The death mask of a baby on a grave.

 St Edward the Confessor, Knighton, Powys

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Knighton was the quietest small town we have ever visited. The graveyard had one spectacular find plus some other unusual discoveries - just the sort of place we love to visit.

 

 

Arthur died aged 8 months. This appears to be his death mask attached to his grave. We have never seen this done before. 

 

Visited - March 2014

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Over 2000 sailors were drowned in this storm

St Clement, St Clement, Cornwall 

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The church is medieval but has lost much of its interest due to later restorations and most of the present fabric is from 1865 .There is also a large cemetery on the opposite side of the lane to the church.

 

 

Rear Admiral Robert Carthew Reynolds died in 1811 during a great storm in late December, which scattered his convoy and wrecked three ships of the line including his own flagship HMS St George. Over 2,000 British sailors, including Reynolds, were drowned. The mason had to insert the day of the month into the inscription. 

 

Visited - June 2014

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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Two colourful and ornate war memorials at St Asaph

 St Asaph Cathedral, St Asaph, Denbighshire

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Saint Asaph Cathedral is the Mother Church of the Diocese of St Asaph, one of the six dioceses of the Church in Wales. Saint Kentigern built his Church here in AD560. When he returned to Strathclyde in AD573 he left Asaph as his successor and since that time the Cathedral has been dedicated to Saint Asaph.

 

 

Two colourful and ornate war memorials.

 

 

 

Visited - August 2014

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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Two very similar designs showing a lady mourning for her husband.

 Parish Church of Llandrillo yn Rhos, Llandrillo, Conwy, Wales

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Llandrillo yn Rhos Church was built on the site of Ednyfed Fychan's private chapel and incorporates what was his tombstone. The history of this church goes back to the 13th century, but having been rebuilt over the centuries, the oldest parts of the present church are 15th century. A major restoration was carried out in 1857 and was criticised by some for amounting to 'vandalism', in particular the destruction of an ancient stained glass window.

 

 

Two very similar designs showing a lady mourning for her husband.

 

 

 

Visited - August 2014

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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The colourful Glynn monument of 1699.

 St Meubred, Cardinham, Cornwall

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The parish church is dedicated to St Meubred: it has north and south aisles and a tower of granite. The chancel suffered bomb damage in World War II. Two freestanding Celtic crosses of stone, bearing inscriptions in Latin have been found in Cardinham; both had been embedded in the walls of the fifteenth-century church and were moved after their discovery to the churchyard.

 

 

The colourful Glynn monument of 1699 at the east end of the south aisle. 

 

Visited - June 2014

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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The gravestone includes an unusual carving of two children praying.

 St John, Pencombe, Herefordshire

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This was the first of many very peaceful villages we visited on this lovely spring day.

 

 

 The carving of two children praying is unlike anything we have seen before.

 

Visited - March 2014

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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A ghoulish wall painting of a recumbent skeleton.

 Rug Chapel, Corwen, Denbighshire

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Rug is a rare example of a little altered private 17th century chapel. It's founder, Colonel William Salusbury, collaborated with Bishop William Morgan, first translator of the Bible into Welsh. The famous architect Sir Edwin Lutyens wrote that the chapel influenced his work, including the Viceroy's House in New Delhi, built between1912 and 1930.

 

 

 A ghoulish wall painting of a recumbent skeleton serves as a reminder of mortality. 

 

Visited - Aug 2014

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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A young husband and wife killed in the same accident.

 All Saints, Berrington, Shropshire

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One unusual feature of the churchyard were the two gravestones that had been fixed to the wall of the church with iron bolts.

 

A young husband and wife killed in the same accident. 

 

Visited - June 2011

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Two brothers who were drowned in separate accidents aged 16 and 17.

 St David, Llanarth, Ceredigion, Wales

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It was quite a scramble to survey the churchyard - what with a fence to climb over and a rough, steep hill to climb up.

 

 

Two brothers who were drowned in separate accidents aged 16 and 17. 

 

Visited - August 2013

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Killed in the explosion on HMS Glowworm

St Leonards, Bridgnorth, Shropshire 

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The church is still consecrated but is not in regular use.

 

 

H.M.S. Glowworm served in Lowestoft before being sent to Northern Russia in September 1918. The ship was damaged after a barge exploded alongside her on 24th August 1919. Surgeon Lieutenant Richard Thursfield was one of the fatalities.

 

Visited - October 2012

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The entire crew of 189 were killed in an explosion.

St Peter, Easthope, Shropshire 

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A notice implied that the church was shut for renovations to be carried out but we could not see any evidence of building work.

 

 

 Robert William Nash died when HMS Exmouth was sunk by a U-boat, U22 in the Moray Firth, off Wick, Caithness on 21st January 1940, with the loss of the entire crew of 189 lives. It is believed the HMS Exmouth's magazine exploded when hit by a torpedo. 

 

Visited - June 2011

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An unusual design for a memorial!

 St Giles, Downton-in-the-Rock, Shropshire

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This was a very isolated church with the silence only being disturbed by the sound of shooting in the nearby woods

 

 

 An unusual design we had not seen before. 

 

Visited - November 2010

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John Owen died following a fall from a carriage.

Congregational Church, Pontesbury, Shropshire 

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This church dates back to 1839 and both the building and the churchyard have been maintained to a high standard.

 

 

 John Owen died following a fall from a carriage. His wife had died previously which explains the reference to leaving seven orphans.

 

Visited - May 2012

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Sheep may safely graze in green pastures

 St Chad, Hamner, Wrexham

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This was a lovely location - on a hill looking down over Hamner Mere.

 

 

Sheep may safely graze in green pastures 

 

Visited - March 2014

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The Transylvania was sunk with a loss of 412 lives.

 St James the Great, Paulerspury, Northamptonshire

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I wish I knew more about church architecture - this church has obviously been extended many times.

 

 

 Drowned on the Transylvania in 1917. The ship was torpedoed and sunk on May 4, 1917 by the German U-boat U-63 while carrying Allied troops to Egypt and sank with a loss

of 412 lives.

  

Visited - May 2010

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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Both the wives of Sir Henry Browne died "in childbed" - Louisa in 1823 and Elizabeth in 1826.

St Asaph Cathedral, St Asaph, Denbighshire  

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Saint Asaph Cathedral is the Mother Church of the Diocese of St Asaph, one of the six dioceses of the Church in Wales. Saint Kentigern built his Church here in AD560. When he returned to Strathclyde in AD573 he left Asaph as his successor and since that time the Cathedral has been dedicated to Saint Asaph.

 

 

Both the wives of Sir Henry Browne died "in childbed" -

Louisa in 1823 and Elizabeth in 1826.

 

 

 

Visited - August 2014

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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354 passengers and crew were killed in the sinking of the Laurentic

 St Mary, Llanfairpwllgwyngyll, Anglesey, Wales

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A medieval church stood on this magnificent site on the shore of the Menai Straits before the present church was built; it was demolished in 1852.

 

 

In Montréal when the Great War began, Laurentic was immediately commissioned as a troop transport for the Canadian Expeditionary Force. After conversion to armed merchant cruiser service in 1915, she struck two mines off Lough Swilly in the north of Ireland on 25 January 1917 and sank within an hour. Only 121 of the 475 aboard survived; 354 passengers and crew were killed in the sinking. 

 

Visited - August 2014

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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A Policeman murdered while on duty in 1886.

 Stratford Upon Avon Cemetery, Warwickshire

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This was a large cemetery so we were very grateful to have our younger daughter Sally with us to speed up the survey. There were a large number of graves of interest to photograph and, perhaps surprisingly, many military graves for airmen from the Royal Canadian Air Force.

 

A Policeman murdered while on duty in 1886. 

 

Visited - April 2010

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A grave shaped like a domino - very much "one of a kind"!

 St Pauls Cemetery, Coventry, Warwickshire

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What a small sign for what was quite a large cemetery.

 

 

I have never seen a grave anything like this one. Our best find in the entire cemetery.  

 

Visited - November 2009

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Can you find a spelling mistake on this gravestone?

 All Saints, Harborough Magna, Warwickshire

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Some churches can be quite difficult to photograph if they have trees on all sides.

 

 

Can you find a spelling mistake on this gravestone? 

 

Visited - August 2009

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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We thought this was a mistake - until we thought harder!

 Canley Cemetery, Coventry, Warwickshire

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It took three visits to survey all the graves in Canley Cemetery and it would have been four visits had we not conscripted our younger daughter to help with the task! Thank you Sally.

This lady was recorded as being 100 years old but her dates of birth and death seemed to show she was 99 and not 100. However I seem to remember that Chinese people are regarded as being aged 1 at birth rather than aged 0 as is the case in England. 

 

Visited - April 2009

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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The "Herefordshire Churches Hall of Shame".

St Mary, Almeley, Herefordshire 

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The oldest part of the church is the base of the West Tower, which was built about 1200. However most of the church can be dated to the Decorated or Middle Pointed period although the nave roof is 16th century and has scissor trusses with curved braces.

 

 

 This is strong entry in the "Herefordshire Churches Hall of Shame". 

 

Visited - August 2014

All my new discoveries are published first on the social history group on Facebook so if you want to keep up to date with what is happening you will need to subscribe to the group by clicking on the link below.

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