Burials in Upton from 1866

An Order in Council of 21st March 1865 ordered that no new burial ground should be opened in the parish of Upton-upon-Severn without the approval of one of Her Majesty's Principal Secretaries of State.

From 1st January 1866 all burials took place in the Rectory Road Cemetery, except for a few in 1867 and 1868, which are recorded as being in a "vault in Old Churchyard" or "brick grave in Old Churchyard"

When the Hook Church was built and consecrated in 1870 on 1 rood, 4 perches 19 sq yards of land given by J. J. Martin, and in spite of the Order in Council, the "remainder of the land (not used for the church) was consecrated "for an additional burial ground." It was not used for some years and Major Martin was himself buried in the Rectory Road cemetery in 1873

In 1905 Major Martin's successor as Lord of the Manor, G. E. Martin, was the first person to be buried at the Hook and, in 1906 G. W. Grice Hutchinson of The Boynes was the next. In 1907 the position was regularised by an order giving Local Government Board approval for the use of the burial ground. In 1908 it was increased in size by a further 1 rood by a gift from E. G. Bromley-Martin, who had succeeded his father as Lord of the Manor. 960 sq ft of this was to be reserved for Mr Bromley Martin, "his heirs and assigns" and the remainder was for residents of the Hook. The new burial ground was duly consecrated. There had been 172 burials at the Hook, other than on the reserved land, by 1964.

Simon Wilkinson
16/01/06