Uncovering The Lost Gravestones Of Church Street Liverpool

St Peter’s Church Street - The Lost Gravestones project has between set up to highlight Liverpool’s greatest ‘discovery’ of over 1,300 gravestones of significant and historical importance.
The Church of St Peter in Church Street, Liverpool, was demolished in 1922. Various parts of the fabric went to other churches in the area. The ten bells were originally removed and stored in the crypt of St Michael’s Church, Upper Pitt Street, before being installed in St Helen’s Parish Church. Whenever they are rung, you could be instantly transported back to Church Street at the start of the 1900’s.
The removal of the dead from the churchyard commenced on the 5th December 1921, and was completed on the 5th September 1922.
The remains were placed in 6,078 wooden shells, each about the size of an ordinary adult coffin. Twenty-two lead shells were found, which were re-interred without being opened. Twenty-eight brick graves were uncovered.
Nearly 100 years later, I (Jonathon Wild) would stumble upon a set of ten gravestones at the rear of Walton Parochial Cemetery by a chance visit to Rice Lane Farm/Cemetery.
Further research lead me to uncovering the following:
The Gravestones numbered 1,375, were removed to the Parochial Cemetery, Rice Lane, Walton.
And thus began a year long correspondence with the Landowner (Liverpool Parish Church) and the site Manager of Rice Lane Farm to be allowed to start to map out this land, to produce numerous health and safety documents and our ‘plan of action’ which will lead to the uncovering of these gravestones so that they can be photographed, and their inscriptions noted.
These gravestones go back to the early 1700’s and were once considered ‘lost’ in that it took historians a great detail of research to uncover exactly what had happened to them and where they were placed.
This Facebook group is a project headed by Jonathon Wild, and administrated by Claire Griffiths & Graham Seaman in which we will lead a team to slowly uncover hundreds of inscriptions from the hidden gravestones from St Peter’s Church. What will they reveal? History on the people, their family, perhaps a note or two about the Church or where they lived.
We plan to uncover these gravestones, photograph them, and add them to a public database so that anyone searching for them can see for themselves - whether relatives or public. They will also be uploaded to Find A Grave and we hope to reveal some exciting finds!
many thanks to Jonathon wild for the invite
his youtube channel is here ‪@LiverpoolTours2023‬
also thanks to Adam for joining me today ‪@BambiSelect‬
also thanks to john for help with old pictures
you can also find the fbook group if you want to get involved which is called st peters church st the lost gravestones..
and if you would like to buy me a coffee you can do below
www.buymeacoff...
all money does go back into the channel and of course on hot drinks...cheers
#liverpool #exploreliverpool #merseyside

[@fucktheworld1207]

GREAT video mate, these people's memories need to be documented..... the sad thing about progress is that Cemeteries are dug up, stones and bodies just moved and dumped somewhere, I'm sure their loved one's didn't think that would happen when they layed them to rest.

[@g2emedia1977]

thanks mate its going to be a long one this but it will be well worth it these deffo need documenting sad isnt it that these and others like it are just left and forgotten about

[@AlannahRyane]

def looking forward to this video. I found a hayes couple from workhouse who may be my 3x great grandparents supposedly buried in Walton's churchyard. 2 generations married baptized at St Mary's Walton and descendents were at St Peters up to when my 14 yr old orphaned great grandfather (bapt 1877 by Rev Charles Garrett Pitt St Chapel and named after him) was shipped to Canada 1892 as a farm boy. I found the Walton cemetery ghost story compelling

[@oktfg]

Liverpool has so many these lost churches. One of the more important was St George’s on Derby Sq (where Victoria Monument now sits). Built after the castle was demolished. St George’s was built on the moat. Poor foundations caused the tower to subside and was where the Mayor and members of the Corporation worshipped. Church was demolished in 1899 Bodies moved to Everton Cemetery

[@g2emedia1977]

they certainly do the last one i uncovered was the jewish one on green lane unlike this one which is public green lane one was closed off and hadnt seen any visitors until i got inside and wow it was amazing rex makins parents were buried there with a huge plaque on the wall

[@LiverpoolTours2023]

A fantastic video mate. Informative and a great little mooch 👍

[@g2emedia1977]

thank you mate and thanks for your help with this and for the invite once again

[@magic1968]

Mammoth task to clean all that up. Cheers George another interesting video.

[@g2emedia1977]

i didnt realise how huge this project was until i got onsite be well worth it though thank you for watching glad you liked it much appreviated gave you a mention for the coffee a few vids back aswell cheers

[@brianaveriss7972]

Thank you George, another great video, That’s a really interesting project to be involved with. Hopefully we will see some progress in future videos,

[@g2emedia1977]

thank you for watching brian glad you liked the vid this is a huge project so there will be plenty of updates along the way

[@SuperDeniseg1]

Wow, what an amazing project, it's going to be amazing. I've joined the page on facebook. I'm really looking forward to watching the progress. I remember there being hidden gravestones in the park opposite to where I lived as a teen. I think it was called Grant gardens, on the corner of Everton Road and West Derby road. Along the back wall behind the bushes. Great job BTW, keep doing what you're doing. Denise x

[@g2emedia1977]

it really is an amazing project this i love old hidden gravestones and old graveyards so this is right up my street thanks for watching glad you liked the video

[@martinsallenger5526]

Hi George, great and very interesting video 👍

[@g2emedia1977]

hi martin thanks for watching mate

[@joyceswift8160]

There’s some wooden carving from St Peter’s church in Liverpool in st cuthberts church Southport George. It’s lovely and worth a visit if you can catch the church open.

[@g2emedia1977]

cool cheers thanks for the info

[@barbhenderson4867]

Wow just watched this, I wish I still lived up north I would defo help, great video x,

[@g2emedia1977]

hi barb thanks for watching glad you liked the video its a great project to be involved in

[@bobbyladd]

A sythe, a ½ tonne builders bag, plenty of trips to the bin yard, a sprayer and a few litres of wet & forget (has a pH of 8). Sorted 😄

[@g2emedia1977]

cheers by all mean come along and help

[@scouseblood275]

What a great video and a great project well done George brill video as always

[@g2emedia1977]

thank you as always for your kind comment its a brilliant project isnt it and a bloody big one to

[@AlannahRyane]

I should have guessed you would be the videographer on this. What an awesome project the ancestors are cheering you all on! I Love exposing their stories. I subd to Jonathons channel when you directed me there. Find a Grave and A billion graves have volunteers in every location they would probably be interested in this?

[@g2emedia1977]

nothing official just happy to help.out with this and document it its an amazing project to be part of john is a cracking fella thanks for watching much appreciated

[@tj..aworkinprogress1102]

just an idea , try the police training - they might use it as a "search" exersise , they might do the mapping ...

[@g2emedia1977]

thats a great idea cheers

[@CarolWoosey-ck2rg]

Great stuff; so kind to find these people and share their history- respect to all involved 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

[@bernadettefarrell8161]

Hi George, I don’t know if you remember that I mentioned about that graveyard a while ago while you were looking at other lost graves. I’m so pleased that you are involved in this because I never knew Sp Peters gravestones had been moved there. This site is historically important to Liverpool for obvious reasons but also because as far as I have read in the past the poorer people couldn’t afford headstones and a lot of those headstones will have been of merchants who may have been involved or became well off because of the slave trade and the ensuing wealth to the city. This is of personal interest to me because when researching my family tree years ago I found a gentleman whose family mine had married into in Ireland. I became fascinated with his story and he had arrived in the 1700s from Ireland. He was a bespoke tailor and owned a large shop in Bold Street. He was also one of the first people to own a house in Faulkner Square. The Architect owned and lived in the first one. One of the Gladstones lived a couple of doors away. The chap I was researching had a brother who was a plantation owner and so did Gladstones father or brother. When slavery was abolished all of the plantation owners were compensated by the Government several million pounds and I think that was in that economy so it was a fortune. The chap I researched worshipped at St Peter’s and his children were baptised there. When the famine hit Ireland and hundreds of thousands or more I don’t know the figures settled in Liverpool, there were a huge number of deaths because of lack of sanitation there was cholera and and the rich as well as the poor died in an epidemic. The tailors wife and children died and were buried around the church walls along with priests and dignitaries because he was a generous benefactor. I always wondered what happened to their graves so there is a good chance they might be uncovered. Regarding the graveyard be careful I understand there used to be a lot of rats there. Also I think you might benefit from a go fund me page to get professional gardeners in who would get the ivy and unsafe trees gone a lot quicker than volunteers who are older. Or speak to the history department at the Uni and see if you can get young volunteers. I read a lot about the rich and benefactors of Liverpool and there would be lots of content for you, let me know if you want any info. Thanks George for bringing this to everyone’s attention.

[@bernadettefarrell8161]

I should add we had no money 😂 , it was an ancestor who married into his family, plus I think the slave trade was abhorrent but it’s still historically important.

[@g2emedia1977]

hi bernadette yes i remember that when you told me its mad how im now involved in this project never thought it would be a thing but so glad it is it will take a while but will be worth it thanks for watching glad you enjoyed the vid and plenty of updates to come

[@levitation25]

There are gravestone inscription records for St Peter's what was the name of the tailor? I might be able to find something for them online.

[@bernadettefarrell8161]

@@levitation25 the tailor was Nicholas Megan, he died many years after his family and owned a hotel on Marine Terrace Crosby which is still there. His family who were buried at St Peter’s was Petronella Megraw, his wife and a couple of their children I think from memory one was Edward Megraw. Thanks for helping.

[@levitation25]

@@bernadettefarrell8161 I'm struggling to find anything for St Peter's C of E which is where these gravestones have come from so I did some newspaper searches and Nicholas Megraw was an active member of catholic charities and organisations so I think any links to a St Peter's would have been via the Roman Catholic St Peter's in Seel Street which is now Alma de Cuba.

[@EXPLORINGWITHMEDAVE]

Wow loved this fellas so good, and great to see jonathon Wild to..Sandfield tower forever Gwalia.

[@g2emedia1977]

thanks for watching dave jonathon is a bloody legend indeed

[@FlickeringEmber]

I used to work in Primark there and I remember some spooky shit on the night shifts. That was when one of my colleagues told me about the history of Church Street. Not skitting you but I swear Primark is haunted.

[@voodoowomble]

Fantastic video George, I discovered those gravestones a few years ago and started documenting them on "Findagrave". I remember someone complaining that I couldn't possibly have found those graves where they were as they were meant to be somewhere else lol. What days do the volunteers meet to clean the graves? Cheers

[@levitation25]

Great video George. Interesting seeing what looked like a French inscription on that gravestone you were looking at. I couldn't make out any names in the text but it said something like, 'Here lies the body of ... Liverpool ...June 18?? ...'.

[@g2emedia1977]

cheers mate thanks for watching some were hard to see what was on there and with this only being an explore of the site i never had the chance to clean it up but when work starts ill check that one out first

[@KPP365]

St Peter's church keeps popping up when i research my family Ansestey Any chance of going to see this ?

[@g2emedia1977]

really wow thats amazing

[@melissajacob9803]

Any updates? Anyone know how this project is going?

[@g2emedia1977]

@@melissajacob9803 unfortunatley this has fell through due to health amd safety i forgot i need to make a vid explaining

[@melissajacob9803]

Aww no what a shame such a great idea. Totally understandable such a big job. Only just stumbled across your channel so plenty of videos to watch ( my 8yr old is hooked ) Look forward to the next video 👍🏼

[@g2emedia1977]

@melissajacob9803 thank you so much glad yous like the channel At some point i do need to do a video on this as lots of people keep asking for updates Lots more videos on the way

[@dontkopykat]

I would love to get involved, I was doing my family tree and my great great great grandparents where buried at that church so they graves could be there. How come the bodies weren't moved, what did they do with the remains?

[@MrSychnant]

It's a pity we have such rubbish buskers pretending to be musicians in the city centre.

[@g2emedia1977]

never really gave it much thought

[@rubysmith3143]

is the a part 2 of this

[@g2emedia1977]

Some sad news which i need to do a video on the project has folded unfortunatley

[@zapre2284]

I really want to check this out. Can you volunteer to help clean it up ? I'd be well into that

[@g2emedia1977]

you can do by joining the fbook group and get involved

[@gothicgeisha2929]

How do I contact that guy who was talking, to see if he can help me solve what happened to an influenza mass grave, apparently there was a stone, which my Nan told me was there & on Google maps when it went live we found out it was now houses. But her Nan or Nans mum was buried there. She was a little upset to find out it wasn't there anymore & her sister didn't know anything about it being built on either.

[@g2emedia1977]

hi join the fbook group you can spk to him there

[@Paul_anderson_creative]

So, Walton Park Cemetery...?

[@g2emedia1977]

all info is in video and description