These were taken from Conurbation, the excellent study of that area by the West Midland group. The most complete tabulation available is for the Birmingham (England) and Black Country area. Table I lists cemetery areas in several cities, including those listed in the above-mentioned PLANNING ADVISORY SERVICE report. 14 (May 1950) "Urban Land Use," figures on cemeteries were available for only five of 39 areas listed. They are normally classed as a "semi-public" use, a class which may also include churches, golf clubs, privately-owned amusement parks, private health and charitable institutions, etc. There are 2,500 acres of municipal cemeteries in the County of London alone.Ĭomparatively few published city plans have listed cemeteries as a separate land-use classification. Lloyd does not estimate the existing total cemetery acreage, but he states that municipal cemeteries (a small part of the total) cover 25,000 acres. Greater London alone needs 98 new acres annually. Henry Lloyd, writing in the May 1950 issue of Town and Country Planning Review, estimates the requirements for cemetery land in Great Britain at 500 acres annually. Great Britain has a similar but more pressing problem because of the size of its island. The serious aspect is that the cemetery land is for the most part situated in or near our cities, where land is not in oversupply. The actual amount of land, 3-1/2 square miles annually in a nation of 3 million square miles, is of minor importance. If we assume the current figure of 620 burials per acre, (see page 13) we required 29,238 acres of cemetery land in 1947. Of these, it is estimated that 96% of the bodies were disposed of by burial and 4% by cremation. There were 1,445,370 deaths in this country in 1947. Each year, therefore, more land is used for cemetery purposes. Little, if any, cemetery land in the United States is used for reburial. Quite probably the greater part lies within city limits. If we assume the conservative figure of one acre per thousand population (see Table I) cemetery land in the United States would be approximately 140,000 acres. There are no official estimates of the acreage contained in these cemeteries. Department of Commerce published an estimate of 15,000 cemeteries in the United States. The whole environs of this metropolis must be surrounded by a circumvallation of churchyards, perpetually enlarging by becoming themselves surcharged with bodies if indeed land owners can be found willing to divert their ground from the beneficial uses of the living to the barren preservation of the dead." "A comparatively small portion of the dead will shoulder out the living and their posterity. Buzzard and Boyer (161 English Reports 1342): While we can be sure this state of affairs will not come about, we have already reached the point at which the distribution of land between the living and the dead is a serious problem.Īs far back as 1821, Sir William Scott said in deciding the case of Gilbert v. If the idea of "perpetual care" were pursued far enough, we should eventually use all our land for the interment of the dead and have no land left for the living. Not only will the cost be excessive, but legal obstacles can very well make removal impossible! Extent of Cemeteries The city planner knows that any building can be expected to outlive its usefulness in two or three generations, He also knows that if there is civic necessity for the removal of a building, the procedure is comparatively simple, although the cost may be high. Such funds are in the nature of charitable trusts.Ĭemetery problems are not frequent occurrences in city planning, but the permanence of the cemetery as a land use makes decisions regarding it unusually important. We do know, however, that courts have held that the legal rule against perpetuities does not apply to cemetery funds. If we are realistic, we may question how long "perpetual" will be. This permanence is reinforced by the phrases used to sell cemetery lots - "perpetual care" and "perpetual charter." Men have devised an almost endless number of uses for land, but the one that seems most nearly permanent is its use for interment of the dead. Membership for Allied Professionals & CitizensĮducation, Work, and Experience Verificationġ313 EAST 60TH STREET - CHICAGO 37 ILLINOIS
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