Streatham Park Cemetery

Streatham Park Cemetery (also known as South London Crematorium and Streatham Vale Cemetery) is a cemetery and crematorium on Rowan Road in Streatham Vale. It has always been privately owned and managed and is now part of the Dignity_plc group . The South London Crematorium is situated within the cemetery grounds and opened in 1936.[1]

Not to be confused with Streatham Cemetery.
Cross of Sacrifice and Screen Wall Memorial at Streatham Park Cemetery

History

Streatham Park Cemetery is laid out in a grid pattern and opened as the Great Southern Cemetery in 1909 but was originally planned in 1890 to match the Great Northern Cemetery that opened in 1861 in Southgate. The cemetery buildings included a lodge, an Anglican Chapel and a small Roman Catholic chapel designed by John Bannen who also designed the Crematorium. The Crematorium had been planned from 1913 but was not built until 1936, the delay owing to the start of World War I.[2] The cemetery lodge and Roman Catholic chapel have since been demolished while the original Anglican chapel later re-opened as the cemetery office. The cemetery has various gardens of remembrance, including rose gardens. Frederick Field (died 1923), a founder of the cemetery, is buried here.[2]

The cemetery has a long connection with the Variety Artistes' Benevolent Fund (VABF), with about 200 variety artistes and music hall performers buried here between 1921 and 1944. A Chapel of Remembrance was added in 1958 at the request of the VABF.[2][3][4] Up to World War II the cemetery accounted for one fifth of all burials in South London. The cemetery has a large number of burials from World War I (118) and World War II (290) which are maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) and has a Cross of Sacrifice and Screen Wall Memorial, the latter commemorating casualties of both wars who are buried in this cemetery in graves which could not be marked by headstones. After World War II another wing was added to the memorial on which are commemorated the names of 123 personnel who died during that conflict and were cremated at the South London Crematorium, which is situated within the cemetery.[1]

Streatham Jewish Cemetery

Streatham Jewish Cemetery opened in 1915 as a section of Streatham Park Cemetery. The majority of burials here are those of Ashkenazi Jews of eastern European origin who settled in the Soho area of London working as tailors, cabinetmakers, shopkeepers, etc. A small section of Streatham Park Cemetery is reserved for members of the South London Liberal Synagogue.[5] This cemetery contains the Commonwealth war graves of 13 service personnel from World War II.[6]

Notable burials

References
  1. Streatham Park Cemetery - Commonwealth War Graves Commission database
  2. Streatham Park Cemetery and South London Crematorium - London Gardens Online
  3. Streatham Vale, Lambeth - Hidden London website
  4. Burials of Music Hall Artistes at Streatham Park Cemetery - The Music Hall Guild of Great Britain and America
  5. Streatham Jewish Cemetery - International Jewish Cemetery Project
  6. https://www.cwgc.org/find/find-war-dead/results/?cemetery=STREATHAM PARK JEWISH CEMETERY
  7. Frasier, David K. (2005-03-08). Suicide in the Entertainment Industry. p. 141. ISBN 9780786423330.

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