Due to the rather unpredictable weather, we decided, on the spur of the moment, to visit Handsworth Cemetery, Sheffield, in order to locate the graves of Daniel JACKLIN 1862-1953 and Ziller JACKLIN (née Ziller ALLEN) 1858-1949.
Finding the cemetery was an achievment in itself. Trying to navigate and search for a cemetery even through Sunday traffic, meant a few wasted trips up and down the busy Handsworth Road. That is until I realised the entrance is off Orgreave Lane.
The only clue I had to the location of the grave was the grave number. The Sheffield City Council website appears to be down so I could not get a plan in advance. There was a basic plan at the entrance to the cemetery and it was easy enough to find the correct section. It would appear the lower side of the cemetery has been 're-organised', by which I mean the headstones appear to have been made safe, re-aligned and any superfluous masonary removed. I checked the section several times and re-checked the cemetery plan several times, but all to no avail. A JACKLIN headstone could not be found. I will try and obtain more information, then I will return and try again.
The top side of the cemetery is in a very sorry state with a high percentage of headstones being laid flat for safety reasons; take this to mean Sheffield City Council's lack of commitment as the custodians of our heritage.
Notes:
- A rather ironic title from the Health and Safety Executive: Live issues - message regarding safety of cemetary (sic) memorials - FAQs
- Sheffield City Council: Survey of Cemetery Memorials
I wonder how many people died tripping, slipping or falling due to uneven pavements...
2015-03-30 Both of these links are now redundant.
Updates:
2015-03-30
Sheffield City Council: Cemetery Opening Times.
Sheffield City Council: Cemetery Plans.
Sheffield City Council: Plan of Handsworth Cemetery (Download a Microsoft Word document).
