Melbourne General Cemetery
{{Short description|Cemetery in Melbourne, Australia}}
{{More citations needed|date=January 2008}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2015}}
{{Use Australian English|date=March 2015}}
{{Infobox cemetery
| name = Melbourne General Cemetery
| image = Melbourne General Cemetery, Melbourne, Aust, jjron, 25.01.10.jpg
| imagesize = 250
| caption = Aerial view of Melbourne General Cemetery, looking north
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| established = 1852
| country = Australia
| location = Carlton North, Victoria
| coordinates = {{Coord|37|47|20|S|144|57|55|E|type:landmark|display=inline,title}}
| latitude =
| longitude =
| type =
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| size = {{Convert|43|ha|acre}}
| graves =
| website = {{URL|https://smct.org.au/our-locations/about-melbourne-general-cemetery}}
| findagraveid= 639484
}}
File:Melbourne_General_Cemetery.jpg
File:Melbourne General Cemetery Gatehouse.jpg
File:Melbourne General Cemetery Chapel.jpg
The Melbourne General Cemetery is a large (43 hectare) necropolis located {{convert|3|km|mi|abbr=on}} north of the city of Melbourne in the suburb of Carlton North.
The cemetery is notably the resting place of five Prime Ministers of Australia, 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
File:Aerial panorama of Melbourne General Cemetery in Carlton. September 2023.jpg
The cemetery was established in 1852 and opened on 1 June 1853, and the Old Melbourne Cemetery (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.
Gatehouse Mausoleum, designed by architect Philip Harmer, was constructed at the cemetery in 2004.{{Cite web |last=Drake |first=Scott |date=2005-03-01 |title=Gatehouse mausoleum |url=https://architectureau.com/articles/gatehouse-mausoleum/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240529015740/https://architectureau.com/articles/gatehouse-mausoleum/ |archive-date=2024-05-29 |website=ArchitectureAu}}
Notable interments
{{Main|List of burials at Melbourne General Cemetery}}
=Prime Ministers Garden=
Six Prime Ministers of Australia are memorialised at Melbourne General Cemetery. Four are interred in the cemetery's 'Prime Ministers Garden': Sir Robert Menzies (including Dame Pattie Menzies), Sir John Gorton, Malcolm Fraser and Bob Hawke (half of Hawkes ashes are at Melbourne, the other half are interred in Sydney). Harold Holt's (including his wife Dame Zara Bate) is a memorial, as his body was never recovered after he disappeared at sea. Dame Zara is buried at Sorrento Cemetery, the closest burial ground to where Holt disappeared.
James Scullin (including Sarah Scullin) is buried in the Catholic section of the cemetery.
Prime Ministers Garden entrance at Melbourne General Cemetery.jpg|Garden entrance
Grave of James and Sarah Scullin, Melbourne General Cemetery 2017.jpg| Grave of James and Sarah Scullin
Grave_of_Robert_and_Pattie_Menzies,_Melbourne_General_Cemetery2017.jpg|Grave of Sir Robert and Dame Pattie Menzies
Grave_of_John_Gorton,_Melbourne_General_Cemetery.jpg|Grave of Sir John Gorton
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 Malcolm Fraser
=State Premiers and Governors=
There are eight Premiers of Victoria buried in the Melbourne General Cemetery, more than any other necropolis around the state. Premiers George Elmslie, James Francis, Duncan Gillies, Richard Heales, William Nicholson, Sir John O'Shanassy, Sir James Patterson, and James Service. Sir Robert Menzies served as Deputy Premier of Victoria between 1932 and 1934.
The first Premier of Tasmania is interred at Melbourne General Cemetery, William Champ.
There are two Governors of Victoria, Sir Charles Hotham and Sir James Gobbo, and one Governor-General of Australia, Sir Isaac Isaacs, 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 and more than 50 from World War II.[http://www.cwgc.org/find-a-cemetery/cemetery/13995/MELBOURNE%20GENERAL%20CEMETERY,%20CARLTON Melbourne General Cemetery, Carlton] CWGC Cemetery Report.
Elvis Presley memorial
Image:Elvis_Presley_Memorial_Garden,_Melbourne,_16_August_2024.jpg
A monument in memory of Elvis Presley was erected in the cemetery by the Elvis Presley Fan Club of Victoria on 26 November 1977, three months after the singer's passing on 16 August of that year. The monument was personally approved by Vernon Presley and was erected even before the equivalent monument in Presley's hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. It was unveiled by Johnny O'Keefe, just under a year before his own passing on 6 October 1978.
Fan club vigils were initially held at the monument but these were cancelled because of the undue media attention they attracted. One particular incident saw local TV camera crews causing a traffic jam that held up a funeral procession for a recently-deceased person. The decision was then made to simply allow fans to visit in their own time.{{cite news |last1=Brady |first1=Nicole |title=Much ado over the death of Elvis |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-age-elvis-memorial-melbourne-gener/155323973/ |access-date=15 September 2024 |work=The Age |date=24 July 1992}}
The monument is regularly visited by Presley fans to this day, especially on the anniversary of his death.{{cite news |last1=Stubbins |first1=Sinead |title=The enduring mystery of Australia's unique Elvis Presley memorial |url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/aug/18/the-enduring-mystery-of-australias-unique-elvis-presley-memorial |access-date=16 August 2024 |work=The Guardian |date=18 August 2018}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://smct.org.au/ The Southern Metropolitan Cemeteries Trust]: administrators of the Melbourne General Cemetery
- [https://smct.org.au/our-locations/about-melbourne-general-cemetery Melbourne General Cemetery]: Melbourne General Cemetery website
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Category:Buildings and structures in the City of Melbourne (LGA)
Category:Landmarks in Melbourne
Category:Cemeteries in Melbourne
Category:Tourist attractions in Melbourne
Category:1852 establishments in Australia
Category:Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemeteries in Australia