St. James' Chapel Burial Ground
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St. James' Chapel Burial Ground

Euston, London Borough of Camden, Greater London, England

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  • Get directions Hampstead Road
    Euston, London Borough of Camden, Greater London England
    Coordinates: 51.52860, -0.13783
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The burial ground belonged to the parish of St. James, Piccadilly, which obtained an Act of Parliament in 1788 for its formation, and provided for the erection of a chapel. A church was then built from the designs of Thomas Hardwick, a pupil of Sir William Chambers, and was consecrated in 1791. The ground was closed to burials and opened as a public garden in 1887. St James was one of several large inter-connected cemeteries in the district covering an area from Hampstead Road through what was St. James' Garden, Euston Station and as far as St. Pancras. Under the Extramural Interment Act of 1854 a portion of the grounds was acquired for the expansion of the railways and the remains of hundreds, if not thousands, were removed to a mass grave at Finchley. During the Second World War, the blitz obliterated many monuments and only a few dozen remained in situ. By 1954 the number of parishioners had fallen to such an extent that St. James parish was combined with St. Pancras Parish and the Church of St. James was closed. It was finally demolished in 1964. The remaining six acres of green space were then called St. James Gardens and remained a public park until another rail expansion plan called for the enlargement of Euston Station to accommodate HS2. The gardens closed in June 2018 to enable preparatory work to be undertaken prior to HS2 construction, including the complete excavation and clearing of the old burial ground, estimated to hold the remains of between 30,000 and 60,000 bodies.
The burial ground belonged to the parish of St. James, Piccadilly, which obtained an Act of Parliament in 1788 for its formation, and provided for the erection of a chapel. A church was then built from the designs of Thomas Hardwick, a pupil of Sir William Chambers, and was consecrated in 1791. The ground was closed to burials and opened as a public garden in 1887. St James was one of several large inter-connected cemeteries in the district covering an area from Hampstead Road through what was St. James' Garden, Euston Station and as far as St. Pancras. Under the Extramural Interment Act of 1854 a portion of the grounds was acquired for the expansion of the railways and the remains of hundreds, if not thousands, were removed to a mass grave at Finchley. During the Second World War, the blitz obliterated many monuments and only a few dozen remained in situ. By 1954 the number of parishioners had fallen to such an extent that St. James parish was combined with St. Pancras Parish and the Church of St. James was closed. It was finally demolished in 1964. The remaining six acres of green space were then called St. James Gardens and remained a public park until another rail expansion plan called for the enlargement of Euston Station to accommodate HS2. The gardens closed in June 2018 to enable preparatory work to be undertaken prior to HS2 construction, including the complete excavation and clearing of the old burial ground, estimated to hold the remains of between 30,000 and 60,000 bodies.

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  • Added: 3 Nov 2005
  • Find a Grave Cemetery ID: 2157232