Brian Parsons 2020

Independent Researcher

Following the fortunes of the Abney Park Cemetery Company

The ‘Magnificent Seven’ cemeteries that were opened by private companies in London between 1832 and 1841 included Abney Park at Stoke Newington. The company later went on to establish cemeteries at Chingford Mount (1884) and Hendon Park (1899) followed by the acquisition of Greenford Park Cemetery in 1905. In 1922, a crematorium was opened at Hendon. By the 1950s, however, the company was divesting itself of its assets with all the four sites eventually ending up in the ownership of the local authorities in which each was situated. Using newspapers and company records, the first part of this paper explores the events leading up to the opening of Hendon Park Cemetery. The second section analyses burial and cremation data to assess the success of the company’s third venture during the first three decades of operation.

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