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.

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 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.