ARCHAEOLOGISTS have provided a revealing insight into the history of a Hartlepool cemetery.

A team from Tees Archaeology, supported by volunteers, carried out a series of digs in selected areas of the town centre North Cemetery.

And the excavations did not disappoint as they yielded vital evidence of some of the buildings which used to stand on the site.

Archaeologist Rachel Grahame said: “We excavated three trial trenches to look for evidence of three buildings, two chapels and a lodge, which early maps told us were here.

“We found the wall of the Church of England chapel and a layer of demolition rubble from when the building was demolished. Within this rubble we found some nice pieces of coloured glass, presumably from the chapel’s windows.

“We also discovered evidence of the lodge which is where the cemetery caretaker would have lived and we now know that the buildings within the cemetery were made from local limestone.”

The trenches were cleaned and photographed and all of the “finds” documented before the land was fully restored by the dig team.

Information gleaned from the excavations is set to be included in a new 32-page history booklet that is being produced by the Friends of North Cemetery, a group of local people dedicated to promoting and protecting the historic site.