Ford Park Cemetery Trust Newsletter 2020
Greetings from all at Ford Park Cemetery Trust. We wish you all a happy, healthy and prosperous New Year. 2020 marks a special date in the history of our cemetery Monday 27th April 2020 sees the 20th Anniversary of Ford Park Cemetery Trust, formed after twelve months of petitioning the city council in 1999 to save the cemetery from being permanently closed. Two of the original petitioners, John Clamp, now our present Chair, and Jeannie Northey, are still members of the Trust’s Board and are very active in the running of Ford Park Cemetery. We will be starting our celebration with a service of re-dedication in the Chapel at 2pm. The Craft Club are in the process of making a new altar cloth, which it is hoped will be ready in time to be used at this service.
A 20th Anniversary is represented by China and after the service, at 3pm, there will be an afternoon tea party in the Visitors Centre, provided by the Friends of Ford Park Cemetery.
“Light up a candle for our cemetery” After this, candles will be placed from the Chapel all the way down the Processional Drive to the lodge gates. You are invited to join us for this ceremony and purchase an electric tea light at the cost of £1 to commemorate a loved one. If you are unable to place the candle yourself members of the Friends and Trust will do so on your behalf.
There will also be a Memorial book for all those who have participated to sign as a remembrance of this special day.
GROUNDS MAINTENANCE New Grounds Consultant Brian Palmer has joined the staff at the cemetery to provide expert advice and review of the maintenance of the grounds, initially working two mornings a week. His many years’ experience of working with Plymouth City Council cemeteries will be invaluable in keeping the cemetery in a good state, identifying any improvements. The condition of the cemetery is vital to ensure that people continue to use our burial services and to provide a respectful place for those buried here. The Trustees are delighted that Brian has joined us. A new grass cutter purchased this year with the help of the Friends has improved access to the graves and made life a little easier for our hard working grounds staff. The roses and memorial garden are maintained by volunteers Tracey and her partner Alan. We think you’ll agree that their knowledge and dedication have made a huge difference to these areas and we regularly receive compliments. A big thank you to Tracey, Alan and long standing volunteers Helen and Elaine who do their best to keep other areas under control. If you have an interest in the outdoors and would like to help in the grounds please let the office know. We are also grateful to various local businesses who allow their staff paid time off for a day to come and help. If you know of a company that operates such a scheme please suggest us.
HERITAGE HIGHLIGHTS Guided walks are held in conjunction with the exhibitions and one of these provided an unexpected outcome. On the 6th October 2019, the Heritage Team held a public walk to coincide with their Devonport Exhibition. Two visitors from Australia asked about tracing family buried in Plymouth. Just before the walk, three names they were keen to find were checked on the Ford Park burial database without success. On their list was another name, Albert Joseph Vickers, the lady’s great grandfather. The details matched those on the burial data base. Off they went to search and returned a short while later unable to find the grave. The guided walk route was due to pass close to the area and we offered to help them look when we arrived. The Australian couple joined the walk. Just as we were approaching their search area they found the grave. Not only did it have a headstone, it also contained names of other members of the family. Unfortunately, we don’t have the names of the Australian couple but remember their excitement at the discovery. They had no idea where the family were buried in Plymouth and didn’t think they ever would. Having seen the publicity about the Devonport walk, they decided it would be interesting. And they were so right! Members of the Heritage Team regularly receive requests to assist with family history research or for information about particular graves. One of these came from Germany, from a distant relative of John Paige Bailey, a midshipman on HMS Africa during the battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Amazingly he left a detailed written account of the battle. His grave was located and, where relevant, we will be able to tell his story during our walks.
SPECIAL VISITORS All our visitors are special of course but there was great excitement when we discovered that the cemetery was to be featured in” Who Do You Think You Are?” and much speculation about who the mystery celebrity would be. When secret filming took place on a beautiful spring day it was revealed to be Kate Winslet, whose great great great grandfather is buried in our cemetery. The resulting programme was shown on BBC One in August. Another special visitor, Louie French, has been visiting the cemetery with his mother Lisa since he was three years old and is especially interested in the war graves. His particular favourite is that of Reginald Eric Lucy who was wounded at Neuve Chapelle and died in March 1915 at the age of 21. After being interviewed by BBC Spotlight at the Remembrance Day service on the Hoe, Louie laid his own memorial at Lieutenant Lucy’s grave - a camel, as Lieut Lucy had received camel training in Egypt. Rod Pickles gave Louie and his mum a guided walk around the cemetery on 17th November. Pat Procter made him a special cake and Steve from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) left a badge for him. Vivien Warne also presented Louie with a history of Lieut Lucy and his family.
WORLD WAR 1 RESEARCH PROJECT The WW1 Project is in its penultimate year, During the past six years of this project we have researched the lives and prepared detailed biographies of more than 770 WWI Commonwealth War Graves. During that time we have also found over 100 family graves which make mention of those who never returned and are buried elsewhere, and, where possible, these have been researched and added to the files which are available for the public to view in the Visitor Centre. This outstanding piece of work by Margery Payne and Vivien Warne, members of the Heritage team, has also led to graves and memorials being found of which CWGC had no knowledge and which can now be added to their database, as well as ensuring that the lives and stories of these young men and women are not forgotten.
Please Help! Volunteers Required for Composting Scheme Our picturesque Cemetery is 34.5 acres of open space in the heart of Plymouth. As you can imagine we accumulate vast quantities of green waste, whether it be grass cuttings, cut flowers, brambles or weeds. In this day and age we are all very conscious of how precious our environment is and so we would like to do our bit by using a small unused part of our cemetery and turning it into a composting site. The long term aim would be to sell bags of compost at minimal cost to the general public for their gardens and allotments as well as using it ourselves to improve the grounds where possible. As we’re a Charitable Trust we rely on all sources of income. So the small income we generate through this project will go towards the upkeep of the Cemetery and of course will help the environment as well. It will also help us to save on the costs we currently have to pay to have the waste removed – a double benefit! This is a new adventure so we will need a guiding hand from experienced composters to advise on the practicalities of such a scheme. Perhaps you can think of other ways we can use our physical resources to raise money and help the environment too! If the scheme is viable we will then be looking to recruit a group of volunteers to come in and help to gather the waste from different parts of the cemetery. If you have relevant experience and would like to help us with this please contact to office on 01752 665442 or e-mail into trustees@ford-park-cemetery.org
THE WREATH MAKERS This year has seen a record profit of £2,600 passed to the Friends. Maggie Heath, the Co-ordinator, wishes to express her thanks and gratitude to all the helpers, who worked in appalling weather conditions of rain, and gale force winds. A special thank you needs to given for the help received from the 9th/21st Plymouth Scout Troop for lending us one of their marquees, to use for cold storage. Without it life would have been extremely difficult.
THE CRAFT CLUB The Craft Club, which was started two years ago on 11th October 2017 has had a very successful year and donated £1200 on top of money raised in our Fayres, to the Friends. Everyone is welcome to join the club, which meets every Wednesday, 11 to 2.30pm in the Visitor Centre, except if a Wake is being held, when it will be in the Northey Room. There have been various skills shared, which include, glass painting, flower arranging and of course wreath making. All are welcome, there is no charge and light refreshments are available. Come and knit and natter! If you require any further information Maggie Heath is the Co-ordinator and her mobile number is: 07779570308, or contact the office: 01752 665442. Both the Craft Club and the Wreath Makers were able to attend a thank you Christmas Party on the 8th January 2020. We also included our famous Cake Makers, as a thank you for all their hard work throughout the year, and they were told DO NOT BRING A CAKE!
VISITOR CENTRE The Visitor Centre now stocks a range of jams and chutneys from Cherry Tree Preserves, a Westcountry supplier based in Dorset. We have some recipe suggestions too! The Centre is now closed for the winter but will re-open on Saturday 28th March when the first exhibition will be the History of Ford Park Cemetery. It is available to book for wakes and other events – contact the office for details.
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The Carol Service was as usual well attended, with musical accompaniment provided by the Burraton Boys. Mulled wine and a festive spread were enjoyed in the Visitor Centre after the service. Our Spring, Summer and Christmas Fayres proved as popular as ever. A variety of stalls catered for all tastes, raising in total £3,176.99. The bric-a-brac table in the lobby continues to provide a source of income – so far it has raised £5,953.52 Do you enjoy doing jigsaws? Did you know we have a puzzle club? By paying a £1 joining fee you can bring and swap jigsaws in the Visitor Centre.
A comment from our visitors’ book in July: “Warm sunny day. Many butterflies and other invertebrates flitting and buzzing amongst the tall grasses and wildflowers, including at least a dozen marbled white butterflies. The beauty made me cry! This paradise on earth can only enhance the burial sites. Thank you to the gardeners, other workers, volunteers and the visionaries who re-created this habitat for wildlife and people alike.”
Our first event of the year -
is the Soup and Sweet Lunch which proved very popular last year. It will be held on Saturday 15 February. Tickets, priced at £6, are available from the office. th