Castlemaine Cemetery Trust

Full description

On 24th December 1866 land was gazetted for the purposes of a cemetery in the township of Castlemaine (Government Gazette, No. 150, 31st December 1866). The first burial occurred in the Castlemaine Cemetery on 3rd March 1853.

Under the provisions of the Cemeteries Acts, trustees of public cemeteries are appointed by the Governor-in-Council, upon recommendation of the Minister for Health. The Trustees are responsible for the administration and maintenance of the cemetery, the collection of fees, expenditure of revenue (e.g. grants and subsidies received), the registration of burials and cremations, and the making of rules and regulations to determine the scale of fees.

The Trustees are responsible for keeping accounts of receipts and expenditure. The Cemeteries and Crematoria Act (2003) requires a cemetery trust to report annually to the Secretary (of Department of Health as at 2014) in respect of the exercise of its powers and functions under the Act. The Trustees were also required to permit free burials of destitute persons (paupers).