Boards revisit grave past
One of the city’s oldest cemeteries has revealed its rich history with the installation of interpretation boards at Woolston Cemetery, Rutherford Street.
The boards share stories of the characters and celebrities buried there and were a collaboration between the Council and its Hagley/Ferrymead Community Board in response to the community calls to continue restoration there.
Originally called Heathcote Cemetery, it was the second set up in the city, with the first burial recorded there in 1852. In July 1866, the land was bought by the Church of England and a chapel built in the centre of the cemetery, where its foundations can still be seen.
The high child mortality rate is evident with many children’s graves — one being seven-year-old George Monck, of Moncks Bay, who fell into the Avon-Heathcote Estuary and drowned in 1882. His parents inscribed on his grave: “Without a moment’s warning, while busy at his play, this bright and loving fair-haired boy was quickly snatched away”.
The boards tell many more such stories, so make your way there on a sunny afternoon to find out for yourself.
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