Bouncer's Lane Cemetery

During the early 19th century, Cheltenham became fashionable as a spa, and the population grew, with many elderly and ailing people taking up residence there. As a result, there was not enough burial space, even after a new burial ground was laid out in the town in 1829–1830. In 1857 the Improvement Commissioners for Cheltenham set out to use the Burial Acts to provide a large new cemetery. They established a Burial Board, and this looked for an area of land of between twelve and twenty acres (c 5–8ha) within two miles of Cheltenham. In February 1861 land at Bouncer's Lane was bought, some from the Rev. John Edwards and some from the Poor Lands. In July 1861 the Burial Board decided to…