Abney Park Cemetery

Abney Park cemetery is one of the Magnificent Seven cemeteries in London, England.Abney Park in Stoke Newington, in the London Borough of Hackney, is a historic parkland originally laid out in the early 18th century by Lady Mary Abney and Dr. Isaac Watts, and the neighbouring Hartopp family.In 1840 it became a non-denominational garden cemetery, a semi-public park arboretum, and an educational institute, which was widely celebrated as an example of its time. A total of 196,843 burials had taken place there up to the year 2000. It is a Local Nature Reserve.LocationThe official address of Abney Park is Stoke Newington High Street, N16. The main gate is at the junction of this street and Rectory Road, with a smaller gate on Stoke Newington Church Street. The park lies within the London Borough of Hackney.Past and presentThe cemetery is named after Sir Thomas Abney, who served as Lord Mayor of London in 1700–01. The manor of Stoke Newington belonged to him in the early 18th century and his town house, built in 1676, stood on the site of the present cemetery until its demolition in the 1830s. Details of the Abney Park Cemetery Company can be found in the diaries of William Copeland Astbury (volumes covering 1831–48).