They are planning to dig up a graveyard in Salford. But the aim is to lift the lid only on a rich, lost, social history. In the 1970s hundreds of graves at St Thomas's the landmark which sits next to the A6 at Pendleton, were covered in turf, erasing the existence of many forever.
But the footprint they left on that corner of the city is about to be rediscovered. A Grade II listed building and a fine example of Gothic Revival architecture the church was consecrated in 1831.
It's creation was a response to the influx of the working classes to the booming textile industry. READ MORE: Today, the church graveyard is home to about 9,700 burials, the majority of which relate to the 19th century.
In 1973, turf was laid on the gravestones. Now the grass is to removed in two sections of the sloping plot to permanently reveal the engraved slabs beneath.
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