A historic cemetery that is the resting place for a former Queensland premier has had its gates shut to new burials.
The 114-year-old Caloundra Cemetery, located on Queen Street at Moffat Beach, holds the remains of about 2600 people.
A Sunshine Coast Council spokesperson confirmed there was essentially no space left for graves at the estimated 3.4ha site.
“As of July, Caloundra Cemetery closed to new, adult burials, as the land had reached its capacity,” they said.
“It still has sites available for ash interments.”
Do you have an opinion to share? Submit a Letter to the Editor at Sunshine Coast News via news@sunshinecoastnews.com.au. You must include your name and suburb.
The cemetery was founded in unusual circumstances, according to Dr Lisa Murray, who compiled a report for council in June as part of the Historian in Residence Program.
“It was not requested by residents, nor was it part of the town planning of Caloundra,” she stated in her Public Cemeteries of the Sunshine Coast report.
“Instead, the existence of a lone grave led to the new cemetery.
“Allotments in the town were being auctioned by the government (but) allotment six of Section XI was withdrawn from auction when a fenced grave was found on the land.
“The lot languished for three years as officers prevaricated about to what to do.
“There was high demand for the town allotments, but they couldn’t sell one with a grave on it.
“There was no obvious stone. Inquiries established it was probably the grave of the tutor to the Landsborough family, who had died in 1888 at Caloundra and was buried on their property.
“After investigating costs for exhuming the grave and removing to either Beerwah or Landsborough, it was decided that the town of Caloundra should probably have a cemetery.
“Three acres for Caloundra Cemetery was gazetted on July 23, 1910.”
The block subsequently expanded and Landsborough Shire Council was ultimately established as the trustee.
The 32nd Queensland premier Mike Ahern is among notable burials at the Caloundra Cemetery.
Mr Ahern died, aged 81, last year.
Political figures past and present joined his family at a state funeral. He was remembered as the right leader for a turbulent time and whose reforms left the state a better place.
The long-serving National Party MP led the state from 1987 to 1989.
He rose to the top job after the landmark Fitzgerald Inquiry into police and official corruption led to the resignation of Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen. As premier, he made several electoral and public administration reforms after famously declaring he would implement inquiry’s findings “lock, stock and barrel”.
Soldier and realtor Alexander John Taylor (1916-1984) and businessman, councillor and community leader William Emmaniol (Bill) Venardos (1911-1986) are also buried at the Caloundra Cemetery.
The council spokesperson said 18 cemeteries are managed by Sunshine Coast Council, and burial sites are still available at Beerwah, Crohamhurst (Peachester), Eumundi, Gheerulla, Kulangoor, Mooloolah, Witta and Yandina.
“Mooloolah and Beerwah cemeteries are expected to serve the community for the next three to 10 years, with Kulangoor Cemetery positioned to serve the community for the next 80-plus years,” they said.
Cemetery services support more than 400 families each year with the interment of loved ones. This includes burials and ash interments.
The Sunshine Coast Cemetery Plan 2019-2028 was adopted by council in 2019. The plan provides strategic direction to guide the effective management of council’s cemetery network and ensure ongoing service excellence to the community.
The aerial imagery in this story is from Australian location intelligence company Nearmap. The company provides government organisations, architectural, construction and engineering firms, and other companies, with easy, instant access to high-resolution aerial imagery, city-scale 3D content, artificial intelligence data sets, and geospatial tools to assist with urban planning, monitoring and development projects in Australia, New Zealand and North America.
Help keep independent and fair Sunshine Coast news coming by subscribing to our FREE daily news feed. All it requires is your name and email at the bottom of this article.
