Tour of McGraths Hill and Pitt Town Cemeteries

Rediscover some of the Hawkesbury’s lesser known cemeteries on an excursion to McGraths Hill and Old Pitt Town cemeteries. The Methodist Cemetery at McGraths Hill was established in the 1850s, with over 80 headstones including many of Windsor’s business owners. The Old Pitt Town Cemetery is much older and larger, with many pioneer family names inscribed on the headstones.

At the Old Pitt Town cemetery, we will visit the graves of Daniel Buckridge and Eva ‘Granny’ Greenfield.

Buckridge was convicted of Highway robbery at the Old Bailey and arrived as a convict in 1792. Greenfield was a local midwife, who brought many Pitt Town residents into the world in the early 1900s.

Buried at McGraths Hill are the Reverend Peter Turner and his wife Mary, who were missionaries in Tonga and Samoa in the mid-nineteenth century. A number of members of the Chandler family also have headstones at McGraths Hill including the local undertaker James W. Chandler, who died in 1919, and was the Mayor of Windsor Council on three occasions.

Join us on this driving and walking tour and discover some of the stories behind those buried in these historic cemeteries. The tour will be held on Saturday, 29 April from 9:30am to 11:15am and repeated on Thursday, 11 May from 9:30am to 11:15am. They are free but bookings are essential. Visit https://hawkesburylibrary.eventbrite.com or call 45604460 to book your place.

Organised by Hawkesbury Library Service, the tours are being held as part of the annual Australian Heritage Festival run by the National Trust during April and May. This is Australia’s biggest festival of heritage and culture. For more details visit https://www.nationaltrust.org.au/ahf