Historic cemeteries and burial places of New South Wales

Why is it Significant?

Cemeteries and burial grounds are among the most important material, emotional and spiritual sites in our communities: they are places of memory, learning, reflection, imagination, beauty, symbolism and poignancy. They document invaluable details about individuals and they are irreplaceable documents of society’s changing attitudes to death and memorialisation. Many are also sites of ecological survival, supporting rare and endangered plants and ecologies.
 

Why is it at Risk?

Neglect via lack of funding, lack of maintenance, repairs and upkeep and vegetation incursions 2. vandalism, causing destruction and defacement 3. development pressures  4. Community amnesia, ignorance, apathy 5. Current proposals for ‘sustainable burials’ including ‘infill’ burials and the reuse of old graves. Note:  Re 4. ‘sustainable burials’ policy will involve ‘infill’ and reuse of graves, including re-design of plot layout, with or without re-siting or removal of some or all monuments.  If properly researched and carefully managed, the policy could be effective, but without controls, it will be disastrous. It will result in inappropriate structures and the destruction of graves, particularly those of people who often had no permanent monuments: the poor, Aboriginal people, babies and children, disaster victims.  It is vital that cemeteries reflect and record the whole community, not only those who were better off.

What needs to be done?

The desired outcomes are that cemeteries become places that:

• Are well-cared for, cherished sites in the community
•  preserve knowledge about and material culture from the past (people, society, culture, ecologies) for future generations
• are inclusive, attractive and welcoming
•  are places in the heart, places for reflection and spirituality.

To achieve these outcomes we need:

• good research so cemeteries are properly understood
• full transcription of all headstones and monuments, and permanent preservation of these records
• appropriate plans of management based on good research and best available conservation knowledge
• adequate funding for maintenance repairs and upkeep, from government, community and private sources
• support  and appreciation for the dedicated people who care for and record cemeteries
• greatly increased public awareness and appreciation of cemeteries – tapping into and drawing together latent interest/fascination in the community.
• greatly increased visitation  of cemeteries – again raising public awareness, experience and commitment.
• New/creative/lateral thinking on community uses for cemeteries
• Rethinking and promoting cemeteries as assets rather than liabilities. Good comparisons are the cemeteries of Paris, such as Pere La Chaise, Montmartre and Montparnasse. These are beautiful, well-maintained and secure places, integral to the history and fabric of the city which attract millions of tourists and locals every year.