Eight years after excavation began at Birmingham's former Park Street Burial Ground for the HS2 Curzon Street station, over 4,000 of the 9,000 bodies removed remain unburied. While just over 5,000 bodies have been reinterred at Witton Cemetery, HS2 has confirmed the remaining remains are still awaiting reburial. The graves, dating from 1807 to 1873, were excavated by archaeologists between July 2018 and May 2019.
Excavation Details
The specialists discovered thousands of coffins containing late Brummies, including babies and children, buried with toys, beads and bowls of salt believed to ward off evil spirits. HS2 was granted an extension for academic research by the Secretary of State, hoping studies will reveal more about the 'ordinary people who made Birmingham the city it is today' by researching 'what diseases they had, what they ate and where they came from'.
Official Statements
A spokesperson for HS2 told BirminghamLive: 'All of the remains excavated from the nineteenth-century burial ground at Park Street have been treated with dignity, care and respect and will be reinterred together at Birmingham's Witton Cemetery, with a suitable monument to mark their new resting place.' The Church of England continues to work with HS2 to ensure proper treatment of the remains. A spokesperson said: 'We recognise that this is an emotive subject.'
No date for reburial of the remaining bodies has been announced by HS2.
