THE Kilmore Public Cemetery is one of the oldest Victorian cemeteries that has operated continuously since its foundation.
In 1850, Robert Hoddle, the Surveyor-in-Charge of the Port Phillip District, wrote to the Colonial Secretary setting out a plan for a public cemetery in Kilmore.
Being the oldest inland town in Victoria, it served the needs of nearby communities and inland Victoria for many years until more regional cemeteries were established. Its current trust committee are commemorating its 175th anniversary this weekend with an unveiling of a new headstone for its earliest surviving recorded burial.
Kilmore is the final resting place for Hastings Armstrong Cunningham, the much-loved, first-born infant son of Hastings Cunningham and his wife Rebecca was interred on September 19 in 1850.
The Cunningham family traced its origins to Ayrshire in Scotland, but Hastings and Rebecca were both born in India.
Over the years, they owned several properties in Western and Northern Victoria— Hastings was a prominent Victorian pastoralist and wool grower.
At the time of Baby Hasting’s death, they were living at Mount Emu Station, near Skipton, a substantial distance away.
They went to great lengths to ensure that their baby was buried with due ceremony in the newly opened cemetery at Kilmore and they marked his grave with an elaborately inscribed headstone.
On Saturday, September 20, at 2pm, a new headstone will be positioned in the final resting place, and all are welcome to witness this monumental occasion.
To make enquiries, phone Madeleine Laming on 0422 505 300.
