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Park Street Burial Ground

What’s going on here then? From the Birmingham Daily Post January 1960, tenders for excavations and removals of human remains...


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A bit of info that may be of interest, as 1151 bodies were removed in 1894...

1807 opened as extra ground for St Martins
1846 portion bought by LNWR
1857 closed to ordinary burials
1873 no further graves opened
1879 Laid out as a park
1892 further portion sold to LNWR
1894 1151 coffins removed to Witton

Dr R.J. Hetherington in the 1950s

The info provided by Dr. Hetherington in the 1950s shows that a portion of the ground was sold to LNWR in 1846.

Meetings recorded in Aris’s Gazette of 1848 show that the Parish received £2,000, and that there was concern as to who would receive the money. The Rev JC Miller clarified the situation, but also commented...

“At a meeting last Monday there were questions of how the Rail Company had removed the bodies....in unfavourable terms....but had behaved in an honourable way.” (May 1848)

So ironically it seems that bodies had been removed around 1847 by a Rail Company!

[edit.....the bodies seem to be from the main burial ground, and not the extension in Park Street]
 
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1848...

"The opposition was of a comparitively slight character, namely, of the relations of some of those who had heretofore been interred in St. Martin's burial ground, in the town, which would be cut at one corner by this railway extension”


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September 1954 the council were searching for areas to convert for Car Parking and two of the sites considered were St Bartholomew’s churchyard near Fageley street, and the Old Park Street Gardens near the Bull Ring.

In May 1959 the Notice below was placed in the Birmingham Daily Post mentioning relatives of those interred in the Park Street Gardens cemetery...

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May 1871 the state of the Park Street Gardens Burial Ground from the Birmingham Daily Post.

"St. Barts churchyard nearby is well fenced and well kept, and indeed, compared to its neighbour, looks an oasis in a desert.'
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Took these from the no 33 bus of the HS2 archaeological works near Park Street not that there was much to see!



This view of that structure from Moor Street Queensway.



I don't think there's much to see if you are on a train either. Had a look out of the window on Sunday as the train headed down into the tunnel, but was just mostly big piles of soil outside of those white structures.
 
what i would like to know is where have they dumped all the bodies and the remaining headstones that was dug up at park st burial ground....i use the word dumped because i will be most surprised if they have all received individual interments which is what they deserve...most likely all buried together in one big pit at an unknown location...if anyone out there can answer this question that would be great..such a lack of respect shown the people who helped shape birmingham..

lyn
 
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Lyn - all I could find was this: (written by the group doing the excavation).
When our research is complete the human remains will be reburied on consecrated ground in the Birmingham area.

Posting at same time as 60footer

BBC dated Sept 2019: The remains will be reburied in consecrated ground at a location identified in consultation with the Church of England.
 
Lyn - all I could find was this: (written by the group doing the excavation).
When our research is complete the human remains will be reburied on consecrated ground in the Birmingham area.

Posting at same time as 60footer

BBC dated Sept 2019: The remains will be reburied in consecrated ground at a location identified in consultation with the Church of England.
I know a few here on BHF, who live in the West Midlands, have connections with the Anglican church. Maybe their vicar or rector could find out more. The Bishop is more likely to answer their phone calls than anyone elses'
 
its possible alan but personally i think it maybe best if someone contacted the people who removed the bodies...link to that on earlier post

lyn
 
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many thanks alan..so now we await reponses from 2 forum members...keep us informed

lyn
 
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