Albany Memorial Park Cemetery

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Statement of Significance

The Memorial Park Cemetery, Albany is thought to be the first consecrated Cemetery in Western Australia. At the time of its closure, it was probably the longest serving Public Cemetery in the State. The Cemetery has historic significance at local, State, National and International levels as the final resting place of individuals of many different socioeconomic and ethnic origins, a number of whom where historically and/or socially prominent at local, State and National levels. It has landmark qualities.

Physical Description

The Memorial Park Cemetery, Albany is thought to be the first consecrated Cemetery in Western Australia. At the time of its closure, it was probably the longest serving Public Cemetery in the State. The Cemetery has historic significance at local, State, National and International levels as the final resting place of individuals of many different socioeconomic and ethnic origins, a number of whom where historically and/or socially prominent at local, State and National levels. It has landmark qualities.

History

Assessment Nov 2000
Historical Overview
To date, four burial grounds/cemeteries are known to have existed within the City of Albany. Of these, the Memorial Park Cemetery is the third area to have been used in this fashion, and at its official closing on 16 September 1959, it is thought to have become the longest serving Public Cemetery in the State of Western Australia. The original allotment set aside for cemetery purposes, was Town lot S51, which has been identified on some of the first town maps of the settlement and which date from 1836. On 12th February 1840, the Government Gazette announced that Lot S51 had been set aside as a Public cemetery, although in keeping with the times, the land was placed under the care of the Church of England Trustees on 29 July 1845. The first additional allotment (lot 329) was gazetted on 30 April 1855, to the Albany Roman Catholic Church. This southern allocation to the original lot S51, was the first section to be used "above" Middleton road. The Wesleyan Methodist church was originally granted lots 272 & 273, however these were
exchanged for lots 327 & 328 on 28 January 1884. Finally, the Presbyterian Church received approval for use of lots 503 & 504 as a cemetery on 16 July 1890. These various allotments continued to be operated and controlled by the various church authorities until the lands were re-vested by the government to the control of the Trust/Cemetery Board established under the Albany Cemeteries Act (1943), which came into effect on 25th Oct 1943. On 31 March 1944, by publication in the Government Gazette, all 6 lots were
amalgamated into the Cemetery Reserve 22406. The same publication announced the appointment of 10 Trustees for care of this Reserve, and this system of trustees caring for the place has continued in almost unchanged format since, with care of the property being provided under the guidance of the Albany Cemetery Board. Both the Memorial Park and Allambie Park Cemeteries acquired their current names on 6 December 1963, from a list of names submitted by the public to the then Mayor of Albany, Charles Johnson. Prior to this, they were generally referred to as the "Old" and "New" cemeteries. Allambie Park
cemetery opened on the 4th August 1954, only 5 years before the official closure of the Memorial Park Cemetery. Despite the official closure of the cemetery, a number of reservations remain current (with the last due to expire in 2003) and burials may still be permitted subject to the approval of the Minister and Albany Cemetery Board. Since the amalgamation of individual allotments occurred in the creation of Reserve 22406, only one amendment has been made. It was gazetted on 8 December 1972, and in effect the unused land in Lots 503 & 504 were reclaimed as Crown reserves and the overall area of the property was reduced slightly, to give the cemetery it current size of 2.5323 hectares.

HISTORY
The Memorial Park Cemetery is identified in the first town plans of Albany, and is a significant element in the history and growth of the town. Indeed, the positioning of the Albany Memorial Park Cemetery is probably a direct result of the town’s historical dependence on the shipping, which in turn relied on the town for restocking supplies,
prior to the beginning of the 20th century.
It should be remembered that in the early days of the Swan River Settlement, sailing ships were the main form of transport, both for settlers and also trade between the Swan River Colony, Europe, Asia and other Colonies developing in the East of the continent. These sailing ships were heavily reliant upon the direction of the wind, and
as a result, a number of the ships visiting King George Sound were driven into the anchorage of Ellen Cove at Middleton Bay, rather than the “main” anchorage at Princess Royal Harbour.3 It soon became apparent to the early Government Residents, that a linkage road between the main township centred on York Street and Princess Royal Harbour, and the shipping arriving in Ellen Cove at Middleton Bay, was needed.
Accordingly, the construction of Middleton Road was ordered in 18374, by Sir Richard Spencer, the first civil administrator of the settlement, and the subsequent detailing of the lot S51 on these earliest survey maps of the area,would suggest that a specific purpose for the property was already being considered.
Referral to some of the published historical documentation of cemeteries in other Australian towns and cities of a comparable age, such as the East Perth6 & Karrakatta7 Cemeteries in Western Australia, and the West Terrace Cemetery in South Australia, would seem to suggest that the site was chosen for:
 the lack of proximity to residential areas of the time;
 of good, natural drainage potential; and
 a suitable road already in position.
These points would suggest a degree of careful forethought and planning had been given to the site selection; a consideration that appears to have been rarely practiced by early colonial administrators, at least in regard to cemeteries and burial grounds. Despite the negative commentary by the town’s newly appointed minister, Rev. John R. WollastonII, and later in the same year (1848) by the visiting Lord Bishop of Adelaide, the Right Reverend Augustus ShortIII, it would seem that at least some consideration had been given to the potential expansion of the town's population, in the future.
Another point which would have found favour in the selection of lot S51 for a cemetery, was that it was, at that time, centrally located to both marine and terrestrially based users, being the half-way point of both the governing and geographical boundaries of the settlement. Before 1840, the main townsite of Albany was centred on York Street,
and much of the governmental business and social events were focused on “Strawberry Hill Farm”, which was where the Customs office and the home of the then Government Resident, Sir Richard Spencer was sited. Amongst his other duties, Spencer was responsible for both the formal notification of deaths in the region to the Governor
General, and also for overseeing the conduct of burials within the town prior to the arrival of the town’s first minister, Rev. John Wollaston in 1848.
It may also be that the experiences with the two burial grounds which existed within the town centre, at town lots S112 & S115, prior to the development of this site, provided an added incentive to follow the directive of Sir George Murray, then Secretary of State to the Colonies, to Captain James Stirling dated 30 December 1828, which stated:
"In laying the foundations of any . . . town, care must be taken to proceed upon a regular plan, leaving all vacant places which will in future times, be required for thoroughfares, and as the site of churches, cemeteries and other public works of utility and general convenience."
On 28 November 1839, Assistant Surveyor Hillman returned to Albany, in the company of Surveyor General Roe and Governor Hutt. In his survey journals10 it is noted that he spent the week of 2 December 1839 sequestered with the Resident (and the aforementioned parties, I would assume) selecting land lots of public use. The Governor's
party is then noted as leaving Albany on 4 January 1840. Dated the 6th, a note reads
"Marking out Albany lots no. 14, 15, 16 & pointing out burial ground"
According to a reference note 25 by Johnson11, this visit to the settlement by Governor Hutt & General Surveyor Roe is when the first burial took part in the then new cemetery. Rather than a newly deceased individual, this first burial was supposedly the re-interment of Dr. Alexander Collie, who had died in 1835 and had originally been buried in Lot S112IV.On the 8th July 1848, Rev. John R. Wollaston arrived in Albany, as the settlement's first Church of England priest. Shortly after his arrival, Rev. Wollaston makes arrangements for the newly appointed Archbishop of Adelaide, the Right Reverend Augustus Short, to undertake his first Episcopal Visitation to Western Australia. During this tour of the Swan River colony, the Archbishop was able to undertake, amongst other duties, the task of formally consecrating a number of church and burial rounds/cemeteries for the first time.
With Albany being the first West Australian port of call after Port Adelaide, Archbishop Short consecrated the newly completed St. John's Church in Albany on 25 October 1848, and the cemetery on 27 October 1848, making these the first consecrated church and cemetery in Western Australia. Once again there is an entry in Wollaston's
diary12 concerning Archbishop Short, which reads:
"Lady Spencer gave a grand dinner on Friday, 27th Oct., on the afternoon of which day he consecrated a portion of the Burial Ground, leaving the remainder (three-quarters) for the other denominations. The Cemetery lies about halfway between Albany and Strawberry Hill."
It should be noted that whilst de Mouncey13 stated that the Alma Street cemetery at Fremantle was the first burial ground to be consecrated in 1830, this particular comment in this text seems unlikely to be correct. What appears certain is that when the ship upon which he was travelling, the "Success", became severely damaged on a reef off
Fremantle, the then ex-archdeacon of Sydney, Rev. Thomas Hobbes Scott spent an unexpected period of time in Fremantle and Perth. Whilst he did commit a number of notable clerical "firsts" at the Swan River Settlement14, Rev. Scott did not have the rank necessary to commit the formal benedictions required for a formal consecration. Undoubtedly, had there been an accepted consecration of the Fremantle grounds, Archbishop Short would not have felt it necessary to perform his consecration of the church and burial ground on 16 November 1848.Whilst there are questions regarding the correct consecration date of the Fremantle site, there is no doubt that burials
took place at the Alma Street Cemetery from 1830 until its closure in 1895. It is also known that the site was later cleared of memorials and no longer exists in its original form. Unfortunately, it would also appear that to date, there has been no formal notice in the form of memorial plaques or signs denoting the original use of this historically
importance site to the City of Fremantle.
As the settlement and its population grew, there was a subsequent proliferation of the various religious institutions that could be supported by that population. This in turn lead to additional ground being allotted by the Crown Lands Department to applications by these church groups, for lands set aside specifically for use as a Cemetery, in return for a fee simple rent. With each denominational grantVI, the area designated for burials grew until the combined cemetery boundaries were represented by a total of 6 town lots. These lots were amalgamated and rezoned as Reserve no. 22406 in 1944, which occurred at approximately the same time as the appointment of the Albany Public Cemeteries BoardVII.With the advent of steam and other engine driven watercraft, Albany became an important anchorage and supply station for the many ships plying trades and transport between Australia and Europe. Further expansion of reliable overland contact between Albany and the joint economic capitals of Perth and Fremantle was made possible with the development of the Great Southern Railway between 1880 – 1890. This railway provided a much-used link between the coastal port and other areas in the state, particularly after the discovery of gold in the districts of Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie. During the gold-rush era of the 1880s, the port of Albany was the main discharge point for prospectors and others attracted by dreams of “instant” wealth.
As in any situation in which humans are involved, some deaths are likely to occur, and the cemetery became the last resting-place for not only those local inhabitants who died, but also quite a number of passengers, both on land and at sea. Burial records detail many nationalities and socioeconomic levels of society, including representative races of
most continents of the then known world.Over 1100 individual names have been noted in the inscriptions found on memorials15 located within Albany Memorial Park Cemetery which consists of just over two and a half hectares of grassed hillside. The cemetery is located on both sides of Middleton Road, one of the oldest major roads in Albany, and a major thoroughfare leading to places of historical and tourism interest such as Dog Rock, Strawberry Hill Farm & Middleton Beach. The cemetery adjoins the Albany District High School ovals and Bob Thomson Park, and is located just over 1 kilometre
from the Albany Post Office on York Street, Albany. A small section of land that has not been used for burials on original lot 327 has maintenance shed and is often used for parking. It is easily accessed from Boronia Street. Recently “re-discovered” research by a local historian, Mr. Jack Peters, suggests that somewhere between 4,800 – 4,900 people were interred at the Memorial Park Cemetery16, although the source documentation on this work is vague, and is still being investigated and assessed. To date however, it would appear that this compilation is the most comprehensive listing of interments available for the place, and this work is still the major source of cemetery records used by the Albany Cemetery Board. Allowing for the additional records accumulated by the Albany Cemetery Board since September 1959, this would place the number of internments at approximately 5,000 individuals. As most of the records for the cemetery were held by individual church trustees prior to the creation of the Albany Cemetery Board, records remain scattered and incomplete, although work on assembling a crossreferenced database is continuing.The Albany Memorial Park Cemetery has a number of mature trees both surrounding the cemetery and within the main grounds, providing some indication of previous formal arrangements of pathways and sectarian divisions.
These trees also providing a link with the symbolism prized by the Victorian-era in their funerary arrangements, through the choice of both exotic and local species, which have been seen to be associated with other pioneering cemeteries within WA. In a few places, there are indications of trees being privately planted on graves, although further investigation would assist in clarifying the exact number and extent of such arrangements.
The most seriously compromised area is that of the earliest “lower” (northern) section of the original public cemetery on lot S51, where a number of gravesite borders and fittings, have been lost to decay, vandalism and possibly tidying-up practices. Here, many of the older graves are now unmarked, and are often undetectable to the naked eye. In winter when grass is green, the predominant effect in the older section, is of a park-like landscape dotted with headstones.As a result of various active and passive changes over the years, the cultural landscape of this cemetery has gradually changed in appearance from the busy, oft-visited place during its years as an actively operating cemetery,
to the restful park-like setting of today. Up until the development of the new facilities at the Allambie Park Cemetery, which precipitated the subsequent closure of this cemetery, there would have been a great deal more detail than the headstones and grave surrounds that we admire today. Not only would the stone memorials have been present, but also the grave mounds, floral tributes, wooden corner pegs and other “temporary” markers which
would have defined the gravesites of those whose families could not afford stone monuments, and it is these that would have dominated the scene.
The remaining monuments and other sepulchral architecture in the Memorial Park Cemetery are the chief and most accessible element of the physical evidence and these are also documents of individual lives and the local community. Headstones in the place commemorate people who reached all ages, from babies and children to more
than a dozen nonagenarians. The dubious honour of being the oldest “occupants” is one jointly shared by William George Hawkes and Esther Annie Maltby, both of whom were aged 98 at the time of their deaths. All cemeteries are important as records of past lives and deaths, and among those resting in the Albany Memorial Park Cemetery are men and women who died or where killed in such incidents as farming, work, road accidents and
drowning as well as immigrants and travelers who died at sea. There are also a number of young men killed during World War I and other theatres of international conflict who are also memorialised at the cemetery. Adding a truly Australian touch to those immortalised in the inscriptions found at the cemetery, is one for Herbert Clifton Hassell, who was unfortunate enough to die in 1901, as a result of injuries sustained in a football match some two years before his demise.Inscriptions reveal that the first generation of immigrant settlers in the area came from a range of places of origin including Scotland, Cornwall, Ireland, and the USA. Closer examination of various local burial records also reveal
that early town inhabitants included representatives of most continents of the then known world, including Australianaboriginals, various British stock, Scandinavians, Italians, Chinese, Afghans, and Indians.The memorials themselves vary from plain to elaborate, and it is notable that the cemetery also contains two rare wooden headboards, said to have been carved by ship’s carpenters for their former crewmates, prior to the beginning
of the 20th Century. Although there are no tombs, there are a number of imposing obelisks and columns, and an interesting range of headstones, which provide a good range of examples of late 19th and early 20th-century monumental masonry. Given the town’s history of recurrent depressions and recessions, it is surprising to find that a number of these works were imported from not only other Australian states including SA, NSW and Victoria, but also overseas. Most of the sepulchral designs incorporate a range of traditional Christian images. Those of particular interest to the amateur historian are the Victorian-era funerary images such as:
• The Cross and 'IHS' expressing faith in resurrection;
• Anchors representing the security the believer finds in faith & also referencing the deceased's former occupational association with the sea;
• Urns which are associated with funeral rites in many different societies and religions and which embody a neoclassical element;
• Clasping hands expressing the hope of reunion in the afterlife; and,
• Flowers symbolising not only love, living energy and the beauty of divine creation, but also providing further definition for the esteem with which the deceased was held, through the romantic symbolism which those of the Victorian-era applied through botanical analogy to a range of subjects.
Other funerary artifacts of interest include a surprisingly large number of well-preserved cast-iron "lace" grave surrounds. Once again there are examples ranging from various simple designs to elaborate family and group enclosures incorporating detailed designs,

Integrity/Authenticity

Aesthetic Value:
Situated on the northwest slope of Mt. Clarence, the Memorial Park Cemetery provides an aesthetically pleasing cultural landscape valued and further enhanced by the community, in their progressive development of a Botanical Garden and further recreational land adjoining the cemetery. The place has a variety of monuments & other funerary fixtures, many of which display skills, artistry & craftsmanship in the disciplines of ironwork and stone-masonry. The place has a landmark quality on both sides of Middleton Road. The park-like vista created by the cemetery provided the basis for further recreational development of the surrounding Middleton Road area.

Historic Value:
As the cemetery formally identified in the WA Government Gazette on 12 February 1840, it has a significant element in the history of the area at both local and State levels. At its official closure in 1959, it was probably the longest serving public cemetery in the State of Western Australia.
The Memorial Park Cemetery is believed to be the first consecrated cemetery in the State of Western Australia. The cemetery has historic value as a record and burial place of many early European settlers whom still have descendants that live in the local area including members of the Cull, Egerton-Warburton, Hassell, Moir, Muir, Spencer and numerous other local pioneering families. A few of the individuals of State prominence buried in the place include Sir Alexander Thomas Cockburn-Campbell, Baronet; Henry Camfield; Anthony Hordern and Rev. John R. Wollaston.
The Memorial Park Cemetery has a wide variety of monuments and grave fittings, a number of which display a high level of craftsman-ship and design in both the metal workers and stone masons crafts, which are rarely seen in a contemporary cemetery.
SCIENTIFIC VALUE
All cemeteries have research and teaching value, and have potential archaeological value in that they are sites, which, if it was ever appropriate or necessary to excavate, can yield information on human health and social customs
in past times.

SOCIAL VALUE
The Memorial Park Cemetery is highly valued by the community for social, cultural, educational and religious reasons, and this high level of interest is reflected in the community’s continuous efforts over the years to maintain the cemetery and to enhance the surrounding areas.The Cemetery has been a part of the town of Albany from its earliest years, being the burial place of several thousand persons who died between 1840 and the present, many of who have descendants still living locally. The continued use of the cemetery even after the opening of a newer facility provides insight into the importance of the place’s contribution to the community’s sense of place.

RARITY
The Memorial Park Cemetery is possibly the last of a particular period of colonial-era cemeteries in the State of Western Australia, which has not been substantially reduced, altered or destroyed by bureaucratically authorised vandalism.
Through particular representations of aspects of nineteenth-century religious doctrine and attitudes to death in the imagery of the monumental masonry, together with the segregationist practices visibly demonstrated at the site by the past inhabitants of the town, this place provides evidence of mourning customs and social divisions which are
either rarely practiced, or extremely rare, in contemporary society.

REPRESENTATIVENESS
The unusual structure of the cemetery, being centrally intersected by a main thoroughfare, provides to even a casual
observer an opportunity to observe the development of the cemetery and the various funerary practices associated
with each section. These areas range from the original Victorian-era cemetery, which followed landscape contours,
to those generally found in contemporary cemeteries with their pre-aligned rows of monumental arrangements.
The Memorial Park Cemetery demonstrates characteristic Australian burial practices of the late nineteenth to mid
twentieth century, and demonstrates the esteem in which communities hold their cemeteries. (Criterion 6.2)
CONDITION
The Memorial Park Cemetery has survived comparativelyI intact, despite the loss of some minor elements and damage to some monuments, due to vandalism, decay and some ill-informed management practices, mostly prior to the appointment of the Albany Cemetery Board. The cemetery is subject to regular maintenance by the Albany Cemetery Board, and generally appears to be maintained in a good condition.

INTEGRITY
The Memorial Park Cemetery has a high degree of integrity because, although burials officially ceased in 1959, it has continued in its original and intended use as a cemetery.
Due to the loss of plot markers in the oldest sections of the cemetery, many of the older graves are unmarked and this diminishes its informative value. There is scope for restoring lost components of the fabric, with further examination and/or interpretation of historical evidence. Other non-invasive archaeological input and supervised reconstruction work would assist in facilitating greater public and visitor understanding and appreciation of the place.
Research undertaken by various interested genealogists and local historians since the 1980s may help with later restoration and reconstruction of the site and encourage further works aimed at further augmenting community interest in, and ownership of, the place.
AUTHENTICITY
The place has a high degree of authenticity, because large amounts of the fabric, in the form of memorials and other funerary architecture, have remained in their original positions and arrangements within the cemetery. Whilst most are generally in good condition, it should be noted that the Memorial Park Cemetery suffers from some loss of
context in the oldest sections due to some damage, loss and degradation of gravesite markers and fittings, and vandalism to some monuments.

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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Disclaimer

This information is provided voluntarily as a public service. The information provided is made available in good faith and is derived from sources believed to be reliable and accurate. However, the information is provided solely on the basis that readers will be responsible for making their own assessment of the matters discussed herein and are advised to verify all relevant representations, statements and information.