Tiptoe through the tombstones this May during South Australia’s History Festival.
Tours of the Bains Cemetery in Morphett Vale and the McLaren Vale Congregational Cemetery will feature the fascinating life (and death) stories of those who lie beneath.
There’s the tragic tale of Constance Kate Bain, murdered in 1916 before her marriage to a police sergeant.
Or the inspiring story of Miss “China Lady” Aldersey who was a missionary in China and opened the Tsong Gyiaou school in McLaren Vale, named for the Chinese village San Ch’iaom where she had once taught. The two-storey school building still carries the name and stands in the grounds of the McLaren Vale & Districts War Memorial Hospital located on (appropriately) Aldersey Street.
There is the case of the mysterious headstone laid in the floor of the Morphett Vale courthouse. How did the headstone of Tamar Goldsmith’s son George Enoch find its way into the halls of justice?
And there’s the local link with Jamaica and the slave trade of the 1800s.
Kelly Hudswell-Strahan, Onkaparinga’s Local History Officer, is excited to get the Grave Tales – The Stories Behind the Stones tours underway. She is passionate about the stories she has uncovered and about how history intersects with the present.
“We are the product of history. Understanding the past and how it relates to the present is essential to understanding ourselves as humans and our place in the world,” she says.
“Each grave has a story to tell. For my research, I start with the details of how people died and then work backwards to fill in their life stories.
“Our libraries are a great way to start research. They have copies of local birth, marriage and death certificates, some church records and cemetery records, as well as online databases.
“There are wonderful free resources like Trove digital newspapers which add so much more to a person’s story.”
The History Festival is a statewide event sponsored by the History Trust of South Australia. The festival will run from 1 to 31 May with the theme of ‘Past Present Wonder’.
Book your tour on Eventbrite for the Bains cemetery or McLaren Vale cemetery tours or phone the Noarlunga Library on 08 8384 0655.
For full festival details see the History Festival website.
BOOKINGS: Grave Tales – The Stories Behind the Stones
Bains Cemetery: Tuesday 16 May and Thursday 18 May, Book here for Bains Cemetery tours
McLaren Vale Congregational Cemetery: Tuesday 23 May and Thursday 25 May, Book here for Mclaren Vale Congregational Cemetery tours
PICTURE: An intriguing plot - Kelly Hudswell-Strahan tells grave tales