Rachael Comer
December 16, 2025
https://www.thepress.co.nz/nz-news/360915841/monument-unveiled-timarus-cemetery
Historical researcher Roselyn Fauth and Timaru monumental mason Les Jones of Aorangi and Harding Memorials, at the unveiling of a monument on Sunday honouring those that lie at the Timaru cemetery with no formal headstone.
AIMAN AMERUL MUNER / THE TIMARU HERALD
A monument has been unveiled at Timaru’s cemetery, honouring those that lie there with no formal headstone.
The community-led project was officially celebrated on Sunday when members of the public, those behind the initiative, Timaru District mayor Nigel Bowen and MP for Rangitata James Meager gathered at the cemetery to pay tribute to those who rest in free ground and unmarked graves.
The idea was sparked when historical researcher Roselyn Fauth began looking for Ann Williams’ grave site in late May after researching the region’s whaling history and realising her burial location did not appear in any records.
Williams, Timaru’s first European mother and married to whaler Samuel Williams, died on November 18, 1860, in the doorway of the Timaru Hotel, which was located near the Landing Service Building.
In unsuccessfully searching for her resting place, Fauth also learnt of the site in Timaru’s cemetery that did not have gravestones.
AIMAN AMERUL MUNER / THE TIMARU HERALD
According to the Timaru District Council’s database, more than 700 people were buried in unmarked graves at the cemetery. Their names were printed out and placed in front of the memorial on Sunday.
Fauth told those gathered at the unveiling that the monument meant “more than a lump of lava and a bit of alloy’’.
“It means much more than even the 700 people that it represents,’’ she said.
“It’s a reflection on where we’ve come from and who we are today, and how we choose to memorialise each other and remember those stories.’’
Fauth said she had mixed feelings about the occasion, because it was a celebration of people’s lives but, as many would feel, it also came with loss.
“I feel sad for the people who didn’t have the choice to be remembered and I feel sad for the people who were grieving, who had that pain lumped on top of that moment for them.’’
She said more than 270 infants lay in the free ground, and while she did not know what the circumstances were, she had spoken to people who had lost infants in the 1950s who still carried the trauma of not knowing where their baby lay.
“It’s so sad.
“They weren’t even allowed a headstone, weren’t even allowed to bring flowers, they weren’t even allowed to cut the grass, they had no legal right to look after the earth that surrounded their loved ones.
“So when we unveil this monument, let’s think of all those people. That’s ultimately what it’s about.’’
When she started the project she had assumed that those with unmarked graves had simply been unable to afford a proper burial.
She had since learned some had been passing through the district when they died, some had no next of kin who could be reached in time, while others were victims of accidents, sea rescues, pandemics or violence.
Fauth acknowledged the support of Timaru monumental mason Les Jones who she had approached after she decided it was important for the community to acknowledge those in unmarked graves.
Roselyn Fauth, left, Les Jones, James Meager and Nigel Bowen unveil the monument.
AIMAN AMERUL MUNER / THE TIMARU HERALD
Jones said he had enjoyed working on the project and pointed out the Timaru District Council’s cemetery database as being a great resource.
“There’s some wonderful stories in the cemetery, so it’s nice to acknowledge them all,’’ he said.
A QR code was being developed where people could access more stories behind those in the unmarked graves, he said.
Bowen thanked Fauth and Jones for their work, describing it as “fantastic’’, while Meager said it was an honour for him to be at the unveiling, and thanked Fauth for her leadership in the project.
The monument at Timaru’s cemetery.
AIMAN AMERUL MUNER / THE TIMARU HERALD