Description
Cemeteries are considered by some as morbid places, while others consider them fascinating. They reveal tangible and readily accessible glimpses into the past. Goldfield cemeteries are no exception to this. They are one of the few remaining links to the turbulent and exciting times when thousands rushed to Victoria and the Mount Alexander Goldfields to make their fortune. They are also one of the few places where rich and poor from all stratas of society are found together. Cemeteries provide valuable information about our past and to some extent the society from which those memorialised have come. Victorian cemeteries, unlike many of those in the earlier colonies of Tasmania and New South Wales, have few cemeteries based on the English churchyard style of burials. It was not until 1854 and the passing of An Act for the Establishment and Management of Cemeteries in the Colony of Victoria. 17 Victoria No 12 that Public Cemeteries established on Crown Land then became the norm. Prior to this, the City of Melbourne General Cemetery Act 14 Victoria, No 10 and the registration Act 6 George 4, No 21 were the controlling Acts. By Ian Hockley.
Ref: 98365
