Manchester Crematorium 1890-1990

This history of Manchester Crematorium was written by the late Chris Makepeace for Manchester Crematorium Ltd. to mark the company's centenary in 1990.

It provides a concise history of the development of cremation in the United Kingdom and the subsequent formation of the Manchester Crematorium Company, only the second crematorium in the country following the opening of the crematorium at Woking. Subsequent chapters examine the struggle to achieve acceptance of this (then) controversial way to dispose of the dead; expansion during the inter-war years; World War Two and the development of the company in its aftermath as cremation overtook burial as the predominant practice. Includes a table of the annual number of cremations carried out and a table of charges for their services as they stood in 1892. (76pp illustrated with black & white and colour photographs).

Manchester and Lancashire FHS is grateful to the Manchester Crematorium for their kind permission to offer this invaluable publication as a downloadable pdf file.

The records of persons cremated at Manchester Crematorium were destroyed during the Manchester Blitz in 1940. A partial replacement for this lost information can be obtained from the memorial plaques at the crematorium. These have been transcribed by MLFHS and can be purchased as a downloadable file.

A more comprehensive listing, covering about 75% of persons cremated and developed from newspaper announcements and other sources, can be accessed by MLFHS members. CLICK HERE to learn about membership.