Page:History of the Fylde of Lancashire (IA historyoffyldeof00portiala).pdf/365

 became the seat of a Roman Catholic Convent School, which continued in possession for several years, until the new and handsome edifice standing on a rising ground in Little Layton was erected and ready for its reception. Shortly after the removal of the school the land and residence were purchased by the company above named, and their aspects began to undergo the changes already indicated. The census returns of the township collected in 1871, furnished a total of 7,902 persons, all of whom, with the exception of an insignificant proportion, were resident in Blackpool.

In consequence of a letter from the Secretary of State, giving notice that the burial ground in connection with St. John's Church must be closed after the 31st of December, 1871, the responsibility of providing a suitable place for interments was thrown upon the authorities, and the members of the Local Board of Health formed themselves into a Burial Board, their first meeting being held on the 20th of June in the year just specified. A committee was appointed, and in the ensuing August purchased for £1,759 an eligible site of 8-1/2 acres, lying by the side of the New Road, into which the entrance gates of the cemetery now open. The plans for the requisite erections were prepared by Messrs. Garlick, Park, and Sykes, architects, of Preston, and the work of preparing the ground commenced in October, the contract for the chapels and lodge being let in December. As such a brief interval had to elapse before the order for closing the churchyard would be put in force, the Board applied, successfully, for permission to keep it open six months longer. The cemetery, however, progressed so tardily that it was necessary to renew the application on two future occasions, and the churchyard continued in use until the 31st of May, 1873. Five acres of the land were laid out from plans supplied by Mr. Gorst, surveyor to the board, and were divided into nine sections, four of which were apportioned to the Church of England, three to the Nonconformists, and two to the Roman Catholics. The cemetery was enclosed from the highway by stone palisadings and boundary walls, having massive iron railings. The approach to the grounds is through a spacious entrance, with a double iron gate in the centre, and a single gate on either side, hung to stone pillars. Inside the gate is the lodge,