Burslem Cemetery

[Stephen White]

Today i visited Burslem Cemetery in Stoke-on-trent.One thing i noticed during my visit was that the CWGC headstones to the casualties of WW1 were a different colour to that of the WW2 casualties.

All WW1 headstones are dark grey in colour (possibly granite) and appear to te fairly new (perhaps five years old maximum).

All WW2 headstones appear to be of the traditional white stone variety.Any ideas on why there is this difference ??.

Stephen

[Terry Denham]

This is not unusual.

Stone is often sourced locally for headstones and different types of stone can be available at different times. I imagine also that some stones can be cheaper to purchase at different times depending on market conditions. Actual availablity will also come into the selection.

In Littlehampton Cemetery, Sussex all the original WW1 stones are green and the WW2/WW1 replacements are the usual white!

[Stephen White]

Thanks for that Terry.

So it seems to be locally sorced stone.I wonder if the WW2 stones will be replaced with the same stone as they become unreadable ??.

The carving on those WW1 stones does seem crisp(ish) so it strikes me that they have been replaced with this sort of stone in recent times.

Stephen

[Terry Denham]

In past times, stone was sourced locally to the stonemason as many headstones were made in the UK. However, nowadays all headstones for the UK (excluding those of granite) are made in CWGC's workshops in France.

Therefore, if these are new headstones, they would have come from France and the stone could have been sourced from well away from the cemetery area but probably still in the UK.

[Stephen White]

Therefore, if these are new headstones, they would have come from France and the stone could have been sourced from well away from the cemetery area but probably still in the UK.

Interesting thought that,although they have come from France,the stone may well still have come from the UK.

These grey stones look quite striking in appearence,but from afar they tended to "blend in" with the rest of the memorials in the cemetery.The white ones however stood out and were easily reconizable from a distance.

Would have made my search for the headstone i was after easier if all of them had been white .

Stephen