RootsChat.Com
Family History Documents and Artefacts => Graveyards and Gravestones => Topic started by: jo1962 on Tuesday 24 May 22 10:36 BST (UK)
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Hi all,
I have been researching an ancestor Archibald Watson who died in 1916. He is buried in Stretford municipal cemetery. I have found a headstone on find a grave which lists his name and date of death. He is buried in what appears to be a communal grave along side several other people who all died in 1916. The people he is buried with, some are children, are no relation to him at all. My query is, would anybody know why a headstone would have been erected listing all those in the grave, and is there anyway of finding out who would have paid for it? I imagine it wouldn't have been cheap, as it's quite a substantial headstone? I thought it might have been a relative of one of the deceased, but, if these people were no relation to each other why would someone list everybody's name? They all died over the course of 1916.
I welcome your thoughts, many thanks
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Perhaps the cemetery would be able to answer your question. :-\
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Just posting these links for interest
www.findagrave.com/memorial/234235719/archibald-watson
https://billiongraves.com/grave/Archibald-Watson/28391636
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There appear to be other stones with multiple apparently unlinked names on them
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/234244317/william-e-allanson
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/234243541/thomas-f-atkinson
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A whole row of them (Paupers graves)
https://www.geograph.org.uk/photo/4350077
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Hi
Yes it is usually a rule that if you place a gravestone on a communal plot you have to include everyone buried there.
I believe you can just put the name of your relative only if you get the permission of the next of kin for all the other burials.Obviously this would take time and effort.So easier to include everyone ?
Ciderdrinker
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Thank you everyone, you have been very helpful. I think I thought if it was a paupers grave it wouldn't have a headstone.
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Similar question relating to a large cemetery in Leeds:
https://www.rootschat.com/forum/index.php?topic=854451.0
The link in reply #1 there gives more information about the kinds of graves there, and I suspect the same sort of thing can be found in many large cemeteries around the country.
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Thank you arthurk, that's very interesting.
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It is certainly unusual for so many in one cemetery to have headstones. Maybe the cemetery can tell you who paid for them all