Mortuary

The former mortuary at Wimborne Road Cemetery, built around 1878, is designed in Gothic style and attributed to local architect Christopher Crabbe Creeke. It features a small rectangular plan, originally with two small rooms on either side, with the internal blocked doorways still visible. The building is constructed of yellow stock brick and has a pitched slate roof, although some tiles are missing. Decorative brick moulded eaves, ridge tiles, and bargeboards enhance its appearance. The front gable includes an entrance with a three-centred arch framed by brick wave moulding, and above this is a triple lancet window, which mirrors a similar window at the rear gable end at about the same height. The interior is simple, with walls partly lined in white tiles.

Wimborne Road Cemetery was opened in 1878 and designed by Creeke, who also created a lodge and a mortuary chapel for the site. Earlier, in 1854, he designed Poole Cemetery in Dorset, which is listed at Grade II, and in 1859 he became the Surveyor to the Town Commissioners of Bournemouth. Creeke was a founding member of the Architectural Association. The mortuary, along with the chapel (also listed Grade II) and the now-replaced lodge, is depicted on the second edition Ordnance Survey map revised in 1896.

The former mortuary is designated at Grade II for several key reasons: 19th-century mortuaries are rare, and despite the loss of its two side rooms, this structure is a good example of its type and date. It features quality architectural detailing, and its function is still clear. Additionally, it is part of a significant group of buildings within a nationally important cemetery landscape, contributing to the understanding of Victorian funerary and mourning customs.