Karrakatta Cemetery

The redevelopment process at Karrakatta Cemetery (termed ‘Cemetery Renewal’) began in 1969. Renewal involves the removal of headstones and grave surrounds, including plot markers. The headstones are either put elsewhere in a garden, plastered on limestone walls, taken by family or, if deemed to be damaged, destroyed.

New graves are established in between the old. The new burials will have a headstone, but no marker is left behind to memorialise the historic burials.

All mausoleums at Karrakatta are built on top of historic Roman Catholic burial grounds, and most cremation gardens are over historic graves.

Under the current policy, no remains are disturbed. As of June 2023, 46 sections have been redeveloped and 31 sections are approaching redevelopment.

Across all cemeteries in Western Australia, the tenure on graves is 25 years — whether for burials, ashes or mausoleum crypts. There is an automatic right to purchase a further 25 years, totalling 50 years. After that, renewal of Grants of Right of Burial is at the cemetery authority’s discretion. All 50, 99-year and perpetual Grants were extinguished on 2 July 2012 due to a provision of the Cemeteries Act 1986 (sch 2 div 1 cl 6). Once a Grant expires, control of the grave reverts to the cemetery authority.[5]

Notable people interred within Karrakatta Cemetery include:

• Jessie Argyle, an Aboriginal Western Australian woman who led a community space for Aboriginal people.[6]
• William Baldwin, New Zealand politician[7]
• Jean Beadle, Australian feminist, social worker, and Labor Party member[8]
• Simon Cain, actor, horse breeder and Aboriginal art gallery owner
• Edith Cowan, social reformer, first Australian woman to serve as a member of parliament[9]
• Elsie Curtin, wife of John Curtin[10]
• John Curtin, 14th Prime Minister of Australia[11]
• Sir John Dwyer KCMG, Chief Justice, Lieutenant-Governor, buried with Lady Emily Louise Dwyer.
• Sir John Forrest, 1st Premier of Western Australia[12]
• Joseph Furphy, author[13]
• Dame Alexandra Hasluck, author and wife of Paul Hasluck[14]
• Sir Paul Hasluck, 17th Governor-General of Australia and politician[15]
• Sir Joseph John Talbot Hobbs (1864–1938), Australian Army General (cenotaph)
• Heath Ledger, actor (ashes)
• Matthew Locke, soldier (ashes)[16]
• Paul McGinness, co-founder of Qantas Airways[17]
• Monty Miller, trade unionist[18]
• John Scaddan, 10th Premier of Western Australia[19]
• William Stratton, Chief of Air Staff (1969–1971), Royal New Zealand Air Force
• A. O. Neville, the first Chief Protector of Aborigines[20]
• James del Piano, businessman, Italian diaspora aficionado[21]
• J. W. Sutherland (1870–1946), mining engineer and metallurgist in Western Australia
• Frederick Vosper, Australian newspaper journalist, proprietor, and politician[22]
• Edward Wittenoom, Australian politician[23]

There are also ten Victoria Cross recipients who are interred in Karrakatta Cemetery:[24]

• Thomas Axford
• John Carroll
• Sir Hughie Edwards
• Robert Gee
• James Heather Gordon
• George Julian Howell
• Martin O'Meara
• Clifford Sadlier
• Hugo Throssell
• James Park Woods

As of June 2022, Karrakatta Cemetery contains the graves of 111 Commonwealth service personnel of World War I and 141 of World War II, besides a Dutch naval sailor of the latter war, divided between the cemetery's various denominational plots.[25]

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) has a memorial to 15 Australian service personnel – 2 sailors, 9 soldiers, 4 airmen – who died in World War II and were cremated at Karrakatta Crematorium.[26] In addition, 7 Australian personnel of the same war – 2 sailors, 4 soldiers, 1 airman – who were cremated at Karrakatta Crematorium but whose ashes had been scattered or buried at places where CWGC commemoration was not possible are listed by name on the Western Australia Cremation Memorial at the separate Perth War Cemetery.[27]

• Burials at Karrakatta Cemetery
• East Perth Cemeteries

• Official website
• Karrakatta Cemetery – Billion Graves
• Karrakatta Cemetery at Find a Grave