28
edits
no edit summary
No edit summary |
No edit summary |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
== Cemeteries in Jersey == | == Cemeteries in Jersey == | ||
The first true cemeteries came into existence in the early years of the 19th Century: until then burial had almost all taken place in graveyards surrounding the historic parish churches. However, capacity was rapidly running out in St Helier, and because the centre of the town is built on reclaimed marsh, there were concerns that putrefying bodies would cause pollution of the water supply and the spread of disease. | |||
The first new cemetery was opened at Green Street, not far from the town centre, in 1827. However, the site was not a large one, and at the time the island population was growing rapidly. Two further cemeteries - Mont à l'Abbé, at the top of St John's Road, and Almorah, overlooking the Vallée des Vaux - opened in the late 1850s. These came close to capacity after the Second World War, so a new cemetery at Surville, on the boundary of St Helier and St John, was opened in 1949 and is still in use. | |||
These were all general cemeteries, although Almorah tended to see more non-conformist burials. However, there were (in some cases still are) additional cemeteries designated for specific communities:<br> | |||
*The original Jewish cemetery was in Westmount quarry. The graves are still there, but there is now an active Jewish cemetery next to Mont à l'Abbé new cemetery in Tower Road. | |||
*There was briefly a Quaker cemetery in Patriotic Place (there is now a multi-storey car park on the site). Those buried in the cemetery were disinterred and reburied in La Croix cemetery at Grouville. | |||
*There is a specifically non-conformist cemetery, Macpéla, next to the Grande Route de St Jean in St John, and it is still operational | |||
*Next to the old Jewish cemeteryat Westmount was the Strangers' Cemetery. This was used to bury those who had no family on the island. | |||
== Cremations== | == Cremations== | ||