We drove from Sutton to Epsom on Saturday September 12th 2026 – and parked near Hook Road. Between 2006-2009 I taught Taijiquan at a local leisure centre in Epsom that today occupies the old site of the Victorian Horton Hospital – also termed an “Asylum”. Many people were imprisoned in this place with ailments, diseases, and injuries, that today would be treatable, but were then stigmatised or misunderstood. There were many misunderstandings and tragedies. However, the Hospital was shut-down in 1955 and the Chapel and extensive graveyard sold-off for redevelopment. To achieve this feat the 9000 or so grave-stones were removed and disposed of – with the bodies left in situ under the ground. Epsom today is an affluent borough just outside of London – and the local people have started a campaign to have what is left of the grave-sites transformed into a respectful Garden of Rest – or something similar.
I suspect some type of church-record exists which record the name, grave-number, and location of each person who died at the Hospital. Of course, the local area is now covered in roads and domestic and commercial buildings, with only smaller sections visible. These areas are more or less wild and uneven. We know this because we walked along about half a mile of what was one of the boundaries of the graveyard – before entering a relatively small area of the graveyard proper which still retained its cast-iron fence. Placed along the adjacent wooden fence – there were the biographies of the deceased that local historians had respectfully researched. The walking was rough-going due to the uneven terrain – which is not suitable for the inform. Efforts are ongoing to do something about the state of the place through raising awareness and funds. This pace was about a mile or so up the road from Horton Chapel – which was our next port of call.
SANGHA KOMMUNE (SSR) 