ST. MATTHEW’S CHURCH
Some of the work that I have carried out in the graveyard which will enable people to search the data in their family history research
St. Matthew’s Church, Rastrick
Built in 1798 during the reign of George III, the church is a typical Georgian building comprising of a dome raised high on a drum over a rectangular lower structure with the main rectangular body off to the side. The interior is spacious with a curved chancel and the design enhances the sound quality and good viewing for a congregation.
A full history of the church has been extensively researched by Richard Kay and can be found clicking on the link below.
Beneath those rugged elms, that yew-tree's shade,
Where heaves the turf in many a mouldering heap,
Each in his narrow cell for ever laid,
The rude forefathers of the hamlet sleep.
ELEGY WRITTEN IN A CHURCHYARD - THOMAS GRAY 1751
THE ST. MATTHEW’S BURIAL PROJECT IS STILL ONGOING
I DOUBT THAT IT WILL EVER BE FULLY COMPLETED !
THANKS TO THE FOLLOWING PEOPLE WHO GAVE UP MANY HOURS OF THEIR INVALUABLE TIME TO HELP WITH TRANSCRIBING THE BURIAL REGISTERS SO THAT OTHERS CAN SEARCH, FREE OF CHARGE.
JOHN JAMES LOGAN
MICHELLE ROBINSON
JUDITH FARNELL
and
SHIRLEY BOOTHROYD
ALL 8,453 BURIALS IN ST. MATTHEW’S CHURCHYARD BETWEEN THE YEARS 1798 and 2019 HAVE BEEN CATALOGUED
IN ADDITION, THERE ARE:-
424 GRAVESTONE PHOTOGRAPHS (so far)
WHICH CONTAIN
1,497 NAMES
AND COVER
185 DIFFERENT SURNAMES
THANKS MUST ALSO GO TO
COLIN HINSON
WHO HAS GIVEN ME INVALUABLE ASSISTANCE IN GETTING THESE PHOTOGRAPHS AND GRAVESTONE DETAILS UPLOADED ONTO THIS SITE. COLIN IS A TRUSTEE OF GENUKI (Genealogy UK and Ireland) AND IS RESPONSIBLE FOR ALL THE YORKSHIRE RELATED PAGES ON THAT WEBSITE. OUR WORK IS STILL ONGOING WITH REGARD TO ENHANCING THE CONTENT OF THIS LINK
YOU CAN SEARCH ALL THE PHOTOGRAPHS BY SURNAME BY CLICKING ON THE LINK BELOW
IF YOU FIND A GRAVE PHOTOGRAPH OF INTEREST, JUST CLICK ON IT TO VIEW A LARGER IMAGE
LATEST UPDATE
I have now incorporated all the details from the burial registers together with some additional information from gravestones to assist family history researchers further.
Also below is a new addition where, once you have found the person you are looking for, you can now check who else was buried in that grave with them.
In some cases where the plot numbers are not known, I have grouped some names together as being from the same family based upon the fact that they are mentioned on the same gravestone.
THIS IS AN ONGOING PROJECT AND MAY CHANGE FROM TIME TO TIME
BURIALS IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER
PUT YOUR CURSOR INTO THE BOTTOM LEFT CORNER OF EACH SECTION AND CLICK ON THE UP/DOWN ARROWS TO SCROLL THROUGH THE PAGES
ABBEY to CROWTHER
01 Abbey_Crowther
CURTIS to HELM
HEMINGWAY to MORTIMER
MORTON to SINGLETON
SKITMORE to WYNN
BURIALS IN PLOT NUMBER ORDER
1 – OLD YARD BURIALS
2 – NEW YARD BURIALS
3 – BURIAL PLOTS UNKNOWN
2,229 names
Although the plot number isn’t known, this list contains some family groups which proves their relationship from headstone details
Click on the link below if you would like to download a copy of the map containing the graves whose indicator starts with a letter eg. F23
The graves were placed in a cross-section of letters and numbers and on the map, I have included the surnames of all the people interred in these graves in the appropriate blocks.
Of course, not all the graves have headstones therefore if you are doing a physical search, you may only see a patch of grass between other headstones but by looking at other named graves, you should be able to plot exactly where your deceased ancestors are laid to rest.
Just to complicate matters, note that the letters start on the right to left with A, B, C, D, E, etc. then after the letter Z, the next three rows are a, b and c. Please be aware of this though if you want to take this up with the person who numbered the graves, he probably died about 150 years ago.
SOME INTERESTING STATISTICS FROM THE BURIALS PROJECT
Some interesting statistics came from this project. It would appear that following the opening of Rastrick Cemetery at Carr Green in 1884, the graveyard at St. Matthew’s started to become used less frequently.
Burials were averaging around 140 per year from the 1870’s until Carr Green Cemetery opened. The numbers dropped to around 50 per annum for a few years but decreased annually until December 1908 when there wasn’t another burial until December 1913It seems that the majority of interments from the year 1900 were of the more elderly Rastrick residents. They were buried in old family graves where a space had been identified, whilst younger family members were buried in new plots at Carr Green. I can remember old great aunts and uncles dying when I was young and recall my mother discussing with her parents and other older family members where there were suitable spaces in family plots because they ‘needed filling’.
With this in mind, I have collated information covering a fraction over 100 years from when the first churchyard interment took place. That was the burial of Benjamin Hanson who was laid to rest on the 19th April 1798. The final data point is the burial of John Binns on the 28th December 1899, a total of 7,639. Of these, there are no given ages for 391 so the figures are based upon 7,248 burials.
Infant mortality was high in Victorian Britain. In the 1840’s, 15% of new born children didn’t make their first birthday. In St. Matthews graveyard there are the remains of 1,571 such infants who died between the above years. In addition to that, there are a further 1,242 children who didn’t make it past their 5th birthdays. That is an amazing 38% of all the people who were buried in the churchyard.
Another depressing statistic is that just about half (49%) of the burials involved people aged 20 years or under. There must have been some very sad moments and many tears shed by grieving parents in that small area of Rastrick.