The other day I spent some time in an old cemetery attached to the St John's Church, Kannur, one of the earliest cemeteries in the erstwhile Malabar region, which came under British rule in 19792. Here is a brief note I wrote after the visit: The church and the attached cemetery are some four or five km away from the city center and one can reach there taking a bus that terminates at the Government hospital stop. Nearby is the St Anjelo's fort, a once Portuguese fort which me to British. Both church and the cemetery are in full use by the local parishioners and I saw a few dozen people, mainly women, there. The priest and some senior parishioners appeared keen on these assets of a historical nature, but they have no clue as to what is it they are holding. A sense of history is what they need; and the old colonial vs nationalist mindset must go. Some public campaigns to protect them as historical monuments is urgently called for. In Thalassery, the church and cemetery are now protected by the Government. Such attempts are now called for in the case of other churches and cemeteries in Malabar like this one. The cemetery is a sprawling one, may be ten or fifteen acres of land. It appears there were some 1500 to 2000 English burials there from early 19th century. But inside the cemetery, one cannot find many of these tombs any longer. Almost three fourths of the graveyard are now occupied by fresh graves dug in the past few decades. When I visited, there was no watchman and the old rusted gate was closed. But people have made a side-entry pathway for their use and we took the same route to get in. The thick growth had been cleared a few months back making an exploration possible.The past many months of rain has the soil smooth and slushy, and some grass and plants are so irritating to the skin that after after a few hours inside, we could see our exposed body parts swollen and itching. Luckily, we encountered no snakes though they told me they are in plenty there. It took me a long search to locate a few dozen English graves that still remain there. They are on the eastern and western extremities of the cemetery, where the growth is so intense as very few visitors go there. There was no way exploring the western part, close to the boundary wall. The foliage is so thick and huge that even a horse can remain hidden there. Then I took a turn to the left and came upon a number of 19th and early century graves, that mostly remain unattended. This part is more accessible because recently they had planted rubber there. I was looking for T H B Baber who died in Kannur in 1843, a person whose life is now part of popular movie in Malayalam. I could not find him, but cold read inscriptions on some others. Here are a few: James Herbert, Health Officer, 7th Aug 1889, 31st Oct. 1939. William Harvey Bowden Lt col, 29th Seringapatnam Infantry, formerly of the Scottish regiment, 13.9.1870, 4th(14th?), Dec. 1932. John Stewart, died 1930. Scotland? Capt Alexander Mc Lennon, Asiatic Steam Navigation Co, d. Dec 1922. Phyllis Margarett Fletcher, 1899, 28.7.1946. Lt William Hastings Sim, 43, Monmouthshire Light Infantry, 13 July 1851, 26th Oct. 1875. Herbert Powys Drummond, youngest and beloved son of Rev. James and Hon. Mary Drummond of Calby rectory, Liecestorshire, Feb 25th 1847, 15 Dec. 1877 aged 30. Perhaps there may be somebody here who are related to these people. That is why I thought I will put this information here. And I would love any information on the early history of this church and cemetery as I plan to write a note in the regional media on its historical significance. Any help is most welcome. Chekkutty/Malabar, India.