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West Ham Cemetery

Introduction

Throughout the cemetery there are a number of mature trees, mostly common lime but also pedunculate and holm oaks, ash, false acacia, sycamore and various species of conifers. The fairly low brick wall which forms the boundary with the adjacent West Ham Jewish Cemetery allows views between the two, and both cemeteries are surrounded by suburban housing.

West Ham Burial Board was set up following the passing of the Burial Acts in the 1850s and in 1857 purchased 4.85 hectares of land for its new cemetery from Samuel Gurney, a Quaker whose family was related to the prison reformer Elizabeth Fry. West Ham Cemetery was extended to its current size in 1871. The emphasis was on creating good drainage and keeping costs low so the cemetery's layout is a simple grid plan. It retains its small ragstone chapel designed by T E Knightly but its non-conformist chapel has since been demolished. A small mock-Tudor lodge is situated just inside the metal entrance gates. There are no prominent monuments, and gravestones are set among grass. Among the memorials are those who died in two disasters, the sinking of the Princess Alice pleasure boat in 1878, and the Silvertown Explosion of 1917.

Sources consulted:

Hugh Meller & Brian Parsons, 'London Cemeteries, An Illustrated Guide and Gazetteer', 4th edition (The History Press, 2008); John Archer/Ian Yarham, Nature Conservation in Newham, London Ecology Unit, 1991.

For more information see http://www.londongardensonline.org.uk/gardens-online-record.asp?ID=NEW034

Visitor Access, Directions & Contacts

Website

https://www.newham.gov.uk/births-deaths-marriages/cemeteries

Access contact details

Daily 9am (summer)/10am (winter) to dusk

Directions

Rail: Maryland; Forest Gate. London Overground: Wanstead Park. Bus: 308

Owners

LB Newham

Other Websites

History

Period

  • Post Medieval (1540 to 1901)
  • Victorian (1837-1901)
Key Information

Type

Funerary Site

Purpose

Sacred / Ritual / Funerary

Principal Building

Religious Ritual And Funerary

Period

Post Medieval (1540 to 1901)

Survival

Extant

Hectares

8

Open to the public

Yes

References

Contributors

  • London Parks and Gardens Trust