Pair Of Chapels, Lodge, Wall And Gate Piers At Tweedmouth Cemetery

Pair of Mortuary Chapels, Lodge, Wall and Gate Piers at Tweedmouth Cemetery

A group of mortuary chapels with a lodge, dating to 1858 and built in squared sandstone blocks in random courses with Welsh slate roofs.

The site is planned with a gate lodge positioned between two sets of wrought iron gates and gate piers, from which paths lead westward and eastward to two chapels that face each other. The chapels are mirror images of one another, each with a rectangular plan and a tower at the front corner.

The lodge presents a central two-storey gable to the road, with two round-arch one-over-one sash windows at ground floor and a single window in the gable. Single-storey wings flank each side, similarly fenestrated, with a tall chimney stack at the apex. The left return features a two-storey gable with paired ground-floor windows and a single upper window, all round-arched sashes, alongside a lower gable with two round-arched doors of slightly differing sizes, fitted with decorative iron hinges. A flat-roofed section with a single door (formerly a convenience) adjoins this. The right return mirrors this arrangement except one door is replaced by a window. Gables are raised with stone kneelers. Two tall double stacks rise from the eaves at the rear. A high stone wall encloses a small courtyard to the rear, pierced on the left return by a wooden gate; foundation remains indicate former outbuildings both within and beyond this wall.

The East Chapel (formerly Church of England) has a central round-arch doorway with moulded surround featuring Norman-style dog-tooth decoration; the double door carries similar decorative iron hinges to those on the lodge. A string course runs at the arch springing, another at first-floor level, and a third at the upper window arch springing. The upper window is bipartite with moulded surround and Corinthian-style columns. The gable above displays a dentil cornice. A projecting square tower at the left side features a projecting moulded plinth and two string courses at first-floor and eaves level. A narrow round-arch window lights the first floor; a larger window occupies the top stage to front and back, with small round windows to the sides. Above rises a tall square spire with dentil cornice and decorative fish-scale slates. Each side of the tower has a projecting plinth and three large round-arch windows set in slightly recessed bays divided by flat pilasters and topped by dentils, rising above a string course with another at arch springing. The rear similarly continues the lower string course and displays three similarly arranged windows. Above, the gable end is raised with a round window at the centre. The roof incorporates bands of decorative fish-scale slates. The West Chapel (formerly Nonconformist) is a reverse image of the East Chapel.

The interior of the lodge was not accessed. The East Chapel is simply laid out with bench pews flanking a central aisle, leading to a slightly raised east end with timber altar, reading desk, and altar rail. The roof is boarded with two exposed trusses featuring arched braces below a king post and struts. The West Chapel is now used for storage and retains no fittings except tongue-and-groove boarding to the lower walls; the roof structure is identical to the East Chapel.

The cemetery was established in 1858 following the closure of the churchyard at St Bartholomew Church and under provisions of the Burial Act, which allowed local authorities and parishes to provide burial grounds outside churchyards. The site appears to have been a quarry previously. The two chapels were designed to serve Church of England and Nonconformist services respectively; only the Church of England chapel remains in active use, while the other is used for storage. The lodge building is operated by social services for family use.

The gates flanking the lodge are of wrought iron, hung from wrought iron piers formed of decoratively wrought hollow squares. The cemetery is enclosed by a low stone wall.