Late Middle Ages Tombstones

fig.1

The Chapter house at the priory contains some interesting gravestones relating to the late Medieval period. The most important of which is that of Thomas Rayneford, Prior of Birkenhead. The original inscription (fig1.) reads 'Hic jacet Thomas Rayneford quondam bonus prior huis loci qui obiit viiio Maii anno domini mmo cccclxxiiio cuis anime propicietur Deus' meaning: Here lieth Thomas Rayneford a former worthy prior of this house who died on the 8th of May in the year of our Lord 1473, may God be gracious to his soul!.

Fig.2.

In 1818 the stone was removed from its original resting place and inserted into the outside wall of the chapter house, as can be seen in the engraving in (fig.2). The stone was re-sited again in 1896 and finally in 1913 is was set in the Sanctuary of the Chapter House to the right of the alter. Another tombstone of a similar period can be seen to the side of the priors stone (fig.3) this stone is without text, just the ancient carved patterns giving a glimpse into its true meaning.

Fig.3.

In the North wall of the Chapter house is another fifteenth century five-light window which is now filled with old stained glass. The other window at the west end of the north wall was originally Norman, but was changed to a pointed arch doorway, then in 1860 was filled with an old fourteenth century window. An ancient tombstone from the priory graveyard was used for its lintel on the inside, its inscription now hidden from our sight.(fig.4.)

Fig.4.

Archibald Alexander Smith, Virginia U.S.

(ref.93)

Sacred to the memory of Mary Smith who departed this life 23rd March 1849 aged 38 years Be ye also ready Also John Smith husband of the above Who died 21st September 1860 aged 67 years Also of Archibald Alexander Smith Of Alexandria and Virginia U.S. Who died 29th October 1869 aged 24 years Also of Reginald Keighly Smith M.A. Vicar of Killinghall Yorkshire 2nd son Of the above John and Mary Smith Who died at Chester 9th January 1904 aged 65 years Also Julia Sarah Smith daughter of the above John and Mary Smith who died November 9th 1905 Aged 65 years.

This stone is to the left of the Chapter House.

Richard Parry Price

Memorial in the Chapter House

Richard Price, esq. F.R.S. son and heir of Francis Price of Bryn-y-pys, Flint. Assumed the name of Parry in consequence of a bequest by the hon. Benjamin Parry a privy councellor of Ireland. Born May 19th 1736, Died 14th May 1782. Richard Parry Price married Anne Puleston of Brynypys, Flint. 23rd October, 1764, at Biddulph, in Staffordshire, by the Rev. John Gresley. In Mr Parry Price's diary,  this event is thus recorded: " Made the happiest man in the world by being married to my dearest Nancy at Biddulph."

Restoration of the Priory was took up by Edward W. Cox, who devoted much time to the Priory and produced conjectured drawings and plans, some of which are not now considered accurate. However, such was the interest generated by these scholars, that the few hundred pounds required to buy the ruins and the freehold of the site was raised, and the corporation of Birkenhead was persuaded to take responsibility for them in 1896. E.W. Cox took over superintendence of restoration work in the following year, carried out by the Chester stone masons, Haswell & Son. A photographic survey of the work completed is the first comprehensive such study of the site, and shows details like the numbering, stone by stone, of the Guest Hall's south wall, which had to be taken down and completely rebuilt. The work was completed on 2 April 1898 .

Some of the Stonemasons whose marks you see above were:
George W. Haswell a Marble and Stonemason, born in Chester and living in 70 Bouverie Street, Chester.
Thomas Croft Stonemason, born Liverpool and living at 2 Hope Terrace, Birkenhead.
George Stocks Stonemason from Bingley, Yorkshire. living at 33 Sidney Street, Birkenhead. (both his father Albert and brother Walter also stonemasons.)
Henry Jones from Flintshire and his son Robert Jones, living at 211 Oliver Street. Birkenhead.

The Rev. CANON Andrew KNOX
of Birkenhead.
1797 Londonderry, Ireland -1881 Birkenhead Cheshire.

In connection with the recent restoration of St. Mary's Church, Birkenhead, a handsome massive tablet has, within the last few days, been placed under the window in the north transept to the memory of the late Rev. Canon Knox and of Mrs. Knox, his wife. Canon Knox, it is well known, was vicar of St. Mary's for about half a century, and during his long residence in Birken­head his name was closely associated with every movement calculated to promote the social, moral, and religious condition of the inhabitants. Since his decease the church and burial ground have been restored at a cost of upwards of £3000, and the adjoining schools in Priory-Street have also been greatly enlarged. The whole of this Work was undertaken and completed as a "Knox memorial," and the Restoration Committee (of which Mr. William Laird was chairman) determined still further to commemorate the memory of their old and revered pastor by the erection of a monument in the church in which he had ministered so long and successfully. This latter work has been executed by Messrs, Earp, Son, and Hobbs, London and Manchester, from the design of Mr. Charles Aldridge, architect, Liverpool, from whose plans the restoration of the sacred edifice was also carried out. The tablet, which is of polished marble and alabaster, is of large dimensions, and very artistically designed, and has sculptured on the upper portion of it a capital likeness of Canon Knox as he appeared a year or two before his-death. On each side of the tablet there is the coat-of-arras of the Rev. Canon Knox and of Mrs. Knox, and underneath it the following inscription in old English characters:

"In memory of the Rev ANDREW KNOX, B.A.,Vicar of Birkenhead and Honorary Canon of Chester Cathedral, and. of his wife Katherine, this tablet is erected. Andrew Knox came to Birkenhead, as curate in charge of St. Mary's, in 1828 ; was appointed incumbent in 1834, and laboured here for 53 years. He found in his wife a loving and devoted helper. She fell asleep in Jesus May 29, 1868, aged 69 years. During his incumbency the rural township of Birkenhead was incorporated with Tranmere, Oxton, and part of Bebington first as a parliamentary, then as a municipal borough. with a population of 80,000. The public spirit and Christian charity with which he promoted everything tending to the advancement of his fellow-townsmen, as well as the extension of churches and schools, won for him the respect and affection of all classes. A firm friend, ready to advise and willing to sympathise, he lived his life truly, did his work thoroughly, and now he rests in. peace. 'With long life will I satisfy him, and show him my salvation!—Psalm.
xci., 16." The tablet also states that the Rey.Canon Knox was born on the 8th July, 1797 ; that
he was vicar of Birkenhead from 1834 to 1881 and that he died on the 12th October, 1881.

"Reported in the Liverpool Mercury, Saturday November 17th 1883, Issue 11185"

"The Remains of Birkenhead Priory, Wirral"
by Harold Hopps.
Showing the Church of St. Mary in the background.
picture in the collection of the 'Williamson Art Gallery & Museum'

Baptisms, Marriages & Burials in St.Mary's Church Birkenhead.

If anyone requires any research into the above parish registers I'm more than happy to check them for you, contact me via the comments pages or email me at the address given in the side-bar.

I am pleased to say I have just become member of
"The Association of Graveyard Rabbits"

The Association was named for Frank Lebby Stanton's poem, The Graveyard Rabbit. Although the poem is about superstitions associated with graveyard rabbits, Stanton also establishes that such rabbits have a charmingly intimate knowledge of graveyards and a loving association with the dead. These traits are the motivation of the human beings interested in this group.

My association is mainly for my work on St. Mary's Church Monumental Inscriptions. Also researching a one-name sudy involves visiting so many graveyards & public cemeteries, it could just as much apply to this study. Which you can view by clicking on the "Blog Links" tab opposite.

You can find us on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/graveyardrabbit

These monuments were originally set up inside St. Mary’s Church, but were removed to the Liverpool Oratory when the greater part of the church was demolished.

From left to right:

Dr William Stevenson, who had served in the Peninsular War in his youth, was the first medical man to settle in Birkenhead, well before it expanded into a thriving industrial town in the 1820s.

Within its elaborate Gothic frame (appropriate to the architecture of St Mary’s) the relief carving of Stevenson taking a sick woman’s pulse combines an odd mixture of historical styles: 19th century dress for the doctor, vaguely antique draperies for the women, an almost baroque twist to the patient’s pose, and a Grecian lamp in the background. (Sculptor John MacBride).

William and George Hetherington were the sons of William Hetherington, owner of the Birkenhead Ferry and the Ferry Hotel. Both died of consumption and their mother, already a widow, erected this monument. Her second husband lived in Cheltenham, which explains the use of the most prolific firm of sculptors in that town.

Above the inscription a grieving maiden is shown leaning against a broken column and pointing towards tow fragments which have toppled from it. The broken column came to be used on countless 19th century monuments as a general symbol of death, but here it retains its original precise meaning, the breaking off of a family’s line of descent by the death of its only children. the inscription refers to the deceased being buried in ‘the Abbey chapel yard adjoining this church’. (Sculptor George Lewis of Cheltenham).

Text taken from 'The Oratory', a guide to the building and its monuments, Joseph Sharples, 1991.

The interior of St.Mary's Church c1971

A view of St. Mary's church from Tranmere Pool, looking North. From a watercolour by William Gavin Herdman, c1855.

A listing of Surnames, taken from the Monumental inscriptions appearing on these pages:(number in brackets indicates more than one stone).

ACHESON, ACKERLEY, AINERY, ALCOCK, ALLEN, ANDERTON, ASH, ASHTON, ASPINALL (2), ATKINSON, BAGNOLD, BATES, BATTERSBY, BATTESON, BAYLEE, BENTLEY, BERESFORD (2), BETTS, BEVIS, BICKERTON, BILLINGTON (2), BILLSBARROW, BIRKETT, BIRNIE, BLUNDELL (2), BOND, BOTHELL, BOULTHEE, BRADDOCK, BRADLEY (2), BREAKEY, BRERCLON, BRESWICK, BRIDDEN, BRIERLY, BRINDLEY, BROADBENT, BROMFIELD, BROOKE, BROWN, BROWNSWORTH, BURGESS, BURKHILL, BURROW, BUSHELL, BYRON, CARMICHAEL (2), CARTER, CARWOOD, CHRISTIANSEN, CLARK, CLEMENT, CLIFFE, COLE (2), COLEMAN, COLLINGS, COLLIS, COLMAN, CONROY, CONWAY, COOK (2), COOKE, COOPER (2), CORKER, COVELL, COWIE, CROSS, CROWDSON, DARLINGTON, DAVIDSON, DEAN (3), DENNIS, DENTON, DEVALVE, DEXTER, DICKER, DIXON, DONE, DOVE, DOYLE, DUNBAR, DUNCAN (2), ELLIOT, ESPIANSSE, EVANS, FAIRCLOUGH, FOURNIER, FOX, FRASER, FRY, FULLER, GALLOWAY, GARRADE, GASKELL, GATHORNE, GEORGE, GIBSON, GILL, GOODACRE, GOULD, GOULDSON, GRANT, GREY, GRIERSON, GRIFFITHS (2), GRINDROD, HALL (2), HALY, HAMILTON (2), HARDING, HARDWICK, HARRISON (2), HAYWOOD, HEATHCOCK, HEATHERINGTON, HELM, HENDRICK, HENSMAN, HEYCOCK, HIDE, HIRSCH, HODGBURY, HODGSON, HOGAN, HOGG, HOLDFOOD, HOLT, HOOKEY, HORRIDGE, HUBARD, HUGHES (3), HUMPHREYS, HUNTER (2), HUTCHINSON, HYATT, JACKSON, JENKIN, JOHNSON, JOHNSTON, JONES (9), KEELING, KEIGHTLEY, KENNEDY, KENNING, KILLEY, KINGHORN, KNOX (2), KNYVETT, ,KOSTER, LAIRD, LAKEY, LAVEY, LAWSON, LEA, LEE (3), LEECH, LEES, LEWIS (2), LIVINGSTONE, LLOYD (2), LOXTON, LYTHGOE, MACDONALD, MAJOR, MANNING, MARSHALL, MARTIN, MATHEWS, MAXWELL, MCGREGOR, MCKELLAR (2), MCKILLAR, MCMORINE, MEIKLEHAM, MELBOURNE, MIDGLEY, MILFORD, MILLER (2), MILNER, MODDREL, MOFFAT, MOONEY, MOORE, MORRIS, MORRISON, NELSON, NEWALL, NEWBY, OAKLEY, O'DONNEL, ORME, OUTRAM, OXLEY, PARKER, PARSONAGE, PEACOCK, PEARSON, PHILLIPS, PIERCE, PLATTS, POOK, POTTER, POWELL, PURDY, QUINE, RAE, RANKINE, RATCLIFFE, RAVENSCROFT, REECE, RENSHALL, RIGBY, ROBERTS (3), ROBINSON, ROWBOTHAM, RYAN, SAMUALS, SANDERS, SCHOLFIELD, SCONCE, SHAW (2), SHEWELL, SHILLINGLAW, SHINGLER, SINCLAIR, SMITH (3), SMITHES, SMYTH, SPEED, SPEIRS, SPENCER, STEELE, STEPHENSON, STEVENS, STIRLING, STOREY, STORK, STYAN, SWAINE, SWAN, SYKES, TAYLOR, THEOBALD, THOM, THOMPSON, THORNTON, TICE, TICKLE, TODD, TOMKINSON, TOWERS, TWAINBROOK, TYLER, WAINWRIGHT, WALTON, WANE, WARD, WARE, WAREING, WARNER, WATKIN, WATMOUGH, WATSON (4), WAVE, WEARE, WELCH, WELTON, WHITE, WILKINSON, WILLIAMS (7), WILLOUGHBY, WILSON (3), WINGFIELD, WINSTANLEY, WOLFE, WOOD, WRIGG, WRIGHT (2)

(Ref.217)
In memory of Catherine M. Shaw Wife of the Rev. James Towers And of Jemima, Kate and Jessie Towers Their daughters Also of Anna Mary Who died 20th April 1869 Aged 18 years Also the Rev. James Towers Who died 29th July 1891 Aged 65 years.




Kate Shaw Towers 1859 Registered December Qtr.1859 Wirral. (Vol.8a page 265). Aged 17.
Jamima Shaw Towers 1860 Registered December Qtr.1860 Wirral. (Vol.8a page 247). Aged 20.
Catherine Towers 1865. Registered March Qtr.1865 Birkenhead.(Vol.8a page 355). Aged 54.
Jessie Towers 1867 Registered June Qtr. 1867 Birkenhead (Vol.8a page 305) Aged 22.
Anna Mary Towers 1869 Registered June Qtr. 1869 Birkenhead (Vol.8a page 290) Aged 18.
James Towers 1891 Registered September Qtr. 1891 Wirral (Vol.8a page 265) Aged 83.

James would appear to have three further children Agnes Hamilton Towers, Margaret J. Towers & James Shaw Towers. James Towers was the Snr.United Presbyterian Minister of Grange Road Church, Birkenhead, the photo above shows him in his home (Pic) in Claughton-cum-Grange.

from left to right;

(Ref.511)
Sacred to the memory of WILLIAM WAREING, who died June 7th, 1856, aged 65 years. Also of HANNAH WAREING, his widow. Born 12th August, 1799. Died 16th January 1884.

(Ref.503)
Sacred to the memory of MARTHA, the dearly lowed wife of George ACHESON, of Hinderton House, Tranmere, who died 15th November, 1871, aged 41 years. 'I have travelled through Death's dark valley, but hope hath shone on my way, they rod and thy staff they have' borne me, to the realms of endless day.'

(Ref.421)
WILLIAM WOOD of Woodside, died July 19th 1780, aged 63 years. ........ IEL CLAI WOOD'S burial place.

(Ref.95)
Sacred To the memory of Jerome Sankey Smithes Surgeon Who departed this life December 14th 1818 Aged 38 years.

View of the open courtyard next to the Chapel, within the Priory showing some of the remaining grave stones.

from left to right;

(Ref.597)
In memory of Robert Dean who fell asleep in Jesus 13th March 1848 Aged 54 years. And Martha his wife who died 18th February 1873 Aged 80 years “Her end was Peace” Also Elizabeth daughter of the above who died 14th January 1839 Aged 2 years. Also Elizabeth Martha daughter of Charles and Ellen Dean and Grand-daughter of the above, who died 2nd December 1851 Aged 18 months.

(Ref.605)
Sacred to the memory of Anne Caroline, the beloved wife of Richard Edmundson Birkett, Master Mariner who died 11th April 1856, Aged 27 years. Also of Elizabeth Matilda Breakey, twin Sister of the above who died 19th October 1856, Aged 28 years………(Broken Stone)………………… of Richard Edmundson and Eliza Birkett, who died on the 1st of February……Aged 3 years.

(Ref.611)
In memory of Mary Anne wife of John Watson, died 22nd October 1854, Aged 63.

from left to right:

(Ref.589)
James Elliot, Obit 16th July 1862. Etat 47. Isabella Elliot Died 1st June 1868 Aged 51.

(Ref.591)
In Memory of Henry, son of John and Mary Anne Watson. Died at Achill County Mayo Ireland. 12th September 1851 Aged 26(?). Richard Brother of the above died at Cambridge(?) 4th June 1857 Aged 36.

(Ref.595)
Sacred to the memory of Mary Duncan, wife of James Cooper of Liverpool, who died the 15th January 1841 Aged 22 years. Also to the memory of Agnes Duncan the beloved wife of James Duncan of Birkenhead, who died the 22nd of October 1844, Aged 67 years.

from left to right:

(Ref.581)
Sacred to the memory of Alfred Keeling, who departed this life August 16th 1862 Aged 47 Years “In the midst of Life we are in Death”.

(Ref.583)
Sacred to the memory of Matilda Styan, wife of Francis Styan of Birkenhead who died 27th November 1866, Aged 53 years.

(Ref.587)
Sacred to the memory of William Bagnold and Catherine his wife. Also their four daughters Harriet, Ann, Clara and Elizabeth Bagnold.

from left to right:

(Ref.543)
In Loving memory of William Lees, died 25th Sept 1880 aged 49 years, Also of Sarah his widow, died 28th July 1898 aged 66 years “at rest”. Also their beloved grand-daughter Ruby Lees Denton, fell asleep 6th February 1907, aged 4 years. “Jesus wants me for a sunbeam”.

(Ref.545)
In loving memory of Ursula Ann, infant daughter of, Richard and Ursula Lewis, who died January 26th 1889 aged 1 year and 2 months. “Thy will be done”.

(Ref.577)
In loving memory of Archie Edward, the beloved son of Edwin and Jessie Milford, who departed this life 23rd ……….1900, Aged 7 years.

from left to right:

(Ref.537)
In Memory of, Samuel Swan, who departed this life 17th August 1846 aged 66 years. Also Ann Swan, relict of the above, who died 8th September 1856, aged 66 years. Also Marian, wife of Joseph Swan and daughter-in-law of the above, who died 10th March 1859, aged 38 years. Also Martha the beloved wife of Richard Swan, of Tranmere who died 26th May 1871, aged 67 years.

(Ref.539)
In loving memory of, William Jonathan Jones who died April 9th 1911 aged 1 year & 9 months. Also of Eric Jones who died April 12th 1911 aged 3 months. And Leslie Jones who died March 25th 1913 aged 6 months. “Safe in the arms of Jesus”

(Ref.541)
In Affectionate remembrance of Sarah, the beloved wife of John Milner who died March 10th 1874, aged 29 years.