FRIENDS OF MILLROAD CEMETERY

Welcome to the Autumn 2010 Newsletter!

A New Look for Communications

We hope you like our new logo, which you will be seeing on all our publicity from now on. We’ve been working with local artist, Sam Motherwell, whose work some of you will know. Sam is a longstanding Friend of the Cemetery, and very kindly donated his time and skills for free. Thank you, Sam!

You’ll see below Sam’s sketch of the cemetery, which will be on the proposed Interpretation Boards.

The logo is already in use on our new leaflets, a copy of which is attached so you can see. Thanks to Kip Loades and Tamsin Wimhurst for the use of their beautiful photos. You can find these and more photos on our Facebook page: Friends of Mill Road Cemetery (link from website)

If you have photos of your own that you’d like to share, we’d love to see them. You can post them on Facebook or Flickr. Links to both are on the brilliant new website:

FOMRC thanks Tamsin Wimhurst, Jane Phillimore and Stride Designs for all their great work on the website.

Restoration Programme Continues

Many of you have told us you are saddened to see so many damaged graves in the cemetery, so we’re delighted to tell you that, in the summer, FOMRC voted to contribute £1,500 towards the Council’s grave restoration programme. This includes a donation of £250 from the Gwydir Street Party (co-ordinated by the Cambridge Blue) and has made it possible to restore more than 20 graves, including those pictured below.

E. Bowman and Sons, Stonemasons plan to be on site before Christmas to carry out the work.

Friends, Council, and Trustees all helped to select these graves bearing in mind

  • Suitability for repair
  • Proximity to paths
  • Visual impact on the whole site
  • Cost of repair
  • Safety

While on site, Bowman’s will consider further graves that might be suitable for repair in future. We are grateful to the C.C. East Area Committee for their very generous donation, which will allow this programme to continue.

If there are particular graves you would like to be considered for restoration, please send us details of their location, preferably with a photograph, and any details you might wish to add.

Other News

If you came to the Consultation Events for the Public Art Project in the summer, you may be interested to know that four artists have been shortlisted. These artists have all visited the cemetery and will be discussing proposals with the steering group before further public consultation. Look out for your chance to comment in November/December, including a stand on the cemetery Avenue of Limes at the Mill Road Winter Fair on Saturday December 4th.

FOMRC were delighted to be invited to take part in Open Cambridge Weekend. Scores of people enjoyed guided walks around the cemetery on Friday 10th and Saturday 11th September. It was good to see so many people anxious to find out more about this place we value so much.

A new History Subcommittee of FOMRC has been formed. We want to start a database of graves to record information such as inscriptions, stonemasons’ marks, type of stone used, nature details, etc. We are grateful to Cambridge Family History Society for sharing their invaluable list of inscriptions, and hope, in future, to be able to give location points for individual graves.

One of our projects has been to try to find the grave of Sir George Gabriel Stokes, believed to be buried in the St Paul’s plot. He was Lucasian Professor of Maths, MP for the University and President of the Royal Society all at the same time. (Isaac Newton held the same posts but not simultaneously!) If you were walking through the cemetery recently you may have seen us on hands and knees cutting into the brambles near the Lodge. We were overjoyed to uncover something with ‘Gabriel Stokes’ on it, though somewhat surprised by its modest nature. Alas,it turned out to be the grave of his son William who predeceased him…so the search is on again.

Wildlife

The Wildlife Group aims to maintain existing habitats for the animals and plants that live in the cemetery and enhance other areas where possible. We have already started to make a difference in the northern meadow area, thanks to the work of residents in the past 2 years, though it may not be immediately apparent. More plants species have become established following our raking and seeding - see below for your chance to join our efforts – and we areworking with GuyBelcher, Nature Conservation Projects Officer with the city council, on finalising a management plan for the whole Cemetery. Thanks, too, go to Sarah Tovell, the council’s Green Space Officer, who is instrumental in funding planting of more native fruiting trees and shrubs which should provide additional habitat and food for wildlife.

We have also started to compile an audit of known species in the Cemetery; even now, with 110 species of wild plant, 35 species of bird and 20 species of butterfly recorded, plus mammals such as weasels and the European Dormouse, the Cemetery probably holds more species than many Nature Reserves. And this emphasises just how important the Cemetery has become for wildlife in the City and why, as species in the countryside come under pressure from development and habitat loss, it will become even more important as a wildlife haven.

Thanks to Nick Ballard for the photo above of a greater spotted woodpecker in the cemetery.

Coming Events:

Bulb planting weekends on Sunday October 17th and Sunday November 7th from 2-4pm

Meet at centre circle at 2pm. Please come along with gardening gloves and a dibber/bulb planting tool if you have one. Bulbs provided.

Meadow Raking on Sunday 21 November and Sunday 28th November from 10.30am to ………

Meet at centre circle at 10.30. Old clothes, gloves and boots recommended.

Mill Road Winter Fair Sat December 4th

Please come along to our information stall and join in tours at11.30am,1pm and 2pm

Spring Newsletter: We’re sorry to hear that Gaby from the Communications Sub Committee will be leaving us after the next newsletter. Is there anyone with word processing skills who would be interested in helping put together future newsletters twice a year?

Contact us at

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