Cemeteries and Graveyards: A Guide for Local and Family Historians in England and Wales

by Celia Heritage

Cemeteries, graveyards and funerals are essential topics for family and local historians and they are fascinating subjects in themselves. Celia Heritage's handbook is a wide-ranging, accessible guide to them showing how to track down your ancestors’ burial places and memorials, problems you may encounter along the way, and the information you will find. She also looks at changing attitudes towards death and burial and what would have been involved for our ancestors when they buried a loved one.

Chapters concentrate on the history of death and burials, the evolution of churchyards, cemeteries and crematoria, funerals and undertakers and the records associated with each. The coverage is comprehensive, ranging from prehistoric burials and beliefs and the origin of the churchyard to ossuaries, cremation and the preservation and destruction of graves.

The way in which death and burial have been organized over the centuries is covered, as are the differences between town and country churchyards, workhouse and hospital burial grounds, and the practices of different faiths. A particularly valuable section looks at the style and symbolism of memorials and the craft of carving.

Genres: Nonfiction, History

240 pages, Paperback

Published May 30, 2022

Reviews

[Fiona · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating and comprehensive history of graveyards and burials as well as a very helpful guide for family historians and genealogists. Although the focus is on England and Wales, much of the information is generally useful, such as the history of gravestones, for example. I have long been fascinated by this subject and can’t pass an old church or graveyard when I’m in England especially. There is so much history to be found in both. Strongly recommended to anyone with an interest in this subject, If nothing else, you will enjoy the personal and historical anecdotes and the many photographs.

With thanks to NetGalley and Pen & Sword for a review copy.

[Lynda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Title: Cemeteries and Graveyards: A Guide for Local and Family Historians in England and Wales
Series: N/A
Author: Celia Heritage
Genre: Genealogy, History
Publisher: Pen & Sword, Pen & Sword Family History
Release Date: March 30, 2022 according to NetGalley; however, Paperback May 30, 2022 according to Amazon. Goes on sale on June 6th on Amazon.
Format: e-ARC (read), Paperback [Amazon only shows the paperback version.]
Pages: 240
Source: NetGalley, a Wish Granted.
Cover: Immediately caught my eye. Excellent choice.
Description: Written by a professional genealogist, the book is an extensive tool for researchers, genealogy or history, of burial places focusing on England and Wales with a wider study of burial locations. Explanations about the differences between a burial ground, cemetery, graveyard & churchyard. How to find burial records hardcopy & online. Tons of information. Even how to clean a gravestone and when not to.

Review:
The synopsis of the book calls it “a comprehensive and fascinating guide” and that is correct. This research-assist book is packed, and I mean packed, with information. And while it focuses on England and Wales burials, there is important information for the American researcher. Read the original synopsis. This book delivers on all points.

Example: I have Quaker ancestors that arrived very early in Colonial America. The writer explains that early Quaker burials had no gravestones as that was regarded as vanity. Thus grave mounds were relied upon for grave locations. A “rule” was the burial yards of the Quakers should not be leveled and graves should be laid in “orderly rows”. That was the tip of the iceberg re information on the Quakers and their burials. And so my mind wonders — did some of these Quaker burial practices carry over to America?

Case Studies are used throughout to illustrate how the explanations are used in “real” research.

The section on to clean or not clean gravestones was the most comprehensive I have personally seen. How oblique light can greatly aid reading a dim stone. Another section is how to Carry Out a Churchyard Survey. Another is not only a Listing of Useful Websites but also how to effectively use the sites.

Included are End Notes, Bibliography, and Index. Cemeteries and Graveyards is definitely a book to have on your shelf if you are an England/Wales history buff OR a genealogy nut, like me.

The publisher has produced all the Tracing Your ____ Ancestors. I have several of those on my genealogy research shelves. Yes, I recommend and would consider a must for those researching burials in England and/or Wales.

I received a complimentary e-ARC copy of Cemeteries and Graveyards: A Guide for Local and Family Historians in England and Wales via NetGalley from the publisher, Pen & Sword, Pen & Sword Family History. A positive review was not required; the opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.

#CemeteriesAndGraveyards #NetGalley #CeliaHeritage #PenAndSword

[CPE · Rating 4 out of 5]

Celia Heritage has over 25 years of practical experience in genealogy. Now she’s written a most useful reference book for family historians – Cemeteries and Graveyards. However, if, like me, you have little to no interest in tracing the exact spot in which Great-Aunt Nellie was buried, I still commend the book to your attention. It is a really interesting read for us non-family tree-huggers. For example, I had no idea that the Church of England opposed the development of non-denominational cemeteries. They preferred burials in the parish churchyard because (a) these resulted in fees paid to the incumbent; and (b) using a non-denominational cemetery weakened the ties between the parishioners and the Church.

The book takes us through the history of burials and the environments in which people have been buried since Palaeolithic times. Of course, prior to the Reformation, all Christians were Catholic. Then we have the bifurcation into Catholics (low-profile, usually treated as suspicious Papish spies) and Protestants. The Protestant faith then shatters into C of E and many Non-Conformists with various labels. And all the way through, we also have Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs and others. Heritage is thorough in her coverage, explaining where we might find the graves of people following all these different religions. She also explains how sites would be re-used or re-purposed – and what happened to the inhabitants (and, importantly for historians, how those moves might be documented).

There are chapters on
- A Brief History of Death and Burial
- The Parish Churchyard
- Ex-Parochial Graveyards
- Cemeteries and Crematoria – the Nineteenth Century and Onwards
- Gravestones and Gravesites
- The Records
- Online Records and Locating Burials: Pitfalls, and Challenges and Research Advice
Website addresses and case studies are scattered liberally throughout the text. There are many tips for those readers who ARE looking for Great-Aunt Nellie. This is a book I shall keep on the shelf and I’m sure I shall refer to it for various bits of research.

#CemeteriesandGraveyards #NetGalley

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

In superlative Cemeteries and Graveyards, Genealogist Celia Heritage shares her personal journey to discover more about her family's history through meticulous research. Of course death and burial are part of life. Heritage defines cemeteries, graveyards and churchyards and describes the roles of each in different types of burial circumstances and religious affiliations (such as suicides, prisoners, peasants, cremations) throughout history. She discusses the importance of archaeology and political legislation. Readers learn about chancels, vestries and crypts; past and present landscaping and maintenance; church bells and sheep grazing; religious and secular purposes; and modern conservation and disintegration methods. The author writes academically but with a personal touch and wit.

This book is jam packed with information such as burial depths (varies depending on religion), the evolution of head (and foot) stones including decoration and materials (stone, bronze). The photographs are evocative and reminiscent of my own wanderings through European cemeteries and graveyards, not only in search of history but to enjoy tranquility and beauty (some of my favourites afford stupendous views) and to make cultural observations.

The most memorable information to me is the arm bone story (!), "eaves-drip burials", various religious requirements, poignant and lovely headstones/monuments (the tree of life!), what various symbols (skull and crossbones, lions, overwritten text, chronosticon) signify and the phenomenal story of Isabella Holmes.

The author provides copious resources to aid readers in their searches, too, such as archives, parish records, churchyard surveys and the internet.

My sincere thank you to Pen & Sword and NetGalley for the privilege of reading this compelling and enlightening book. After reading this book I know vastly more than before!

[Crystalrainbow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like the author, I find the history of burial places fascinating. As I have been researching my family tree for many years, I have done my fair share of graveyard hunting.

There is a great deal of useful information in this book, covering all sorts of places and ways that ancestors were laid to rest. It is not to be underestimated how much research the author has undertaken.

I particularly liked the explanation of the meaning of symbols depicted on gravestones and the guidance for trying to read an apparently illegible gravestone.

There is a section to help you locate where your ancestor might have been buried and some resources to help you search online too. This book contains a great deal of information and clues for a successful search for an ancestor’s resting place. Admiration for the author for drawing all this together in a logical format.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very readable and comprehensive guide for anyone looking at researching either graveyards and cemeteries, or their family history. There is an interesting overview of burial customs and the development of both churchyards and later cemeteries, as well as highlighting variations, such as non-conformists, Jewish cemeteries etc. There is also a wealth of reference sources and tips on how to get the best out of your research, all with links and relevant illustrations. My only quibble, was that some of the case studies, presented in greyed boxes, were often placed in the middle of paragraphs which was occasionally irritating. Other than that, this was both informative and an interesting read.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC in return for an honest review.

[Nichole B Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cemeteries and Graveyards
By Celia Heritage
This was a great and informative interesting read!! I love how the author started out with her own quest to find her great-grandparents gravestone. I find it so fascinating to find our ancestors and to be able to see where and why they were laid to rest at certain spots and time is so interesting. Thank you #NetGalley and Author for letting me view this title
Xoxo

[Bettina | gothicreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even though I do not have any ancestors in the area of Britain, this was quite a fasinating read. The author's personal experiences were a nice touch to the already interesting topic. I learned a lot about burial trends in the UK and in general.


A very informative book for every person who wants to find out more about their own ancestors (not just in England and Wales) or who wants to learn more about burial culture in general.

Thank you #netgalley and @swordandpen

[Annarella · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a fascinating and informative read. It can be read as a history of the evolution of burials and as a guide if you want to research your ancestors.
I liked the style of writing.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

[Annalisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this beautiful book. I was very intrigued by the information in this book. I felt like I was walking through the cemeteries to look at the graves. I am definitely adding this book to my personal library.

[Teresa Grabs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love cemeteries and graveyards and this book provided an amazing opportunity to tour and learn about so many that I will never be able to visit. This book is a must-have for all graveyard aficionados.

Thank you NetGalley and Pen & Sword for the opportunity to read an advanced reading copy.