Ormskirk writer Kenneth Williams has written ‘Residents of Graveyard Lane’

Jul 2 2009 by Linda Foo Guest, Ormskirk Advertiser

Ormskirk writer Kenneth Williams has written ‘Residents of Graveyard Lane’

AN ORMSKIRK writer came up with ‘grave’ results for his new book.

Kenneth Williams decision to write ‘Residents of Graveyard Lane’ was based on his hobby of genealogy – tracing family histories.

It is Kenneth’s first book and it took two years to complete.

He said: “I do a lot of genealogy for researching my family tree and found myself going through graveyards looking for particular names.

“I wrote the book because I had a lot of photos of graves and thought people might find it interesting like I did.

“I didn’t write it to make a profit –it was more for satisfaction and ambition.

“Every time I’m on holiday I always visit graveyards to see what I might find.

“My wife, Jeanette, and I went to Iceland last year, they have big boards about the people buried there – it was very interesting.”

The retired bank manager, 58, has been studying genealogy for 20 years and has traced his family tree to the 1700s.

He added: “It gets very difficult before the 1700s.

“It all started when I was tracing my father’s uncle who was killed in the First World War and I had to find out what regiment he was in.

“It is a lot easier now to trace people with the internet than 20 years ago when I had to write letters.”

Kenneth, who grew up in Fazakerley and Aintree, is a treasurer of the Walton-on-the Hill scout district, and has been a member since he was eight.

He added: “All graves are interesting, there are famous people in the book plus soldiers with medals who were killed in the war.

“The book features the chief officer of the Titanic at Kirkdale cemetery – it’s 12ft tall and made from red sandstone.

“There is always big crowds of youths around Jim Morrison’s grave with lots of flowers and there is a guard on all of the time.

“On the front cover of the book is Jules Verne’s grave, father of science fiction and author of ‘A Journey to the Centre of the Earth’ and ‘Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea’, the grave shows Jules bursting out of the grave pointing up to the stars.”

The book is £11.98 and can be bought from Kenneth by calling 01695 423 924 or email ken@kpw.me.uk

Alternatively visit his publisher’s website Trafford.co.uk or ordered from any bookshop.