Mill Road Cemetery

Mill Road Cemetery. . , The History of the Cemetery , By the early nineteenth century the churchyards of Cambridge were full and could not be extended in the built-up city centre. The site for Mill Road Cemetery was purchased by public subscription to provide new parochial burial grounds outside the city centre (see the plan for the parish plots). It was laid out with paths and gates, and in 1848 it was consecrated by the Bishop of Ely., Andrew Murray designed the cemetery and imported some plants from the University Botanic Garden, where he was Curator. In the centre of the cemetery there was a circular area for a mortuary chapel when funds allowed. Formal cross paths connected this central circle to a meandering path around the edge of the cemetery. All the plots in the cemetery were full by 1949. It is closed for burials except for family graves with space, but is still consecrated. It remains in the ownership of the parishes, and the City Council maintains it., People from all walks of life, from both town and the university, are buried here, as well as servicemen in war graves and family graves., Art in the Cemetery , A set of seven sculptures designed by the artist Gordon Young and commissioned by Cambridge City Council were installed in 2014. Each sculpture celebrates a different bird species that inhabits the cemetery, and their positions are shown by this symbol., The Chapel , The chapel was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott and was completed in 1858. Surrounded by trees and graves, the chapel looked like a parish church in its churchyard. It became redundant when the cemetery closed and was demolished in 1954, but its outline remains., The Cemetery as a Green Space , The early planting in the cemetery was of sombre coniferous trees. Twenty years later, deciduous trees, ornamental shrubs and yew trees were added. Many of the cemetery's fine trees date from these early plantings. The lime avenue and hedge along the avenue were planted in 1874., The cemetery is a City Wildlife Site, managed to provide a variety of habitats., Ownership and Management , The land is owned by the parish clergy, managed by the Parochial Burial Grounds Management Committee and maintained by Cambridge Cry Council.