Listed Building record MDO45537 - Crematorium at Manston House, Manston

A private crematorium south of Manston House, adjoining the stable block. The crematorium was added in 1882 by Captain Thomas Hanham who built it in order to follow the last wishes of his wife and mother to be cremated. Though cremation was not legal until 1884, Captain Hanham was also cremated here following his death in 1883. The crematorium is of three bays and is built of ashlar with a pedimented central bay, moulded cornice and single-light windows flanking a central door.

The second event was the cremations at Manston in Dorset in 1882 and 1883. Capt. Thomas Hanham's wife, who died in 1876, and his mother, Lady Hanham, who died in 1877, both had expressed the desire to be cremated, and Capt. Hanham was determined to carry out their requests. He had their bodies encased in strong elm coffins with lead linings and then placed in a mausoleum erected at Manston House.
Capt. Hanham had contacted the Cremation Society with a view to having both cremated at Woking, but the society was still awaiting a legal determination. Therefore, Capt. Hanham had his own cremator constructed in a brick building at the rear of Manston House. Lady Hanham was cremated on October 8, 1882, and his wife, the following evening. Following the captain's death in November 1883, a full Masonic funeral ritual was held prior to his cremation at Manston. Significantly, the Home Office took no action in all three cases. Cited by NRHE: http://www.iccfa.com/reading/2000-2009/cremation-england-part-1-early-years-1874-1885, 04-APR-2011

Matters remained the same until 1882 when the Cremation Society was requested by Captain Hanham to undertake the cremation of two deceased members of his family who had left instructions to that effect. The Home Secretary, when applied to, repeated his previous objections and the Society was thus unable to comply with the request of Captain Hanham, who consequently erected a crematorium on his own estate and proceeded to cremate his wife and mother. Captain Hanham himself died a year later and was also cremated there. Cited by NRHE: http://www.southampton.gov.uk/Images/History%20of%20cremation_tcm46-188129.pdf, 04-APR-2011 <2>

<1> Royal Commission on Historical Monuments (England), 1970, An Inventory of Historical Monuments in the County of Dorset, Volume III (Central) Part 1 (Monograph). SDO146.

‘(3) Manston House (81601500), … A private Crematorium dates from the late 19th century ….’

<2> National Record of the Historic Environment, 1535972 (Digital archive). SDO14739.

Record last edited

Feb 15 2023 2:00PM