Historic Building Details

HB Ref No:
HB26/23/001 A

Address :
Cooke Memorial Balmoral Cemetery Stockman's Lane Belfast BT9 7JA

Townland:
Malone Lower

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Survey 2:
B2

Date of Listing:
08/10/1987 00:00:00

Date of De-listing:

Current Use:
Memorial

Former Use
Memorial

Conservation Area:
No

Industrial Archaeology:
No

Vernacular:
No

Thatched:
No

Monument:
No

Derelict:
No

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OS Map No:
146-8

IG Ref:
J3148 7095

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Owner Category

Exterior Description And Setting

Memorial of granite stone dating from 1868 and facing west, located in Balmoral cemetery. Granite sarcophagus (Newry Granodiorite) supported on four rectangular piers on a stepped granite plinth with ramped concrete surround, enclosed by granite dwarf wall with obelisk piers on chamfered block bases with iron rails. The west elevation of the sarcophagus has a carved plaque to centre with the name of Henry Cooke and with decorative bronze castings to either side. The east elevation is similar, with a carved plaque bearing the dates of the birth and death of Henry Cooke. The north and south elevations (side elevations) both have carved lettering to the plinth and a carved stone plaque set within the concrete base. The plot is located within the south west part of Balmoral cemetery. Four square painted sandstone piers linked by dwarf painted sandstone walling, topped by iron railings and supporting iron gates mark the entrance to the cemetery at its southwest corner. An un-coursed rock-faced basalt wall serves as a boundary to the south. Other listed structures within Balmoral cemetery are Fergusson memorial (HB26.23.001B) and the McKee memorial (HB26.23.001C).

Architects

Historical Information

By the middle of the nineteenth century Belfast’s graveyards were becoming overcrowded, partly as a result of the rapidly expanding population of the city and partly as a result of cholera epidemics and the Great Famine. The opening, in 1855, of a new cemetery at Balmoral – which was also known as the Belfast Cemetery or the Malone Cemetery – helped to alleviate the situation. What had prompted the creation of this cemetery was an incident in which a funeral conducted by Reverends Henry Cooke and Joseph Mackenzie was obstructed by a Church of Ireland rector. In response a number of Presbyterians decided to open a cemetery of their own. Mackenzie secured the site and a board of trustees was appointed, Cooke being one of them. In 1953 the cemetery was taken over by Belfast Corporation. One of the dominant personalities of nineteenth-century Presbyterianism, it was entirely appropriate that Henry Cooke was laid to rest in Balmoral Cemetery given his role in establishing this burial place. Born Henry Macook near Maghera, County Londonderry, in 1788 (he would later drop the ‘Ma’ and add an ‘e’), Cooke was educated at Glasgow University and in 1808 was ordained minister of Duneane Presbyterian Church in County Antrim. In 1811 he was installed in another County Antrim congregation, Donegore, moving to Killyleagh, County Down, in 1818. In the 1820s he emerged as the leading defender of orthodoxy within the Presbyterian Church against the threat of Arianism (the denial of Christ’s deity). He was successful in persuading the Presbyterian Synod of Ulster to reaffirm its belief in the Trinity, though a small number of ministers and congregations withdrew in protest in 1829. Now at the height of his influence a new church – May Street Presbyterian Church in Belfast – was specifically built for him. He was actively involved in many aspects of the Presbyterian Church outreach, both at home and abroad. In 1853 he was appointed the first president of the Presbyterian College in Belfast. In politics, into which he was increasingly drawn, he was a staunch conservative, though this put him at odds with many Presbyterians, especially when it came to such issues as land reform, though they did back his opposition to Daniel O’Connell’s campaign to repeal the union. He died on 13 December 1868; his funeral was compared to a royal or imperial demonstration. His wife died six months before him and he was survived by a son and three daughters. According to Cooke’s biographer, his son-in-law, J. L. Porter, his monument at Balmoral, a massive Sarcophagus of polished granite, was erected by his three surviving daughters, Miss Cooke, Mrs. Gordon, of Gilford, and Mrs. Porter, of College Park, Belfast References: Northern Ireland Environment Agency First Survey Record – HB/26/23/001A HB Records – HB/26/23/001A Published sources J. L. Porter, The life and times of Henry Cooke, D.D., LL. D. (London, 1871) – includes an engraving of his tombstone. Gravestone Inscriptions: Belfast, vol. 3 (Belfast, 1986) Paul Larmour, Belfast: an illustrated architectural guide (Belfast, 1987) Paul Larmour, The architectural heritage of Malone and Stranmillis (Belfast, 1991) Dictionary of Irish Biography, 9 vols (Cambridge, 2009) Online sources Natural Stone Database: www.stonedatabase.com

Criteria for Listing

Architectural Interest

A. Style B. Proportion C. Ornamentation J. Setting K. Group value

Historic Interest

R. Age S. Authenticity U. Historic Associations X. Local Interest

Evaluation

Granite stone sarcophagus supported on four rectangular piers on a stepped granite plinth with ramped concrete surround, enclosed by granite dwarf wall with obelisk piers on chamfered block bases with iron rails. The west elevation of the sarcophagus has a carved plaque to centre with the name of Henry Cooke and with decorative bronze castings to either side. The east elevation is similar, with a carved plaque bearing the dates of the birth and death of Henry Cooke. The north and south elevations (side elevations) both have carved lettering to the plinth and a carved stone plaque set within the concrete base. The sarcophagus dates from 1868, it commemorates the family of the Reverend Henry Cooke, one of the dominant personalities of nineteenth-century Presbyterianism, who helped establish the cemetery at Balmoral in 1855. It has group value with the other listed structures within Balmoral cemetery - the Ferguson memorial (HB26.23.001B) and the McKee memorial (HB26.23.001C).

General Comments

Date of Survey

03 March 2014