British Cemetery and Cremation Records from Deceased Online

Two of Exeter City's Cemeteries are  Now Available on Deceased Online The first release of  Exeter City Council's  collection includes Exwick and Topsham cemeteries , which are now available to view on  www.deceasedonline.com . The records comprise: computerised burial records section maps showing the approximate location of graves in the cemeteries details of other grave occupants. Topsham Cemetery The incredible memorial in Topsham Cemetery pictured below marks the resting place of Lieutenant Francis Ross, R.N.  Dedicated to his memory by his daughter, the inscription tells of his death aboard HMS  Tremendous  in the victory of 1st June 1794, aged only 35 years old. The Glorious First of June, also known as the Fourth Battle of Ushant, was the first and largest of the naval fleet actions during the French Revolutionary Wars. Throughout May the British fleet had attempted to block the passage through the Atlantic of a convoy taking grain to France. Th...

This week we continue our series looking at epitaphs - those final words that help to immortalize our forebears in cemeteries.    Above: a painting of Eliot by François D'Albert Durade, and her headstone Numerous literary giants can be found in the burial and cremation registers on the  Deceased Online website . One of the famous literary epitaphs is that of George Eliot in Highgate Cemetery , north London: "Of those immortal dead who live again In minds made better by their presence" Here lies the body of "George Eliot" Mary Ann Cross George Eliot   (1819 to 1880),  o ne of the most prominent writers of the Victorian era,  was buried in Highgate East Cemetery. Although she was baptised "Mary-Anne Evans", the novelist's later married name of Mary Ann Cross is inscribed on her headstone below that of her pen-name. Born in Nuneaton, Warwickshire, Eliot left home after her father's death in 1849, and after travelling in Europe, she settled in Lond...

This week we look at the last words that remember our ancestors by examining epitaphs in burial grounds.  The grave of In Loving Memory of Alice Freestone in Alby (St Ethelbert) Churchyard, Norfolk. Her epitaph describes her as, "A Dear Wife and Mother" and "Worthy of Remembrance". According to the Oxford Dictionary , epitaphs are, "words that are written or said about a dead person, especially words on a gravestone." The Deceased Online website includes photographs of graves and memorials, as well as digital scans of cremation and burial registers.  Photographs, such as those from our Norfolk Collection , can give you an insight into the character of the deceased. They also provide us with essential genealogical information, such as the names of relatives. Among our records are some fascinating memorials and epitaphs. The Londonist website wrote an interesting post on  Brompton Cemetery , whose burial registers you can search in our database . The hea...

Thank you to all who entered our latest book competitio n to win a copy of  Tracing Your Ancestors Using the Census   by Emma Jolly (Pen & Sword, 2020) .  Congratulations to the winner - Frances Owen! The answers to the census book competition are:   (i) The census index for which year was the first to appear online?  1881   (ii) In 1942, the census returns of which year were destroyed? 1931 To keep up to date with news of future releases please do like and follow our pages on  Facebook  and  Twitter !