The Southern Necropolis is a cemetery in the Gorbals district of southern Glasgow, Scotland. It was opened in the year 1840 to provide an affordable and respectable place of burial for the people of Gorbals and the surrounding areas of the city of Glasgow. Over 250,000 individuals have been buried within the many lairs.
| Southern Necropolis | |
|---|---|
 Gatehouse of the Southern Necropolis | |
 | |
| Details | |
| Established | 1840 |
| Location | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Type | Public |
| No. of interments | 250,000 |
| Find a Grave | Southern Necropolis |
History
editThe cemetery was established in response to the crowded state of the Old Gorbals Burial Ground, on Rutherglen Road. Proposals for a new cemetery were put forward in 1839, and the following year land was purchased from William Gilmour of Oatlands. The first burial, that of a 16-month-old child, took place on 21 July 1840.[1] There are three sections to the cemetery: Central opened in 1840; Eastern opened in 1846; and the larger Western section opened in 1850. The entrance to the cemetery is at Caledonia Road, via the grand gatehouse which was built in 1848 to designs by the Glasgow architect Charles Wilson.
In 1954 the cemetery played host to a large group of child "vampire hunters" searching for the purported "Gorbals Vampire".[2] The incident, sparked by an urban myth that a vampire had killed two local children, was blamed on American horror comics such as Tales from the Crypt, despite none of the comics referring to the creature in question, and the ensuing moral panic led to an increase in comic censorship.[3] In 2016, a mural which features the vampire and a brief line describing the 1950s event was created by Ella Bryson and Art Pistol.[4] It is located in an archway on St Luke's Place, not far from Glasgow's Citizen Theatre in the Gorbals.
The Southern Necropolis was taken over by the Glasgow Corporation in 1952,[5] and is now operated by Glasgow City Council. The cemetery is protected as a Category B listed building,[5] while the gate lodge is listed at Category A.[6]
Notable interments
edit
- Sir Thomas Lipton (d. 1931), tea merchant
- Agnes Reston (d. 1856), wartime nurse
- John Robertson (d. 1987), Labour politician
- George Rodgers (d. 1870), Victoria Cross recipient
- James Smart (d. 1870), Chief Constable of Glasgow[7]
- Alexander "Greek" Thomson (d. 1875), architect
- Charles Wilson (d. 1863), architect
- Thomas B. Seath (d. 1903), shipbuilder
- Allan Glen (d. 1850), philanthropist
War graves
editThe Necropolis contains graves of 11 Commonwealth service personnel, 10 from World War I and one airman of World War II, registered and maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.[8]
See also
edit- Burials at the Southern Necropolis
- Glasgow Necropolis, another large cemetery in the city centre
References
edit- ^ "History of Southern Necropolis". Glasgow City Council. Archived from the original on 28 December 2008. Retrieved 2 June 2010.
- ^ McKim, Claire (18 March 2016). "The Gorbals Vampire and monster hunt that shook Glasgow". The Scotsman.
- ^ Nicolson, Stuart (22 March 2010). "Child vampire hunters sparked comic crackdown". BBC News. Retrieved 2 June 2010.
- ^ Discovered, Glasgow (19 October 2019). "Gorbals Vampire Mural". Glasgow Discovered | Showcasing Independent Music and Arts. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
- ^ a b Historic Environment Scotland. "316 Caledonia Road, Rutherglen Road, Southern Necropolis Cemetery and Boundary Walls (Category B Listed Building) (LB47416)". Retrieved 20 March 2019.
- ^ Historic Environment Scotland. "316 Caledonia Road, Rutherglen Road, Southern Necropolis Lodge (Category A Listed Building) (LB33685)". Retrieved 20 March 2019.
- ^ "Chief Constable James Smart". Glasgow Police Museum. Archived from the original on 14 May 2024. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ^ [1] CWGC Cemetery Report.
- "Southern Necropolis". CANMORE. Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland. Retrieved 2 June 2010.
- "Southern Necropolis". Gazetteer for Scotland. Retrieved 2 June 2010.
External links
edit- Southern Necropolis Research
- Southern Necropolis Heritage Trail, Glasgow City Council
- Southern Necropolis at Find a Grave
