East Finchley Cemetery

East Finchley Cemetery is a cemetery and crematorium in East End Road, East Finchley. Although it is in the London Borough of Barnet, it is owned and managed by the City of Westminster.[1]

East Finchley Cemetery
Crematorium, East Finchley Cemetery
Details
Established1854
Location
122 East End Road, London, N2 0SP
CountryEngland
Coordinates51.592°N 0.184°W / 51.592; -0.184
TypePublic
Owned byCity of Westminster
Size47 acres (19 ha)
WebsiteCity of Westminster website
Find a GraveEast Finchley Cemetery

History and characteristics

The St Marylebone Burial Board purchased 47 acres (0.19 km2) of Newmarket Farm in 1854;[1] and the cemetery, then known as St Marylebone Cemetery, was laid out by architects Barnett & Birch after winning a competition.

Principal features are two Lebanon Cedar trees planted on the front lawn. The crematorium was opened in 1937.

Due to local government reorganisation, the cemetery was managed by the Metropolitan Borough of St Marylebone – from 1900; and became the responsibility of the City of Westminster in 1965, when the cemetery became known by its current name. The cemetery contains about 22,000 interments, and remains open for burials.[1]

The cemetery became a point of controversy in the early nineties when the then Leader of Westminster City Council and one of the councillors wanted the cemetery to be sold (to avoid the substantial upkeep). The cemetery also included a considerable amount of land being used at the time for plant propagation for horticultural use throughout the City of Westminster; it also provided housing for the Cemetery Keeper. After much argument at Council Meetings and against the advice of the Chief Officers concerned, the cemetery was sold, the transaction then became part of the Westminster cemeteries scandal. The council was forced, after the move had been declared unlawful, to repurchase the cemetery but was unable to buy back the crematorium.[2][3]

The cemetery contains a number of structures listed on the National Heritage List for England.

The Anglican chapel was designed by Barnett and Birch and is a Grade II listed chapel,[4] as is the crematorium.[5] The gates and lodge are also Grade II listed.[6]

The monuments to Thomas Skarratt Hall (supposedly based on the Sarcophagus of Lucius Cornelius Scipio Barbatus, it originally had 4 bronze angels, which were stolen in 1989),[7] Harry Ripley (by William Reid Dick),[8] Peter Nicol Russell,[9] Thomas Tate (by Frank Lynn Jenkins),[10] and the mausoleum (by Arthur Blomfield) of Algernon Borthwick, 1st Baron Glenesk and his wife and son, are all listed Grade II,[11]

The cemetery was awarded a Green Flag Award in 2007, 2008 and 2009.[1] It is also a Site of Local Importance for Nature Conservation.[12][13]

Notable burials

Leopold Stokowski's grave at East Finchley Cemetery

War graves

There are 75 Commonwealth service war burials of World War I in the cemetery, most in the War Graves plot in the cemetery's northwest corner that was set aside for military burials in 1916, and 79 of World War II (including two unidentified British soldiers), besides ten 'Non War graves' that the Commonwealth War Graves Commission maintains. A Screen Wall memorial, behind the Cross of Sacrifice, records the names of the 20 World War II casualties who were cremated at the St Marylebone Crematorium. There are also special memorials to eight World War I servicemen whose graves could not be marked by headstones.[17]

Transport

The cemetery is situated near the North Circular Road (A406) en lies between East Finchley and Finchley Central stations, both on the Northern Line.

See also

References

  1. East Finchley Cemetery Archived 2008-10-26 at the Wayback Machine (City of Westminster) accessed 26 January 2006
  2. Hencke, David (10 December 1998). "Westminster back in the dock". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
  3. Millward, David (20 April 2006). "Council to buy back land it sold off for 5p". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 6 October 2011.
  4. Historic England. "Details from listed building database (1064767)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 26 January 2006.
  5. Historic England, "Crematorium and Chapel, St Marylebone Cemetery (1359115)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 4 October 2016
  6. Entry on the Historic England website
  7. Historic England. "Monument to Thomas Skarratt Hall, West Avenue, Plot H7 (1249532)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  8. Historic England, "Monument to Harry Ripley (1359116)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 4 October 2016
  9. Historic England, "Monument to Sir Peter Nicol Russell Engineer in St Marylebone Cemetery (1188637)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 4 October 2016
  10. Historic England, "Monument to Sir Thomas Tate, St Marylebone Cemetery (1064758)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 4 October 2016
  11. Historic England, "Glenesk Mausoleum (1064757)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 4 October 2016
  12. "East Finchley Cemetery". Greenspace Information for Greater London. 2006. Archived from the original on 24 December 2012. Retrieved 9 September 2012.
  13. "iGiGL – helping you find London's parks and wildlife sites". Greenspace Information for Greater London. 2006. Archived from the original on 29 November 2012.
  14. "Jeremy Beadle Has Last Laugh at His Funeral". Daily Record. Glasgow. 15 February 2008. Archived from the original on 30 December 2008. Retrieved 27 July 2008.
  15. "Harold Cecil Harrison". Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Archived from the original on 4 May 2018. Retrieved 29 September 2018.
  16. Liaut, Jean-Noel (October 2013). The Many Lives of Miss K: Toto Koopman – Model, Muse, Spy. ISBN 9780847841424.
  17. East Finchley Cemetery and St Marylebone Crematorium Archived 2018-05-04 at the Wayback Machine (Commonwealth War Graves Commission) accessed 26 January 2009
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