The Melbourne General Cemetery is a large (43

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is a ...

)

necropolis A necropolis (plural necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'', literally meaning "city of the dead". The term usually im ...

located north of the city of

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

in the suburb of

Carlton North Carlton North is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Cities of Melbourne and Yarra local government areas. Carlton North recorded a population of 6,177 ...

. The cemetery is notably the resting place of four

Prime Ministers of Australia The prime minister of Australia is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia. The prime minister heads the executive branch of the federal government of Australia and is also accountable to federal parliament under the principle ...

, more than any other necropolis within Australia. Former Prime Minister Harold Holt's headstone is a memorial, as his remains have never been discovered.

History

The cemetery was established in 1852 and opened on 1 June 1853, and the

Old Melbourne Cemetery The Queen Victoria Market (also known colloquially as Vic Market or Queen Vic) is a major landmark in the central business district (CBD) of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Covering over , it is the largest open air market in the Southern Hemi ...

(on the site of what is now the Queen Victoria Market) was closed the next year. The grounds feature several heritage buildings, many in bluestone, including a couple of chapels and a number of cast iron pavilions. The gatehouses are particularly notable.

Notable interments

Prime Ministers Garden

Five

are memorialised at Melbourne General Cemetery. Three are interred in the cemetery's 'Prime Ministers Garden': Sir

Robert Menzies The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...

(including Dame

Pattie Menzies Dame Pattie Maie Menzies GBE (2 March 189930 August 1995) was the wife of Australia's longest-serving Prime Minister, Sir Robert Menzies. Biography Menzies was born as Pattie Maie Leckie at Alexandra, Victoria, the eldest daughter of John Lec ...

), Sir

John Gorton Sir John Grey Gorton (9 September 1911 – 19 May 2002) was an Australian politician who served as the nineteenth Prime Minister of Australia, in office from 1968 to 1971. He led the Liberal Party during that time, having previously been a l ...

, and

Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983, holding office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Fraser was raised on hi ...

.https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/8535779, Retrieved 2010-2-20 Harold Holt's (including his wife Dame

Zara Bate Dame Zara Kate Bate (; previously Fell and Holt; 10 March 190914 June 1989) was an Australian fashion entrepreneur. She was best known as the wife of Harold Holt, who was prime minister of Australia from 1966 until his disappearance in 1967. ...

) is a memorial, as his body was never recovered after he disappeared at sea. Dame Zara is buried at

Sorrento Sorrento (, ; nap, Surriento ; la, Surrentum) is a town overlooking the Bay of Naples in Southern Italy. A popular tourist destination, Sorrento is located on the Sorrentine Peninsula at the south-eastern terminus of the Circumvesuviana ra ...

Cemetery, the closest burial ground to where Holt disappeared.

James Scullin James Henry Scullin (18 September 1876 – 28 January 1953) was an Australian Labor Party politician and the ninth Prime Minister of Australia. Scullin led Labor to government at the 1929 Australian federal election. He was the first Cathol ...

(including

Sarah Scullin Sarah Maria Scullin (née McNamara; 21 April 1880 – 31 May 1962) was the wife of James Scullin, the 9th Prime Minister of Australia. Early life and marriage Scullin was born in Ballarat, Victoria, to Sarah (née Simcocks) and Michael McNama ...

) is buried in the Catholic section of the cemetery. Grave of James and Sarah Scullin, Melbourne General Cemetery 2017.jpg, Grave of

James James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguati ...

and

Grave_of_Robert_and_Pattie_Menzies,_Melbourne_General_Cemetery2017.jpg, Grave of Sir

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

and Dame

Grave_of_John_Gorton,_Melbourne_General_Cemetery.jpg, Grave of Sir

Memorial_for_Harold_Holt,_Melbourne_General_Cemetery_2017.jpg, Memorial to Harold Holt and Dame Zara Grave of John Malcolm Fraser, Melbourne General Cemetery 2017.jpg, Grave of

State Premiers and Governors

There are eight

Premiers of Victoria The premier of Victoria is the head of government in the Australian state of Victoria. The premier is appointed by the governor of Victoria, and is the leader of the political party able to secure a majority in the Victorian Legislative Assembl ...

buried in the Melbourne General Cemetery, more than any other necropolis around the state. Premiers

George Elmslie George Grant Elmslie (February 20, 1869 – April 23, 1952) was a Scottish-born American Prairie School architect whose work is mostly found in the Midwestern United States. He worked with Louis Sullivan and later with William Gray Purcell as ...

James Francis James Goodall Francis (9 January 1819 – 25 January 1884), Australian colonial politician, was the 9th Premier of Victoria. Francis was born in London, and emigrated to Van Diemen's Land (later Tasmania) in 1847, where he became a busin ...

Duncan Gillies Duncan Gillies (14 January 1834 – 12 September 1903), was an Australian colonial politician who served as the 14th Premier of Victoria. Gillies was born at Overnewton near Glasgow, Scotland, where his father had a market garden. He was sent ...

Richard Heales Richard Heales (22 February 1822 – 19 June 1864), Victorian colonial politician, was the 4th Premier of Victoria. Heales was born in London, the son of Richard Heales, an ironmonger. He was apprenticed as a coachbuilder and migrated to Victor ...

, William Nicholson, Sir

John O'Shanassy Sir John O'Shanassy, KCMG (18 February 1818 – 5 May 1883), was an Irish-Australian politician who served as the 2nd Premier of Victoria. O'Shanassy was born near Thurles in County Tipperary, Ireland, the son of a surveyor, and came to the Po ...

, Sir

James Patterson James Brendan Patterson (born March 22, 1947) is an American author. Among his works are the '' Alex Cross'', '' Michael Bennett'', '' Women's Murder Club'', '' Maximum Ride'', '' Daniel X'', '' NYPD Red'', '' Witch & Wizard'', and ''Private'' ...

, and

James Service James Service (27 November 1823 – 12 April 1899), Australian colonial politician, was the 12th Premier of Victoria, Australia. Biography Service was born in Kilwinning, Ayrshire, Scotland, the son of Robert Service. As a young man James wor ...

. Sir Robert Menzies served as

Deputy Premier of Victoria The deputy premier of Victoria is the second-most senior officer in the Government of Victoria. The deputy premier position was created in May 1932, with Robert Menzies being the first person to hold the position. The deputy premier is appointe ...

between 1932 and 1934. The first

Premier of Tasmania The premier of Tasmania is the head of the executive government in the Australian state of Tasmania. By convention, the leader of the party or political grouping which has majority support in the House of Assembly is invited by the governor of ...

is interred at Melbourne General Cemetery,

William Champ William Thomas Napier Champ (15 April 1808 – 25 August 1892) was a soldier and politician who served as the first Premier of Tasmania from 1856 to 1857. He was born in the United Kingdom. Early life Champ was born in Maldon, Essex, England th ...

. There is one

Governor of Victoria The governor of Victoria is the representative of the monarch, King Charles III, in the Australian state of Victoria. The governor is one of seven viceregal representatives in the country, analogous to the governors of the other states, and the ...

, Sir

Charles Hotham Sir Charles Hotham, KCB, RN (14 January 180631 December 1855)B. A. Knox,Hotham, Sir Charles (1806–1855), ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 4, MUP, 1972, pp 429-430. was Lieutenant-Governor and, later, Governor of Victoria, A ...

, and one

Governor-General of Australia The governor-general of Australia is the representative of the monarch, currently King Charles III, in Australia.Isaac Isaacs Sir Isaac Alfred Isaacs (6 August 1855 – 11 February 1948) was an Australian lawyer, politician, and judge who served as the ninth Governor-General of Australia, in office from 1931 to 1936. He had previously served on the High Court of Au ...

, buried at Melbourne General Cemetery.

War graves

The cemetery contains the war graves of 91 Commonwealth service personnel, more than 30 from

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and more than 50 from

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

.MELBOURNE GENERAL CEMETERY, CARLTON
CWGC Cemetery Report.

References

External links

The Southern Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust
administrators of the Melbourne General Cemetery Melbourne General Cemetery
- Billion Graves--> {{Authority control Buildings and structures in the City of Melbourne (LGA) History of Melbourne Landmarks in Melbourne Cemeteries in Melbourne Tourist attractions in Melbourne 1852 establishments in Australia Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries in Australia Heritage-listed buildings in Melbourne