The General Cemetery was opened for burials in late April 1847, in response to the overcrowding of the churchyard burial grounds within the city of Hull. Hull General Cemetery Company was the original owner of the cemetery. A part of the cemetery was consecrated by the Bishop of Bangor specifically for Church of England burials on 28 October 1847, and a separate section for Quaker burials would follow a decade or so later. The cemetery grounds were designed by John Shields. In 1849, the General Cemetery was used for the mass burial of victims from a major cholera outbreak in Hull and vicinity.

The cemetery continued in operation through the first half of the 20th century but fell into increasing disrepair and neglect. The Hull General Cemetery eventually went into receivership and the cemetery grounds were taken over by the Hull City Council. It was closed to further burials in 1972.

A burial register for the General Cemetery is available through the Hull History Center.

In 1862, the Hull City Corporation acquired land from the Hull General Cemetery Company and opened a public burial ground immediately adjacent to the General Cemetery. This new cemetery was initially called the "Borough General Cemetery" and later called the Western Cemetery after it was expanded across Chanterlands Ave in the 1890s.

In 2016, a community group of volunteers, The Friends of Hull General Cemetery (FOHGC), was formed and have taken on the challenge of caring for this heritage site of special natural interest. During its short life it has generated a significant amount of interest in the cemetery from the general public and plans are afoot to bid for local and national funding to make the cemetery a more hospitable place for the community to visit yet still retain its historical significance and environmental importance for future generations. The original objectives of FOHGC (to be achieved by working in close consultation with the land owners, Hull City Council) are as follows… * Landscape and Woodland Management: To employ sustainable, multi-objective woodland management to preserve and improve the important function of the mature, broadleaved woodland on the site in the urban landscape. * Social History: To conserve the burial monuments and associated features in their woodland setting and to encourage their interpretation and appreciation. * Education: To encourage the educational use of the area, including its use as a local nature-site and its use to engage the local community in the Hull Biodiversity Action Plan process. * Access, Recreation and Inclusion: To ensure that the open, public-access to the site is maintained, that it is safe and welcoming to everyone and wherein the formal path network is well managed and accessible to all. * Biodiversity: To conserve and enhance the flora and fauna at the site, their habitats and diversity, including protected species. * Community Involvement: To enable the engagement of the local community in the active management of the site. * Safety and Public Amenity: To ensure the site is maintained in a safe condition and manner. * Implementation, Funding and Partnerships: To set out a programme of implementation for the practical and administrative management of the proposed project which identifies responsibilities, costs and potential means of funding the management of the site, including possible community and voluntary sector partners to work with the City Council. Community involvement will be central to the development and implementation of the plan. * Involvement of local businesses: To provide assistance, both financial and practical help with tools, equipment and materials. * CWGC: Identify, locate and record all Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) graves within the cemetery. * Photographic Record Project: Record all of the remaining headstones in the cemetery. * Litter: Remove litter and fly-tipped material and provide litter bins throughout the cemetery which will be regularly emptied by the volunteers. * Ivy: Remove ivy and invasive plants from around headstones to prevent damage by same. Care to be taken not to damage stones or interfere with nesting birds. * Pathways: Tidy and re-establish cemetery pathways, and maintain where possible. The FOHGC are always happy to provide information on or to identify and help Ancestors locate the burial plots of their Ancestors or Ancestors of Friends and other interested parties. Regular talks and walks are organised to raise the awareness of this historic cemetery and the people buried there.