Open Collections

In this neglected spot : the rural cemetery landscape in Southern British Columbia

University of British Columbia

The cemetery is a feature of the human landscape. It has been described as a memorial to the living as well as to the dead because it reflects the various sustaining mechanisms of the society which creates it. Wealth, prestige, kinship, ethnic and religious barriers are all represented to a degree in the cemetery. This study focuses on the rural cemetery landscape of southern British Columbia in the social and economic context of the 19th century. The cemetery is first described in subjective terms as a series of vignettes. The aesthetic qualities of the cemetery are stressed and the emotions they evoke are considered. A more rigorous examina tion of the rural graveyard landscape in southern British Columbia follows Chapter 1, where the results of field work are presented. The scene is set for an interpretation of that landscape in Chapter 3, including a discussion of English and American antecedents in cemetery planning and ‘death’s celebration’ in the 19th century. Chapter 4 considers the rural cemetery landscape of southern British Columbia as a reflection of 19th century society in that province.

Text

2010-02-12

For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/20141

Geography

University of British Columbia

Graduate