Fawkner Memorial Park is located in the northern Melbourne suburb of Hadfield, Victoria, Australia. It is the largest cemetery by land size in the state, and managed by Greater Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust.[1]
| Fawkner Memorial Park | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Fawkner Memorial Park in June 2017 | |
 | |
| Details | |
| Established | 1906 |
| Country | Australia |
| Coordinates | 37°42′43″S 144°57′26″E / 37.71194°S 144.95722°E |
| Size | 282 acres (114 ha) |
| Website | Official website |
| Find a Grave | Fawkner Memorial Park |
Merlynston Creek, a tributary of Merri Creek, is a major geographical feature running through both Fawkner Cemetery and the Northern Memorial Park.
History
editIn 1906, the Municipal Cemetery, Fawkner (as it was then called) opened to meet the needs of the north . The cemetery was designed and run by Charles Heath, a surveyor and architect. The first burial took place on 10 December 1906. This was considered to be the unofficial opening of the cemetery. The funeral was conducted by John Allison from Sydney Road. The cemetery was adjacent to Fawkner railway station on the Upfield line, with special trains carrying the deceased to the cemetery from 1906 to 1939.[2] In 1952, the Jewish section of the cemetery was desecrated.[3]
On 1 November 1997, Mersina Halvagis was murdered in the cemetery by Peter Dupas.[4]
Management
editFawkner Memorial Park is operated by Greater Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust (GMCT), who manage 18 other sites across Victoria, Australia.
Interments
edit- Lilian Alexander (1861–1934), pioneering surgeon
- John Barrett (1858–1928), Senator
- John Batman (1801–1839), pioneer, one of the founders of Melbourne
- Kathleen Best (1910–1957), founder of the Women's Royal Australian Army Corps
- Thomas Blamey (1884–1951), Field Marshal (cremated)
- Deirdre Cash (1924–1963), novelist, wrote under the nom-de-plume "Criena Rohan"
- George Ward Cole (1793–1879), pioneer
- Revel Cooper (c.1934–1983), Nyoongar artist
- Charles Dight (1813–1852), pioneer
- Alphonse Gangitano (1957–1998), underworld identity
- James Henry Gardiner (1848–1921), North Melbourne Football Club founder and administrator
- Pinchas Goldhar (1901–1947), writer
- Henry Gregory (1860–1940), WA politician
- Edward Harrington (1895–1966), writer
- Sybil Irving (1897–1973), army officer, founder of the Australian Women's Army Service
- Donald Alaster Macdonald (1859–1932), nature writer, conservationist
- Kylie Maybury (1978–1984), murder victim
- Charlie Mutton (1890–1989), Labor politician
- Laurie Nash (1910–1986), footballer and Test cricketer
- Jack Patten (1905–1957), Koori activist, leader, writer
- Peeter Pedaja (1931-1985), Estonian-Australian adventurer
- Marie Pitt (1869–1948), journalist
- James Quinn (1853–1934), finder of Ireland's famous Ardagh Chalice also known as the Ardagh Hoard
- Mark "Chopper" Read (1954–2013), underworld identity and writer
- Alice Ross-King (1891–1968), nurse in both world wars, "Australia's most decorated female"[5]
- Bernard Rubin (1896–1936), first Australian winner of 24 Hours of Le Mans and member of the Bentley Boys
- William Ruthven VC (1893–1970), soldier, politician
- Isaac Selby (1859–1956), historian
- Ernie Shepherd (1901–1958), Labor politician
- Issy Smith VC (1890–1940), soldier, born Ishroulch Shmeilowitz
- Ethel Spowers (1890–1947), artist
- Lyra Taylor (1894–1979), pioneering social worker
- Alfred Tipper (1867–1944), outsider artist, showman, cyclist
- Frank Traynor (1927–1985), jazz musician
War Graves
editFawkner Memorial Park contains the war graves of 173 Commonwealth service personnel from World War I and World War II.
In addition Fawkner Crematorium has a Commonwealth War Graves Commission memorial to 28 Australian service personnel of World War II – 23 soldiers, 4 airmen and one naval officer – who were cremated there. They included Elwyn Roy King (1894–1941) who had been a fighter ace in World War I.
References
edit- ^ "Home – GMCT". Greater Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
- ^ "Restored Mortuary Carriage".
- ^ Jewish Graves in Australia Desecrated; Immigrants Suspected The Jewish Telegraphic Agency. 12 August 1952
- ^ What we can learn from the murder of Mersina Halvagis news.com.au. 17 May 2016
- ^ "Alice Ross-King (1887–1968)". Alice Ross-King. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.
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External links
edit- Greater Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust
- Fawkner Memorial Park – Billion Graves