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| English Heritage Reference: | 1246098 |
|---|---|
| RBKC Reference: | |
| Property: | MAUSOLEUM OF JAMES MORISON, KENSAL GREEN CEMETERY |
| Street: | HARROW ROAD , W10 |
| Date: | 03/07/1998 |
| Grade: | II |
| Grouped: | GV |
| Description: | Summary of Building: Portland stone mausoleum, dated 1838. Reasons for Designation: The Mausoleum of James Morison is listed at Grade II for the following principal reasons: Artistic interest: one of the largest and most impressive of the early memorials at Kensal Green, its design strongly influenced by Parisian exemplars; Group value: with other listed monuments within the Grade I registered Kensal Green Cemetery. History: Morison (died 1841) was a proprietor of patent medicines known as 'the Hygienist', and was an early promoter of the cemetery. The original design for the monument is in the Victorian and Albert Museum. The Cemetery of All Souls at Kensal Green was the earliest of the large privately-run cemeteries established on the fringes of London to relieve pressure on overcrowded urban churchyards. Its founder George Frederick Carden intended it as an English counterpart to the great P�re-Lachaise cemetery in Paris, which he had visited in 1821. In 1830, with the financial backing of the banker Sir John Dean Paul, Carden established the General Cemetery Company, and two years later an Act of Parliament was obtained to develop a 55-acre site at Kensal Green, then among open fields to the west of the metropolis. An architectural competition was held, but the winning entry � a Gothic scheme by HE Kendall � fell foul of Sir John's classicising tastes, and the surveyor John Griffith of Finsbury was eventually employed both to lay out the grounds and to design the Greek Revival chapels, entrance arch and catacombs, built between 1834 and 1837. A sequence of royal burials, beginning in 1843 with that of Prince Augustus Frederick, Duke of Sussex, ensured the cemetery�s popularity. It is still administered by the General Cemetery Company, assisted since 1989 by the Friends of Kensal Green. Details: Portland stone mausoleum with cast iron door commemorating James Morison, dated 1838. By R H Shout, mason. It has battered sides and the upper part of the walls are decorated with garlands whilst the frieze is decorated with wreaths and fillets. There are prominent acroteria at all angles. The northern pediment contains an armorial relief. |
| English Heritage Picture: | External Hyperlink to English Heritage photograph of this listed building |
