Field Trip to South Park Street Cemetery

On May 23, 2024, Semester IV students of the Department of English, Loreto College, Kolkata visited the South Park Street Cemetery, accompanied and guided by Dr. Subhasree Basu. The field trip served as an extension of classroom lectures on Graveyard Poetry, which is an integral part of the departmental curriculum.

The trip began at Loreto College, the erstwhile garden house of Henry Vansittart, formerly the Governor of Bengal, and Sir Elijah Impey, the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Dr. Basu provided a rich historical overview of Park Street, previously known as ‘Badamtala’ and also as ‘Old Burial Road’ due to the presence of three graveyards in the vicinity. During the short walk to the cemetery, Dr. Basu pointed out some of the significant monuments of Park Street that reflect its oft-neglected colonial legacy.

The South Park Street Cemetery became operational on August 25, 1767, with the final tombs being erected in the 1830s. Inside the graveyard, the students observed elaborately carved tombs in gothic architectural styles, imposing obelisks, and epitaphs that hint at elusive histories. Noteworthy tombs included those of Sir William Jones, Henry Louis Vivian Derozio, Charles ‘Hindoo’ Stuart, and Walter Dickens, the second son of Charles Dickens.

The students also immersed themselves in creative pursuits of self-expression amidst the tombs, inspired by the melancholy and introspective ambience of the cemetery. The field trip provided an invaluable opportunity for them to engage with the colonial heritage of Kolkata and to appreciate the deep ties between literature and history.