On Friday (15 May) a ten strong team of Waitrose volunteers celebrated Global Volunteering Day by donning thick gloves and helping gardeners from Marlborough Gardening Association clear the Old Victorian Cemetery on Marlborough Downs.
A spooky and haunted place, or at least it would feel that way on a dark night with only the moon for company. Beautiful and towering Lebanon cedars casting dark shadows over the moss-clad leaning monolithic Victorian gravestones, many of which date from the early nineteenth century but have been, like the rest of the Cemetery, neglected for many years.
Thankfully Friday’s conditions were just a bit different for the volunteers and they had Mayor-elect Councillor Margaret Rose (the inspiration behind restoring this part of Marlborough’s rich heritage to something approaching its former glory), members of the MGA and Richard Beale’s Estates team to help clear as much of the Cemetery as possible and ward against anything supernatural that might jump out from a dark corner.
As part of Marlborough’s campaign for success and recognition in this year’s Britian in Bloom’ contest the Cemetery is entered into the Royal Horticultural Society’s “In Your Neighbourhood” scheme. This aims to bring members of the community together to clean up and green up the place where they live, work or spend their leisure time.
It was tiring work but very rewarding. A mossy mound was carefully peeled back to reveal a perfectly preserved gravestone recording the sad death of a Victorian Rector’s daughter who died when she was twenty. Sad too was the fate of sixteen years old Mary Jane who died the year before her husband of 65.
This was a fascinating glimpse into Marlborough in Victorian times. Regular clear-up days are planned (weather permitting!) and everyone is welcome to join in.
Mayor-elect Councillor Margaret Rose is the inspiration and driving force behind this project and set out below is her vision for the task in hand:
Friends of the Victorian Cemetery May 1st 2015
As we come to an end of a Mayoral year, I cannot believe that this year has gone so fast from when we first decided to take on the challenge of this old cemetery. At the time, it seemed a daunting project but, we have been quietly making progress in the cemetery, allowing Richard’s team to follow behind us maintaining our progress. We have battled with briars, stinging nettles and couch grass, cleared graves of ivy which were in danger of toppling with the weight, cut down small sapling which could destabilise head stones with their roots. We have burned old fallen branches and cleared around ornamental metal railings allowing the strimmers clear access. We have also used the metal hoops that were left behind from the Richmond Fellowship with Cllr Stewart Dobson positioning them in various parts of the cemetery so we can make our own compost.
We were also lucky to have Kim Wakeham give a talk on the history of the Cemetery and point out the interesting stones bringing old family names to the fore, she has recorded all the stones in this cemetery
Last year we entered the Cemetery in South West in Bloom and it was put to us that it could be entered in its own right as a community based project.
Having discussed the idea with Richard and the group about making a Fox Glove Dell around the Paupers Memorial Stone, he gave me the idea of using beautiful pieces of the old oak tree that collapsed with old age. So, last Sunday, half the foxgloves were planted as the previous Sunday the weather had been so hot and dry it made sense to wait for some rain. We now wait for Richard’s team to place the pieces of tree and also remove and replace the bench which detracts from the Stone.
This Foxglove Dell will blend into to this beautiful environment and hopefully seed from year to year. With our work, the wild flowers, snowdrops, daffodils and primroses have been a joy to behold as has the wild life. Anna Forbes has offered us some bird boxes and we are delighted to accept her kind offer
We need to formalise our group so we can progress and are in a position to apply for grants helping to restore, make safe and preserve this precious heritage.
It only leaves me to thank Richard, our Estates Manager, for his support and guidance and the group who have loyally supported this project with enthusiasm throughout the year.
Councillor Margaret Rose, Mayor-elect
Selection of pics from Friday’s efforts courtesy of Eric Gilbert: (Click on any to enlarge)
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