Rockhampton General Cemetery
| South Rockhampton Cemetery | |
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South Rockhampton Cemetery, 2009
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| Location | Upper Dawson Road, Allenstown, Rockhampton Region, Queensland, Australia |
| Coordinates | 23°23′56″S 150°30′12″E / 23.3988°S 150.5032°ECoordinates: 23°23′56″S 150°30′12″E / 23.3988°S 150.5032°E |
| Design period | 1840s - 1860s (mid-19th century) |
| Built | 1860 - 1970 |
| Official name: South Rockhampton Cemetery, Dawson Road Cemetery, Rockhampton Cemetery | |
| Type | state heritage (landscape, built) |
| Designated | 15 February 1993 |
| Reference no. | 601131 |
| Significant period | 1860- (historical, fabric, social) |
| Significant components | denominational divisions, plaque, watercourse - creek, grave marker, headstone, pathway/walkway, cemetery, burial/grave, sculpture, trees/plantings, grave surrounds/railings |
 Location of South Rockhampton Cemetery in Queensland
Location of South Rockhampton Cemetery in Queensland
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South Rockhampton Cemetery is a heritage-listed cemetery at Upper Dawson Road, Allenstown, Rockhampton Region, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1860 to 1970. It is also known as Dawson Road Cemetery and Rockhampton Cemetery. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 15 February 1993.
The South Rockhampton (Dawson Road) Cemetery was surveyed in May 1860 as the town's first official general cemetery, encompassing less than half its present area, and fronting the Dawson (now Lower Dawson) Road. The 1858 Rockhampton town plan had made no provision for a public cemetery and, prior to c.1860, burials took place near the Fitzroy River, between Albert and North Streets. The Dawson Road cemetery, sited on a principal arterial road out of early Rockhampton, was established when the population numbered less than 1,000, and just five years after the first settlers had arrived in the area in 1855.
Rockhampton grew rapidly in the 1860s. Between 1861 and 1866 immigrant ships filled a desperate labour shortage, and the discovery of gold to the west of Rockhampton enticed large numbers of Europeans, Chinese and southern colonists to the district. The rapid growth of the town into a major regional centre in the 1860s-80s is reflected in the history of its principal 19th century cemetery.
The first burials were in the early 1860s (the oldest surviving headstone is dated 1861). Nominally, burials were supervised by the Rockhampton Municipal Council, but not until 1864 did the Council commence a proper administration of the cemetery. In late 1864/early 1865 they appointed a sexton, formulated cemetery regulations, started a register of burials, laid out the grounds to represent the major religious denominations, and authorised the removal of remains from the old burial ground to the new. In late 1886 trustees were appointed under the 1865 Cemeteries Act. In 1867-68, french botanist Anthelme Thozet donated trees and seeds from his famous Kalka (North Rockhampton) experimental gardens to the cemetery.
Although the cemetery had been in use for over a decade, it was not until 1872 that 3 hectares of the site were officially gazetted as a reserve for cemetery purposes. In 1880 the area was extended to nearly 13 hectares. The reserve then included all of the land bounded by Dawson and Upper Dawson Roads, and Prospect and Ferguson Streets. Prior to 1904 there were no burials west of the present north-south main cemetery path, as the ground was considered too rocky. For the same reason, few graves were dug east of the creek running through the cemetery. The resultant problems of overcrowding and shallow graves were exacerbated in 1900 with the outbreak of bubonic plague in the town.
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