New Cemeteries for New Times

Rural Idyll to Industrial Powerhouse – Elswick in the 19th Century

Elswick did not become part of Newcastle until 1835. Before then it was a separate township- an area of green fields and farms with few houses or streets. The main industrial activity took place underground where coal had been mined for centuries. It was into this Elswick that Westgate Hill Cemetery was founded in 1829, situated as it was in close proximity to the higher-class Georgian suburb of Summerhill, which then was at the western edge of Newcastle.

The 19th century transformed Elswick from a mainly rural area outside Newcastle into a densely built-up suburb of the town and one of the foremost industrial areas in Britain. In 1847, William Armstrong and his partners bought land on the banks of the Tyne for a new engineering factory. Originally set up to manufacture hydraulic cranes, it soon diversified and, within a few decades, had become one of the most important armaments manufacturers in the world. Other industries followed, and soon the area along the riverside was filled up. On the slopes above, a number of grand houses were built for wealthy local families but, as the century progressed, it was the need for mass housing provision for the families who worked in the growing industries that really changed the face of Elswick.

By the end of the 19th century, it had become a densely built-up urban area. In only 50 years the population had grown from 3,500 to 59,000. This rapidly expanding population needed to be served by a new cemetery, larger than could be afforded by the churchyards in town, and so the Elswick Burial Board bought land from Richard Grainger, Newcastle’s renowned builder and developer, to found St John’s Cemetery, which opened for burials in 1857.

In the early 19th century Newcastle’s central churchyards and the non-conformist burial ground at Ballast Hills were facing severe overcrowding problems. A new cemetery was desperately needed and a suitable parcel of land outside of the city walls was identified along Westgate Road.

The Westgate Hill Cemetery Company was then founded, and they created the first commercial cemetery in Newcastle – which opened for burials in 1829. The architect John Green, and landscape gardener William Falla were engaged to design it. It was laid out as a garden cemetery in an ornamental manner, modelled on celebrated cemeteries in Paris. Its construction included high walls with iron railings, a lodge for a sexton, with a chapel and register office (now demolished) and a network of serpentine paths that were laid out to take advantage of the views to the west. The ground was never consecrated, which meant it was available for the burials of ‘protestant dissenters’ and all religious groups.

In this Place of Internment there will be no restrictions as to Rites or Ceremonies; those will be left entirely to the pleasure of surviving friends.

Westgate hill burial Register book, 1829

Often referred to as Elswick Cemetery, it is the largest cemetery in Newcastle, covering 28 acres and over 110,000 people have been buried here.

It opened in 1857, following the closure of the graveyard of St John’s Church in Grainger Street, Newcastle – hence the name. All the city’s graveyards were forced to close due to overcrowding from a cholera epidemic, and a series of national Burial Acts banning burials within cities for sanitary reasons. Shortly after the cemetery opened, a section was sold as a Jewish burial ground. By 1899, the cemetery was filling up fast and it was proposed to extend it to the west, incorporating West Farm and its grazing land. Johnson and Knowles were the architects and it is an interesting example of a mid-19th-century garden cemetery combining formal and informal elements in an unusual design.

Three buildings for the purposes of funerals were built. The West Chapel was Church of England and the East Chapel non-conformist, enabling people of all religions or none to be buried here, and there was a prayer hall or Ohel (that has since been demolished) for Jewish funerals.

CREDITS: Exploring 19th Century Elswick: A Heritage Trail by Judith Green of St James’ Heritage and Environment Group

Further reading and resources:

Visit St James’ Heritage and Environment Group for a wealth of information and publications on the local heritage and history of Elswick and the wider West End of Newcastle.

For more information about the cemeteries and the work done by T+WBPT, visit the buildings pages here: Westgate Hill Cemetery and St. John’s Cemetery