The old ‘Burial Ground’ or St. Margaret’s Cemetery on Fink Hill/Church Road was known locally as the Cholera cemetery. An outbreak of cholera in the 19th century filled the ground of the Bell Chapel on The Green and extra space was found in the present site. In the 1970’s it was decided to level the gravestones on the Bell Chapel site to make a paved area as part of The Green. Horsforth Civic Society made a record of the gravestone inscriptions. Spare stones and bones were moved from the Green and placed in St. Margaret’s cemetery. This site is sometimes known as the overflow cemetery. More information regarding specific details of the gravestones can be found in Horsforth Library, within the local history section. There are several decorative carvings on some of the stones. Burials no longer take place on the site, however, a recent initiative by St. Margaret’s Church, under the direction of the Ripon Diocese, has meant that the burial of ashes has now taken place just below the boundary wall running parallel with Church Road.
The Horsforth in Bloom committee decided that they would like to develop the St. Margaret’s burial ground and one of its former members, Freda Copley, undertook to develop the initial stages of a wildlife garden by introducing many varieties of wildflowers. Nesting boxes, butterfly box, hedgehog ‘retreat’ and a ‘bug hotel’ are sited in the grounds to encourage wildlife to thrive. The land belongs to St Margaret’s Church and maintenance of the grounds is undertaken and carried on by Peter Mallott.
Following an approach by Horsforth In Bloom Leeds City Council Cemeteries section made an assessment of the leaning gravestonnes to check the safety and, as a result, rectified the faults in 2016.
Old Burial Ground – Church Lane
Further Information
A book on the burial ground can be found at Horsforth Library on Town Street