Guided Overleigh Cemetery Tour in Chester
- 1h 30m
- Free cancellation up to 24h before
- Guided in English
- Instant confirmation
Highlights
Opened in 1850, Overleigh Cemetery hosts many fascinating graves and monuments that reflect Chester's rich and diverse history. Every gravestone conceals a life story waiting to be told, and every grave has a hidden history. Led by a qualified and insured Green Badge guide, tours will include visits to around 25 of the most notable graves. Designed by a famous local architect, T.M. Penson, the cemetery was laid out "with admirable taste" and included two lodges, two chapels, and an ornamental lake with three islands. Humble graves were unmarked or had a simple wooden cross, while the better-off had grander memorials. You'll discover the extraordinary stories of some of those laid to rest here, including Mary Jonas, who had 33 children, including 15 sets of identical twins; Edward Langry, the husband of Edward VII's mistress, who went crazy and died in the local lunatic asylum; and William Bidulph Cross, who made his own illuminated coffin from wooden matchboxes.
Inclusions
What's included
- Qualified and insured Green Badge guide (2022)
Itinerary
The guide will give a brief description of the background and history of the cemetery, which replaced the cemeteries in the 8 parish churches within Chester city walls which were full by the mid 19th century. Stops may include the graves of famous Victorian personalities such as local architects, John Douglas and T M Lockwood, the archaeologist Professor Newstead, who excavated many sites in Chester, Dr Arthur Randall Jackson, who discovered 47 new species of spider, and the Browns William and Charles, who founded Browns Department store and saved Bishop Lloyd's palace from destruction. Others were victims of tragic accidents, such as two Hoole children who drowned after falling through the ice on a frozen pond, Marjorie Tucker an RAF driver in the 1st World War who was killed by a passing train a few weeks before the war ended, and Marie Verbinnen, a Belgian refugee who died of a heart attack just three weeks after the war's end. Thomas Hughes drowned when the Lusitania sank.
Cancellation
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.
Reviews
4.8
- 527
- 43
- 31
- 20
- 10
Ratings come from 31 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.
Know before you go
- Meeting point
- Meet at the Cemetery Gate in Overleigh Rd, opposite Blackwells Stonecraft
- Pickup
- Everyone meets at the starting point; there is no pickup.
- Ticket type
- Mobile or paper ticket accepted
- Group size
- Up to 15 travellers
- Operated by
- Paul's Chester Tours
- Wheelchair accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
How it compares in Chester
- Its from-price is 20% below the median of the 38 experiences we list in Chester.
- It is shorter than most of them.
- By number of reviews it ranks 9 of 38.
- The operator lists free cancellation on it.
About Chester
Chester is a walled city on the River Dee in north-west England, with Roman remains, timber-framed Rows above its shops and a red-sandstone cathedral.
Chester was founded by the Romans as the fortress of Deva, and the circuit of its city walls, about three kilometres around, is among the most complete in Britain, with a walkway along the top. The east gate carries the Victorian Eastgate Clock, and the remains of a Roman amphitheatre lie just outside the walls.
Top-ranked sights in Chester: Chester City Walls, Chester Cathedral, Chester Castle.
Special offers in Chester
Was/now prices come from the operator, never from us.
