The list of names below shows the details for headstone inscriptions from the Square Chapel.

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The inscriptions were chosen to identify the number of children of five years and under who were buried here either solely or with siblings/other family members.  There are 384 children listed though some of the inscriptions are hard to read or the dates are only partial or totally missing.  The use of graves for multiple family members’ burials was commonplace however, we cannot identify if the families were financially ‘well off’ or not.

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Of the 384 children listed, just under 50% (170) were one year old or under and two-thirds of the total number (258) died and were buried here from 1800 to 1850.  However, most of the infants (156) died between 1800 and 1825,  no doubt as a result of the cramped and insanitary living conditions linked with the onset of the Industrial Revolution and the move from the countryside to burgeoning towns such as Halifax. This very simple analysis tells a harrowing story of infant mortality through the early part of the 19th century.  The saddest part of this is that 47 children were buried with no name identification – 38 with no first name and 9 with no surname.

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It is easy to see surnames that were familiar then are still linked with Halifax and its history today.