This lancet with its still-clear ivy motif marks a grave with two small and only children, and a husband and wife whose bond remained beyond death and remarriage. Sally Haigh was born in the summer of 1845 to James and Ann (Dyson) Haigh of Walsden and was baptised at Walsden St. Peter’s in September of …
Read more “53.64 – Mary Ann, Rachel Alice and John Howorth, and Sally Hollinrake”
All records spell it Akroyd, their grave reads Ackroyd. Rather than waste time arguing about it let’s find out more about the people in this grave. One, at least, has a great number of records behind him, because he rose through the ranks of the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway. But was he as respectable as …
A lot of people are remembered on this stone, although they aren’t all buried here – at least one is at rest over the pond. Abraham Crossley, the patriarch of this grave, might be a familiar name to you already. Fast forward and he was one of the two men killed when a fireplace they …
Read more “56.44 – Abraham, Susan and John Crossley, and Susan, Mary, Sutcliffe and Willie Mitchell”
This musical family rests under a walkway, and there’s a mystery contained therein too – we think we know who Sarah is, but because there’s no formal transcript, there’s currently no way to be 100% sure, Lord Halstead – what a name! – was born in 1836 in Heptonstall to John and Mary (Lord) Halstead. …
Read more “SA.1 – Sarah, Susy, Tom, Lord and Jamie Halstead”
“Thy Will Be Done” is seen on many stones here, but sometimes the line hits a little harder. This would have been a hard line to have engraved if it had been done at the beginning of the inscription. It would have been an even harder one to engrave after the last person we believe …
Read more “31.32 – Sabina, James Holland, Sarah and Henry Flint”
Henry was one of the children of James and Alice Sefton, buried under the school; he caught our attention because when he grew up and married, he named several of his children after siblings who had died when young. It touched us, so we wanted to learn more about him. His story is a sad …
Read more “20.19 – Henry, Norah, Edward, Mary and Alice Sefton, and John Holt”
In our post about the Sefton/Scriven family, we asked the question: who’s John Stott? He’s named on the 1980 transcript as being buried here, but we have a photo of their gravestone, and he isn’t on it. Well, the Seftons are at S4.7…and at S5.7, we found Mary Ann, Henry Whittaker and Rosa Ann Stott. …
Read more “S5.7 – John, Mary Ann, Henry Whittaker and Rosa Ann Stott”
We always get intrigued when we see different surnames in a grave – and, of course, as this stone is under the school, there’s no inscription we can see which might offer a clue as to family relationships. The answer to this particular mystery is “the usual one” – a child born out of wedlock …
Read more “S7.2 – Samuel Wood and John Greenwood, Susannah, John Willie and Law Southwell”
As of August 2023, Samuel is our first possible murder victim. Is that enough to get your attention? Samuel Butterworth was born in either 1799 or 1800 to Thomas and Sally Butterworth of Nip-Square, Walsden. Because of the dates in which this family lived, there aren’t as many primary sources of information, so we have …
This grave tells a very interesting story – one of definite grief and confusion, and one of possible suicide or a corporate cover-up. The reader will have to decide. You can find it next to the cedar growing out of the middle of the lower half of the graveyard next to the informal path. Jane …