Address: Railway Road, Karrakatta, Western Australia.
Karrakatta Cemetery, sprawling over 98 hectares of land, is Western Australia’s
largest cemetery.
This cemetery is centrally located just 7 kilometres west of Perth city centre and
is easily accessible by car or train in the suburb of Karrakatta, in Perth, WA.
It was first opened for burials in 1899, with Robert Creighton.
It contains the graves of:-
- 106 Commonwealth service personnel of WW I
- 141 Commonwelath service personnel of WW II
- besides a Dutch naval sailor of the latter war, divided between the cemetery's
various denominational plots.
In addition, the CWGC has a memorial to 15 Australian service personnel:
- 2 sailors, 9 soldiers, 4 airmen - who died in WW II and were cremated at
Karrakatta Crematorium.
There are also ten Victoria Cross recipients who are interred in Karrakatta.
There is a MEMORIAL WALL commemorating the Noongar and other Aboriginal
servicemen killed in conflict and buried overseas during World Wars I and II.
The memorial wall was unveiled in January 2012 and is located in the
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Keeping Place at Karrakatta Cemetery.
The Keeping Place is a purpose-designed building holding the skeletal remains
of Aboriginal people previously stored in museums around the State and the
country
Currently managed by the Metropolitan Cemeteries Board, the cemetery
attracts more than one million visitors each year.
Cypress trees are located near the main entrance and are a hallmark of
Karrakatta Cemetery, these trees are on both sides of the main driveway off
Railway Road and preside over beautiful garden areas in the historic heart
of the cemetery.
The cemetery contains a crematorium, and in 1995 Western Australia's first
mausoleium opened at the site.
The entrance (known as the Waiting House) includes a structure designed
by George Temple Poole.
Sourced and submitted by Julianne T Ryan. 11/11/2014. Lest we forget.
