Grave Mistakes: February 2015

Conan Hopton was killled by "the accidental explosion of a fowling piece".

St James, Canon Frome, Herefordshire

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Canon Frome is an Ancient Parish; the church of St James has a tower which dates from 1680, the remainder of the church was rebuilt in 1860 by G F Bodley.

Conan Hopton was killled by "the accidental explosion of a fowling piece".

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The chest tomb of Sir Richard and Lady Croft dates to about 1510

St Michael and All Angels, Castle Frome, Herefordshire

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The Church of St. Michael is almost entirely Norman, discreetly restored in 1878. It has three medieval bells, sadly not ringable at the moment. The church’s crowning glory is undoubtedly its 12th century font, carved from a single piece of rock and described by Pevsner as "one of the masterworks of Romanesque sculpture in England".

An alabaster knight and his wife with their offspring represented around the sides of the monument. Dating to about 1510, the chest tomb of Sir Richard and Lady Croft, transferred from a now-demolished side chapel to the north of the chancel, is clearly reassembled from badly aligned parts of the original.

Thomas Stanley Knowles died in China with the East Yorkshire Regiment

St George, Kidderminster, Worcestershire

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This was the third large church in the centre of Kidderminster.

Thomas Stanley Knowles died in China while serving with the East Yorkshire Regiment. Film of the regiment's departure from Southampton can be found here.

Alan McAulay was killed on H.M.S. Ardent during the Falklands War.

St Peter de Witton, Droitwich Spa, Worcestershire

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A peaceful church with a well maintained graveyard and a large park behind it.

Alan McAulay was killed on H.M.S. Ardent during the Falklands War.

A entry for the Powys Hall of Shame.

St Michael, Discoed, Powys, Wales

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Today the church remains a daughter church of St Andrew’s Church in Presteigne. Although it is in Wales, it is part of the Church of England’s Hereford diocese. The church is unusual in that the porch door is on the north side.

A entry for the "Powys Hall of Shame".

A charming statue of an angel beside a young child's grave.

Christ Church, Tilstock, Shropshire

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The surprisingly large and quite steeply sloping cemetery

was just across the road from the church.

A charming statue of an angel beside a young child's grave.

Thomas and Mary Jones had 6 children. Four didn't live to see their first birthday.

St Brigit, Llansantffraid, Ceredigion, Wales

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This was a lovely peaceful site with just the sound of a nearby

stream and seabirds breaking the silence.

Thomas and Mary Jones had 6 children. Four didn't live to see their first birthday and another, Evan, was only 4 when he died.

Elizabeth died after a long, painful and severe affliction.

St Tewennocus, Towednack, Cornwall

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The church is dedicated to St Tewennocus and did not become parochial until 1902. It was built in the 13th century and has a plain tower. A south aisle was added in the 15th century.

Elizabeth died after a "long, painful and severe affliction".

A policeman killed in an air-raid on October 13th 1940.

Chingford Mount Cemetery, Greater London

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We were on a family trip to London so we decided to spend a sunny afternoon walking around this cemetery. Unfortunately we ran out of time and two section remain unsurveyed. These were the block of new graves closest to the entrance and the oldest graves right at the far end of the site.

A policeman killed in an air-raid on October 13th 1940.

A husband and wife both accidentally killed - 6 years apart.

St James the Great, Cradley, Herefordshire

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Clear evidence of a Norman church can be seen in the well-preserved south doorway with its chevron decoration and also in the lower part of the tower. The upper part of the tower is later and dates from the late fourteenth or early fifteenth century, with windows of that period, with trefoiled lights and vertical tracery.

A husband and wife both accidentally killed - more than 6 years apart. Note that one word has been spelt in two different ways!

A champion of British independence!

St Levan, St Levan, Cornwall

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The church of St Levan is medieval. It was heavily rebuilt in the twelfth century and extended in the fifteenth century. St Levan (properly Selevan, a Celtic form of Solomon) according to the Life of St Kybi was a Cornishman and the father of Kybi.

Peter David Shore, Baron Shore of Stepney PC (20 May 1924 – 24 September 2001) was a British Labour politician and former Cabinet Minister, noted in part for his opposition to the United Kingdom's entry into the European Economic Community.

This is the first time we have seen stained glass incorporated into a gravestone.

St Mary the Virgin, Bishops Frome, Herefordshire

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This church has its origins in the late 12th century although the tower is late 14th century. The Chancel was rebuilt in 1847 and the nave and aisle were rebuilt in 1861-2 by F.R. Kempson

This is the first time we have seen stained glass incorporated into a gravestone.

Killed in an air crash during the ill-fated Norway campaign.

Christ Church, Annscroft, Shropshire

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The church was very hard to photograph since it was

situated on a high bank beside the road.

Kenneth G Baldwin, Act/Petty Officer Airman, was killed in an air crash while serving on the aircraft carrier Glorious during the ill-fated Norway campaign.

Mary Sanderson died after her ship was wrecked on the Brisons.

St Sennen, Sennen, Cornwall

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The church of St. Sennen is medieval: it is known as the parish church of Lands End. The patron of the church is the Duke of Cornwall. Nothing is known historically about St Sennen except his name and that he was a martyr buried on 30 July of some unknown year.

Mary Sanderson died after her ship was wrecked on the Brisons. All but 2

of the crew of the 250 ton brig "New Commercial" were killed.

William Harris Vernalls died in 1918 whilst a POW in Germany.

St Andrew, Wolferlow, Herefordshire

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The church is subject to a planning application for conversion into a dwelling. The fate of the famous wooden effigy that used to be inside the church and which dates to 1250 is unknown.

William Harris Vernalls died in 1918 whilst a POW in Germany.

Daniel Grant (47) and his son John (14) were both drowned

St Gwithian, Gwithian, Cornwall

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The church and relics of St Gwithian or Gocianus, built in 490, were uncovered from the beach and dunes during the early part of the 19th century, but were then allowed to be reclaimed by the shifting sands. Gwithian is the patron saint of good fortune on the sea.

Daniel Grant (47) and his son John (14) were both drowned when the brig "Neptune" sank in a severe NW gale during a voyage from Liverpool to Rotterdam.

The mason had a problem with the spacing of the text.

St Mary the Virgin, Overton, Wrexham

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Inside the church the organ not only obscures a magnificant stained glass window but also makes it almost impossible to read a large wall-mounted memorial.

The mason had a problem with the spacing of the text.

This old soldier had an impressive career. Note that siege has been spelt incorrectly.

All Saints, Sapcote, Leicestershire

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It is nice to see that the grass has been kept short but we would have prefered to have seen the cut grass removed as well.

This old soldier had an impressive career. Note that siege has been spelt incorrectly.

The date of death was corrected to 1751 from 1752

St Helen, Sibbertoft, Northamptonshire

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I think the church would have benefitted from a few extra windows.

1752 was later corrected to 1751

Arthur Perowne was the 1st Bishop of Bradford.

St James, Hartlebury, Worcestershire

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An imposing church serving a relatively small rural community and notable for the large number of high-status memorials in the churchyard. From the early 13th century until 2007 nearby Hartlebury Castle was the residence of the Bishop of Worcester.

Arthur William Thomson Perowne was the 1st Bishop of Bradford and then the107th Bishop of Worcester.

Richard died in 1712 aged 13. Note the skull at the top of his memorial..

St Symphorian, Veryan, Cornwall

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St Symphorian has been patron of this church since at least 1281.

The attractive memorial records the fact that Richard died in 1712 aged 13.

Note the skull at the top.

A church organist for 70 years.

St Tysilio, Llandysilio, Powys

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The present parish church, dedicated to Saint Tysilio, dates from 1867 but tradition states that a church was founded here by Tysilio in the seventh century. Certainly the shape of the churchyard suggests a very much earlier church existed on the same site.

A church organist for 70 years.

This is a curious discovery. Killed in action in Bombay (India) in 1942.

Coventry Road Cemetery, Bedworth, Warwickshire

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This was quite a quite annoying cemetery to survey - curved paths and graves not in straight lines.

This is a curious discovery. Killed in action in Bombay (India) in 1942.

The body was not found until nearly a month after the date of death..

Leamington Cemetery, Warwickshire

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Not too much success with finding graves of the very old but quite a number of unusual designs that made the trip worth while.

The body was not found until nearly a month after the date of death. I assume he was a sailor based on the epitaph on the headstone.