EPSOM AND EWELL CEMETERY

Until the early nineteenth century the church had a monopoly on the interment of human remains in the UK. The rapidly increasing urban population and the constrained space in churchyards meant that existing graveyards were overcrowded and unhygienic, and could not cope with the number of bodies. The Government passed a number of Burial Acts including the Burial (Beyond the Metropolis) Act in 1853 which allowed local councils to establish Burial Boards to provide alternative solutions. Epsom established its Burial Board on 31 May 1869 with George White as its Clerk.

Early in 1870 the Epsom Burial Board purchased five acres of land from the Trustees of the late Alexander Wood between the roads now known as Downs Road and Ashley Road . This land had been part of the former Common Fields. The site was not the Board's first choice. In 1869 it had been negotiating with the Lord of the Manor, John Briscoe to buy four acres of land to the north of Dorking Road . It soon became clear that the site was too small to accommodate the planned chapels and to allow for expansion. Briscoe was unwilling to sell any more land and the more flexible site was chosen.

The Board issued invitations in 1870 to tender for the contract to enclose the site and decided to hold a competition for the actual design. They provided a statement of requirement which included details of the geographical location and the hard, chalk sub-soil, proximity to Epsom's two railway stations and to gratuitous water supply. It also specified that the site was to be enclosed with four foot wall, which would have to be over a 1000 feet in length, in which there were to be two gateways with gates. Inside two chapels were required, one Anglican and the other non-conformist, each to be 30 ft by 20 ft in size. A lodge was also required with two reception rooms, two bedrooms, domestic offices and water closet all on the ground floor. The cost of all this was not to exceed £3300.

There were five competitors and in August 1870 William Young, a partner of Robert Milton, an architect in Crooked Lane , London was declared the winner. His designs were reproduced in his book "Picturesque Architectural Studies and Practical Designs", published in 1872.

The building contract was awarded to Thomas Nye of Ealing and the landscaping to Joseph Tanton Rawnsley of Epsom Nurseries. All the external construction was to be in Kentish Ragstone and it is estimated that sixty thousand tons of stone had to be transported from Epsom railway station in Station Road up to the site. The landscaping was to be simple with gently curving roads, and a yew and beech hedge in front of the wall with horse chestnut trees in front of that. Dark, evergreen trees such as yews, pines and cedars much favoured by the Victorians for their sombre appearance were planted near the chapels and paths.

Early in 1871 a Lodge Keeper was appointed. He needed to be literate and to be a competent gardener. He would be paid £50 pa and live rent free in the Lodge. Edward Northey of Woodcote house recommended Francis Kentfield for the post with the following reference: "His respectable parents live in Epsom; he is 30 years old, married but no children; he is well educated and understands gardening, and having served his country as a soldier for ten years, qualifies him for this situation". He got the job!

A public cemetery of this type had to cater for all denominations and for all sectors of society. Some land had to remain unconsecrated; some was set aside for Roman Catholics, and later on for Muslims too. Provision also had to be made for the inmates of the Epsom Workhouse. A small section near the Downs Road entrance was reserved as a deep, seventeen feet, mass grave where paupers could be buried. The Board recognized that many could not afford a funeral coach to get to the cemetery and they provided a Shillabier and a harness, to be kept in a shed at the waterworks, that could be hired for five shillings. The borrower had to provide their own horse.

Gypsies have long been associated with Epsom Downs and the Derby meeting, and they have adopted Epsom Cemetery as their burial ground. Their burials are conducted to traditional rites: no soil must be spilt on the coffin when it is placed inside, so the back-fill is steeply built up, and then possessions are placed around it. A family member has to stand at the graveside and watch the soil fall naturally onto the coffin before the grave can be closed. The floral tributes are colourful and families come to tend the graves during race weeks.

There are also some locally well known people buried there such as the Northey family who were Lords of the Manor, the Dorling (publishers and Race Course Officials) and the Langlands (estate agents). Also Police Sergeant Green who was killed in 1919 when Canadian soldiers rioted at Epsom Police Station.

The Bishop of Winchester was invited to consecrate the "protestant" areas and the chapels in June 1871, and shortly afterward the first interment took place. This was Mrs. Elizabeth Dorling, wife of Henry Dorling who was chairman of the Burial Board in its first year and Clerk to the Racecourse. She was also the mother of Mrs. Isabella Beeton, a famous household name. Her grave can be seen today.