NOT FORGOTTEN: The historic Pioneer section of Masterton Cemetery.PHOTO/FILE
NOT FORGOTTEN: The historic Pioneer section of Masterton Cemetery.PHOTO/FILE
Masterton's Pioneer Cemetery may be old but it certainly hasn't been forgotten judging from the depth of feeling it engendered at a sitting of the district council's Hearing Committee on Monday.
Convened to hear submissions into the wider issue of Queen Elizabeth Park re-development the committee members not only heardof the need to clearly separate the park from the entire Masterton Cemetery but also of the importance of honouring and maintaining the Pioneer section.
President of the Wairarapa branch of the New Zealand Founders Society Anne Woodley said members had been " horrified" in October 2011 to discover stone walls and seating which had been an integral part of the lychgate entrance had been destroyed.
Also taken away has been a memorial plaque attached to a large Jasper stone, sourced from the Waingawa River. Mrs Woodley said the Founders Society was open to descendants of "hardy pioneer families" who had arrived in New Zealand prior to 1865 and the Wairarapa branch had 100 members.
"Those buried in the Pioneer section of the cemetery include Joseph Masters, founder of Masterton, and many other pioneers," she said. Asking for the plaque and stone to be put back in their original position Mrs Woodley said council should meet the cost of doing so, although the founders were prepared to make a one-off contribution, and she hoped in future history would not be repeated by adopting the attitude of "if it's old, get rid of it."
She submitted council should have an on-site meeting with the founders before work at restoring the lychgate area went ahead and there should be a unveiling ceremony when work was finished.
Kopuaranga farmer Roddy McKenzie, supported by Roger Hoar and Graeme Evans, spoke of setting up a cemetery preservation committee to come up with ideas to improve the Pioneer section. Mr Hoar, a professional stonemason, said improving old graves "has to be done right". Hearings Committee chairman Jonathan Hooker suggested the three men should put a proposal together and present it to council as part of annual plan deliberations.
