Multiple generations of Kevin Wilkinson’s family are buried at the historic Carroll cemetery.
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So you can imagine his shock when he arrived one day to pay his respects and found part of the cemetery’s boundary fence flattened by what appeared to a vehicle.
The cemetery is supposed to be a sacred place
- Carroll resident, Kevin Wilkinson
“I was disgusted,” Mr Wilkinson said.
“[The cemetery] is supposed to be a sacred place.
“It’s my history.
“I can’t see how it was an accident but I’m not sure what they were trying to do.”
The Carroll resident was incensed the damage was caused within a few metres of an unlocked gate, where public vehicle was available.
Mr Wilkinson’s great grandfather John Truneley is among the family members interred there and his name is even listed on the cemetery’s information board. The local pioneer was a carrier between Carroll and Newcastle in the late 1800s until the first train arrived in Gunnedah in September 1879. Out of business, Mr Truneley died two months later aged 52.
Despite Mr Wilkinson’s frustration at damage, he was pleased by Gunnedah council’s prompt response in fixing the fence.
In 2015, Department of Primary Industries staff located two gravestones, remnants from the old Carroll cemetery, on the banks of the Namoi River. The headstones were relocated to the current cemetery.