Object description

Linwood Cemetery is a cemetery located in Linwood, Christchurch, New Zealand. It is the fifth oldest public cemetery in the city. Despite its age, it is still open for ashes interment, Hebrew Congregational burials and if there is space in existing family plots. Opened in 1884, it has seen some 20,000 burials. The first burial, of the Sexton's wife, was held in July 1884 before the cemetery was opened. For some years, a tram line stopped within the cemetery before terminating on what is now Pages Road. The tram lines going into the cemetery are still visible under the tar-sealed road leading from the Butterfield Avenue car park. A tram hearse was built at some expense for the time by the Christchurch City Council but is believed to have never been used.