Putney Old Burial Ground is a public

urban park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens (United Kingdom, UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and oth ...

and former cemetery in the

London Borough of Wandsworth Wandsworth () is a London boroughs, London borough in South West (London sub region), South West London, England. It forms part of Inner London and has an estimated population of 329,677 inhabitants. Its main communities are Battersea, Balham, P ...

near

Putney Putney () is an affluent district in southwest London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth, southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. History Putney is an ...

town centre.

Geography

The park has an area of 0.34ha and can be entered from Upper Richmond road on the north side of the park.

Percy Laurie Brigadier Sir Percy Robert Laurie (5 November 1880 – 16 February 1962) was a British Army and police officer. Biography Laurie was born in Sevenoaks, Kent, and educated at Harrow School. His brother was Sir John Dawson Laurie, 1st Baro ...

House residential building and the

Daley Daley, originally an Irish family name derived from the Gaelic Ó Dálaigh, as a surname, may refer to: People Given name * Daley Blind (born 1990), Dutch footballer * Daley Mena (born 1985), Colombian footballer * Daley Ojuederie (born 1985), p ...

Fitness gym are on the west side, All Saints Liberal Catholic Church and

Putney Arts Theatre Putney Arts Theatre ("PAT") is based in Putney, in the London Borough of Wandsworth and operates as a community space specialising in theatre productions. The Putney Arts Theatre stands in the Union Chapel built by Sir Samuel Morton Peto in th ...

are on the East side, and Nursery close is on the south side. The park is part of the West Putney Conservation Area and the Wandsworth Archaeological Priority Area, it is maintained by Wandsworth Borough Council.

History

The cemetery was established in 1763 on land donated by Revd Roger Pettiward, to provide additional burial space for St Mary's Church. The cemetery closed for burials in 1854 and was converted for use as a public garden which opened in 1886. In 2005 refurbishment work was carried out on railings, seats and paths, in 2008 Wandsworth Borough Council ran a £43,000 project to restore some of the 18th century tombs.

Features and notable burials

The gates and fence at the park entrance are original and made of iron and there is a small mortuary buildling. The 18th century tombs include four which are Grade II listed: the table tomb at the park entrance, the tomb of archaeologist Robert Wood (1717–1771), merchant banker Stratford Canning (1744–1787) and Joseph Lucas (c. 1758–1833). There are also the graves of 18th century novelist Harriet Thomson (c. 1719–1787) made of

coade stone Coade stone or ''Lithodipyra'' or ''Lithodipra'' () is stoneware that was often described as an artificial stone in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It was used for moulding neoclassical architecture, neoclassical statues, a ...

, the grave of

William Leader William Leader (19 October 1767 – 18 January 1828) was a prosperous malt merchant and British Member of Parliament for Camelford and Winchelsea He represented Camelford from 1812 to 1818, and Winchelsea from 1823 to 1826. His father, William L ...

(1767–1828), whose son

John Temple Leader John Temple Leader (7 May 1810 – 1 March 1903) was an English politician and connoisseur. Early life Born at his father's house, Putney Hill Villa, on 7 May 1810, he was the younger son of Mary and William Leader, a London merchant, and Whig M ...

gave land for

Leader's Gardens Leader's Gardens is a public urban park on the banks of the River Thames in the London Borough of Wandsworth, between Putney and Barnes, London, Barnes town centres. Geography The park has an area of 1.267 hectares; there are entrances from ...

park elsewhere in Putney, and the grave of the Rev. Richard St. Aubyn (1807–1849) who was son of Sir John St Aubyn.

Wildlife

The park is a Site of Local Importance for Nature Conservation. The grassland between the graves has wildflowers and there are six mature London plane trees which provide shade for ferns and mosses. Stag Beetles have been recorded in the park

Amenities

There is some seating in the park but there are no public toilets, dogs are not allowed in the park. The nearby

stages open air productions in the park.

Transport

The park is served by

Transport for London Transport for London (TfL) is a local government body responsible for most of the transport network in London, United Kingdom. TfL is the successor organization of the London Passenger Transport Board, which was established in 1933, and His ...

buses 74 and 337 which stop on the Upper Richmond road,

Putney railway station Putney railway station serves Putney in the London Borough of Wandsworth, in southwest London straddling Travelcard zone 2 and zone 3. It is down the line from . The station and all trains serving it are operated by South Western Railway. I ...

(Southwestern Railway) is a 5 minute walk from the park. The

Santander Cycles Santander Cycles (formerly Barclays Cycle Hire) is a public bicycle hire scheme in London in the United Kingdom. The scheme's bicycles have been popularly known as Boris Bikes, after Boris Johnson who was Mayor of London when the scheme began o ...

Putney Rail Station docking station is a 5 minute walk from the park.

References

External links

Wandsworth Borough Council page on the park

Putney Society report on the graves and tombs
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Putney Old Burial Ground Cemeteries in the London Borough of Wandsworth Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Wandsworth 1763 establishments in England Putney