St James's Cemetery is an

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 ...

behind

Liverpool Cathedral Liverpool Cathedral is a Church of England cathedral in the city of Liverpool, England. It is the seat of the bishop of Liverpool and is the mother church of the Anglican Diocese of Liverpool, diocese of Liverpool. The church may be formally re ...

that is below ground level. Until 1825, the space was a stone quarry, and until 1936 it was used as the

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

city cemetery. It has been designated a Grade I Historic Park by

Historic England Historic England (officially the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England) is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked with prot ...

History

The workings and operation of the cemetery predate the Cathedral to which it does not belong. The Cathedral, which began construction in 1903, occupies most of rock outcrop above the cemetery known as St James Mount (also known as Quarry Hill or Mount Zion) that in 1771 was established as Liverpool's first public park. The cemetery has two entrances which are always open. At the north side a stone path lined with recycled grave stones descends through a short tunnel between

The Oratory The Oratory stands to the north of Liverpool Anglican Cathedral in Merseyside, England. It was originally the mortuary chapel to St James Cemetery, and houses a collection of 19th-century sculpture and important funeral monuments as part of the ...

and the main entrance of the cathedral. The southern entrance near Upper Parliament street is through a stone arch between the Garden Lodge and the steps up to the Mount. Notable features include the Huskisson memorial, a natural spring and a system of broad ramps lined with catacombs. There is no access from Hope Street.

Quarry

The original stone quarry began operation in the 16th century. The tunnel workings (most of which are blocked) probably happened in the 18th century. In 1773 the quarry workers discovered a

chalybeate spring Chalybeate () waters, also known as ferruginous waters, are mineral spring waters containing salts of iron. Name The word ''chalybeate'' is derived from the Latin word for steel, , which follows from the Greek word . is the singular form ...

, which still flows today. There were

windmill A windmill is a machine operated by the force of wind acting on vanes or sails to mill grain (gristmills), pump water, generate electricity, or drive other machinery. Windmills were used throughout the high medieval and early modern period ...

s in operation at the edge of the quarry until the 1820s. The quarry was exhausted in 1825.

Cemetery

In 1826 the young architect

John Foster Jr John Foster may refer to: 15th/16th/17th-century politicians * John Foster (MP for Bristol), 15th-century MP for Bristol * John Foster (died 1576), Member of Parliament for Winchester, Plympton Erle and Hindon * John Foster (by 1508-47/51), ...

was commissioned to design and lay out a cemetery along the same lines as

Père Lachaise Cemetery Père Lachaise Cemetery (, , formerly , ) is the largest cemetery in Paris, France, at . With more than 3.5 million visitors annually, it is the most visited necropolis in the world. Buried at Père Lachaise are many famous figures in the ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

with £20,000 raised by public subscription.

Oratory

On the high ground at the north, Foster built the windowless "Oratory" in the style of

Greek Revival architecture Greek Revival architecture is a architectural style, style that began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe, the United States, and Canada, ...

to accommodate funeral services before burials took place in the cemetery. The building today, which is infrequently open to the public, contains a number of the monumental statues recovered from the cemetery. A bronze sculpture by

Tracey Emin Dame Tracey Karima Emin (; born 3 July 1963) is an English artist known for autobiographical and confessional artwork. She produces work in a variety of media including drawing, painting, sculpture, film, photography, Neon lighting, neon text ...

stands in front of the building and is visible through the gates. There was also a house for the minister, of which there is no trace, on the site of the cathedral.

Garden Lodge

To the south, Foster built a monumental arch and porter's lodge out of the same stone. After years of being used as a property of the council for its workmen, it was refurbished into a private home in 1997.

Burial grounds

The cemetery was closed in 1936 after 57,774 burials and subsequently fell into a state of disrepair. The monument above where

William Huskisson William Huskisson (11 March 177015 September 1830) was a British statesman, financier, and Member of Parliament for several constituencies, including Liverpool. He is commonly known as the world's first widely reported railway passenger ca ...

is buried stands near the spring. A

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

holder, Sergeant

Arthur Herbert Lindsay Richardson Arthur Herbert Lindsay Richardson VC (23 September 1872 – 15 December 1932) was an England-born Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to Br ...

(1872–1932), was buried here. He also has a memorial in the grounds of the

Park

The project to turn the cemetery into a park was completed by 1972 after clearing the vast majority of gravestones.

References

External links

* * {{Cemeteries in England Liverpool Anglican Cathedral Cemeteries in Liverpool Anglican cemeteries in the United Kingdom Grade I listed cemeteries Grade I listed parks and gardens in Merseyside 1829 establishments in England