Horton Cemetery

14/05/2026

https://epsomandewelltimes.com/500-patients-buried-in-epsoms-asylum-cemetery-no-longer-forgotten

Thanks to Epsom and Ewell Times for sharing our news.

500th history of patients buried in Epsom's Horton Cemetery. Epsom news.

12/05/2026

Story no. 501
Destitute with six children
Sent to prison for neglect!

12/05/2026

Story no.501 - Destitute With Six Children Then Sent To Prison

Charles James Bush 1837-1902

Charles’ story is unusual in the fact that his admittance to Horton Asylum did not come by way of a London Workhouse, and that he only spent four days there before he died. His story is based around where I was brought up and so I while I was researching, I was able to visualise the streets and churches that were part of Charles’ life before he ended his days in Epsom.

Charles appears in the local newspaper on various occasions which gives us a window into his difficult life.

Charles was aged 20 when he married Emma Jane Grant on 1st August 1858 in St John’s Church, Croydon. Both signed their names on the marriage entry. Emma had been born in 1839 in the Tetbury Union Workhouse, Gloucestershire, to a single mother.
Charles and Emma had nine known children during their 16-year marriage.
Christmas 1874 must have been such a sad and devastating time for the family as on Christmas eve, Charles was with his 36-year-old wife Emma when she died in their home from "Over exertion of body. Injury to the uterus causing inflammation". I do wonder at this point if Emma had once again been pregnant.

Charles clearly struggled after his wife’s death and left to care for six of his children. His dilemma was reported on 4th September 1875 in The Croydon Advertiser newspaper as follows:

A SAD CASE
At the Croydon Police Court on Monday, Charles Bush, labourer, a middle-aged man, was summoned at the instance of the Croydon Board of Guardians for neglecting to maintain his six children, whereby they had become chargeable to the common fund of the Croydon Union.

It appeared that some time since the defendant lost his wife, and being left with six children almost in the state of destitution, the Guardians were asked to take care of his children for a short time, he contributed 6s. per week until some definite arrangement could be made with respect to their future maintenance.

The children have been about seven months at the Anerley school where their cost to the parish is upwards of £2 per week, but the prisoner had not made any arrangements for taking them away and providing for their support.

Last week they gave him from Tuesday till the following Friday to take charge of the children, but he had not done so. Mr Edridge said it was not to be supposed that in every case in which a man was left with a number of children that Guardians would take care of them for him. Mr Spofford said it must come to an end.

Defendant said he had lost the use of one of his shoulders and could not do much work. He did not know where to take the children to, and he must therefore ask for further time to find a place for them. Mr Edridge said it appeared that further time would be of but little use for him, as he could not find any one to take in the children.

Mr Edridge adjourned the case till Saturday, stating that he would see the defendant’s father, and the defendant must see him himself, and that if they could not make some arrangements with reference to the future maintenance of the children, he should be obliged to send the defendant to prison for a number of days.

On 11th September the same newspaper reported the following:

A DIFFICULT PROBLEM
Charles Bush, of 1 Southbridge-place, Croydon, was brought up on remand charged with neglecting to maintain his children, whereby they had become chargeable to the common fund of the Croydon Union. The defendant said he had seen his father, who declined to take his children.

The Chairman said the case of defendant had had a great deal of consideration. The Bench had no alternative but to do what the law required, and that was to send him to prison. The least punishment the Board could inflict was to send him to prison for three days.

Consequently, after Charles had served his 3 days imprisonment in Wandsworth Prison for 'neglecting' his 6 children, he arranged to quickly marry 25-year-old Harriett Gammon.

Harriett and Charles found their names again in the local newspaper following an altercation with one Frederick Musgrove:

INSULTING LANGUAGE
Frederick Musgrove was summoned by Harriett Bush for using insulting language to her in a public thoroughfare, and Charles Bush was summoned by Musgrove for assaulting him.

It appeared that on the previous Monday evening Musgrove and the husband of Harriett Bush were having words. The latter went out to ask her husband in, when Musgrove insulted her, and hinted that she was not the wife of Bush, but the wife of another man, adding coarse and insulting observations. A witness, named Emma Jones, deposed to hearing the foul language complained of.

It further appeared that Musgrove met Bush at the Bedford tavern, where Bush wanted to fight. Musgrove refused to do so and went home. Subsequently Bush came to his house, rushed into his kitchen, and kicked Musgrove several times.

Bush’s story was that Musgrove went into the Bedford tavern and abused an old man. He (Bush) interfered, whereupon Musgrove was ejected from the public-house. When outside, Musgrove put his hat on the pillar-box and wished to fight him. Musgrove threw him down, knelt upon his stomach, and struck him in the face.

With regard to going to Musgrove’s house, he (Bush) stated that he went there to see if some arrangement could not be come to. Musgrove called him in, and, when inside, threatened to strike him, following him out with something in his hand, which he (Bush) believed to be a knife.

Musgrove stated that he had a doctor’s certificate, which would prove that he would not be able to work for some time, as he had received serious injuries to his leg.

Mr Edridge said the costs in the case were 13s. He ordered the defendant to pay 6s.6d. each with regard to the assault. Musgrove, for using abusive language to Mrs Bush, was ordered to pay a further fine of 5s., and 13s. costs, the alternative being 14 days imprisonment.

We are not sure of the reason why Charles was admitted to Horton Asylum, but he had only been there for four days when he died on 9th September 1902.

His death certificate states that he was a ‘Costermonger of 18 Addington Road, West Croydon’, and that following a postmortem, that he had died from “epilepsy (status epilepticus*) after about four days”.

Charles’ body was buried in grave 48 in Horton Estate Cemetery on 15th September 1902.

A full account of Charles’s life may be read at https://hortoncemetery.org/bush-charles-james/

If you use the published stories, partly or completely, written by volunteers of the Friends of Horton Cemetery charity (Reg. No. 1190518), please acknowledge the volunteer who wrote the story by name, acknowledge the Friends of Horton Cemetery expressly and its registration number, and include this link to the STORIES section of the website https://hortoncemetery.org/the.../horton-cemetery-stories/

10/05/2026

Welcome to recent new followers. We hope you enjoy reading our 500th biography!

10/05/2026

Horton Cemetery - the 500th Life Story Published
A Discarded Headstone
Someone Cared Enough to Remember

By researchers for the Friends of Horton Cemetery

A discarded headstone rescued from a skip more than forty years ago has led researchers to uncover the poignant story of a young woman buried at Horton Cemetery — and reconnect her memory with living family members.

Before the cemetery was sold in the 1980s, notices appeared in the local press informing relatives that they could reclaim the headstones of loved ones buried there. Families were warned that any memorials left behind would be destroyed.
At the time, an electrical engineer working on a project within the former Epsom hospital cluster discovered one such stone which had been thrown into a skip. Appalled at what he later described as a “blatant disregard” for somebody’s final resting place, he rescued the memorial and took it home for safekeeping.

Today, the headstone remains carefully preserved, with the hope that one day it may be returned to the cemetery where it was originally intended to stand in perpetuity.

The inscription reads simply:
Marjorie Young
14th September 1948
Aged 27 years
R.I.P.

As researchers from the Friends of Horton Cemetery began investigating Marjorie’s life, they were astonished to discover that a relative was still alive and able to shed light on her tragic story.

The relative, whose mother was Marjorie’s first cousin, said:
“Your message is a welcome bolt from the blue. I can’t believe that after all these years somebody is interested in Marjorie. I didn’t know her but my mother so often talked about her. My mother died in 2015 but she still had nightmares about the life Marjorie led.”

His words underline one of the central aims of the Friends of Horton Cemetery — ensuring that those buried in the former asylum cemetery are not forgotten.

Research into burial records revealed another heartbreaking detail. The cemetery register records that Marjorie was buried in grave 2892b alongside a “stillborn female child.” There is no indication that the baby was Marjorie’s, and researchers believe the child was likely the daughter of another patient.

Such practices were sadly not uncommon. Before changes introduced during the 1980s, hospitals frequently arranged the burial of stillborn babies with little or no consultation with grieving parents. Often, infants were buried in existing graves within institutional cemeteries.

A Family Marked by Tragedy
Marjorie’s father, Charles Young, was born in 1894 to Harry Young and Ellen F***y Young, née Chesterman. According to family recollections, Ellen gave birth to as many as 23 children, though only a handful survived infancy.

The family experienced repeated tragedy. In 1905, Charles’s younger sister Minnie died after suffering an epileptic seizure during the night. An inquest heard that Minnie sometimes endured as many as thirteen fits a day. Researchers later discovered that Marjorie herself also suffered from epilepsy.

Charles married Ethel Mary Davis at St Augustine's Church in 1920.
A Childhood of Fear and Isolation
Born on 10 June 1921, Marjorie was an only child. Family testimony has painted a troubling picture of her upbringing. Her cousin recalled stories passed down by his mother:
“Marjorie was very clever and wanted to study. She was an only child so welcomed the company of my mother.
“As time went on it became clear to my mother that Marjorie was terrified, the reason being that her parents went out every night and left her alone in the dark. Neighbours talked of Marjorie standing at the window looking out in the dark.
“Eventually poor Marjorie had a breakdown and was admitted to hospital and my mother never saw her again.”
Public records relating to Marjorie are scarce. In the 1939 Register, compiled at the outbreak of the Second World War, she was living in Lambeth and working as a civil servant for His Majesty’s Office of Works, the government department responsible for public buildings.

The next surviving record appears nine years later.
On 14 September 1948, Marjorie died at Long Grove Hospital aged just 27. Her death certificate records broncho-pneumonia and exhaustion caused by epilepsy.
She was buried at Horton Cemetery on 21 September 1948.

Someone Cared Enough to Remember
Researchers believe one detail about Marjorie’s story is especially important.

She had a headstone.

At Horton Cemetery, where thousands were buried in unmarked graves, memorial stones were rare. Someone cared enough to arrange and pay for a marker. Someone completed the paperwork and ensured her resting place was acknowledged. It is also possible that family members attended her funeral.
For her surviving relative, the rediscovery of the headstone has brought comfort.

“It is wonderful to hear that her gravestone survives and that has led to her being your 500th story. If only I could tell my mother. She would have been so pleased to know that somebody still cares about Marjorie.
“I think you’ve done a wonderful job and somehow righted some of the wrongs.”

Today, the rescued headstone stands not only for Marjorie Young, but symbolically for the estimated 9,000 forgotten souls buried within Horton Cemetery.

The Friends of Horton Cemetery hope one day that it will stand there once again.
More research stories can be found on the Horton Cemetery website at www.hortoncemetery.org

" If you use the published stories, partly or completely, written by volunteers of the Friends of Horton Cemetery charity (Reg. No. 1190518), please acknowledge the volunteer who wrote the story by name, acknowledge the Friends of Horton Cemetery expressly and its registration number, and include this link to the STORIES section of the website https://hortoncemetery.org/the-people/horton-cemetery-stories/ Thank you."

30/04/2026

Here is story 499, almost as exciting a moment as our milestone of 500 will be in a couple of days’ time.
This is the life story of Nella (Bridget) MORRISSY b.1870-d.1911.
It is a story which shows the power or records, newspapers etc.
We learn lots about Nella's husband, Michael and not so much about Nella. What we are left with are questions about Nella came to be in a badly bruised state on arrival to Wandsworth Infirmary.
Later transferred to Long Grove, her husband left to return to his native Ireland. Nella lived for four years before dying and being buried in Horton Cemetery, alongside 9000 others.

This is the story of BRIDGET (Della) MORRISSY b.1870/1 -d.1911 - who is buried at Horton cemetery in grave ref

30/04/2026

Story number 499 will be published today!

24/04/2026

Daily Mirror article about Horton Cemetery

Read this exciting story from Daily Mirror UK April 24, 2026 issue. Bid to turn abandoned site into garden, reserve and memorial

24/04/2026

Thank you to all our new followers. The 500th story is almost ready to publish! Your support is so important to us!

09/04/2026

Watch this space! We are approaching a milestone of 500 life stories published!

09/04/2026

On 14 August 1900, The Echo London reported that Jane Chamley was charged with running after a man with a bayonet. She was upset that a ‘party of roughs had broken her window’.
Our spirited subject had much to contend with. A husband who married her bigamously (if there even was a marriage). He went on to another bigamous marriage. Jane was admitted to Newington Workhouse with drunkenness the cause. She died several years later in Horton Asylum of GPI, (General Paralysis of the Insane) and cervical cancer).
This story provides us with a great family history of how Jane, born in Ashburnham East Sussex came to spend her final days in Horton, Epsom. Jane lies in grave 341a, aside the 900 others.

This is the story of Jane CHAMLEY nee Wi******er b.1853 -d.1909 - who is buried at Horton cemetery in grave ref