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History, walks and tours

History

Macquarie Park Cemetery and Crematorium is situated on 59 hectares of Crown land owned by the New South Wales Government, administered by the Department of Primary Industries and managed by successive Boards of Trustees as a not-for-profit community service in perpetuity since the first burial within the grounds, Henry Mashman (Church of England, G1, Grave 0005) on 20 April 1922. The original name was the Northern Suburbs General Cemetery. The name was changed in 2004 with the introduction of the chapels and crematorium.

Historic walks

Northern Cemeteries has developed several self-guided tours so that you can explore Macquarie Park in a new light every time. Each theme links four individuals and their unique stories together. These walks are designed to be completed in approximately up to one hour by foot. Each pdf brochure features a map, identifies a recommended order, and contains short biographies about the individuals’ lives and their contribution to the community at large. We hope you enjoy their stories. We recommend downloading the files, printing in colour, double-sided, on A3 or A4 size paper:

You can also view the diverse stories of a few of Macquarie Park’s notable burials in the video below:

Johnny O’Keefe – Australia’s first international pop star, known as The Wild One. Interview with Vicky O’Keefe – Johnny’s daughter.

Kathleen Butler – Known as Bridge Girl, key contributor to the development of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, advocate for women’s rights and pioneer. Interview with Bill Phippen, Civil Engineer Historian.

Lottie Lyell – Australia’s first major film star from the silent era, died age 34. Interview with Marilyn Dooley – Australian Film Historian.

Sir John Kerr – Lawyer and remembered as Australia’s most controversial Governor General and the man who sacked the Whitlam Labor Government. Interview with Dr Peter Edwards, Political Historian.

Here are some of the many notable individuals buried within Macquarie Park:

• Adela Constantia Mary Pankhurst-Walsh (Suffragette) | Unsectarian, C1, Grave 0034
• Albert Bruntnell (Politician) | Methodist Monumental, C8, Grave 0091
• Charles Edward Chauvel OBE (Filmmaker) | Church of England, F15, Grave 0031
• Christopher John Brennan (Poet) | Catholic Monumental, F5, Grave 0001
• D’arcy Francis Niland (Author) | Vaughan Catholic Lawn, Row 40, Grave 0009
• Dame Mary Ethel Hughes GBE (Spouse of the Prime Minister of Australia) | Church of England, F11, Grave 0033
• Dame Mary Therese Cramer DBE (Australian Charity and Community Worker) | Vaughan Catholic Lawn, Row 27, Grave 119A
• David Henry ‘Paul’ Landa QC (Politician) | Jewish Monumental, C2, Grave 0024
• Denis ‘Dinny’ Lutge (Rugby Union & League Player) | Catholic Monumental, O5, Grave 0023
• ‘Don Lane’ Morton Donald Isaacson (TV Legend) | Jewish Monumental, F17, Grave 0057
• ‘Elsa’ Elsie May Chauvel OBE (Filmmaker) | Church of England, F15, Grave 0031
• Eric Sydney Spooner (Politician) | Church of England, F13, Grave 0043
• ‘Ethel Sibyl Turner’ Ethel Mary Curlewis (Novelist) | Church of England, E8, Grave 0060
• Flora Hannah MacKillop (Mary MacKillop’s Mother) | Roman Catholic Lawn, P3 Nuns, Grave 0192
• ‘Francis Webb’ Francis Charles Webb-Wagg (Poet) | Roman Catholic Lawn, Block 8, Grave 0453
• Graeme Frederick Hilton Thorne (kidnapped and murdered child) | A J Hare Lawn, Row 9, Grave 0014
• Helen Beatrice Myfanwy Hughes (Daughter of the Prime Minister of Australia) | Church of England, F11, Grave 0033
• Jack Gordon Hides (Papua New Guinea Explorer) | Catholic Monumental, W9, Grave 0053
• ‘Jack’ John Brophy Renshaw AC (Premier of New South Wales) | Roman Catholic Lawn, Block 16, Grave 1025
• ‘Jim’ Father James Daniel McLaren (Radio Priest) | Roman Catholic Lawn, Block 16, Grave 1150
• ‘Johnny’ John Michael O’Keefe (Rock n’ roll performer) | Roman Catholic Lawn, Block 11, Grave 0066
• Kenneth J Wride (Pilot in first fatal private plane crash in New South Wales) | Presbyterian Monumental, D1, Grave 0036
• Lady Anne Dorothy Kerr (Spouse of the Governor General) | General Lawn, O, Grave 1033
• ‘Liang Yusheng’ Wen Tung Chan (Writer) | Garden of Peace Section 2, Garden Estate Section 2, Pos 0078
• Lieutenant Colonel Hyacinth Ralph Honner DSO MC (Soldier and Australian ambassador to Ireland) | Roman Catholic Lawn, Block 14, Grave 0084
• ‘Lottie Lyell’ Charlotte Edith Cox (Silent Film Actor) | Church of England, G12, Grave 0043
• Lawrence Alexander Sidney Johnson FAA (Australian botanist) | Church of England, F5, Grave 0055
• Major General Sir George Frederick Wootten KBE, CB, DSO & Bar, ED (Australian Army Officer) | Church of England, L6, Grave 0002
• OBE Robert ‘Rob’ John Guest (Performer) | Ascension Hill Gardens, Section C Lawn Monumental, Grave 0154
• ‘Pally’ Ward Austin Gargan (Radio DJ) | Roman Catholic Lawn, Block 8, Grave 417A
• ‘Raymond’ John Walter Hollis Longford (Director) | Church of England, G12, Grave 0044
• ‘Ricky’ Richard Ernest May (Māori Entertainer) | General Lawn, O, Grave 0377
• Rev. Theodore Delwin ‘Ted’ Noffs (Founder of Wayside Chapel, Wesley Church Minister and Humanitarian) | Methodist Monumental, D8, Grave 0025
• Sir John Oscar Cramer KBE (Politician) | Vaughan Catholic Lawn, row 27, Grave 119A
• Sir John Patrick Joseph McCauley KBE CB (Air Marshall) | Roman Catholic Lawn, Block 16, Grave 1265
• The right honourable Sir John Robert Kerr AK GCMG GCVO QC (Governor General) | General Lawn, O, Grave 1033
• The right honourable William Morris ‘Billy’ Hughes CH KC MP (PC) (Prime Minister) | Church of England, F11, Grave 0033
• William Sandford (Ironmaster) | Church of England, A4, Grave 0042

Tours

If you would like to learn more, join one of the cemetery tours listed on our Events page from time to time. Tours with different themes will be available throughout the year, so you can join different tours. Group tours and walking tours can be organised upon request, email friends@nmclm.com.au. For more information, call 1300 389 888.