PLYMOUTH |
The Encyclopaedia of Plymouth History |
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The first public mortuary, described as 'a discredit to a town of Plymouth's size' was by all accounts in a cellar somewhere in the vicinity of Sutton Harbour. In 1892 it was decided that it should be replaced. [1] A site already in Corporation ownership was chosen in Vauxhall Street. The building was to have an ecclesiastical look about it and the frontage facing Vauxhall Street was to be constructed of red brick with stone dressings. It was designed by the Borough Engineer, Mr G D Bellamy. [1] The mortuary chamber, lit by a top light, would hold 12 bodies and along with the coroner's court would be accessed from the lane at the side. The court room would measure 17 feet by 16 feet and a portion of it could be closed off by means of folding doors. At the rear of the premises was a room for post-mortem examinations. The death chamber could also be divided in two so that bodies with an infectious disease could be separated from any others. Those called to identify the bodies could view them from behind a glass screen. The coroner was provided with his own private room. [1] On the front of the building in Vauxhall Street is carved the motto: "De Mortuis Nil Nisi Bonum", 'Concerning the dead, people should say nothing except good', which is credited to Diogenes Laërtius, the Greek philosopher. Research has so far failed to uncover the date the Public Mortuary was first used but it was sometime close to 1899 or 1900. Sources:
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