Mortuary

768/0/10098 WIMBORNE ROAD CEMETERY 22-FEB-10 Mortuary

GV II A former mortuary of c1878 in Gothic style, attributed to Christopher Crabbe Creeke, a local architect. It has a small rectangular plan, originally with two small rooms to either side: the internal blocked doorways remain visible. The structure is built in yellow stock brick with a pitched slate roof, with some tiles now missing. It has decorative brick moulded eaves, ridge tiles and bargeboards. The front gable has an entrance with a three-centred arch articulated by brick wave moulding. Above it is a triple lancet window, identical to that to the rear gable end which is at approximately the same height. The interior is plain, with the walls partly lined in white tiles.

HISTORY: Wimborne Road Cemetery was opened in 1878, and designed by Christopher Crabbe Creeke (1820-86), a local architect. Apart from the mortuary, it included a lodge and a mortuary chapel. Earlier, in 1854, Creeke had designed Poole Cemetery in Dorset (included at Grade II on the Register of Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest), and in 1859 he succeeded Decimus Burton as Surveyor to the Town Commissioners of Bournemouth. Creeke was also a founding member of the Architectural Association. The mortuary, including the chapel (listed Grade II) and the lodge (now replaced), are marked on the second edition Ordnance Survey map, revised in 1896.

REASONS FOR DESIGNATION: The former mortuary at Wimborne Road Cemetery in Bournemouth is designated at Grade II for the following principal reasons:

• C19 mortuaries are rare survivals, and as such, despite the loss of its two side rooms, this is a good example for its date and type * It has good quality architectural detailing and its function remains clear * It forms part of an interesting group of buildings and structures within a nationally important cemetery landscape, which together make an important contribution to the understanding of Victorian funerary and mourning customs