Outside the Cobh Heritage Centre in Ireland we spotted this monument to Annie Moore.
I thought of my convict ancestors Patrick Curry and Ellen Moore when I came across this monument. Although their emigration was forced they would have had similar thoughts to other emigrants as they sailed away from their homeland.
Perhaps Annie was related to my Ellen!
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| St Lukes, Old Street |
While our current holiday is not a geneajourney we will probably visit a few genealogy related sites like the odd cemetery (or two or more!).
Being mindful of not contracting Covid before our cruise we are spending a fair amount of time walking in the open air away from crowds. Today's walk took us past some interesting sites as we made our way to a Covid Testing Centre to be tested prior to our cruise.
As we toddled along I spotted a sign to the Bunhill Fields so we took a tiny detour. The former burial ground is situated in a mostly residential area and provides a peaceful space for passive recreation.
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| Welcome sign |
It didn't take us long to traverse Bunhill Fields, a relatively small site that runs between two streets. Of course I managed to take a few pics as we strolled down the main path.
The information boards related the history of the cemetery and provided a useful map.
As is the case with several old London cemeteries the areas around the graves is rather overgrown but the paths through the cemetery are wide and clear.
The graves of some more prominent residents were accessible.
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| John Bunyan's tomb |
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| Inscription on Bunyan's tomb |
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| Defoe Monument |
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| Daniel Defoe Inscription |
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| More on Defoe |
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| A William Blake inscription |
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| William Blake lies here? |
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| A space for reflection |
On the last day of our recent holiday we had about 8 hours to explore Broome. We grabbed a little rental car and off we went.
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| Our Hot Wheels |
Mr Geniaus encouraged me the visit some local cemeteries. I really didn't need any encouragement and we managed to visit three.
The first cemetery we visited was the Chinese cemetery which as well as having historic graves is still used today for current burials. We found a well-maintained, tidy cemetery with splashes of colour provided by those graves decorated with artificial flowers and other ornaments.
I noticed something here that I haven't noticed in any other cemetery I have visited. There are seats placed at the foot of several of the graves, due to their placement I presume they are installed by the families of the deceased. I thought this was a wonderful idea for those I wish to visit, say a little prayer, contemplate on past memories with their loved ones or have a chat with their ancestors.
I wonder if they are placed on common property or if the families of the deceased resting in those graves pay a fee to place them there. Sadly in many of our crowded cemeteries it would not be possible to allow such fixtures to be added.
While at the cemetery I took photos of several headstones which I am currently uploading to FindaGrave. I regret not taking more as when I checked on FG this morning there were only six memorials recorded and photographed. I have since more than doubled that number plus added some extra photos to the Cemetery page.
Do you often stray into cemeteries when on holiday?
