Lewisham (Parliament Politics Magazine) – For nearly 20 years, volunteers have preserved Lewisham’s Victorian cemeteries, protecting history while helping families reconnect with their heritage.
Since its founding in July 2007, the Friends of Brockley and Ladywell Cemeteries (FOBLC) has grown to include some 300 volunteers, all of whom contribute significantly to the upkeep and preservation of the cemeteries.
Formerly called Deptford and Lewisham Cemeteries, Brockley and Ladywell Cemeteries opened one month apart in 1858 and are now the final resting place of thousands of local residents.
Among the most well-known interments in the cemeteries are those of Elizabeth Watkins, the final survivor of the Battle of Waterloo, and David Jones, a poet, soldier, and artist who served during the Great War. Elizabeth Colgate, a Victorian-era local anti-slavery and anti-war activist, is also interred there.
There are over 500 Commonwealth War Graves in the cemeteries.
For the past seven years, FOBLC members, Phill Barnes-Warden and Mick Martin have been meeting there every Tuesday as they work together to retrace the lives of those who are buried there. “We are bringing them back to life,” Phill says while taking the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) out on a tour of the cemeteries.
“It’s a privilege to work for the dead”, Mick adds.
The two of them, along with Mick, who has been the Friends’ Great War Coordinator for the past eighteen years, are able to give a vivid account of a person’s life and a remarkable level of information regarding how they passed away. This includes understanding the specifics of a detective who worked on the Jack the Ripper investigation team or being able to recollect the last moving moments of a soldier’s life.
Mick added: “I like telling stories and trying to build pictures in people’s minds so they’ve actually got an idea of what I’m saying. If they can remember 40per cent of what I’ve said then that’s job done.”
Through his devoted ancestry research, Phill has been helping families reunite with loved ones since joining the FOBLC seven years ago. After photographing a grave, Phill will enter the burial information into a database he has made on Ancestry and other publicly accessible genealogy websites.
Mick added: “We just want the public to know we’re here, we’re here all year round. It’s so pleasant to walk round during the winter with the snow and the summer, it’s fantastic.”
Through Deceased Online, a nationwide database of burial and cremation records, Phill’s work also entails locating and disseminating information on individuals who are interred in graves.
Numerous families, both locally and as far away as Canada, have contacted Phill to express their gratitude for his efforts and for helping them find relatives they were unaware were interred in the cemeteries.
Phill has also learned via his study that his own great-great grandfather is interred in a neighboring communal burial.
He told the LDRS:
“At the end of the month, we’ve got an Australian family coming over for a grave which I only just found when I was here last. It’s been on Ancestry for a little while but they’re so chuffed to come over, they’ll be making their way round to take us and we’ll take them to the grave.
These people are not forgotten, you can see it from all the thank you notices we get from so many people.”
What volunteer opportunities are currently available at the cemeteries?
Grounds and garden work, including litter picking, tree and shrub maintenance, and planting to maintain the natural aesthetic beauty and wildlife habitats.
Historical preservation work like cleaning and repairing tombstones, monuments, and memorialization. Assistance managing and supporting community events, guided history, and educational outreach.
Help researching cemetery records and local genealogy so families can meaningfully connect with their ancestors. Administrative and marketing work to help support the ciphering community run the cemeteries.