Entrance to St James Cemetery Gardens

Image: © Sue Adair Taken: 8 Mar 2007

St James Cemetery Gardens is a wonderful, peaceful place in the shadow of the great cathedral. Originally a 16th century quarry from which stone was used in the construction of the Town Hall, dock gates and other public buildings. The hill itself was known as Mount Zion and was a popular place to walk as it offered spectacular views of the river, Welsh mountains and growing town. By 1825 the useful stone from the quarry had been exhausted and it was left to the town council to decide what was to be done with this huge scar. The corporation raised nearly £20,000 by public subscription and employed the young architect John Foster (1786 - 1846) to design and lay out a cemetery along the same lines of the Pere-la-Chaise, Paris. Burials continued in the cemetery until July 1936, when, after 57,774 burials, the old cemetery was considered full and in the years after that it was left overgrown and it became overgrown and derelict. In the late 1960's it was proposed to turn St James Cemetery into a public garden which involved clearing the vast majority of the gravestones and creating an open space. More fascinating information on www.stjamescemetery.co.uk

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