Ford Park Cemetery Trust
Cemetery of Choice

"A Working Cemetery in the Heart of Plymouth"

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Tel 01752 665442    

The Trust believes passionately in the Cemetery as a heritage and educational asset for the people of Plymouth of all ages and backgrounds.

We organise guided public walks around the Cemetery and exhibitions which are held in the Visitor Centre Chapel. The topics are varied, but often based around Victorian life or the people laid to rest in Ford Park. Private walks can be arranged through the Friends of Ford Park Cemetery, who are also willing to visit organisations to give talks on a wide range of subjects relating to the Cemetery and its heritage.

Our cemetery history

The birth of the cemetery had been a troubled one. A group of leading citizens had met as early as August 1842 for the purpose of forming a cemetery company for the towns of Plymouth, Devonport and Stonehouse.

They were deeply concerned at the scandalous state of the overfull churchyards and other burial grounds. Public health, not profit, was their motive.

The proposed cemetery was to be sited outside the built up areas with ample space for burials and landscaped with fine trees and shrubs. It was to be a place of resort for the townspeople as well as a place of burial and it was also to be a general or public cemetery serving all denominations as well as those of no religious belief.

Local opinion showed little enthusiasm for the project but its supporters persisted. In June 1846 the Plymouth, Devonport and Stonehouse Cemetery Company was incorporated and in the following October it purchased 18 acres for £7,000. This land today forms the southern half of the cemetery. The price of nearly £390 per acre was high for land which had no access by road but this was only the start of the company’s problems.

The site posed a number of difficulties. It was crossed by the Stonehouse leat which had to be diverted from the burial area and piped underground in iron pipes.

To obtain access to the land it was necessary to build a road from close to the present Pennycomequick roundabout to the Lodge Gates and then along the southern boundary of the land to its south east corner. And to ensure security, the whole had to be enclosed by stone walls up to 8 feet high in places.

The cemetery experienced financial difficulties to begin with. Building the chapels and lodge went over budget and there was a shortfall in share subscriptions which led to one of the directors making personal loans to meet the difference and cover liabilities.

However things began to look up when the General Board of Health decided to close all churchyards and burial grounds in Plymouth on the grounds of public health. This decision was later extended to Stonehouse and the impact was immediate. Burials at Ford Park steadily rose from 600 in 1853 to over 1900 in 1870.

The cemetery prospered for the next 50 years, having a virtual monopoly of burials in the three towns and in 1872, the company purchased a further 16.5 acres of land which make up the northern half of the cemetery today.

However, Weston Mill cemetery opened in 1904, Efford in 1907 and by 1918 the competition was causing concern. Also there was a growing interest in cremation, with interest really taking off after WWII. By 1960, cremation of deceased persons was about 35%, by 1980 it was 66% and today it is around 70% and, with no crematorium, figures for burial at Ford Park declined from around 1600 in 1940 to less than 200 by 1980.

With income falling, the end was in sight. The final straw was the ending of the naval graves contract by the MOD and the company went into liquidation in the Spring of 1999.

In April 2000,  with encouragement of Plymouth City Council, the Ford Park Cemetery Trust was established as a company limited by guarantee with charitable status.

 

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Events

14 Apr
Building Plymouth - A walk with the Heritage Team
Sunday 14 April 2024 2:00 pm - 3:30 pm
20 Apr
St George's Day Afternoon Tea
Saturday 20 April 2024 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Tickets £12 from the cemetery office

25 May
Pasty & Quiz Night
Saturday 25 May 2024 7:00 pm - 10:00 pm

Tickets £10 from the cemetery office

8 Jun
D Day Celebration
Saturday 8 June 2024 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Including songs from the Forties

Tickets £12 from the Cemetery office

22 Jun
Medieval Lunch
Saturday 22 June 2024 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm

Tockets £12 from the Cemetery office