Historic funeral cart stolen from village (From Darlington and Stockton Times)

Historic funeral cart stolen from village

1:15pm Friday 5th March 2010

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A VALUABLE hand-drawn funeral cart, which was used to carry hundreds of coffins to church, has been stolen from a village.

The cart, which is also known as a bier, was taken from a detached garage in Low Worsall, near Yarm, between February 20 and 28.

The wooden structure, which was probably in use until about 1900, is a popular piece of the village’s history.

It has been displayed in a number of Worsall village history exhibitions since the 1950s and features in the Worsall History Booklet, published in 2000.

North Yorkshire Police are appealing for witnesses following the cart’s disappearance.

The stolen cart (pictured below) is wooden, and has in the past been treated with black paint. It has traditional timber cartwheels with metal tyres and each axle is supported on two metal leaf sprigs.

The bier was used for centuries to transport coffins from homes to St John’s Church, in Low Worsall, for funerals.

A cloth was often draped over the top to add dignity to the ceremony.

The modern funeral industry uses a collapsible aluminium version.

St John’s Church is now a ruin, but was built at the location of an earlier church. This is said to have been built in 1204 on the site of the Domesday Book-recorded village of Wercesel.

PC Julie Woodcock, of Northallerton safer neighbourhood team, said: “It is difficult to put a price on how much the cart is worth, but it is of great historical and sentimental value to the villagers of Low Worsall.

“If anyone has any information regarding the whereabouts of the cart, they should contact the police or Crimestoppers immediately.”

This is not the first time a bier has been stolen. In 2008, a funeral cart was stolen from a village in Oxfordshire.

Witnesses are asked to contact PC Woodcock on 0845-6060-247 or Crimestoppers on 0800-555111.

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