Could the person who planted this tree have imagined how big it would grow? Or perhaps it wasn’t planted but had self seeded and then grown to enormous proportions. This tree has quite literally burst open the grave.
This is the grave of William Rickard Burn who lies alone in a privately purchased plot, surmounted by an attractive kerbstone memorial complete with elegant art deco headstone.
William Rickard Burn was born in Tavistock in about 1857 the son of John Burn, a copper miner, and his wife Mary. William married Lavinia Cross in 1880 and the couple would go on to have a family of seven children.
By 1901 the family had arrived in Swindon and were living at 2 Cambria Bridge Road, but by 1911 something had gone awry. Lavinia was living in Bristol. That year she filled in the census form including the names of her seven children, but later crossed it through. Someone in officialdom had also edited the details with a the stroke of a red pen. Meanwhile, William was lodging in Swindon with his two youngest sons, Charles 14 and John 12. What had happened?
Lavinia died in 1927 aged 70. Her death was registered in the Devizes area. Where was she living at that time? Could she have been a patient at the Wiltshire County Mental Hospital? Further research is required.
William died on April 2, 1936 aged 79 years. He is buried alone in grave plot D442.
Radnor Street Cemetery 