St Nicholas Brighton

Grade II AH Wilds vaults in the Rest Garden

Simon Bannister

Stories Behind the Stones - Heritage Open Door weekend

By Simon Bannister

Stories behind the stones
The SNCGSA 'Mapping the Past' project has moved to its second stage: the work done by volunteers on the 'Mapping' part is now substantially complete, and we've a pretty good idea of what is where -  the focus now will move more to the 'Past' element with an exploration of what it all means...

St Nicholas Church Gardens form the main ancient burial site for Brighton, but with much focus on the early 19th Century and particularly the Regency period, when the expansion of the burial grounds mirrored the expansion of the town. Guidebooks and information relating to the site dwell mostly on a clutch of 'famous names' and this is rightly important, however many of the stories of the site and of the thousands of Brighton residents who have found their last resting place within the Gardens remain untold.

With 'Stories Behind the Stones', we are hoping to capture and record these other elements - to pick out notable residents generally overlooked as well as the recollections and stories of the many ordinary families and individuals remembered at the site. Closed for burials since the 1850's, the church gardens  have meaning and importance for Brighton residents of the more recent past, and we would also like to explore this aspect.

Heritage Open Door (HODS) 2008
The first event in the 'stories' strand will be the Heritage Open Door weekend from September 11th - 14th this year.  As a part of this national initiative ( www.heritageopendays.org.uk ) we will be providing access to the interior of a Grade II listed family vault designed by AH Wilds (pictured above) and to the monument to Sake Deed Mohamed which is normally inaccessible. To supplement this, we will be placing temporary interpretation materials drawn from the 'Stories' initiative at locations throughout the Gardens. These pieces will be simple illustrated laminates produced for the weekend, but will also be used to help us develop permanent interpretation materials and a heritage trail which we are seeking lottery funding to support - alongside the repair and restoration of monuments.

Please send us your story
Are any of your ancestors remembered in the Church Gardens? Do you have a 'favourite' monument or part of the Gardens? Do you have any memories of time spent there or have any stories of unusual occurrences at the site?

Do you know anything about any of those remembered, or would you like to write a short item about any individual or monument?

All contributions welcome - you may contact us or post items at http://forum.sncgsa.org  or contact simon.bannister@brighton-hove.gov.uk    01273 293925

Volunteer for the HODS weekend
If you have a couple of hours to spare in the afternoons of September 11th - 14th and would like to help with this event by giving information to visitors please contact us through the SNCGSA  forum or the contact details above

Many thanks for your support and participation