Cataraqui Cemetery
Encyclopedia
The Cataraqui Cemetery, in Kingston, Ontario
, Canada
, is the city's largest with over 46,000 interments and growing. The Cemetery is most noted as being the burial site of Canada's first prime minister
and a Father of Confederation
, Sir John A. Macdonald. Macdonald's gravesite is designated a National Historic Site of Canada.
The Charter of The Cataraqui Cemetery Company was handed down on 10 August 1850, by the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada
.
The Cataraqui Cemetery is unique in that it is owned collectively by the Interment Rights Holders or "patrons" of the Cemetery. It operates as a not-for-profit, non-denominational, reform cemetery. The Cataraqui Cemetery Board of Trustees is elected from the Interment Rights Holders. Sir Alexander Campbell (a Father of Confederation and law partner of Sir John A. Macdonald) served as the Board's first President. The Board is accountable for all aspects of the Cemetery by delegating responsibility of the operations to the General Manager and a full time staff. A volunteer citizen advisory committee also assists the Board and Management.
The Cemetery was developed using the rural, garden theme, after the pattern of Mount Auburn
in Boston
and Mount Hope
in Rochester, New York
. The 91-acre area includes roadways winding through rolling wooded terrain, ponds and watercourses. Cataraqui Cemetery predates other notable Canadian cemeteries such as Beechwood Cemetery in Ottawa Ontario, Mt Pleasant Cemetery in Toronto Ontario and Mount Royal Cemetery in Montreal Quebec.
Located within the Cemetery office, is a dramatic stained glass window commissioned in 1891 in memory of Sir John A. Macdonald. Originally installed in a tiny church at Redan, north of Brockville, it was salvaged from the church and donated to the Cemetery in 1980 when the Office/Crematorium was built.
Other historically notable occupants include:
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, is the city's largest with over 46,000 interments and growing. The Cemetery is most noted as being the burial site of Canada's first prime minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
and a Father of Confederation
Canadian Confederation
Canadian Confederation was the process by which the federal Dominion of Canada was formed on July 1, 1867. On that day, three British colonies were formed into four Canadian provinces...
, Sir John A. Macdonald. Macdonald's gravesite is designated a National Historic Site of Canada.
The Charter of The Cataraqui Cemetery Company was handed down on 10 August 1850, by the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada
Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada
The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada was the lower house of the legislature for the Province of Canada, which consisted of the former provinces of Lower Canada, then known as Canada East and later the province of Quebec, and Upper Canada, then known as Canada West and later the...
.
The Cataraqui Cemetery is unique in that it is owned collectively by the Interment Rights Holders or "patrons" of the Cemetery. It operates as a not-for-profit, non-denominational, reform cemetery. The Cataraqui Cemetery Board of Trustees is elected from the Interment Rights Holders. Sir Alexander Campbell (a Father of Confederation and law partner of Sir John A. Macdonald) served as the Board's first President. The Board is accountable for all aspects of the Cemetery by delegating responsibility of the operations to the General Manager and a full time staff. A volunteer citizen advisory committee also assists the Board and Management.
The Cemetery was developed using the rural, garden theme, after the pattern of Mount Auburn
Mount Auburn
Mount Auburn is the name of several places in the United States:*Mount Auburn, Illinois*Mount Auburn Township, Illinois*Mount Auburn, Indiana*Mount Auburn, Iowa*Mount Auburn Cemetery in Massachusetts*Mount Auburn Historic District in Cincinnati, Ohio...
in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
and Mount Hope
Mount Hope
There are several places named Mount Hope:in Antarctica*Mount Hope , a hill at the foot of the Beardmore Glacier*Mount Hope , a mountain in the Eternity Range, Palmer Landin Australia:* Mount Hope, New South Wales...
in Rochester, New York
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...
. The 91-acre area includes roadways winding through rolling wooded terrain, ponds and watercourses. Cataraqui Cemetery predates other notable Canadian cemeteries such as Beechwood Cemetery in Ottawa Ontario, Mt Pleasant Cemetery in Toronto Ontario and Mount Royal Cemetery in Montreal Quebec.
Located within the Cemetery office, is a dramatic stained glass window commissioned in 1891 in memory of Sir John A. Macdonald. Originally installed in a tiny church at Redan, north of Brockville, it was salvaged from the church and donated to the Cemetery in 1980 when the Office/Crematorium was built.
Other historically notable occupants include:
- Thomas KirkpatrickThomas KirkpatrickThomas Kirkpatrick was a Canadian lawyer and political figure. He represented Frontenac in the 1st Canadian Parliament as a Conservative....
, first mayor of the Town of Kingston - John Counter, first mayor of the City of Kingston
- Sir Alexander Campbell, a Father of Confederation and a former Lieutenant Governor of OntarioLieutenant Governor of OntarioThe Lieutenant Governor of Ontario is the viceregal representative in Ontario of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada and resides predominantly in her oldest realm, the United...
- Wallace Bruce Matthews CarruthersWallace Bruce Matthews CarruthersMajor Wallace Bruce Matthews Carruthers was a Canadian soldier and the founder of the Canadian Signalling Corps.-Education:...
founder of the Canadian Signal CorpsRoyal Canadian Corps of SignalsThe Royal Canadian Corps of Signals was a corps of the Canadian Army. Major Wallace Bruce Matthews Carruthers established the corps in 1903, making it the first independent Signal Corps in the British Empire...
, the first independent signalling corps in the British Empire - Evan MacColl, the Loch Fyne Bard
- Zachary Taylor WoodZachary Taylor WoodZachary Taylor Wood, CMG was acting Commissioner of the North-West Mounted Police and Commissioner of the Yukon Territory of Canada.-Early life:Born in Annapolis Naval Academy in 1860, where his father John Taylor Wood was stationed...
, Commissioner of the North-West Mounted Police (NWMP) and Commissioner of the YukonYukonYukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in....
Territory of CanadaCanadaCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.