In the heart of Victorian London, beneath the Enon Chapel, a chilling secret lay hidden. Mr. Howse, the Baptist Minister, had long been presiding over a sinister operation.
For a mere 15 shillings, he offered burials without question, shielding the deceased from grave robbers. Below the chapel’s floor, a grotesque tableau unfolded.
Coffins piled high, decaying bodies, and bone pits filled the cellar’s confines. Witnesses spoke of flies and eerie “body bugs” that infested the chapel. The stench was unbearable. In 1842, Mr. Howse’s reign of terror ended, but the horror persisted. Bones were discovered when a builder dug beneath the chapel’s floor.
The chapel later became a dance hall, infamous for “Dancing on the Dead.” In 1848, George “Graveyard” Walker, a witness to the horrors, acquired the chapel. He turned it into a macabre spectacle, drawing crowds to view the pyramid of bones and the visage of Mr. Howse among them.
The victims found their final rest in Norwood Cemetery, their stories fading into history. The Enon Chapel, a symbol of Victorian darkness, was just one of many chilling tales from that era, inviting us to explore the hidden horrors of private burial grounds.
Top image: 12,000 souls were buried in the mass grave under Enon Chapel. Source: Fernando / Adobe Stock.
