Cholera Monument, Sheffield

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The Cholera Monument is a memorial in Sheffield, to the victims of a cholera epidemic of 1832. 402 victims of the disease were buried in grounds between Park Hill and Norfolk Park adjoining Clay Wood. Money from the treasurers of the Board of Health was set aside for a monument for the site.

The monument was designed by M. E. Hadfield, sculpted by Earp and Hobbs and completed in 1835. It is a neo-Gothic pinnacle and has a plaque naming John Blake, Master Cutler in 1832 and a victim of the epidemic and noting that the foundation stone was laid by poet James Montgomery.

The monument is situated in gardens laid out around the monument in the 1850s and next to Clay Wood, an ancient woodland. These were given to the city by the Duke of Norfolk in 1930. A shaded path built between 1971 and 1995 traverses the woods and leads from Fitzwalter Road to the monument gardens. The monument was struck by lightning in 1990 and the top removed for safety, rebuilding began in 2005 thanks to a grant and was completed in 2006.
The monument is grade II listed, and the grounds are a conservation area which has received a Green Flag Award.

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Cholera Monument Grounds are the burial ground for the who perished during the cholera outbreak in 1832. At least 400 people died during the outbreak. A momument was erected in 1834 in memory of the victims and gardens soon accompanied this. Clay Wood is adjacent to the grounds are they combine a larger informal green space. From the grounds, you can great view of the city centre down below.

The Duke of Norfolk gave the grounds to Sheffield in 1930.

This impressive monument to the victims of the 1832 Asiatic Cholera epidemic, which claimed the lives of nearly 1,400 Sheffielders who lived in this eastern suberb of the city, can be seen rising through the trees above the Midland Station.

I'd seen this monument on my journey home most days, but it wasn't until recently that I found out what it was, and about the Cholera epidemic.

I was surprised to find it set out in a well maintained park (The Cholera Gardens and Clay Woods), with old trees and lawns. I was the only person walking around, and it was quite strange, being in such a peaceful place, with birds singing, but with the distant rumble of traffic below.

The Cholera Gardens is the mass burial plot of 402 people who died in the epidemic in Sheffield. 1,347 men women and children were to die from the disease which spread through England from 1831.

One famous citizen of Sheffield, the Master Cutler-John Blake was a victim of this epidemic. His Gravestone is near the obelisk.

The obelisks foundation stone was laid in 1834, with the top-stone being added in 1835. The monument suffered severe damage in the storms of 1990. Extensive renovation work was carried out from 2003 - 2006

The 3 hectare grounds were laid out as 'pleasure gardens' in the 1850's and then donated to the City by the Duke of Norfolk in 1930, along with the Clay Woods in 1971 and 2005.

Opposite the garden are the Shrewsbury Alms Houses, built in 1827 and founded originally by the 17th Earl of Shrewsbury, for the elderly and infirm - Today, they are private residences.

The Cholera monument is part of the Norfolk Heritage Trail (see my earlier tip)