The Vicar of Clifton, the Rev Hedley Richardson, blessed the cholera burial ground in East Dene which stands between two houses.

The tiny piece of land on Park Road is now bordered by new wrought-iron fencing and has two new signs, giving information about the history of the site and the names, where known, of the Rotherham people buried there during two national cholera outbreaks in the 1800s.

The small plot, with its laid-down headstones, marks the communal grave of 22 people, including an unknown stranger, who died during the 1832 outbreak.

A further eight people, including a local doctor, were buried on the plot in 1849 when Rotherham was once again hit by the killer disease.

Coun Barry Dodson, chair of the Rotherham South Area Assembly, said he was delighted so many groups and organisations had worked together to improve the important piece of Rotherham's history.

Coun Dodson said: "Although not widely known, this little corner of East Dene is the final resting place of a group of Rotherham residents and it is only right they have dignified surroundings."