Crematorium Building, Roselawn Cemetery and Crematorium, 127 Ballygowan Road, Belfast, County Antrim, BT5 7TZ

Roselawn Crematorium is a double-height, multi-bay modernist building constructed around 1960 and officially opened on 10th May 1961, designed by city architect J. H. Swann. It stands within the grounds of Roselawn Cemetery on the east side of Ballygowan Road, northwest of Crossnacreevy, on a 106-acre site purchased by Belfast Council from Down County Council in 1952. It was the first crematorium built in Ireland and remained the only one until 1982, and is still one of only three crematoria on the island of Ireland. Its distinctive style and proportions make it a good example of civic architecture of its period, despite some alterations since construction. It forms an architectural group with other similarly modern structures within the cemetery grounds: the Gate Lodge and Gate Screen, and the Toilet Block, Porter's Lounge, and Concrete Gazebo.

The building has a rectangular plan form adjoined by various single-storey abutments and a later double-height modification. The roof is pitched and covered in natural slate — originally olive green Buttermere slates — with clay ridge tiles, timber fascia and bargeboards, and replacement uPVC rainwater goods. The square-plan plain red-brick chimney has concrete flaunching and circular pots, raised at an unknown date. Walling is red brick laid to stretcher bond, with stone cladding and painted render; the original bricks were Dungannon red, with sills and copings of reconstituted Portland stone. Windows are replacement uPVC with plain concrete projecting surrounds. The entrance has replacement double-leaf timber doors with over- and sidelights.

The principal gable faces east and is largely blank with decorative projecting brickwork. Adjoining it to the left is a square-plan red-brick campanile perforated with shallow decorative clay cylinders set in courses; it is surmounted by a shallow pitched pyramidal copper cap with a copper finial. The campanile originally contained an extensive water storage system. Extending across the gable at single-storey, flat-roofed level is a stone-clad entrance range. Centrally positioned doors are sheltered by a projecting concrete porte-cochère supported on stone piers. To the right cheek is a single window; to the left of the doors is a red-brick portion containing three square windows. Further left is a diminished canopy matching the details of the porte-cochère, over a secondary entrance, with horizontal strip glazing to the left terminating in a projecting half-circle glazed bay with concrete surrounds.

The left elevation is asymmetrically arranged with three vertical windows to the left. To the right, various flat-roofed single-storey accommodation abuts the main building; the south façade of this range contains the exit with a projecting porte-cochère, a recessed horizontal strip of full-height glazing to the right, a geometric decorative metal screen, and circular light-wells above. Various sized windows appear to the left of this elevation. The right elevation is also asymmetrically arranged, with four vertical windows to the left and a rendered portion to the right separated by a full-height brick pier with a large rectangular window. The rear gable is blank, with an adjoining chimney to the right — the original chimney from the cremator flue was concealed at the rear and did not rise above the level of the chapel roof. A rendered wall to an enclosure abuts the centre; the view is partially obscured.

The former enclosed courtyard adjacent to the main building has been almost entirely infilled, around 2000, with a double-height hipped-roofed extension featuring clerestory glazing and leaded hips surmounted by a raised copper pyramidal cap matching that of the campanile.

As originally completed, the building was arranged over two floors. The basement contained the committal chamber, furnace room, coffin store, fan room, and electrical switchgear. At ground level were the vestibule, main chapel, chapel of rest, waiting rooms, toilets, Book of Remembrance room, wreath display area, staff dining room, music room, minister's room, and administrative offices, together with an enclosed yard for garden tools and equipment. The chapel seated 100 people in pews and was fitted with an electrically operated catafalque to raise and lower the coffin. Mourners entered and departed by separate doorways to avoid confusion between successive groups. The Books of Remembrance and their display cabinet were made by A. C. Foley and were originally the only form of memorial to those cremated; from 1978 a scheme allowed trees or bulbs to be planted in memory of the deceased, eventually resulting in over 3,000 trees planted in copses across the site. Cremation was carried out by gas-fired Dowson and Mason 'super-twin' cremators, with space reserved for a further twin furnace. The first cremation took place in July 1961.

The crematorium sits slightly elevated within its purpose-built site, which combines cemetery grounds and car parking. It is secluded from direct public view. The surrounding landscape comprises well-maintained areas of grass, flower beds, and trees. The driveway circumnavigates the building, exiting to the west adjacent to the concrete gazebo. Roses were planted along the main driveway when the cemetery was laid out, giving the site its name. The cemetery was extended by 17 acres in 1979 and further land has been added since; the site has been gradually landscaped and now includes a number of lakes and water features.

The cemetery was dedicated on 6th April 1954, with representatives of the Church of Ireland, Presbyterian, and Methodist churches officiating. It was laid out as a 'lawn' cemetery with no pillars, railings, or hoops enclosing graves, and only a limited area at the head of each grave for a headstone and planting. Designs for the crematorium were prepared by Swann as early as 1956, but construction was not completed until 1961. The building cost approximately £100,000. Among those buried in Roselawn Cemetery are Northern Ireland footballer George Best (1946–2005) and Unionist MP James Kilfedder (1928–1995). The site also contains graves connected to the Troubles, including those of police and prison officers, soldiers, and victims of the Abercorn Restaurant, Oxford Street, and La Mon House Hotel bombings. In March 1987 an explosion at the cemetery gate caused extensive damage to one of the gate houses, which has since been removed.