PIONEER CEMETERY-- Heritage Registry
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| 10 Wallace Street Nanaimo, BC Canada |
This Cemetery served Nanaimo during its early years,
beginning in 1853.
Pioneer Cemetery Park speaks to the community’s earliest
development and is a valuable record of the lives of Nanaimo’s first European
settlers. The park is the third oldest cemetery in British Columbia after Fort
Langley and Victoria. From the first known burial in 1895 to the final burial
in 1953, this cemetery served as an essential communal space, both practically
and spiritually.
Pioneer Cemetery Park is an important example of an early
preservation project and the development of community heritage consciousness.
In 1953, concerned by the overall dilapidation of the site, the newly formed
Nanaimo Branch of the BCHA (BCHF) made a record of all the stones still
standing and a sketch of their original positions.
In 1958, as the remaining headstones in a curving rock wall
and planted grass and flowers. In 1960, the project was completed and the site was
officially converted into a memorial park by the municipality.
Pioneer Cemetery Park is significant green space. When first
created, this site was a considerable distance from the town core. Today,
surrounded by a busy commercial district, the site, with its massive maple
trees, functions as a relatively quiet, secluded and peaceful urban oasis.
For more information regarding names of deceased at the
Pioneer Cemetery go to:
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