First impressions

The re-imagined story …

There was a lot of talk in the workshop about the new cemetery. We had a vested interest as undertakers, and wondered at the choice of location.

“Makes you wonder why the Local Board settled on that piece of land.”

“Must have been something to be made out of it for one of them.”

“It belonged to Mr. Hinton.”

“Enough said.”

“Which gate will be the usual entrance?”

The new cemetery was situated in the middle of Kingshill with an approach by four entrances at Dixon Street, Clifton Street, Radnor Street and Kent Road.

“I’m assuming it will be the Radnor Street one. That’s going to be quite a climb with a handbier.”

“Kent Road might be a better option.”

“Which ever way you approach from New Town there’s going to be a hill to climb.”

“Has anyone been to have a look?”

“It’s one big building site up there at the moment. There’s work going on in all the surrounding streets. I pity anyone who has to bury a loved one during the next few weeks.”

Little did we know we would be burying our own governor, Mr Edward Hemmings, just five days later.

The facts …

Edward Hemmings, a carpenter, joiner and undertaker, was born in Charlton Kings, Cheltenham. He and his wife Eliza lived in London between 1851 and 1861 and moved to Fleet Street, Swindon in the mid-1860s.

By 1871 he had a business at 43 Fleet Street and ten years later they were living and working at 22A Fleet Street. This may have been the original property, renumbered as building work continued in that area.

Following her husband’s death Eliza placed an announcement in the Swindon Advertiser.

Mrs Hemmings, of 22, Fleet Street, New Swindon, begs to inform the inhabitants of Swindon and the neighbourhood that she intends carrying on the business of her late husband Edward Hemmings, Builder, Carpenter, and Undertaker, and trusts to meet with the same liberal support bestowed upon him during the past 15 years.

Six years later the following announcement appeared in the Swindon Advertiser.

22 Fleet St New Swindon

Fredk. Hemmings

Builder, carpenter, & Undertaker

Begs respectfully to inform the inhabitants of Swindon and neighbourhood that he intends carrying on the business of his later Brother Edward Hemmings, who preceded him as above so successfully for many years.

F.H. begs to remind them that the same earnest attention to business, and care in the execution of all orders entrusted to him, will be paid, and that there shall be nothing wanting on his part to give the same satisfaction as heretofore.

Funerals Economically Conducted.

Estimates given for all Work connected with the Building Trade.

The Swindon Advertiser, Saturday March 11, 1882.

Edward was buried in plot A137 on August 11, 1881, the fifth burial to take place in the new cemetery. He was buried in a public or pauper’s grave where he lay alone for more than twenty years. In 1904 a child by the name of Frank Batt was buried with him.

Skerten family undertakers

The Skerten family of undertakers had a presence in Swindon for more than 75 years. For most of that time they were busy in Radnor Street cemetery and the early burial registers reveal the many funerals they performed there.

Carpenter and joiner Richard Skerten married Ann Brown at St Paul’s Church, Bristol in 1844 and by 1851 they had moved to Swindon and a home at 32 Reading Street with their three young daughters.

By 1871 Richard was established as both a joiner and an undertaker but his business very nearly came to an end when a disastrous fire totally destroyed his Regent Street workshops. It happened on Friday June 15, 1877 when it was believed the heat of the sun ignited oils in the workshop. Neither the buildings, the stock-in-trade nor the workmen’s tools were insured.

However, Richard re-established his business at 1 Queen Street where his wife Ann and younger son Richard continued to run the family firm after his death in 1886.

Meanwhile, by 1881 elder son Arthur had established his own business at 5 King Street. On April 29, 1887 Arthur had the sad task of burying his twin baby sons Richard and Joseph just 3 and 4 days old respectively. Perhaps surprisingly the babies were buried in a public plot with three others – burial conventions were different then.

Probably the most extraordinary funeral Richard Skerten junior arranged was that of gipsy patriarch Timothy Buckland. For about a month the terminally ill Timothy camped in a field near the Wharf, Drove Road with some nine other vans and tents and 50 members of his family.

According to the Swindon Advertiser the funeral attracted several thousand spectators to the churchyard at Christ Church.

For the funeral the arrangements were placed in the hands of Mr Richard Skerten, undertaker, of New Swindon, and a hearse and eleven mourning coaches were engaged, the adult members of the family occupying the latter. The coffin was of French polished oak, with brass fittings, and bore the simple inscription on a brass plate “Timothy Buckland, died 8^th Nov. 1890, aged 70 years.

Extract from the Swindon Advertiser, Saturday Nov 15, 1890.

When their time came all three Skerten undertakers were buried in Radnor Street Cemetery, which seems very fitting.

Richard Skerten senior was buried on May 20, 1886 in grave plot E8434 where he was joined by his wife Ann who died in 1902.

His son Richard was buried on December 11, 1911 in grave plot D1319 where his wife Ann joined him in 1936. Buried with them is their son-in-law Leslie Ernest Adams, their daughter Annie Amelia’s husband, who died at 1 Queen Street in October 1959.

Arthur Skerten was buried on February 9, 1934 in grave plot C1785 joining his 12 year old daughter Isabella May who died in 1907 and his wife Betsy who died in 1930.

When funerals were big business

The new Swindon Cemetery opened in August 1881 and by the end of that year 94 funerals had taken place.

The first burial was that of Frederick Gore whose funeral was furnished by Richard Skerten. With premises at 1 Queen Street, New Swindon, Richard Skerten was a Joiner and Undertaker employing three men and one boy in 1881. His son Arthur, based at nearby 5 King Street, was also a carpenter, joiner and undertaker (these occupations frequently went hand in hand.)

Edward Hemmings at 22a Fleet Street looked set to be busy with the opening of the new cemetery until his own unfortunate demise when he became the 5th person to be buried there in August 1881. His brother Frederick took over the business in 1882 and makes a regular appearance in the registers thereafter.

Probably the undertaker most associated with Radnor Street Cemetery is Henry Smith and the family business he established. Omnipresent in the cemetery from the 1880s and throughout the 20th century, the firm of A.E. Smith continues in business to this day with premises at Queens Drive, Swindon.

And then there were Memorial Cards and mourning attire and monuments and memorials and yes, there was a Swindon business to provide all of these services.

Ethel Mary Franklin – undertaker’s daughter

And this week I have received another old cemetery photograph taken at the funeral of Ethel Mary Franklin in 1925 – a beautiful display of floral tributes with the cemetery chapel in the background.

Ethel Mary was born in 1882, the seventh child of Henry Smith and his wife Emma. At the time of the 1891 census Henry was living at 12 Sanford Street with his large family. He would soon leave his job in the GWR Works and set up in business as a carpenter and undertaker. By 1901 he was living in Gordon Road where the firm of A.E. Smith had their premises for more than 50 years.

Ethel appears on the census of that year as an 18 year old pupil teacher. By 1911 she was 28 years old and living with her parents, her sister, her nephew and an elderly, widowed aunt, at 1 Clifton Street. Ethel was working as a school teacher at one of the Swindon Board Schools.

On April 26, 1913 she married railway clerk Arthur Henry Franklin at the Wesley Chapel, Faringdon Road. A daughter named Ruth Gertrude, was born in September the following year and a son Eric Sutton in 1919.

Arthur served in the war as a clerk in the Army Corps and returned safely to the family home at Langleigh, Kingshill Road. Ethel, Arthur, Ruth and little Eric settled down for the rest of their lives, but sadly it was not to be a happy ending. Tragedy struck when Ethel was admitted to the Victoria Hospital in 1925. Infection set in when a swab was accidently left inside her during an operation and Ethel died on October 18, 1925. Her funeral took place on October 22 when she was buried in grave plot D189 close to the grave of her parents.

Arthur remarried and when he died in 1954 he was buried with Ethel. Ruth, their daughter who was just 11 years old when her mother died, went on to become a nurse. Their son Eric became first an architect and then served at Dunkirk and Monte Cassino during the Second World War.

This photograph of the floral tributes on Ethel’s grave was sent to me by Steve, who also supplied the Smith family photograph when he attended one of our cemetery walks some years ago.