The Drone photos
The Mary O'Toole drone photo
In June 2018 having been denied access to the cemetery, Mary engaged a drone photographer to take this excellent but disturbing photo of the Cemetery after the developers had laid the gravel roadway across the graveyard.
Note the roadway running in front of the chapels and in particular the small rectangular area which has been taped-off and which the developer apparently informed the Archdeacon was the Garden of Remembrance.
A distinct strip of brown and disturbed earth can be seen running the length of the roadway which appears to include approximately half of the taped-off area and confirms the Friends view that the Garden of Remembrance may have been significantly damaged or destroyed by the developer.
Note the security caravan and the area immediately behind it which looks grey or black, this is the location where both sets of fragments of pottery and earthenware were found in June 2018 and July 2019 - see the previous section
Two areas of grass have also been taped-off in front of the chapels, in the area of the Booth Hall babies graves.
The explanation for the large patch of light grey material in the top left hand portion of the photo is unknown, it may be construction material or the site of the Stormcell. A stone drain or soakway, can be seen leaving this area and going to the southern boundary.
Along the top of the photo, a short distance from the southern boundary, part of a rectangular grassed area can be seen. This is the grave of John Newton which the contractor, having apparently unknowingly destroyed the top layer of the grave, subsequently established a new perimeter for the grave.
1.8.2018 (1) 12.25
.This is the first in the series of 10 drone photos taken approximately seven months after the building work on the roadways began without faculty permission from the Blackburn Diocese. The general layout of the Cemetery is evident with the prominent oak tree, in the RC section providing a central focus. Each individual section of the Cemetery is addressed in the following photos. Burials would take place in rows of 24 graves in each quadrant and while all hospital burials are recorded and locatable, unfortunately any post 2000 burials are not similarly recorded.
1.8.2018 (2) 12.26
In this photo part of the adjoining industrial estate is visible. The Queen Mary's Military Hospital Cemetery at the east end of the site is in pristine condition compared to the other sectors of the cemetery. If the photo is enhanced the clear lines of the 42 graves and their well-maintained gravestones are evident.
1.8.2018 (3) 12.26
In this photo taken from a position further north we see that the Cemetery is located amidst the greenery of surrounding farmland, with the woodland area to the West. The industrial estate is again visible and two cottages and in the top right-hand corner you can see the two cottages and separately the terraced houses occupied by hospital staff, all of which we believe would be within 200 yards of the proposed development.
1.8.2018 (4) 12.27
This photo taken directly above the Cemetery gives us an excellent view and understanding of the layout of the Cemetery and the four equally sized quadrants of the cemetery which are each approximately half the size of the QMMH. The central path which runs East to West from the Memorial cross in the military section to the Lych gate and chapels at the western end is a useful reference point. Clockwise from the Roman Catholic NE quadrant, containing the large oak tree large, is the SE Church of England section, then the SW quadrant and finally the NW quadrant. The two chapels at bottom right should be included in the appropriate SW or NW quadrant
1.8.2018 (5)12.27
In this photo taken from above which can be enlarged, we can see the NW quadrant in which the new roadway running North to South and parking space has been constructed without faculty permission.That roadway isolated the Booth Hall RC babies graves from the northern garden of remembrance and the rest of the quadrant. The earthenware ant pottery remnant were found in the area where the white van is parked. The excavation and replacement of soil in the area of the northern garden of remembrance is evident but we have no explanation for the several patches of disturbed earth in the site where the proposed crematorium is to be constructed.
1.8.2018 (6)12.28
This photo taken from above clearly shows previously unseen earth movements or disturbances in both the NW and NE quadrants and within the site where the proposed development is to take place. We have no explanation for this evidence, but it seems difficult to see how they might be described as landscaping activities which is how representatives of BORI Ltd had described work on the roadways and parking area.
1.8.2018 (7) 12.29
This photo from a northern location again shows the adjoining industrial estate and the Hospital's own terraced housing as well as the new housing development of Calderstones Park. Looking into NE quadrant dominated by the central oak tree, we can see clear evidence of a disturbance or new grave, we do not know which, to the left of the big bush. We have accurate details of the officially recorded burials in this section and would be confident of locating any grave ( 137-140 and 149-152) which seem to coincide with this disturbance but cannot explain it
1.8.2018 (8) 12.30
This photo which can be enlarged shows the SE quadrant in which the majority of recorded hospital burials took place. It is also the site of a private garden of remembrance established in 2003 by a Mr Colin Arkwright, a new owner of the cemetery and marked with still visible corner- stones. We have found no surviving record of the names and details of interments in this area, but the plans for the development of the crematorium were originally based on the mistaken belief that this was the Hospital's sole garden of remembrance, when in fact it post-dates and had no connection with the Hospital.
1.8.2018 (9) 12.30
Looking south with Guild House and the new housing on Calderstones Park visible, we can see the controversial SW quadrant with the Booth Hal babies graves and the chapels and Lych Gate in the distance. The southern garden of remembrance and the inexplicable grave of George Eastman are in this section, as is the mound of excess soil spread across the south west section, following roadworks completed without faculty permission in 2018.
1.8.2018 (10) 12.31
In this last photo please look at the western end of the Cemetery which is covered in much more detail on the single drone photo provided by Mary previously. In this photo, the substantial damage to the western end of the cemetery, the two gardens of remembrance and the area of the Booth Hall babies graves are evident
The July 2019 drone photos
A member of the Friends, Heather Birch contacted a local photographer who kindly provided the following pictures. These photos were taken shortly after the developer cut the grass at the Cemetery with an industrial cutter, further damaging graves and destroying memorials. The cut revealed the pattern of graves, as will be seen later . The developers gravel roadway is evident but the security caravan and container have been removed.
The lower photo shows the site of the proposed crematorium in the north west quadrant of the cemetery.
The grave of Jean Middleton, Eric Williams and Elizabeth Cleary is clearly visible in the top right and lower right photo
2019 drone photos
There is a shaded triangular area in the top left (south west) quadrant, which is at a slightly higher level than the surrounding area. The Planning Authority required this spoil to be removed from the site as a condition of approval. Instead, it appears to have been spread across this area, possibly obscuring a grave which the gravedigger was unable to accurately locate.
The pattern of graves can be made out and the grave of Josephine, Eric and Ethel (number 597) is visible in the south east quadrant
2019 drone photo of the chapels
The easterly side of the chapel roofs are clear of vegetation, unlike the moss covered west side. In front of the chapels are the Booth Hall babies in the brown areas . The gravel roadway is clearly visible at the bottom of the picture, but the tapes forming the boundaries around three areas which were evident in the June 2018 drone photo have been removed.