BOHERMORE VICTORIAN CEMETERY WELL WORTH A VISIT

Bohermore is located in the area of Galway, Ireland. The name is derived from the Irish literally meaning "the big road". On the last day of my visit to Galway I walked at random around around the area and came across an interesting cemetery and it was not what I would have expected if I had been looking for it. It is very well organised, well maintained and modern which may explain why the locals refer to it as the ’new cemetery’

Bohermore graveyard opened in 1880 and it contains two mortuary chapels – the western chapel was reserved for Catholic usage and the eastern one for Protestant use - and a caretaker’s lodge close to the entrance gates. I arrived at 4PM and was disappointed to see an notice indicating that the cemetery closed at 4:15PM so I did not have much time. However, on leaving a caretaker noticed my camera and as a result we had an interesting conversation and he explained that the side gate was always open and that I could enter at any time in order to take photographs.

The Victorian attitude to grave memorials was to make them as ostentatious as they could afford. Large family vaults and crypts were established. Church of England congregations tended to avoid crosses which were seen as too Catholic and Classical symbols like urns and columns were popular. Many of the earlier grave memorials in Bohermore graveyard have these classical symbols as part of the grave memorial.

The Victorian style of graveyard and graveyard memorial reached its zenith around 1880. After this date people began to question the cost and suitability of the elaborate memorials. Following the First World War and the huge loss of life the attitude to burials completely changed and ostentation and decoration were frowned upon.

People buried there include Lord Haw Haw (William Joyce) who was a main German English-speaking Axis broadcaster during World War II. Lady Gregory, a founding member of the Irish Literary Theatre Movement, lived and died in the environs, and was buried there in 1932.