Smiley Burial Place

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A large boulder of basalt supported on three polished red granite balls set into the ground on a raised hump within a rectangular plot measuring approximately 20 metres by 10 metres enclosed by low boundary walls of polished and moulded granite

Boundary walls are level along the short sides, to east and west, but ramped in stages along the long sides to north and south due to gradual slope of ground down from east to west; lawn within enclosure and narrow grass strips to north and south of it, all follow this slope. Unpolished rock-faced red granite base course to boundary wall along south, east, and west sides. Square pier of polished red granite, with weathered top, to each of the four corners.

The basalt boulder has four memorial plaques of gunmetal or bronze fixed to it, the three oldest being moulded to the uneven surface of the boulder; the fourth and latest being a flat plaque set in cement to accommodate unevenness of surface. Plaque on south side is to memory of Hugh Houston Smiley who died in 1909; plaque on west side is to memory of Elizabeth Ann Smiley who died in 1930; plaques on north side are, on right, to John M. Smiley who died 1919 and Hubert Stewart Smiley who died in 1922; and on left, to Bridget Miller Mundy (née Smiley) who died in 1981.

Setting: the burial place is located within Larne Cemetery. It lies to the east of the former Church of Ireland chapel, laid out on axis with it, with the main central driveway of the cemetery running alongside its south side.

Historical information

Memorial boulder and boundary walling originally erected over the grave of Sir Hugh Smiley in April 1910; builder, James Ferris of Larne. The boulder weighing some 30 tons was taken from the beach at Larne; Smiley is said to have rested on it frequently after swimming in the sea at Larne. The boulder was reputedly the largest rock ever removed in Ireland without the means of blasting. It was first undermined and then hoisted upon a powerful traction engine for conveyance from the beach to the cemetery.

References - Primary

1. Larne Times and Weekly Telegraph, 30 April and 7 May 1910.

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

C. Ornamentation

Criteria for listing: historic interest

X. Local Interest

Evaluation

This is an impressive burial ground in an unusual style, with the distinctly proportioned boundary walls providing a foil and contrast to the rugged form of the natural stone boulder. The treatment of the memorial plaques, whereby, with one exception, they are moulded to the shape of the rock, is a distinctive feature, while the monument overall enjoys an undisturbed setting in a well-kept cemetery. It is associated with an important local figure, one of the leading benefactors of the town at the turn of the century, and is also of local interest as the most conspicuous memorial in the cemetery. It is of importance in a wider context as a rare example of a highly unconventional form of funerary monument.