St Mary’s Churchyard Information Panel 4 - · PDF fileChurchyard Areas Paths Walls...
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Churchyard Areas Paths Walls Boundary between areas Churchyard marker posts Flight Sergeant Silas Harry Bridge Sergeant Douglas Marsden Flight Engineer Harold Lancaster Private Beatrice Anne Slack Major Francis Burnham Rigby Private T. Walsh The grave of Constantine Politachi How can you help? We are looking for enthusiastic volunteers with a little spare time and energy to help maintain our churchyard. For more information, please contact the church’s website on www.stmarysprestwich.org 1 Church Lane C L O U G H D RIV E St Mary’s Church Church Inn North South West NS3 NS2 NS1 B2 B1 A D1 D2 C C10 C8 C9 C6 C1 C2 C3 F1 F2 C4 C7 C5 C11 Prestwich Clough A St Mary’s Churchyard 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 5 5 6 6 7 7 Ecology For just 3 hectares, this churchyard has a surprising range of habitats. There is the short turf around the Church with plants such as sheep sorrel and field wood rush and the array of autumn fungi which includes waxcaps, fly agaric and golden spindle. Then there are the old boundary walls where black and maidenhair spleenwort ferns have colonised old mortar. In the lower graveyards is a mosaic of rosebay willowherb and false oat grass, bracken and bramble, indicators of the battle between man and nature as these early pioneer species take the first step to turning the graveyard into woodland. Under the beech, lime and sycamore along the boundaries the heavier shade has enabled woodland species such as bluebell and wood avens to become established, whilst the current burial area is now oak and birch woodland. The proximity to Prestwich Clough also means many woodland bird species can be seen including song thrush, woodpecker and nuthatch as well as common garden species such as robin, blue tit, blackbird and chaffinch. Organised bat walks, whilst failing to prove any bats are roosting in the crypts, have shown the site to be a popular feeding area at night for pipistrelles. War Graves In this churchyard, there are 29 tombstones from the First World War, and 19 from the Second World War. It was the policy of the CWGC to bury all those killed in war in cemeteries near to where they fell. Any servicemen who died at home were buried by the CWGC in the churchyard beneath a distinctive white headstone. There are many family graves with commemorative inscriptions recording service personnel killed in war. In total, this churchyard has over 100 names of those who served and are remembered in these two ways. The War Graves in this area include those of Flight Sergeant Silas Harry Bridge and Sergeant Douglas Marsden, both killed in 1942, while Flight Engineer Harold Lancaster was killed a year later. Another casualty from the Second World War is a woman, Private Beatrice Anne Slack of the Auxiliary Territorial Service. She was in the Pay Corps and died of cancer at the age of 42. During the war, Beatrice who was born in Salford, was part of the fire watch stationed at the top of tall buildings, looking out for incendiary bombs. Two casualties from the First World War are Major Francis Burnham Rigby of the Royal Air Force who died on 25th Sept. 1918, aged 35 years. The second grave in this area is of Private T. Walsh of the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers who died of his wounds on 21st May 1920, aged 35. The grave of Constantine Politachi and family This headstone from 1914 is an example of the varied types of monuments that were common at this time. It has a battered granite base with a marble statue of a woman with flowing hair and long cloak resting against a cross, which rises from a plinth with a wreath on a corner. 2 3 4 5 6 7 YOU ARE HERE Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Waxcap Beech Tree Saplin
Transcript of St Mary’s Churchyard Information Panel 4 - · PDF fileChurchyard Areas Paths Walls...
Churchyard AreasPathsWallsBoundary between areasChurchyard marker posts
Flight Sergeant Silas Harry BridgeSergeant Douglas MarsdenFlight Engineer Harold LancasterPrivate Beatrice Anne Slack
Major Francis Burnham RigbyPrivate T. WalshThe grave of Constantine Politachi
How can you help?We are looking for enthusiastic volunteers with a little spare time and energy to help maintain our churchyard. For more information, please contact the church’s website on www.stmarysprestwich.org
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Church Lane
CLO
UGH
DRIVE
St Mary’sChurch
Church Inn
North
SouthWest
NS3NS2
NS1
B2 B1
A
D1D2
C
C10C8
C9C6 C1
C2
C3 F1 F2C4C7
C5
C11
Prestwich Clough
A
St Mary’s Churchyard
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EcologyFor just 3 hectares, this churchyard has a surprising range of habitats.
There is the short turf around the Church with plants such as sheep sorrel and field wood rush and the array of autumn fungi which
includes waxcaps, fly agaric and golden spindle.
Then there are the old boundary walls where black and maidenhair spleenwort ferns have colonised old mortar.
In the lower graveyards is a mosaic of rosebay willowherb and false oat grass, bracken and bramble, indicators of the battle between
man and nature as these early pioneer species take the first step to turning the graveyard into woodland.
Under the beech, lime and sycamore along the boundaries the heavier shade has enabled woodland species such as bluebell and
wood avens to become established, whilst the current burial area is now oak and birch woodland.
The proximity to Prestwich Clough also means many woodland bird species can be seen including song thrush, woodpecker and
nuthatch as well as common garden species such as robin, blue tit, blackbird and chaffinch.
Organised bat walks, whilst failing to prove any bats are roosting in the crypts, have shown the site to be a popular feeding area at
night for pipistrelles.
War GravesIn this churchyard, there are 29 tombstones from the First World War, and 19 from the Second World War. It was the policy of the CWGC to bury all those killed in war in cemeteries near to where they fell. Any servicemen who died at home were buried by the CWGC in the churchyard beneath a distinctive white headstone. There are many family graves with commemorative inscriptions recording service personnel killed in war. In total, this churchyard has over 100 names of those who served and are remembered in these two ways.
The War Graves in this area include those of Flight Sergeant Silas Harry Bridge and Sergeant Douglas Marsden, both killed in 1942, while Flight Engineer Harold Lancaster was killed a year later. Another casualty from the Second World War is a woman, Private Beatrice Anne Slack of the Auxiliary Territorial Service. She was in the Pay Corps and died of cancer at the age of 42. During the war, Beatrice who was born in Salford, was part of the fire watch stationed at the top of tall buildings, looking out for incendiary bombs.
Two casualties from the First World War are Major Francis Burnham Rigby of the Royal Air Force who died on 25th Sept. 1918, aged 35 years. The second grave in this area is of Private T. Walsh of theRoyal Inniskilling Fusiliers who died of his wounds on 21st May1920, aged 35.
The grave of Constantine Politachi and familyThis headstone from 1914 is an example of the varied types of monuments that were common at this time. It has a battered granite base with a marble statue of a woman with flowing hair and long cloak resting against a cross, which rises from a plinth with a wreath on a corner.
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YOU ARE HERE
Lesser Spotted Woodpecker
Waxcap
Beech Tree Saplin
