Woronora Memorial Park is one of the largest cemeteries in Sydney. It is located approx 0.5 km west of Sutherland railway station.
In 1895 the site of Woronora Memorial Park was a brickworks designated to become a racecourse. But Mayor of Rockdale John Bowmer decided the community needed a place to remember loved ones in a setting of beauty and serenity. On 2nd April 1895, Woronora Cemetery was created. The first interment in 1895 was a 19-year-old girl called Helen Willows from Kogarah.
In the early days, a mortuary train was a popular way of transporting coffins and mourners and a short line linking Sutherland Station and Woronora Cemetery opened on July 28, 1900. The current office stands on the site of the original platform. As funeral motor vehicles became popular, the last train ran in 1944 and the line and station were removed. Today a free bus service operates on a limited timetable from Sutherland railway station to a number of stops around the grounds.
In 1902 the Devonshire Street Cemetery was closed to make way for Central Railway Station and some of the deceased were relocated to Woronora. That's why several of the headstones show dates prior to 1895.
The first cremation took place on 25 April 1934.
The function centre was built in 1924 and now caters for after-funeral refreshments. The light-filled Centenary Court was officially opened in 1995 to memorialise a loved one's ashes. Karinya, the children's garden, was created in 2007 and offers a place of peace. The Garden of Angels was officially launched by the Mayor of Sutherland in September 2010 especially to help families mourn babies tragically lost during pregnancy or stillbirth. Doorway of Hope was opened in 2010 to help mourners grieve the life of someone reported missing.
Full time staff maintain the grounds in excellent condition.
Assistance in locating graves or ashes sites is available from the on site office during business hours or from an electronic database outside the office at other times.
This is a Work in Progress. Burial records were sourced by Peter Olsen up to 2013. Ray Cork has sourced, transcribed and uploaded records for 2013 - 2022 (including part 2023) and is progressively photographing the headstones and transcribing additional records.
Latest updates - Nov 2023 RC12 transcriptions updated and images added; Area AA update in progress.
As at Nov 2023 over 36600 images have been uploaded and 273634 inscriptions transcribed. Records are complete to 31 Dec 2022