Loxley Chapel and burial ground

My grandparents died in 1974 and 1976 and we believe that they are buried in Loxley cemetery. We thought we would be able to find the grave easily as it is not such a long time ago that they died.

We were absolutely disgusted when we tried to find the grave. The cemetery was all overgrown and it was impossible to find my grandparent's grave.

After reading other posts, we realize that we are not the only ones that have reached this conclusion.

My parent's have both passed away now and I owe it to them to pay my respects to their parent's.

We will join other people in helping to clear the grounds or any other way of solving this problem.

Chrissyy

Hi Chrissyy,

Thank you for your post and for your additional support.

I'm sorry to hear that you were unable to locate your grandparents resting place as I know how distressing and frustrating visiting Loxley Cemetery can be.

The burial records for the cemetery can be viewed at Sheffield Archives opposite the train station in town, however the records that you are able to view are limited to the lower cemetery because the upper cemetery is still accepting new burials.

That been said however, the upper cemetery burials can be viewed by appointment at the funeral home that manages the burials on behalf of the owners, details of which can be found earlier in this post.

Sadly due to the condition of both the upper and lower cemetery the best time to locate a plot is in the winter when the weed growth has died down a bit, particularly after it's snowed because the weight of the snow squashes the weeds and reveals the headstones.

I'm lead to believe that the Sheffield Hallam PM Nick Clegg is currently in contact with the owners of Loxley Chapel & Cemetery so hopefully he is able to encourage positive changes to be made moving forward.

I hope this helps you to locate your grandparents plot and if I can be of any further assistance I will endeavour to help if I can.

Thanks again, LoxleyS6

---------- Post added 21-07-2015 at 21:05 ----------

The Sheffield Conservation Volunteers have expressed in the past, and more recently, that they are open to the idea of undertaking the clearance work required in Loxley Cemetery, and upon request will provide a quotation to cover their expenses should their services be required.

The SCV have undertaken similar projects in the past and are fully insured to do so. They are prepared to undertake the clearance work for any person(s) agreeable to cover their expenses providing that the owners of the paths and/or plot owners do not have any objections to them doing so, otherwise their insurance would be void.

Due to the fact that the cemetery is still accepting burials (the cemetery owners own the paths and surviving relatives own the plots), this can only be achieved by writing to the owners of the cemetery via a recorded delivery letter (for proof of delivery), include multiple options for contacting the appointed point of contact, including a stamp addressed envelope for the owners to use should they wish to respond (so no costs are incurred by the cemetery owners), then put posters up around the cemetery for an adequate amount of time notifying people that it is intended to undertake the work and include the contact details for whom to contact should anyone object to the work been done (similar to a planning application or road works notice, often seen on lampposts).

This option has been suggested to the owners previously but to date they have chosen not to comment either way.

Should anyone wish to explore this option further the 'Project Assessment & Estimator' for The Sheffield Conservation Volunteers is a Mr Dave Sinclair who is contactable on 01142640134 or [email protected]

If anyone is able to find and/or organise for this to be done please don't hesitate to private message me and I will endeavour to assist wherever possible.

Thank you, LoxleyS6

LoxleyS6

Thank you for your reply to my post.

I will contact Sheffield Archives as you have suggested.

chrissyy

Should anyone require the details for Sheffield Archives they are as follows:

Sheffield Archives

52 Shoreham Street

Sheffield

S1 4SP

Opening Hours

Monday: 9.30am to 5.30pm

Tuesday: 9.30am to 5.30pm

Wednesday: closed

Thursday: closed

Friday: closed

Saturday: 9.30am to 5.30pm

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: 0114 2039395

Sheffield Archives is able to supply copies of documents and images (subject to copyright restrictions) in a variety of formats and sizes.

You are able to make photocopies and prints from microforms when you visit for a small fee per sheet of paper.

It is also possible for you to use your own digital camera (for non microform items) free of charge providing that you ask a member of staff for advice and guidance and that you complete a simple copyright declaration at the time you make the copy.

To use church registers, General Register Office indexes to births, marriage and deaths or census returns it is best if you call them in advance, as many of these items are only available on microform and these can only be viewed using a simple to use machine that you need to book in advance, however this is only a formality as the machines are rarely all in use.

Lastly, In order to use Sheffield Archives facilities you will need a Library Card, which can be issued on the day providing that you take a photographic form of ID with you, along with two pieces of documentation to confirm your address.

---------- Post added 22-07-2015 at 21:01 ----------

The Sheffield Star Online recently published the following article on Loxley Chapel & Cemetery:

http://www.thestar.co.uk/news/local/video-utter-neglect-of-abandoned-sheffield-chapel-1-7183321

My dad's mum and dad are in there my dad goes every week with his battery strimmer and keeps path to his parents grave clear. If more people did this it would help it look better. His parents grave is kept lovely all year round with fresh bedding plants. The only time I rang hagues is when the sheep they put on kept eating the plants. My dad wants his ashes putting there when he dies so I will be keeping up the good work my parents do.

Hi Kizzyadd3592,

You dad's perseverance is commendable, as are the efforts of all who maintain more than their fair share of the cemetery in order to pay their respects to their loved ones.

It is thanks to people like this that others are able to access plots that would otherwise be inaccessible to all but the most determined of relatives.

Sadly there are too few of us whom still visit the cemetery to make this a sustainable process moving forward and I truly hope that your dad is one day able to retire his strimmer and visit the cemetery with only flowers in hand.

Many thanks to your dad for his much appreciated contribution!

LoxleyS6

Hi LoxleyS6

Thank you for your post. Cannot reply because haven't done 5 posts!

Anyway, my granparents names are Marsh and they died in 1974 and 1976.

Chrissyy

Hi Chrissy,

Upon going through the documentation that I have I realised that I have more info than I first thought, but unfortunately I don't think I've been able to locate the plot that you are looking for as the dates don't match.

There are 25 persons with the surname of Marsh in the lower cemetery, from 1826 to 1961.

e.g First Name (Age) Year Of Burial

John (57) 1826

John (2) 1827

Child (1) 1828

William (37) 1837

Benjamin (3weeks) 1838

Henry ( 1839

Rachel (35) 1844

John (80) 1859

Hannah (82) 1865

Arthur (14) 1870

George (66) 1874

Henry (24) 1877

John (77) 1877

Elizabeth Howe (33) 1879

Charity (1) 1882

Faith (1+) 1882

Gladys Hilda (23days) 1891

Marriott Thompson (3) 1891

Joseph Henry (2) 1894

Ethel Myra (7months) 1911

Theresa Ellen (74) 1927

William (84) 1934

James Mudford (67) 1954

Polly (89) 1961

Charles Edward (75) 1959

James Mudfords residence was

Gordon Villas, Stannington.

Pollys residence was

Mowson Lane, Worrall, Sheffield.

Charles Edwards residence was

Harris Road, Sheffield.

(I have the month & day of burial to go with the years listed above, along with plot numbers & positions if required)

If, as I suspect, your great grandparents are not listed above then I suspect that they are at rest in the upper cemetery, the records for which I think can only be viewed by appointment at John Fairest Funeral Directors at Hillsborough.

Although this is unfortunate news in one respect, it's not all bad news because the upper cemetery is arguably easier to access due to the burials been more recent, which means that there are other surviving loved ones who still maintain plots, and paths to access them.

<Note To All Post Readers>

I can't make any promises of when I would get back to you, but if anyone would like me to look up a name in the records that I have of the lower cemetery I would be happy to do this for you, and In return I would kindly ask that you place a single flower on any of the war or flood graves in the cemetery upon your next visit.

---------- Post added 24-07-2015 at 21:37 ----------

p.s. It looks like Henry's age has converted itself into a picture in the above post, but sadly he was only eight when he died. Sorry about that Henry & may you rest in peace.

Hi LoxleyS6

Thank you again for your help and time in trying to locate my grandparents' grave. I bet some of the Marshs are people who were related to my grandparents.

My grandma was called kathleen Marsh - 1900-1976

My granddad was called Harvey Marsh - 1897-1974

I think they were buried in the same plot.

It was easier to trace by grandma's brother Harry Hill who was killed in France in the first world war.

chrissyy

Hi Chrissyy,

I know, it's a real shame that someone like yourself who is willing to maintain a plot can't access I it to be able to do so.

I did have a good thorough look around for you when I visited the cemetery last weekend, but sadly there were no visible headstones that had the correct inscriptions that I could see.

Hopefully it's just to the side of a grave and/or path that are already being maintained. At least then you'll be able to access and maintain it more easily.

Good luck, and please let us know if/when you locate the plot/plot position as it would be nice to hear a positive story attached to Loxley Cemetery for a change.

Hi Loxley S6

Thank you for taking your time and looking for my grandparents' graves.

When we looked around the cemetery last year, we were there for about two hours looking.

We are going to have another visit hopefully soon with other members of my family. We will be bring some shears and cordless strimmer so that we can get better access to the plots.

Chrissyy

Hi,

I've seen mention of Wisewood cemetery through this thread, could anyone advise if there is a searchable record for the burials here?

Thanks