Darwin Pioneer Cemetery

Last updated

Darwin Pioneer Cemetery
Pioneer Cemetery Darwin.jpg
Darwin Pioneer Cemetery
Details
Establishedunknown
Closed1919
Location
Goyder Road, Darwin, Northern Territory
CountryAustralia
Coordinates 12°26′13″S130°50′26″E / 12.436970°S 130.840600°E / -12.436970; 130.840600
No. of interments1,230
Website Palmerston Cemetery
Find a Grave Darwin Pioneer Cemetery

Darwin Pioneer Cemetery was the first official cemetery opened in Darwin in the Northern Territory of Australia. It was originally known as Palmerston Cemetery. [1] The cemetery stands as a testament to the many different cultural groups with different religious affiliations that lived in the early years of the city. Proposed in 1869, when the original survey for a town was conducted, the first burials took place around 1872 or 1873. [1] The cemetery closed in 1919; however, a number of burials were carried out after its closure including people that were associated with the pioneering families. [1] Overall, about 1,230 burials took place, although 450 burials were not recorded by Births, Deaths and Marriages. [1]

Contents

History

In February 1869 George Woodroffe Goyder, the Surveyor General, and a survey team arrived in Port Darwin to survey the new town of Palmerston (now known as Darwin). One of Goyder's tasks was to provide for the first cemetery which included 48 acres. [2] Today, this is from where Graham Street in Stuart Park runs to what is now the Stuart Highway running from about Nylander Street. [2]

The occupants of the cemetery include a wide range of people from Darwin and include infants and people from many different cultural backgrounds. [3] This reflects the cultural diversity of the town's early history which included Chinese, Japanese and Malay people. Causes of death of the occupants include suicide, stillbirth and drowning. [3] A school teacher's death was described in the records as "visitation from God". [2] One of the first occupants is thought to be Charles Harvey, a carpenter, who died on 4 October 1872. Other deaths were soon to follow: in November of the same year trooper William Davies was killed by a crocodile off Lameroo Beach while swimming. [2] Davies was followed by two miners, Robert McCracken and JW Smith, who died in 1873. [2]

The cemetery contains many graves of people that are involved in the establishment of Darwin. One example is John George Knight, who was one of the most senior officials in the Northern Territory at the time of his death. [4] There is also a monument to Edward (Ned) Tuckwell, buried in 1882, who along with his wife Eliza were involved in the pre-Darwin settlement at Escape Cliffs. Other prominent pioneering families are also buried in the cemetery including Spain, Brown and Bell. [2] Other significant graves include Paul Foelsche and his wife Charlotte, Foelsche led the Northern Territory Mounted Police and was noted as a recorder of Territory history through his writings and photography. [2] The cemetery's most impressive headstone, in the form of a 1m marble angel, belongs to Thomas Crush, the Territory's first Labour member of Parliament in South Australia and whom along with his wife Fannie (later Haynes) built the Federation Hotel at Brocks Creek. [2]

The cemetery also tells the tale of many inhabitants who died tragic deaths. This includes the death of Captain Joe Bradshaw who lost over four hundred thousand pounds in his venture then died of gangrene in 1916, there was Yusumatsu Tokayama who died two months later, most likely of the bends, while working for a pittance as a diver. [2]

The cemetery became less important after the opening of Gardens Cemetery in 1919, after which time it was closed. [2]

Today

The cemetery was subject to an inadequate record keeping and documentation, because of this many of the occupants are unknown. [1] Overtime grave markers have disappeared, and some memorials have been destroyed. Today there are about 90 graves still visible. [1] The cemetery is now fenced to protect what remains, and is managed by the City of Darwin who undertook an upgrade project in 1983, one outcome of which was the installation of a plaque that displays some of the locations of graves and occupants. [1] Other upgrades include a memorial plaque to the John Knight Memorial in 2003. [4] Ghost tours are now also carried out in the cemetery. [5] Recent controversy has arisen over rezoning nearby land that nearby residents were concerned could disturb unmarked graves. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Darwin, Northern Territory</span> Capital city of Northern Territory, Australia

Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. The city has nearly 53% of the Northern Territory's population, with 139,902 at the 2021 census. It is the smallest, wettest, and most northerly of the Australian capital cities and serves as the Top End's regional centre.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Humpty Doo</span> Town in the Northern Territory, Australia

Humpty Doo is a town in Australia's Northern Territory, situated just south of the Arnhem Highway, approximately 40 km from Darwin. At the 2016 census, Humpty Doo had a population of 4,313 people. Its local government area is Litchfield Municipality. The town is a popular stopping point for tourists travelling between Darwin and Kakadu National Park, and boasts many attractions of its own. The main industries are agriculture and tourism; however, most residents commute to Darwin or Palmerston for work, and many regard it as a dormitory town.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burial</span> The ritual act of placing a dead person or animal into the ground

Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objects in it, and covering it over. A funeral is a ceremony that accompanies the final disposition. Evidence suggests that some archaic and early modern humans buried their dead. Burial is often seen as indicating respect for the dead. It has been used to prevent the odor of decay, to give family members closure and prevent them from witnessing the decomposition of their loved ones, and in many cultures it has been seen as a necessary step for the deceased to enter the afterlife or to give back to the cycle of life.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palmerston, Northern Territory</span> Town in the Northern Territory, Australia

Palmerston is a planned satellite city of Darwin, the capital and largest city of Australia's Northern Territory. The city is situated approximately 20 kilometres from Darwin and 10 kilometres from Howard Springs and the surrounding rural areas. Palmerston had a population of 33,695 at the 2016 census, making it the second largest city in the Northern Territory. According to the 2021 census, the population grew to 37,247 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern Territory Police Force</span> Australian law enforcement agency

The Northern Territory Police Force is the police body that has legal jurisdiction over the Northern Territory of Australia. This police service has 1,607 police members made up of 83 senior sergeants, 228 sergeants, 912 constables, 220 auxiliaries, and 64 Aboriginal Community Police Officers. The rest of the positions are members of commissioned rank and inoperative positions. It also has a civilian staff working across the NT Police, Fire and Emergency Services.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nightcliff, Northern Territory</span> Suburb of Darwin, the Northern Territory, Australia

Nightcliff is a northern suburb of the city of Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. It is the traditional country and waterways of the Larrakia people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Goyder</span> 19th century surveyor in South Australia

George Woodroffe Goyder was a surveyor in the Colony of South Australia during the latter half of the nineteenth century.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adelaide River, Northern Territory</span> Eiver in Australia

Adelaide River is a small but historically significant town located at the crossing of the Stuart Highway over the Adelaide River in the Northern Territory of Australia. The town is upstream of the Adelaide and Mary River Floodplains Important Bird Area. At the 2021 census, Adelaide River had a population of 317. Adelaide River is part of the Coomalie Shire and is the second largest settlement in the local government area.

The history of Darwin details the city's growth from a fledgling settlement into a thriving colonial capital and finally a modern city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Larrakia people</span> Aboriginal Australian people of the Darwin area

The Larrakia people are a group of Aboriginal Australian people in and around Darwin in the Northern Territory. The Larrakia, who refer to themselves as "Saltwater People", have a vibrant traditional society based on a close relationship with the sea and trade with neighbouring groups such as the Tiwi, Wadjiginy and Djerimanga. These groups share ceremonies and songlines, and intermarry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Dundas</span> British settlement in Australia

Fort Dundas was a short-lived British settlement on Melville Island between 1824 and 1828 in what is now the Northern Territory of Australia. It was the first of four British settlement attempts in northern Australia before Goyder's survey and establishment of Palmerston, now known as Darwin. The three later attempts were at Fort Wellington, Port Essington and Escape Cliffs.

Driver is an inner-city suburb of Palmerston. It is 23 km SE of the Darwin CBD. Its Local Government Area is the City of Palmerston. Durack is bounded to the north by University Ave, to the west Elrundie Avenue, to the east Temple Terrace and to the south Tilston Avenue. The suburb is mostly composed of developments from the early 1980s.

Bees Creek is an outer rural area of Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia. It is 33 km southeast of the Darwin central business district. It is the council seat of the local government area of the Litchfield Municipality, although most council facilities, public amenities and the actual Municipal offices are in the neighbouring locality of Freds Pass. Bees Creek is mostly rural, with large residential blocks often not served by town sewers or sealed roads. Nevertheless, the area is popular with those wishing to enjoy a rural lifestyle within an easy commuting distance of the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Darwin central business district</span> Suburb of Darwin, the Northern Territory, Australia

Darwin City is a suburb in metropolitan Darwin which comprises the original settlement, the central business district, parkland and other built-up areas. It is the traditional country and waterways of the Larrakia people. It is original site of occupation and includes many of the city's important institutions and landmarks, such as Parliament, Government House, the Northern Territory Supreme Court, Bicentennial Park and the George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens. The city centre is located in the local government areas of the City of Darwin and the Darwin Waterfront Precinct.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mindil Beach</span> Beach near Darwin in the Northern Territory of Australia

Mindil Beach is a beach in the Northern Territory of Australia, located in the suburb of The Gardens, near Darwin's central business district. Mindil Beach holds the Mindil Beach Sunset Markets, which runs during the dry season of every year. These markets are popular with both the locals and tourists alike and can attract thousands of people..

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paul Foelsche</span>

Paul Foelsche was a South Australian police officer and photographer born in Germany, remembered for his work in the Northern Territory of Australia from 1870 to 1904.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Hill (Darwin)</span> Former hill in Darwin, Australia

Fort Hill is a hill that once existed on Darwin Harbour in the Northern Territory of Australia. It was the location of George Goyder's survey camp which was established in 1869.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">H. D. Packard</span>

Harrison Daniel Packard was a surveyor in the early days of the colony of South Australia. He served at Escape Cliffs under B. T. Finniss, and later under G. W. Goyder at Port Darwin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Adelaide River War Cemetery</span> Historic site in Northern Territory, Australia

Adelaide River War Cemetery is a heritage-listed cemetery at 105 Memorial Terrace, Adelaide River, Northern Territory, Australia. It was added to the Australian Commonwealth Heritage List on 22 June 2004.

Billiamook, Bellamuck or Billy Muck was a Larrakia man who was one of the first Aboriginal people to interact with white settlers in Garamilla, in what is now known as Darwin in 1869.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Darwin Pioneer Cemetery". austcemindex.com. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Pioneer Cemetery | City of Darwin". www.darwin.nt.gov.au. Archived from the original on 18 May 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  3. 1 2 "australiancemeteries.com/nt/goyderrddata.htm". www.australiancemeteries.com. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  4. 1 2 "John Knight Memorial" . Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  5. ↑ "Full Moon Darwin Pioneer Cemetery Tour | Australian Heritage Week". heritage-week.govspace.gov.au. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  6. ↑ "Residents of Parap in Darwin raise concerns about disturbing unmarked graves" . Retrieved 1 May 2015.[ dead link ]
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.