A councillor has urged a mystery eco-warrior who has laid claim to an abandoned graveyard to come forward - so he can be billed for years of maintenance work by the town hall. Councillor John Mullen has sent the message to the man who allegedly paid for the gates to the Barton Upon Irwell Roman Catholic Graveyard to be repaired, before locking them with a padlock and putting up a ‘no trespassing’ sign.
Coun Mullen, who lives near the cemetery in Eccles, has emailed the address on the sign asking the person to make himself known. He wrote: “I note that you have placed a sign on the gates that suggest that you now own the land as only the land owner could press trespass charges.
“Please could you confirm title and an address where Salford city council can invoice you for the past works cutting back vegetation from the highway for the last 20 years? I look forward to your response.”
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Coun Mullen told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “I have not received a response yet, but we need to know who this is.” The saga unfolded after amateur historian Craig Ellis wrote to the POPE over concerns the graveyard - last used for a burial in 1940 - was becoming a drug and alcohol den.
Craig, 52, has discovered that the cemetery was once owned by the de Trafford family. When they bequeathed it to the Catholic church, the paperwork was never completed, meaning it effectively belongs to no one.
The IT consultant is also worried that the mystery person may take control of the graveyard with a view to securing ownership and developing the site. Craig says he has also tried to find out who the person is by emailing the address on the 'no trespassing' sign and asked if people can visit graves in the cemetery - and received a ‘no’ in an email.
The metal gate contractor, who asked not to be named, has told the LDRS he met the man at the gates on Peel Green Road about three weeks ago.
He fixed the hinges, painted the gates and put a padlock on, and was paid by bank transfer from a personal account, he added.
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