East Perth Cemeteries

Story

East Perth Cemeteries was the first cemetery established for the Swan River Colony in 1829 in East Perth, Western Australia. It is estimated that as many as 10,000 people were buried there between 1829 and 1919 in seven independently administered denominations or sections which is why the place is known as 'East Perth Cemeteries'. Only around 800 gravesites have been identified. A large section of the original site has since been built over, leaving about 5 hectares (12.5 acres) remaining.The site, which is a short distance from Gloucester Park and the WACA Ground, is now bounded by Plain Street, East Perth, Wittenoom Street, Bronte Street and Waterloo Crescent.HistoryThe cemetery site was surveyed by John Septimus Roe on 24 December 1829 soon after the central portions of the Perth townsite had been surveyed. The area was originally known as Cemetery Hill and was established in 1830. The first burial was of Private John Mitchell from the 63rd regiment. Mitchell died on 6 January 1830; the exact location of his grave site is unknown. A public notice from Peter Broun, the Colonial Secretary on 13 February 1830 said: "to prevent indiscriminate Burials and unpleasant consequences arising therefrom in a warm climate, a Burial Ground will be set apart in Every Township or Parish... burials will take place in them only and a Register will be kept... all Burials by the Chaplain will be restricted to times as soon after sunrise as possible, or an hour precisely before sunset..." As it happened, both Broun and Roe were buried in the cemetery and their tombstones are still visible.