St Pancras Gardens - Pancras Road, London, UK
N 51° 32.105 W 000° 07.881
30U E 698949 N 5713231
This inauguration stone signifies the opening of St Pancras Gardens after its conversion from a churchyard. With the coming of the railway the churchyard land was needed for the track so the headstones, tombs and bodies were removed.
Waymark Code: WMFBRF
Location: London, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 09/25/2012
Views: 3
The stone, that is fixed in to the southern wall of the
gardeners cottage reads:
Vestry of St Pancras County of
London
St Pancras Gardens
Completed by arrangement with the Midland
Railway Company
1890 - 91
Inaugurated on the 15th day of July
1891
by
Nathan Robinson L.C.C. - Churchwarden
Frederick Purchese -
Churchwarden
Joseph Thornley - Chairman (Highways, Sewers and Public Works
Committee)
Thomas Bentley Weatacott - L.C.C. Chairman
Parliamentary and
General Purposes Committee
Eccleston Gibb - Vestry Clerk
William Booth
Scott - Memb Inst Civil Engineers
Chief Surveyor to the
Vestry
The layout of the names has been changed slightly from the
original.
The Camden Council website [visit
link] tells us about the gardens:
"Close behind the modern extention of Kings Cross and St
Pancras stations lies St Pancras’ Gardens, in which stands St Pancras Old Church
one of the oldest sites of Christian worship in Europe.
The gardens replaced the original churchyard and
incorporated the burial ground of St Giles-in-the-Fields, Covent Garden. The
original churchyard of St Giles-in-the-Fields is also a public
garden.
There are many interesting features to be found in the
gardens: the extravagant Burdett-Coutts memorial sundial which has been
restored; nearby, "the English Bach", Johann Christian, youngest son of J.S.
Bach was buried in 1782; the famous memorial to Sir John Soane’s wife, the
design of which inspired the classic ‘K2’ red telephone box.
Behind the church is a tree which has grown over and
among the gravestones, which were propped up against the memorial when the
gardens were laid out. Stone and wood are now fused
together."