The Rothbury Cemetery at Emma’s Cottage

10 Aug The Rothbury Cemetery at Emma’s Cottage

Have you ever wondered about the cemetery located in the middle of the Emma’s Cottage property? Originally established as an Anglican Cemetery the Rothbury Cemetery has a lot of history. It contains inscriptions from as early as 1851 but those remaining from the first several decades of its existence are now small in number. The cemetery is still in use but these days it is controlled by the Cessnock City Council as a public cemetary.

We are grateful to Jim Fitzgerald for some interesting information on the history of this cemetery. Jim writes, “The land was part of the ‘Wilderness’ property, established by my great-great-grandfather Joseph Broadbent Holmes in 1842. His house was the venue for church services until 1867. On 12 Aug 1866, at lunch (dinner in those days) after the Sunday service, he offered the then incumbent Alfred Glennie two acres for a churchyard, and fifty pounds towards the cost of a church. St Paul’s was duly opened by Bishop Tyrrell (uncle of Edward Tyrrell the pioneer winemaker) on 15 December 1867. The church is now gone, of course, although the timber from it was purchased by Errol Mears and used to build a dairy shed, which still stands.”

Reference: Australian Cemeteries Index
Image by John Mculloch