Rookwood Cemetery Discoveries

 Today, Australia Day officially celebrated on this date, the 26th of January nationally since 1994, is now a day of contention and I can understand both sides of the argument but that is not a discussion for this platform. But when did people who call Australia "home" actually start to feel a sense of pride to be called an Australian?  The various states of Australia were federated on 1st January 1901, but I would argue that Australia did not have a fervour for unity as a nation until the mid-point of WW1. At that stage, after the atrocities of The Great War that Australians took part in, firstly Gallipoli and then the Battles of Fromelles and Pozieres, did people begin to question the need to send their sons to a war so far away only seemingly to decimate their youth. Photographs of Australian soldiers taken overseas often show them wearing homemade maps of Australia on their wrists. Many of the crosses on Military gravesites depict the Australian map and many postcards fro...

  Today's blog had its roots in an old home obscured by large trees in the inner Sydney suburb of Ashfield. It was, and still is, a large house with a long cast iron columns along the ground floor verandah while the first-floor verandah has timber posts with fretwork balustrades. It stands on a large allotment in Bland Street, surrounded by mature camphor laurel, Lilly Pilly and cabbage palm trees to name just a few. I used to pass the property daily walking to the train station, heading to work in the CBD but this was decades ago. I recently revisited the area and decided to put my curiosity to rest and dig into the history of "Lynngrove" formerly "Falconshaw" and some of it's occupants. What a treasure trove I found! ALEXANDER JAMES RALSTON Alexander was born in Launceston Tasmania in April 1833 into the large family of Gavan and Emily Ann Ralston. He left the island and headed to Melbourne whilst a young man and was a member of a large business fi...

 Welcome to 2023 and I'm happy to have you along with me on a journey through Rookwood. I have a number of stories to share as the year progresses. For this post I am veering in a slightly different direction. During Victorian and Edwardian times in particular, stonemasons issued books that detailed the various types of headstones that could be made and purchased, a bit of a production line of design. We see many similar headstones throughout cemeteries of this time and this practice still continues. Wandering around the older parts of Rookwood, there are many examples of very unique and beautifully carved headstones and monuments, and it is a few of these that I want to share with you today.  JOHN WILLIAM WOOD John William was born in 1811, the son of John Wood, tailor, and his wife Elizabeth. John senior was convicted of forgery and uttering and was sentenced for life, arriving here in 1813. He received a pardon in 1847 whilst residing in Parramatta and conducted a successfu...