November 9, 2016 | 2 Comments At the beginning of the nineteenth century, the population of London stood at just under one million. By 1851 it had swollen to almost two and a half million. Increased mechanisation meant less work for agricultural labourers, but also more work in newly built factories in towns and cities across the United Kingdom. Consequently, the predominantly rural population of the eighteenth century rapidly migrated to urban areas to find work. This meant that by the middle of the nineteenth century, London had become a very crowded place indeed. Understandably there were problems accommodating such a rapidly increasing population, and overcrowding was a serious issue. But it was not only the living that were running out of room. Existing graveyards were literally overflowing with the dead! Traditionally, the deceased had been interred in small churchyards dotted around the city. But by the 1840’s, the 200 or so graveyards were so congested that graves were being reused with increasing regularity. Disinterred corpses, or parts thereof, littered churchyards, and fluids and other matter from decomposing cadavers began finding its way into the local water supplies. Needless to say, the city experienced regular outbreaks of diseases such as cholera and typhoid. In 1848-49 a serious cholera epidemic killed over 14,500 people, and merely compounded the problem of overcrowded graveyards. The unburied dead were killing the living, and in so doing further increased the demand for burial space. A Contemporary Depiction of One of London’s Overcrowded Cemeteries Something had to be done. A ring of new large cemeteries, outside of London’s urban area were proposed, and duly adopted by the authorities. Kensal Green Cemetery, to the west of London, and Highgate Cemetery to the north, are two well known examples. These cemeteries were intended for the burial of all of London’s deceased, regardless of wealth or social standing. Nevertheless, the size of plot and enormity of one’s monument, soon became status symbols for well to do Londoners. The famous Victorian engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel, is buried at Kensal Green, and Karl Marx, author of The Communist Manifesto, is interred at Highgate. Kensal Green Cemetery has even been immortalised in poetry. G.K. Chesterton’s poem The Rolling English Road, contains the lines “For there is good news yet to hear and fine things to be seen; Before we go to Paradise by way of Kensal Green.” Although, by the time of his death, Chesterton was living in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, and so was not himself laid to rest at Kensal Green. G K Chesterton However, as London’s population continued to grow, the urban area expanded proportionally, and it became apparent that even these new cemeteries would soon be engulfed by the sprawl of London’s suburbs. A more radical solution would be required. Enter Sir Richard Broun, an entrepreneur and eccentric. Broun proposed the purchase of a 2,000 acre plot of land 23 miles (37 km) to the southwest of London, at Brookwood in Surrey, to serve as a super-cemetery for the dead of the city. Brookwood Cemetery would be far enough from the expanding metropolis, that it would neither present a health hazard, nor be enveloped by future burgeoning developments. Additionally, the price of the land at Brookwood was considerably cheaper than similar sized plots closer to the city, meaning more affordable burials for London’s less well off. The only remaining problem, was how to get the deceased individual, plus his or her grieving friends and relatives, to the graveside. Once again, Broun was the man. He proposed the construction of a small branch line off of the London to Southampton railway. Special trains could thus take the departed and mourners alike, from London’s Waterloo Station, directly to the cemetery. Despite reservations among the more conservative, to the use of the newfangled, noisy, smelly and unreverent trains for such purposes, an Act of Parliament was passed in June 1852, creating The London Necropolis and National Mausoleum Company, later abbreviated to The London Necropolis Company. Interesting Company Logo The rail operator, London & South Western Railway, were concerned that existing passengers might be put off using their services, if they discovered they were sharing trains with the dead. Consequently, Necropolis trains would need to be run to an entirely separate timetable, using dedicated rolling stock. Work was undertaken, a timetable drawn up, and on 7th November 1854, the grounds of Brookwood Cemetery were consecrated. Six days later, the first regular funeral train the world had ever seen, was itself ready to depart. Mourners travelled in first, second or third class compartments, depending on their means, and bizarrely, so did the deceased. One would have though that the degree of comfort and the social standing of the company, would be of little consequence once you are dead. Yet it seems that the British class system extended even beyond this mortal coil! Terminus of The London Necropolis Company Another unusual consequence of the regular funeral train, concerned the golf course that was located next to the cemetery. London based golfers quickly realised that “the stiffs express”, as it soon became known, was the fastest and most convenient way of getting to and from the course. As a result, golfers dressed in mourning wear, and purporting to be acquainted with the departed, frequently made use of the service. Quite what excuse they gave for the presence of their golf clubs, has unfortunately been lost in the mists of time! “If Anyone Asks, He Was One of Your Oldest Friends.” After an encouraging start, things did not go as well as planned for The London Necropolis Company. With the legalisation of cremation in the United Kingdom in 1885, the need for burial space declined steadily. As the popularity of cremation grew, so the demand for inhumations fell away. In 87 years of operation, just over 200,000 burials were conducted at Brookwood Cemetery, equating to around 2,300 per year. The terminus of the London Necropolis Company at Waterloo Station, was badly damaged during an air raid by Germany’s Luftwaffe on 16 April 1941, and was never used again. Although occasional services continued to run from the main terminus at Waterloo, demand was by then so low, that the London Necropolis Company soon ceased operations entirely. The deceased may not have been in need of their services any more, but I expect the golfers were devastated! Sources: http://www.planetslade.com/necropolis-railway1.html https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Necropolis_Railway