Common Grave

[Blue-Spirit]

I have recently found the last resting place of my grandmother, who died in 1962.
I am amazed  to find that she is buried on top of another person who died just one yr before in 1961.
This lady who died 1961 has a grave stone,
Being born and breed in the country, and come to understand most churches around my area have a law that no one can be buried in another's grave, until 100yrs has lapsed.

My Grandmothers grave has been listed as a Common Grave.

Can anyone give me some kind of explanation on a Common Grave, and is the procedure of a burial , one on top of another a common thing, even though the first has a head stone.

[RJ_Paton]

This is a quote from the rules of a scottish council

Purchasers of the right of burial, or their successors or assignees as aforesaid, shall not be entitled to sell the same, other than to the Council, except with the prior written consent of the Council, nor shall they for pecuniary consideration be entitled to inter a stranger therein, but may transfer their right to a nominated person on completion by both parties of the appropriate Application for Transfer of Lair Certificate Form prescribed by the Council for that purpose, the submission of said form to the Council and on payment to the Council of the appropriate transfer fee set by the Council, whereupon a Lair Transfer Certificate shall be issued in such Form and subject to such conditions as the Council may prescribe.

and while such transfers appear possible your circumstances appear "strange" to me

[RJ_Paton]

“Common Grave” means any grave purchased by the Council for the interment of a deceased person.

It could be that your relation died alone and her death and subsequent burial were handled by the council .... this could explain the circumstances that you describe.

[Blue-Spirit]

Falkyrn;
Thank you for your quick reply.

I should have explained that my gran, died at her daughters house, daughter living at that time, I have found no connection to the 1961 death (Mrs plumly) and the 1962 death of my gran.
My gran was buried in Greenwich nr London cemetery.

I suspect that Scottish laws may differ than English....
I had thought that a common grave was for the poor, but may well be wrong.

[GRACELAND]

In Gloucester Common graves are not allowed to have a headstone as no one owns the grave ,but pots are allowed !!
           Also there can be as many as  3 in the same grave all unrelated !!!

[RJ_Paton]

Sorry i didn't make my postings clearer .... although the first was from a Scottish area the second regarding common graves was from an English site (denbigh).

As graceland says so called common graves don't normally have any headstones and the circumstances do seem rather strange.

Normally a common grave as we have said would have suggested that the council handled the burial arrangements either through lack of funds, no known relatives (not true in your case) illness etc of nearest relatives unable to handle estate.

It may also be that in this particular case the lair was purchased by the council from the family who had originally "owned" it and they (the council) transferred its usage to a "common grave".

It could also be that the family of the first person later found that she had been buried in a common grave and received special dispensation to erect a headstone.

[Blue-Spirit]

Falkyrn ;
Thanks for yje additonal info, i feel it is a little strange, and feel I would like to try and get to the bottom of it, I will write to the cememtery and see if they will give me some answers, I am not trying to stir things, but would just like to understand why thanks again....

Graceland,
thanks for your in put, its interesting, I had been told that there can be up to 3 in a grave.

By the way, I spent some weeks during 2002 touring Nashville, North Carolina, Knoxville and down to Memphis, Beale street, Sun Studios & Gracelands, what a great time, it took me quite a time to get that close to my idol, but worth the wait........