Naini Tal Cemetery October 2014

From right WILLIAM OLIVER LAMACROFT, Soldier, died 1881,
JAMES P GLOVER, JOHN TUNSILL AND PRIVATE xx MOORE

**

I visited the Naini Tal cemetery on Friday Oct 24, 2014
where on my first visit ever to the hill station I chanced
upon the graves of my grand uncle, Edward Thomas
Shepherd and his two sons, Robert and William. That 
was in May 2012 when I posted pictures of their 
graves and a few more. I felt I had to take one more 
look to see what was left because I'd noticed that the 
cemetery, though located within the cantonment, was 
in a bad condition. It seemed worse this time! One 
slab from one grave had been overturned and it 
looked as if someone had examined the contents.
Not many people get to look inside an old grave and
fewer still inside a grave filled with shingle because
the area is completely bereft of earth.

It just wasn't possible to get the name
 because the slab was too heavy

While checking an old email of Peter's, Edward's grandson who lives in Australia and the son of Late Frank Shepherd, I noted that Peter recalled that this cemetery was not called the Naini Tal Cemetery but vaguely remembered it was called Kala Khan cemetery! Being an
old burial ground, not in use anymore, there was no name but I asked a old hill resident, actually a school friend of mine, Richard Wheeler, from Almora and he said the area was/is known as Kelakhan. He told me he'd
find out the name of the cemetery as well!

Looking at the gateway from inside on either side
 there are the remnants of headstones but no sign
of the graves

My grandson, Aden McFarland and his parents
 in the distance

IN LOVING MEMORY
OF
OUR LITTLE SHEILA
BORN 30TH JANUARY 1919
DIED 21ST JULY 1929
ONLY DAUGHTER OF
PETER AND NORAH WARREN
-----------------
NONE KNEW THEE BUT TO LOVE THEE
NONE NAMED THEE BUT TO PRAISE

IN LOVING MEMORY
OF 
DEE ANDERSON
DAUGHTER OF
ROBERT AND MARGARET ANDERSON
PORTADOWN, IRELAND
DIED 1ST JULY 1940

IN MEMORY 
OF MY DEEPLY LOVED HUSBAND
CAPT MARK DARRELL JAMES
83 FIELD BATTERY ROYAL ARTILLERY
BORN IN BERMUDA  8 NOV 1896
DIED AT NAINI TAL 2? SEPT 1936
THE RESULT OF A POLO ACCIDENT

CWGC
(C'WEALTH WAR GRAVES COMMISSION)
HOPKINS L R
29 APRIL 1916

MANY GRAVES ARE NOW COVERED WITH MOSS AND MUCK

XXXARMY NUMBERXXX
PTE G. GOODALL
XX ROYAL WEST(?) KENT ARTILLERY
DIED NAINITAL NOV ?? 1920
R.I.P.

THE MEMORY OF
WILLIAM JAMES
THE BELOVED SON OF
J.T. AND C (G?) DEAN
ASST. APOTHECARY
WHO DEPARTED XXX?
XXXXXXX?
BORN X?X? MAY  1870
XXXX
XXX

THIS STONE DOES NOT MARK THE SPOT OF BURIAL. IT LAY
 IN THE GRASS BESIDE THE GRAVE OF 
EDWARD T. SHEPHERD, ABOUT 20 METRES FROM 
THE GATEWAY,  WHEN THIS BLOGGER VISITED TWO 
YEARS AGO.
IN TREASURED MEMORY
OF
MABEL (MABS)
DEARLY LOVED WIFE AND SWEETHEART OF
CAPT T.G. GRICE (SCOPS?)
AND DARLING MOTHER OF
CHARMAINE AND ARTHUR
WHO FELL ASLEEP IN CHRIST
ON 10TH APRIL 1944
AGED 49 YEARS
(I was told later that Arthur here
is the late Anglo Indian MLA Mr A.C Grice
from Kanpur)

IN SAD AND SACRED
REMEMBRANCE
OF
MY VERY DEAR HUSBAND
EDWIN EUSTACE MACLEOD
WHO DIED AT NAINI TAL
SEPTEMBER 15TH 1935
------------
XXXXXX
XXXXX

IN LOVING MEMORY OF
A MUCH REGRETTED  BROTHER
IVAN ERNEST
MIDDLETON
BORN 28TH JULY 1876
DIED 10TH MAY 1933
AGED 57 YEARS
RIP
THERE IS A LINK DEATH CANNOT SEVER
ERECTED BY HIS SORROWING SISTER
ESME M. MIDDLETON

"A LIGHT IS FROM
OUR HOUSEHOLD GONE
A VOICE WE LOVED IS STILL'D
A PLACE IS VACANT 
IN OUR HOME
WHICH NEVER WILL BE FILLED"
MAJOR CSP(?) SANWAL
BORN ON 3RD OCTOBER 1930
DIED ON 6/7 DECEMBER 1970

INTO THY HANDS I COMMEND MY SPIRIT
IN LOVING MEMORY 
OF
KATHERINE ROSALIND SANWAL
BORN 16TH OCTOBER 1902
DIED 22ND NOVEMBER 1962
-------------
(SOME OF THE GRAVES HAVE BEEN REPEATED
LIKE THE SANWALS. I HAD PUT THESE TWO GRAVES UP AFTER
MY FIRST VISIT HERE TWO YEARS AGO)