West Norwood Memorial Park Catacombs Beneth The Remembrance Garden

The West Norwood Memorial Park Catacombs are located beneath the Remembrance Garden and were built around 1837 by Sir William Tite to accommodate approximately 2,000 coffins. Externally, the only visible features are a flight of curving entrance steps and six semi-circular light shaft openings with grilles.

Inside, there is an entrance hall (which has been altered) leading to a central axial hall flanked by three long corridors on each side. The central hall features arcades on each side, with each arch filled by a private vault that resembles 15th-century chantry chapels. These vaults are constructed from Gothic stone and include blind arcading and badges, accessed through "Tudor" cast iron grille doors adorned with badges. Each corridor is lined with recesses that are screened off by fine Gothic-style metal doors, most of which contain coffin shelves.

At the ends of each corridor, there are light shafts made of pale brick with vaulted ceilings, although the circular light openings in the ceilings of the outer corridors are now blocked. The floors, originally paved with stone slabs, are now bare earth. A centrally situated hydraulic catafalque, along with a hand-operated pump manufactured by Messrs. Bramah and Robinson in 1839, is present; a plaque is attached to the upright rail. This catafalque was used to silently lower coffins from the Anglican chapel into the vaults below and was considered a remarkable example of combining industrial technology with traditional burial practices. The only other comparable catafalque machinery is located at Kensal Green. The Tite family vaults can be found immediately to the right of the entrance. It is worth noting that both the Anglican and Non-Conformist mortuary chapels at West Norwood were demolished in 1960 and 1955, respectively, due to war damage.