Abney Park Cemetery

The very first non-denominational garden cemetery in Europe, Abney Park Cemetery was established in 1840. Initially laid out as an arboretum on unconsecrated ground, legal issues meant that the business was sold to a general cemetery company in 1880. This began years of slow decline, culminating in the mid-20th centure as trees, brambles and ivy claimed the cemetery as their own. This has resulted in Abney Park Cemetery being designated a nature reserve where graves and memorials stand in an almost post-apocalyptic woodland.