Queanbeyans 180-year-old Riverside Cemetery offers many prominent tenants and urban legends.
But a recent flood of vandalism as well as general wear and the deterioration of the weather to some of the centuries -old tombstones could mean that they are lost forever.
The local council agrees that something has to be done to keep it.
However, since the council is already in a precarious financial position, there is an appetite for the community and even the state government to deal with maintaining and restoration.
And nothing has been carved in stone yet.
A photo from the age of Queanbeyan shows Grooves in the mud where there was once coffins. ((Delivery: Queanbeyan Age)))
Floating corpses of the most famous urban myth of the cemetery
The region's first public cemetery was founded in 1846 and is the final speech for almost 5,000 of its earliest European residents.
The most notorious of the urban myths of the cemetery, floating corpses and skeletons in Lake Burley Griffin, has his roots in a real catastrophe: a devastating flood in August 1974, which rinsed around 100 graves.
“It was absolutely tragic to see coffins and body alive, and I would say that none of the graves was left untouched,” said the Queanbeyan age of the day.
Despite a lack of evidence of whether this flood really led to corpses ended up in Lake Burley Griffin, this rumor has existed for half a century.
What is certain is that after a mammoth research effort over nine months at least 71 of those who had washed away their graves were recovered and a memorial plaque was built in their honor.
Of course, this is not the only legend associated in the cemetery that has been closed for new burials since 1985.
Visitors to the cemetery can see the grave of the Flora Susanna Blundell, which burned to death in 1892 when her nightgown broke out on fire after she had come too close to the fire while ironing.
It was then aligned to the west in an unconventional burial.
Legend has followed Flora the historic Blundell's Cottage on Lake Burley Griffin.
Then there are the stories of reformed convicted, controversial war heroes, politicians and even a kind of local “queen” – all of which are also buried there.
Risk of the historical site in decay
Ms. Bond has published her experience on social media and was overwhelmed by the answer. ((ABC News: Dave Sciasci)))
Despite its rich history, the locals are concerned about the current status of the cemetery, which has been managed by the Regional Council of Queanbeyan-Palerang (QPRC) since the mid-1970s.
As a descendant of one of the groundbreaking families in the region, the Rolfes, Sally Bond visits a few times in the Riverside that are buried in Riverside.
She said a visit last month shocked her from her condition.
MS Bond is certain that part of the damage to the cemetery was deliberately. ((ABC News: Dave Sciasci)))
“I immediately noticed that the wrought iron fence [around Michael McNamara’s grave] was cut off [which] Solved some large blocks that they kept on the spot, ”she said.
“Some beer bottles were also scattered in the area [and] A decorative urn [usually] The above was also missing with pigeons.
“I felt pretty unsure after I saw this damage [and] I was sad about it.“
The damage included wrought -iron decorative fences that had been cut off. ((ABC News: Dave Sciasci)))
Another local, Samantha Kirchner, said that, fascinated by his story, she visited the cemetery when teenagers visited the cemetery, where she found many relatives buried.
But over the years she said that his condition “had only become worse and depressed”.
“The grass should be maintained. It takes irrigation. Snakes have houses in graves,” said Ms. Kirchner.
“There has to be a better fence, there must be surveillance cameras and lights for the night. I met people who laughed about it steps through some of the old tombstones.
“The people who built and populated this city should be treated with more respect.“
Sally Bond was shocked when the condition of the cemetery was seen during a recent visit. ((ABC News: Dave Sciasci)))
When Ms. Bond recently shared her need and appealed to information on social media, she said that she was “overwhelmed by the answer”.
“There is a strong sense … that more should be done to actively maintain the graves in the cemetery and the connections to the pioneers of the region, instead of just taking on a passive role,” she said .
“Many people pressed … shock and concern and invited the council members to talk.”
The independent QPRC City Councilor MareTa Grundy was among them.
Overall, Nichole believes that it is important for the cemetery and its history. ((Delivery: Nichole as a whole.)))
“It is … inflamed, I think there is a trouble that there are people in the community who believe that it is okay to dispel these websites,” said Cr Grundy.
Nichole overall agreed with a volunteer cemetery and a former member of Monaro.
“It excites great passions within people and rightly,” she said.
“Although it is not good to hear more damage [has been] done, it is good to draw attention to these things and to say: “Well, is what our community has to do? To gather around and see what could be done? '
“It is the story of who we are … [of] how far we got; The challenges, the tragedies, the success and difficulties with which we are confronted when we continued progress.“
In an article in an edition of The Queanbeyan Age from 1965, vandalism was described in the cemetery. ((Delivered: Fuel/The Queanbeyan age)))
Vandalism was not a problem for the first time
Although the cemetery in the Queanbeyan Local Environment Plan in 1998 is recognized as a “locally important place” and as a Pioneer cemetery of Act of the ACT government, the latest vandalism is only the youngest in a long-term problem with its conditions.
In 1954 cemetery conditions were described as “regrettable”. And a decade later it was “a shame of the community” after “vandals caused hundreds of pounds … due to scandalous depreciation”.
In 1970 the Council had to defend its decision to operate an area of non -identified graves and then sell memorial plaques and concrete bases for $ 49.
In February 1976, a meeting of the city council of Queanbeyan, incomplete action recordings, heard “it was sometimes difficult to say where the corpses were buried” and “In one case, a body was accidentally exposed due to a misguided tombstone.
Ms. Bond has caused damage that she suspects that you have come from vandalism and beer bottles. ((Delivery: Sally Bond.)))
“Main problem age and weather”
A spokesman for the council would not rule out vandalism as the cause of the recent damage, but said that her assessment had come to the conclusion that the main problems were age and weather.
“The [Michael McNamara] The monument is more than 100 years old and shows a significant deterioration in the sandstone and rust in the structure, ”said the spokesman.
The spokesman said the youngest storms also contributed to the deterioration of the cemetery.
But not everyone is convinced.
“I think it's more than just a lack of maintenance and a deterioration,” said Cr Grundy.
“It is clearly vandalism [and] There are signs that it was significant vandalism. ”
Ms. Bond also referred to the beer bottles as a “treacherous sign”, which the people hang around there and passed the McNamara marker “could not have been caught in a storm or anything because these blocks would have been very difficult to move”. .
“It is an ultimate act of ignorance, indifference and disrespect.”
Said Cr Grundy.
“The law should be like a ton of bricks on the case.”
Samantha Kirchner has been visiting the cemetery since her teenager, but she says that his condition has deteriorated over the years. ((Delivery: Samantha Kirchner.)))
Receive the cemeteries a broader topic
How to keep a deteriorating cultural heritage cemetery is a situation with which many Australian councils long for and CR Grundy is probably a problem that would only get worse if they continued to be older.
Overall, MS states that things could be complicated by the fact that the maintenance of individual monuments was often with the internment owner or the family associated with the grave.
“It can be potentially problematic, since families may not want them to be treated by others … and with as old graves as they are in the river cemetery, there may be no more family members.”
MS overall explained.
She said things could be complicated by incomplete grave files or those that had not been updated for a certain period of time, and the fact that the tombstones had not been updated.
While she agreed that the situation was “challenging” and “complex”, she said that there are also many reasons to take care and “look after”.
Overall, woman who soon joined the New South Wales legislative Council is ready to draw the topic of other politicians aware.
She plans to urge the management of historical cemeteries throughout the state and argue that voluntary group groups could help, especially in view of the financial challenges that the municipal councils experience.
The municipal councils across the country deal with how to best preserve deteriorating holding cemeteries. ((ABC News: Jake Evans)))
Cr Grundy believes that an investigation “would certainly help”, but with regard to the role of the council, we first have to have a conversation about what our options are to protect these websites. ”
In the meantime, the council said that it was open to establish friends of the Queanbeyan Riverside Cemetery Group to help with the restoration and to raise public awareness of the cemetery.
The spokesman also said that the financial support of the federal or state government was welcomed.
In the short term, the General Manager of QPRC creates an information report for the next council meeting, “to” ensure that both the council and the community are updated on this important matter “.
“Maybe this could be a turning point”, “
Ms. Bond said.
Historical tombstones are housed in the cemetery, some of which are more than a century old. ((ABC News: Dave Sciasci)))