All Saints - Frindsbury

LOCATION:

The site can be found on Church Green, Frindsbury, Rochester. The nearest train station is Strood and there is a bus that goes to Chatham that passes near there too. It is roughly a 15-20 minute walk (depending on how good you are with hills!)

FIRST OPENED:

The church and site merged with others in the area on the 24^th October 1950. It merged with Upnor and Chattenden. The site itself however is way older than that. It is believed to be from Saxon times, dating around 1075. Although this is not proven, it is widely believed that this is the origin.

FAMOUS RESIDENTS:

Thomas Buttler – He served Queen Elizabeth I.

ALSO KNOWN AS:

It seems that the site has always been known by this name. Hundreds of years ago, it may have been known by an independent saint or even an by the Olde English version of the town, however, I can find nothing to back this up.

SIZE & LAYOUT:

N/A

THE WALKABOUT:

When I first came across the site, I went around the long way which unfortunately, led me to walking up a very steep hill. Once you get to the top however, it is very much worth it. The site for one is amazing as you can see the whole of Rochester, including the castle. This is due to the site sitting isolated on top of some chalk cliffs. You will also notice the very strange layout. Some of the graveyard (which I believe is the older part) is situated within the walls. The rest is outside of it. The west churchyard (which is closed) is managed by the Medway council. The east churchyard is managed by the PCC.

You will straightaway notice the huge church. In 998 AD, Strood was pillaged by the Danes. The church was wrestled back by Harold Godwinson. After his defeat at the battle of Hastings, The site was taken over by William the Conqueror, who gave its lands to Odo, bishop of Bayeux. Around the church you will see many tombstones on the floor. These were translated from the south aisle and the north wall after its 19^th century rebuild.

The site is housed in by a wondrous wall of tall trees and little mini chalk hills. Many of the tombstones are walled in by rot iron gates or are built in the style of memorials. Despite how old the site is, it is very much well looked after. In fact, we had to make a lot of effort to avoid the men trimming the grass that day! Many of the graves are weathered but just about readable. We even found some carved in writing on the walls from around 1907! There is one little stone pathway that goes around the church, the rest of the pathway is just grass, but that shouldn’t put you off.

Despite the weather, it was a lovely day. It was nice to be in a graveyard for once that wasn’t next to a busy road. Being on top of a hill, it was very quiet and peaceful. You couldn’t ask for a better location. If you are not one for graveyards however, I suggest you go up there anyway to get a marvellous view of Medway.

ANY GHOSTS?:

On some of the photos that I had taken, I am pretty sure that there were some orb activity. However, as it was such a rainy day I cannot prove whether it was orbs or not. They seem to have congregated around the graves in particular which, had it been a sunny day, I would have concluded it as possible spiritual activity. It is one of those common situations where I can’t say whether it is or isn’t unfortunately.

FINAL (RESTING) WORD:

As I stated before, it is extremely peaceful up there. Although it is still near a busy town, you can barely hear the rustle and bustle. I would love to come back here when the weather is better, not just for the scenery but to see if I can actually capture something paranormal which I believe this place has the potential, not because it is just a mere graveyard but because of the vast amount of history that lies behind it. Who knows what you may discover when you are not searching….

“Respect those who are not physically here, you can’t see them but they can see you, and disrespect is something they don’t want to see”

RATING: 3/5 – Very old and very beautiful with plenty of history around it.

LINKS: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/All_Saints_Church,_Frindsbury

Camberwell Old Cemetery

LOCATION:

The site is found in the London borough of Southwark. The site itself is found on Forest Hill Road, East Dulwich. The main entrance is on Underhill Road. The nearest stations are Honor Oak Park and Forest Hill. There are also plenty of buses that go that way.

FIRST OPENED:

The site was purchased and opened in 1855 by the Camberwell Cemetery Board. Some state that the date however was either 1854 or 1856. This first date is the preferred one.

FAMOUS RESIDENTS:

William Stanlake VC: An English recipient of the Victorian Cross.

Charles Walters: Founder of the International Bible Reading Association.

James John Berkeley: Chief engineer of the great Indian Peninsular Railway.

Albert Edward McKenzie: An English recipient of the Victorian Cross.

ALSO KNOWN AS:

It was once known as just Camberwell cemetery but when the new one was opened, it became known as Camberwell Old cemetery.

SIZE & LAYOUT:

The site is about 30 acres. It used to be smaller, but in 1874 it was expanded by a further 7 acres so that it could accommodate for the vast amount of burials taking place.

THE WALKABOUT:

When you approach the entrance you are greeted by tall, rot iron gates with stone pillars on each side. The old lodge is to your left. This was destroyed by fire in the 1970s but was restored. There were apparently 3 chapels here also, but each one of them went into disrepair and where torn down. This was due to the new cemetery opening and this one not being used anymore. Originally, this site was a designated burial ground for St Giles church. You will also notice how well the place is looked after. There are flower beds and trees everywhere and even an old cobbled pathway that leads you up into the graveyard.

On your right is an older part. When you enter, it is almost like a maze. The graves are all of roughly the same shape and size and are all in a near perfect circle. Straight ahead you have, what I consider, as one of the most beautiful family burial spots I have ever seen. The site was about 4 meters squared and made of white marble. The family was Irish Roman Catholics (they could have possibly been travelers also). It had a little wall going around it with angels on top and at the back there was a big statue of the Virgin Mary with a little roof over her. There were about 9 graves in all and at the front was a small marble kneeling pad. It was very beautiful and I’m glad I got a chance to see it.

If you keep to your right then you will come to one of the few entrances for the nature reserve. This one is a lot like the one at Nunhead only the pathway is much bigger. Again, there are graves on both sides that are completely hidden away by shrubs, bushes and trees. Although it is very beautiful and almost peaceful, it does make me feel very sad. The walk is not massively long and it usually leads to a lot of dead ends, be careful of when you go also, I went not long after it rained and ended up a little bit on the muddy side!

The rest of the site is quite a simple format with the back part looking almost like a modern lawn site. I would have loved to have seen the chapels as they were a gothic revival structure (much like the lodge). This site was opened as part of the 2^nd wave of 19^th century cemeteries by London. When this became overcrowded, Camberwell New was opened. You can hardly tell that it’s overcrowded however. This could be due to how well the site is taken care of.

ANY GHOSTS?:

Unfortunately I did not catch any ghosts this time which was a real shame as I believe that this place has so much potential to it. The woods alone, I feel, may hold a few surprises for me. They are very similar to the ones found in Nunhead in the sense that there are a lot of forgotten graves in there due to it becoming a nature reserve. I feel that if I go back and do a bit of an investigation then I may get more results.

FINAL (RESTING) WORD:

What I loved most about this site was that it was full of surprises. For someone who loves to explore, I felt like I found a pot of gold. Even though when a site turns into a nature reserve, I still find myself in awe of how beautiful it actually is, despite how sad it makes me feel. I would encourage anyone who loves to hike to take a walk around. For those who aren’t that keen on going for long walks, there is plenty of little sections for you to explore also.

“Respect those who are not physically here, you can’t see them but they can see you, and disrespect is something they don’t want to see”

RATING: 4/5 – Full of lots of hidden little gems, this place will keep you on your toes for a few hours.

LINKS: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camberwell_Cemeteries