Unused Tram Hearse at Linwood Cemetery

The tram lines going into Linwood Cemetery are still visible under the tar-sealed road here, leading from the Butterfield Avenue car park. This is the fifth oldest public cemetery in Christchurch, opening back in 1884. It's seen about 20,000 burials, with the very first one being the Sexton's wife in July 1884, even before the cemetery officially opened.

For quite a while, a tram line actually stopped inside the cemetery before its final stop on what's now Pages Road. The Christchurch City Council even built a tram hearse, which apparently cost a fair bit at the time, but it’s believed it was never actually used.

The cemetery itself is still open for cremated remains, Hebrew Congregational burials, and if there's space in existing family plots. A lot of notable people are buried here, including 13 Christchurch mayors, several Members of Parliament, bishops, ministers, and the Peacock family. Their philanthropy is linked to the Peacock Fountain in the Botanic Gardens.

The human remains from the Jewish Cemetery on Hereford Street were moved here after the Hebrew congregation sold their old burial ground. There was a memorial put up for those re-interred, but it was badly damaged in the February 2011 earthquake.

After the Sexton's house was removed in the 1980s, the cemetery faced some neglect and vandalism. A charitable trust called the Friends of the Linwood Cemetery was formed to look after the site and highlight its heritage value for the city. The Christchurch City Council also put out a Conservation Plan for the cemetery in 2006.