In a message dated 16/01/2004 10:28:06 GMT Standard Time, markandjanboyes@ntlworld.com writes: > The Cemeteries Act By 1850, urban churchyards had had their day. Over-full, exclusively Anglican, and suspected of being sinks of contamination, they were closed in large numbers over the next few years. A public alternative to the profit-making private cemeteries was needed, however; the Metropolitan Interment Act of 1850 allowed for the provision of publicly-funded cemeteries in London, and was extended across the country by an Act of 1853. This ushered in a boom in the construction of public cemeteries by publicly-financed Burial Boards run by parish vestries (the ancestors of today's local authorities). Scores of cemeteries were set up in the 1850s and 1860s. History of the English Cemetery http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/default.asp Regards Stan Mapstone

Thank you very much to Stan and Geoff for the interesting information about the Cemeteries Act. Jan Boyes > > This ushered in a boom in the construction of public cemeteries by > publicly-financed Burial Boards run by parish vestries (the ancestors of today's local > authorities). Scores of cemeteries were set up in the 1850s and 1860s. > History of the English Cemetery > http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/default.asp > > Regards Stan Mapstone > > ______________________________