May 2021 Newsletter

Hello to all our Cemetery Friends and Neighbours

At last, it looks as though we are coming out of Lockdown, and we will, hopefully, be able to look forward to better times ahead, meeting up with friends and getting back to a new ‘normal’. Even though you may not have seen us working, we have been holding Zoom meetings and working behind the scenes to offer new services and projects within the Cemetery setting. We are all very excited to launch our new Cemetery Website. It is more user friendly for both our viewers and our volunteers who will be maintaining the website. We will also be adding lots of new facts, stories and information on individual graves within the cemetery which we are learning all the time. Please visit it at—www.deanandmanorrdcemetery.co.uk

We are planning a series of varied Cemetery Walks to take place throughout the coming year. Please take a look at the enclosed flyer which gives you details of the Walks that will be taking place in the Cemetery, the dates and a brief outline of the topic. Our aim is to draw more people in to the Cemetery; to listen to fascinating facts and stories about the Cemetery and people buried or remembered in our Cemetery. We hope you will join us for one or more of the Walks.

We launched a year-long Cemetery Photographic Competition late last year. We started with the Winter season for which we had lots of entries and were delighted to announce the winning entry from John Woollons of a fabulous view near Glenside entrance.
Well done, John We are now coming towards the end of the Spring season with Summer and Autumn seasons still to come. If you are interested in taking part, please visit our Website for more details. There are cash prizes to Winter season’s winning entry by J Woollons be won and recognition if your photo appears in our publications.

Our volunteers have been busy, they recently tidied up the Secret Garden which now looks wonderful – a big thank you to all who gave their time to help. Continual litter picking is also ongoing. If you are interested in helping maintain the Cemetery, you are welcome to join us, Just turn up on the first Sunday of any Month at 10 am, you will be given your own high viz jacket and gloves to keep and wear.

Our annual Heritage Cemetery Fair is planned for Sunday 12 September, see back page, we hope you can join us for this as it will be our first big fair in two years. We have lots of stalls already booked in plus an outdoor café, tombola and lots of activities taking place.

However, we hope you will be visiting us before then either on a Sunday Morning or to take part in one or more of the planned Walks. See you soon and take care.

Linda Tomczak Chair/Secretary Friends of Dean Road and Manor Road Cemetery & DRC Ltd. Director

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Dean Road Chapel Restoration Project

We traditionally write to give you an update of the Chapel Restoration Project but on this occasion it is a little more challenging to do, so we will try and keep this article factual. Dean Road Chapel Ltd (DRC) was registered as a Company in 2013 and later as a Charity. The primary aim is to conserve, protect, improve and maintain Dean Road Chapel for the benefit of the inhabitants of Scarborough.

DRC has been grant aided collectively by the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), Stronger Communities, Architectural Heritage Fund and the Institute of Cemeteries and Crematorium Management, from 2014. We have also received other donations and pledges. Two funding applications were submitted for the restoration of the Chapel. One to HLF in 2018 for £900k and one to Historic England (HE) in 2020 for £500k. Unfortunately, neither of these applications were successful where the latter one to HE did not fit in with their regional priorities.

DRC has worked very hard in these years with the positive outcome that we have produced a large number of documents that could support any further grant aid applications. However, as DRC has no source of income beyond the next few months we will not be able to operate as we have done over the last few years. In this situation the Directors felt that the responsible action was to pass on the Project to a larger organisation that has more resources and opportunities to further the Project. Consequently, the Project was transferred to Coast and Vale Community Action (CaVCA) on April 1st 2021. We have contacted CaVCA very recently but they were not able to give any indication of the forward progress of the Project at this time.

DRC will remain as a registered organisation for the time being. With the support of the Cemetery Friends Group, DRC will retain a significant sum of money. This has been ring fenced for the time being in the event of CaVCA or any other organisation being able to obtain grant aid for the Chapel restoration. Additionally, DRC wanted to raise the profile of the Chapel, Cemeteries and other structures within the site using the Listing process. DRC were not able to complete this in 2020 partly as a result of Covid restrictions. Fortunately, CaVCA has offered to continue with the Listing process and lead any applications that will need to be made to HE. We will endeavour to keep all of our supporters informed of any progress that can be made.

With Best Wishes.
Paul Espin
Dean Road Chapel Ltd. May 2021

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THE SCARBOROUGH BLITZ

On the night of March 18th 1941 at approximately 8 pm, 98 enemy planes carrying high explosive parachute and incendiary bombs flew over Scarborough and unleashed their deadly cargo, raining death and destruction on the town. The air raid sirens apparently did not go off until 9 pm, so the people of the town were caught unaware. Mick George Cappleman and his son Arthur killed during Jefferson (ex Scarborough Evening News) told me that the Scarborough Blitz night was his ‘most abiding memory of the war’. At this time Mick and his family lived opposite the Cemetery, he said ‘ETW Dennis & Sons, Printing Works and Paper Store, went up like a torch, a beacon for other bombers, then all over Dean Road Cemetery, the incendiary bombs gave off an eerie green light!’ The Print Works, on Melrose Street was hit early in the raid and the heat from the blaze was so intense, it melted the type in the composing room! Fortunately the late shift workers had left the premises about 15 minutes before the hit.

Incendiary bombs were dropped all over Scarborough, along with parachute and high explosive bombs leaving 28 civilians dead and many more injured. In North Marine Road the whole Siddle family were killed, while in Commercial Street several houses were totally destroyed by one high explosive bomb. There were stories of bravery, people putting their lives at risk to rescue others, or of people giving comfort and aid to the injured and those left homeless. There are other stories of remarkable escapes: J Walker, a Canadian and his wife were found dead in their gas filled room (the gas pipe had been ruptured) yet their baby daughter was found some hours later – unharmed; or the bomb that fell outside Westborough Methodist Church but failed to explode. Yet through it all somethings continued as normal . On that fateful evening Scarborough born Gladys Clark, aged 21, went to the Odeon Cinema. During the film, the siren was sounded, the audience were told to stay in the cinema. Later they were let out but the raid was still on. Gladys set off at a run, colliding with a wall at one point. She said she was not really scared but nevertheless ran home to Britannia Street where her mother was out in the road looking for her with that ‘what time do you call this’ look on her face but doubtless happy and relieved to see her daughter safe and sound. It was 4.30 am before the all-clear sounded and many Scarborough people emerged from air raid shelters (the tunnel in the Cemetery, under Manor Road, was used as an air raid shelter) to see what damage had been done. Approximately 1,378 buildings were damaged or destroyed that night; the night which came to be called the ‘Scarborough Blitz’.

Written by Rita Hooton

References: Scarborough War Years 39-45 Richard James Percy;
Scarborough Evening News; Mick Jefferson; Peter Cooper.

The Friends of Dean Road and Manor Road Cemetery had planned to commemorate the 80th Anniversary of the Scarborough Blitz in March this year with a dedicated service to the fallen, but unfortunately we were unable to do so due to the Covid Lock Down. However, Sir Winston Churchill Narcissus will be planted on all the Scarborough Blitz graves in the Autumn. We will remember the 28 people who died at the Remembrance Sunday Service which will be held at the Cross of Sacrifice when a roll call of all the casualties will be read out as part of the service.

 

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Congratulations to Liz Blades MBE

We are delighted to announce that Liz, a very active Committee Member, Friend and Volunteer of Dean Road and Manor Road Cemetery was made an MBE in the New Years Honours List. We hope that she will be able to receive her special award soon.

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