As you walk through the gates of Clifton Street Cemetery, you are overtaken by a sense of quiet. The old walls and leafy trees seem to deaden the din from the Westlink and the cacophony of traffic on the Antrim Road. It is a place where the weight of the history contained within the remaining gravestones feels almost tangible: a feeling that is present in many old Graveyards and Cemeteries. Opened in 1797 as the “New Burying Ground”, Clifton Street Cemetery is a veritable “Who’s Who” of some of Belfast’s most influential individuals and families-People who, quite literally, shaped and reshaped the city that has now grown and engulfed the area. Beside the ornate and etched stonework of the wealthy, sit two large strips of unmarked grass. Unmarked graves for the unnamed poor, and for the scores who died during Belfast’s most desperate times. The Cemetery itself has had a storied history and acted as the final resting place for the city’s dead for over a century, however, beyond the story of the site, it is the final resting place of thousands of individuals life stories. Some of these stories have been lost to time, worn away by the wind, rain (and stubborn vegetation), whilst other gravestones were badly damaged or destroyed during the areas more recent ‘troubled’ history, as it was extensively damaged during the 1970’s, 80’s and 90’s. In his book “A Tomb with a View”, Peter Ross described Graveyards and Cemeteries as “libraries of the dead, indexes to lives long gone.” While stories of prominent individuals buried in Clifton Street Cemetery, such as Mary Ann McCracken, Edward Benn and William Drennan are well researched, there remains a plethora of stories depicted in the aging stonework. This series will look at some such stories from the new burying ground, and help their stories survive for years to come, even whilst the names upon their graves get weathered away by the wind and the rain.
The first grave we will focus on is not just a grave but a memorial to one of Belfast’s long forgotten family of mercantile heavyweights who held significant, if unheralded sway within the town.
The Luke Family Mausoleum.
This Mausoleum is somewhat of an oddity: It is equal parts memorial and grave. It has caused significant confusion for historians over the years, with learned and prominent historians such as Francis Joseph Bigger being somewhat misled by the monument.
The Luke family were a prominent family of merchants in Belfast during the 18th and 19th Century, and specialised in the trade of textiles. Rather confusingly (but not uncommon for this period) this research piece will have to navigate three different James Lukes. This has been where the confusion from previous academics has stemmed from. Two are listed on the monument, whilst the third, who paid for its construction, is listed among his brothers.
Not much is known about the eldest James Luke (for this piece, we will know him as James Luke I), other than he was from Islandreagh and married Sarah Thompson. Bigger records that the Thompsons were involved with bleaching and used facilities near Ballyclare. Whilst we do not know James Luke (I)’s occupation, his connection to the Thompsons, as well as the occupation the subsequent James’ chose, it is likely that the James Luke (I) was also involved in the textile trade in some fashion!
James Luke II (recorded on the mausoleum as living in Donegall Place) was a linen bleacher. He was a prominent and wealthy businessman, amassing assets worth £400,000 in todays currency by 1799. He formed a mercantile partnership with his wife’s family (the Getty’s) in 1809. The Getty’s were a well respected and wealthy merchant family in their own right, and even approached the Belfast Charitable Society with apprenticeship opportunities for some of the children in the Poor House. James Luke II died in 1809, and it is this date that may well have confused F.J Bigger, as he estimated the existing Mausoleum to be dated from 1810. However, documents in the Clifton House archives suggest that the monument was built several decades later. For this, we need to examine the life of the third James Luke. As successful as his Father and Grandfather were, James Luke (III) lived an altogether more storied and rather extraordinary life.
James Luke (III), the youngest of the seven brothers, cut his teeth as a wool draper and operated out of a residence on Bridge Street. Whilst he may have deviated from the family business, he possessed the same gift and aptitude for trade and economics that had made his family such successful merchants for generations. His skill was clearly recognised in the town, as he was appointed as Secretary of the Chamber of Commerce in 1812. During this time, the Chamber of Commerce were raising funds to build the Commercial Buildings on Waring Street. Luke was instrumental in the management of this money. The building cost £20,000 (£1.8 million in 2024) and was completed in 1822. It survives today and is home to the Northern Whig restaurant and bar. James’ experience and standing within Belfast did not go unnoticed, as he was appointed as the second American Consul to the town. Whilst it was a great honour, his time as American Consul was rather uneventful. His family connections with the States is clearly displayed on the Mausoleum itself, with older brothers Campbell and William living (and dying) in Philadelphia and New York respectfully. Not much is known about his work as Consul, and James eventually stepped down from his role in favour of his older brother Samuel,[1] who then became the Third American consul of Belfast. [2]
After James stood down from his role as Consul, he would take up a prominent position within the Commercial Bank in Belfast. During his tenure, the Commercial Bank would merge with the Belfast Bank to form the Belfast Banking Company. For those of you who pass by the Assembly Rooms on Waring Street, The Belfast Banking Company is still emblazoned in the metal above the main doors, as the branch first moved into the buildings in 1845. James Luke retired from the Bank in 1830 and would cause substantial difficulties for the Company over the subsequent years. As one of the Directors of the Belfast Banking Company, Luke owned a number of shares in the organisation, however, upon his retirement, he demanded his shares be bought substantially above their actual worth.[3] This stalemate would continue until at least 1833, when the Dublin Evening Post reported an upcoming meeting specifically to discuss Luke’s “Resignation”, his “retiring allowance” and his replacement. It is recorded that he was eventually paid his asking price: Roughly an extra £2,400 (£360,000). After his retirement James Luke retreated from public life. He is recorded as residing in Chichester Street in the immediate aftermath of his retirement, and attended Rosemary Street Presbyterian Church, however in his later years he had addresses in London and Paris. In 1857, he commissioned prominent architect Thomas Jackson to design the mausoleum which still stands in the New Burying Ground, likely replacing an earlier (more modest) grave of his father.
The mausoleum is of Egyptian Revival style, a style that was very popular in the early 1800’s but remained a staple in funerary architecture and mortuary symbols throughout the 19th century. It is topped by an obelisk 18 feet in height, with a small, decorative sarcophagus displayed in front. The obelisk was a popular symbol in cemeteries, and was used as a status symbol, whilst also fulfilling a similar role as a church spire, “reaching towards the heavens”. The obelisk is inscribed with memorials to the Luke family and their in-laws, including the Getty family.
The East (or Front) facing side likely replicates the inscription of an existing headstone:
“James Luke of Donegall Place
Son of
James Luke of Island Reagh
and
Sarah Thompson, of Greenmount,
His Wife.
Died 1st March 1809
Catherine, Wife of the first named
And daughter of
Robert & Ann Getty
Died 20th April 1813”
The North Facing Side details information about the Getty Family, whilst the South facing side memorialises James Luke III’s brothers, and reads:
“The following are the sons of James and Catherine Luke:
Robert, who died in 1815,
John who died in 1814,
Samuel who died in 1844,
Campbell who died at Philadelphia in 1820,
William who died at New York in 1837,
Thompson who died in 1834,
James who died in Dublin in 1862,
By whom this monument was erected to the memory of his parents and brothers.”
As is recorded on the Mausoleum, James Luke died in Dublin. He died suddenly in the Gresham Hotel on the 30th September 1862. It appears that none of the Luke Brothers ever married, and therefore, without direct descendants, the Luke Mausoleum, a memorial to one of Belfast’s more successful mercantile families, began to slip from public memory.
When new, the Luke mausoleum would have been one of the grander monuments within the New Burying Ground. Now, the sarcophagus is fractured. The gate, rusted, and the inscriptions are heavily worn and weathered. Now, it acts as a prominent landmark for individuals wanting to visit the grave of their neighbour, Mary Ann McCracken. The text on each side of the obelisk is so heavily worn it is unrecognisable. Indeed, had I stumbled across this tomb by accident, I would not know from looking at it, who was meant to be memorialised there. Had it not been for the historians that came before me, who recorded the inscriptions on the tombstones, and kept the names of these people ‘alive’, it is likely that this research piece would never have happened. Now, as tour’s gather in front of the grave of Mary Ann McCracken, and “Some, All or None” of Henry Joy McCracken [4]; their stories told and retold on a regular basis, the family buried six feet to the left can now have their story told as well.
[1] The lack of information surrounding his time as Consul is not unique to James Luke, as little is known about any of the early Consul’s work. It is an area where further research is needed, surrounding the role of American Consuls in Belfast.
[2] Not much is known about Samuel, however, records show that he lived at 2 Great Patrick Street, just 700 metres away from where the Luke mausoleum sits today.
[3] Chambers records the shares as being worth £31 a share (£4,400 a share in todays currency), but James Luke was demanding £43 a share (£6,150).
[4] A famous quote by Éamon Phoenix, as it is uncertain if the bones that were relocated to Clifton Street Cemetery from the former Corporation Churchyard were indeed those of Henry Joy.
About the archivist:
James Cromey is the Archive Coordinator for the North Belfast Heritage Cluster. He has a background in Victorian, Industrial and Medical History and has received degrees from the University of Glasgow and Queens University Belfast. All research has been conducted to a high academic standard and has been fully referenced. If you would like to know more about a story or piece of research, or if you wish to tell us about your own story, email us at: archiveproject@nbheritagecluster.org
