Notes on St. James’ Parish Church
The grounds are no longer used as a place for burial, but an examination of the headstones in the church grounds, will show that burials are from the 18th and 19th centuries. Most of the tombs are above ground and this is likely to prevent the intrusion of water from the sea which is a few hundred yards (metres) from the church. The size and elevation of the tombs were also representative of the social status of the persons buried. In the 18th and 19th centuries, a person’s tomb bore evidence of his or her social standing in life and therefore tombs were expected to be just as elaborate as the lifestyle which that person enjoyed. It should be noted also that at that time, only wealthy persons were buried in churchyards and the tombs would be those of the most influential settlers on the island.