheshire I have observed that most have at least three zones namely: - C of E, - Catholic, - Non-Conformist (i.e. Methodist, Baptists, Congregational, etc.) More recently the population has become less religiously inclined so newer municipal cemeteries and extensions to existing ones tend not to be segregated. Carl. On 08/27/13 06:27, Lynda Burke wrote: > Researching in Australia, and online, I've seen cemeteries zoned by > religion of the deceased, which is also clearly indicated on cemetery plans. > > Is (or was) this practice followed in England and Wales? I notice that in > Nantwich cemetery all my Methodist grandparents and several other relatives > are buried close together. > > The newer graves at the top end don't seem to be segregated. > > Can anyone explain practice and or policy on this? > > Lynda Burke, nee Chetwood > > ------------------------------- > To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to CHESHIRE-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message >

Thanks Carl - it occurs to me that the creation of municipal cemeteries was encouraged not just by a lack of capacity in church graveyards, but also major health concerns about graveyards in the middle of urban areas. To put it bluntly - some leaked. Not sure if Cheshire had any ghoulish stories that encouraged municipal cemeteries. Adrian B