Augustus Thorn – pioneer profile

AUGUSTUS LOFTUS ‘GUS’ THORN by Lyn Beard The death of Augustus Loftus ‘Gus’ THORN does not appear to have been registered and the burial did not show up on any of the usual resources for graves. The only record of his death in 1932 seems to be this small article in The Goldfields Observer of […]

No ‘Gods Acre’ for Burbanks –

The town of Burbanks was gazetted in 1894, named after W. Burbank who with his mate Sheldon found the first gold there. Possibly due to its close proximity to Coolgardie, it was considered that no cemetery would be gazetted for the town. In consequence, most of those who died at Burbanks were buried in the […]

“For Those Who Blazed The Track”

Coolgardie Pioneer Cemetery – 44 burials. “The Rev Thomas Trestrail writes to the Courier this week, complaining about the barbarous state of things existing at the Coolgardie cemetery. He asserts that bodies are thrown into shallow graves anyhow, and no proper record is kept of the burials. Foul odours are he says, commencing to arise […]

Coolgardie Pioneer Cemetery – a picturesque and pathetic ceremony

Kalgoorlie Western Argus 3 November 1903, page 19 UNVEILING THE PROSPECTORS MEMORIAL CROSS A picturesque and pathetic ceremony was seen at the unveiling of the pioneers’ memorial this day. In the early nineties, a small plot of ground was set apart as a cemetery. It is not more than a quarter of an acre and […]

The Importance of Being Frank – grave tales

Bernard Joseph Frank was born in Nelson Lyell, New Zealand in 1867, he was a miner and was the son of Jacob FRANK (Carpenter) and Mary HASLAM. He first came to Victoria and then on to the WA Goldfields in 1893 and headed to Broad Arrow to seek his fortune. This was where his first […]