Graveyard of the poor where bodies were piled up | UK | Travel

Cross Bones graveyard in Southwark, once the backdrop for one of London’s ‘poorest and most violent slums’, The Mint, has a history as chilling as its name suggests.

The first mention of this eerie site dates back to 1598, when historian John Stow referred to it as a ‘Single Woman’s churchyard’ in his comprehensive Survey of London, leaving us to wonder about the origins of Cross Bones.

Initially serving as an unofficial resting place for sex workers, who were denied a sacred burial, Cross Bones later became a mass grave for the very poorest in society by 1769.

In 1853, the graveyard closed after reaching a macabre saturation point, described as “completely overcharged with dead”, with an estimated 15,000 bodies interred within its confines.

The Museum of London Archaeology Services conducted a number of excavations of the site in the 90s in connection to a planned extending of the Jubilee Line.

These archaeological digs showed that bodies had been buried on top of each other in a number of graves. And among the tragic findings were the remains of numerous children, adding a layer of sorrow to the site’s dark legacy.

Writer and mystic John Constable, also known by his pseudonym John Crow, stirred intrigue in 1996 when he professed to have been visited by the ghost of a ‘Winchester Goose’, a medieval term for a sex worker licensed by the Bishop of Winchester to work in the area.

Following this encounter, John and his partner Katharine Nicholls embarked on a mission to restore and transform Cross Bones into a shrine and memorial garden. The first ‘vigil for the outcasts’ was held at Cross Bones on June 23, 2004, a tradition that continues to this day.

Subsequently, a small group known as the Friends of Cross Bones was established to maintain the graveyard. They collaborated with Bankside Open Spaces Trust (BOST) to further enhance the garden.

The entrance to the graveyard is now adorned with a colourful array of flowers, ribbons, and various other items, with visitors frequently adding their personal keepsakes.