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Key Hill Cemetery

Polly, yes it's available to English Heritage members only (as far as I know), like National Trust.
They only highlighted three events around the country, and Key Hill was one of the three! Excellent publicity, eh?
 
My Eglish Heritage mag had come, but I have to wait for the wife & mother in law to read it first, and the wife had not yet got to that page!

I have grabbed it whilst she's in the garden & done a quick scan - hope it comes out ok

View attachment 46470
 
Brian, thanks for posting the pictures. Is that hearse an original or a reproduction? I didn't see it last year - I must of gone at the wrong time. :(
Of course the women must read the magazine before you - thats the rules! :D
If anyone has this English Heritage magazine and they don't want to keep it- I can offer a very good home for it!
Polly :)
 
Correct Charlie - It is a real Hearse, I believe it's a separate Coy that leases it to Undertakers when they have a need.

It wasn't there due to 'double booking' in 2009. The pictures were 'stock footage' as it is called in the news programmes.

I hope they come this year, but when they do, they are only around for half a day. The horses cannot stand still for too long without exercising, and you cannot really take them for a spin around the cemetery due to all the people walking about !

I suppose we could trips around in it - room for one inside - bring a pillow?
 
I'd be first to book a trip round Brian - just to see faces when I sit up and shout "BOO"! Can provide own pillow and white sheet.
 
What a good poem - thanks for posting it Brian :)
I must visit the Pen Room soon - I was ill when you all went before :(
Polly :)
 
What a smashing poem so light hearted.:) Polly if you go to The Pen Room beware you will get hooked:stare:, it's such an interesting place with very friendly volunteers. The members here who have visited will vouch for that:)!
 
I will attest to that Wendy....Polly you can make your own pen nib, just the way they used to be made. I have mine here in a little see through box. There is so much to see at the Pen Museum. The volunteers are very dedicated and friendly. There is so much more than pens there. You can see many of the old typewriters from decades ago, I loved it and will visit again when I come back to Brum.
 
I think when I get to the Pen Room it's going to be as addictive as Key Hill Cemetery! Thankfully my Hubby has a lot of patience with me so when I manage to visit I should be able to spend a bit of time there. I have already met Colin, one of the volunteers (he was very kind to me at KH) so I am hoping to go when he is there.
Polly :)
 
Went for a walk around Key Hill today. It's looking lovely - the bulbs we planted last year (on a very, very cold day) have started to flower and there was even a bit of sunshine coming through the trees. I took these photos to give you a little idea of what it looks like at the moment.
Polly :)
 
Here is a commemorative medal struck at the opening of the cemetery!:)
 
Wendy, those are great photos of the medal. It just goes to show how important the opening of Key Hill Cemetery was to Birmingham - they produced a medal to commemorate it. Do you know where it was made/ who designed it? - I assume Birmingham????
Polly :)
 
What an interesting medal Wendy, thank you for sharing it with us all. Strangely, if it were not for the mortuary chapel it would be difficult to relate the depicted scene to the present day Key Hill. The catacomb levels appear higher than were actually constructed, very much like the design of Warstone lane. Perhaps the medal was designed and minted before its completion and the company encountered technical difficulties in building. There again...it could be the medals designers attempted to incorporate all the ground level catacombs but needed to depict them in a layered fashion.
Do the original architectural plans still exist I wonder?
 
Wendy, I wonder if this was made by Joseph Moore? He was known as Birmingham's Brilliant Medallist and worked from Pitsford Street - he is also buried in Section K. Be interesting to find out. Shortie
 
Hi John, the plans are in Archives, but are not as built. There are thirteen of them. The chapel, for instance, was designed to be rather more elaborate (although not very much more) thanthe way it was built. Money may have been an issue. I suspect there may have been a bit of artisitic licence here, but it does give a better idea of how the path went up to the top - Vyse Street was not there at the time of the cemetery being opened. I am wondering if those archways represent the catacombs or whether they represent places so stop and linger? The drawing does not show them, so I am thinking artists impression only. Shortie
 
The medal is wonderful it belongs to Colin Giles he let me photograph it for you all to see. I wonder if it was made by Joseph Moore I bet Colin would enjoy researching that I will give him a ring.
By the way I have given the painting of Key Hill that Cookie did to Colin to see if he can get it copied properly. When it's done I will let you know. I would like to have some post cards made.
 
Hi Wendy, I suspect it would have Joseph Moore's assay mark on it, that is if it is silver. Colin also knows Anne Moore, Joseph's gt gt grandaughter (who was a teacher at my junior school!). How marvellous to own such a medal, no matter what metal it is made of.

Thanks for the info on the painting, postcasrds would be very useful and would sell (if the mess yesterday I heard about gets sorted), on open days. I would really love to use it for the cover of my book, which reminds me I have to get busy! Shortie
 
We had a lovely walk around the cemetery yesterday with Key Hill Brian, Bojalu, Colin Giles, Pollypops Richard and Margaret. It was so nice to meet up with you all. The bulbs we planted have started to come up despite the best effort of the squirrels to eat them all:rolleyes::)
 
They look lovely Wendy, and I wish I could have been there - not been in decent weather since the September Open Days!
Isn't the cemetery looking tidy as well? All concerned have done marvellous work.
Charlie
 
Been out all day - just got in - must say the pics are superb, as is the comments on the tidiness of the place.
The crocuses are looking good, aren't they - thanks to Pollypops & Wendy for helping to soove em in, and hiss to the squirrels who ate quite a few afterwrds!

The Commemorative medal was based on 'artists impressions'. There was everonly going to be one row of catacombs, but the impression given is very flambouyant!

The plans are in the Library, encased in plastic sheeting, which they say prevents decent photocopying or photographing! - Good conservation!

They were built in 4 separate stages after the opening in 1836, the last block being built in 1854.

They are 2 storey - Every 'portal' has one directly beneath it. They are also 'back to backis - each one fronting the path is back to back with the rear acccessed via a central entry, with a further 'courtyard' one the other side of the entry against the back wall of the cliff.

You lived in back to backs - you could continue in the afterlife living in back to backs!

Under the path are separate stairwells to each lower doorway, as well as an internal stairway.

Each 'room' is sealed, but it would be nice to open up the entry - Health & safety, though!
 
Sorry to have say, that whilst everyone had a good time at the Black Eagle, Friends of Key Hill AGM was a poor show.
Bad seating, bad acoustics, knocked off for Tea & Biscuits and found they were about to lock the place up! Guest speaker left without spaeking.
and than this morning - the website has a message posting that all of the existing Committee has apparantly resigned en bloc!
No explanation, or reason. The AGM could not have been that bad!
As there are insufficient people at present to form a quorum and the ex Chairman is unavailable for the week ahead, the resigneea still have the control of cheque book & websitem, as well as membership names & addresses, there is little to be done other than to suggest people do not phone or write to the address listed on any of the literature!

I'm confident the Cemetery will survive - It got though the Crimean war as well as 1 & 2, with many smaller conflicts in between.

OBviously volunteers for the paperwork will be required to support us volunteers with the shovels to ensure it remains as smart as it has become.

Very confused dot com...
 
Sorry to hear the trouble with the committee resigning The place is looking so beautiful as well. I'm sure members on here will help out to keep the place tidy if need be.
 
Cheers Dave for those pics - It reminds you of why you do things - they look lovely.

Thanks to all Forum members for the support - Volunteers were tidying the place up before the Friends were founded and will continue to keep at it!

Brian
 
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