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Burials in Smithfield, 1877-1915

Registered and unregistered burials at Smithfield.

The following is a list of people that died at Smithfield and were buried there. However, the records do not show where their graves were located, so it is impossible to know how many of these people were buried in the Old Smithfield Cemetery.


1. George Matthews Adult male, age unknown
Cause of death: suspected crocodile attack
Date of death: c.27 March 1877
Queensland Death Certificate: none issued
Possibly buried at Smithfield,
Date of burial: 2 April 1877
2. John McGrath Adult male, age unknown
Cause of death: punch to head at Croft’s Hotel
Date of death: 2 May 1877
Queensland Death Certificate: none found
Unregistered Smithfield burial
Date of burial: May 1877
3. Mary Gernox (Geroux) 2 year-old female child
Cause of death: fever
Date of death: 8 May 1877
Queensland Death Certificate: 1877/C325
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 8 May 1877
4. Benjamin Simmond Adult male, age unknown
Cause of death: ‘found dead’
Date of death: 27 May 1877
Queensland Death Certificate: 1877/C327
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 28 May 1877
5. James Cummings 58 year-old male
Cause of death: intermittent fever
Date of death: 14 July 1877
Queensland Death Certificate: 1877/C329
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 15 July 1877
6. Erstine Hingst Female, approximately 36 years old
Cause of death: fever
Date of death: 6 August 1877
Queensland Death Certificate: 1877/C341
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 7 August 1877
7. William ‘Bill’ Smith 55 year-old male
Cause of death: suicide by shooting
Date of death: 26 Dec 1877
Queensland Death Certificate: 1877/C359
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 27 December 1877
8. John McGillon 32 year-old male
Cause of death: drowned in the Barron
Date of death: 7 February 1878
Queensland Death Certificate: 1878/C382
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 11 February 1878
9. Maria MacDonald 30 year-old female
Cause of death: inflammation of intestines
Date of death: 3 May 1878
Queensland Death Certificate: 1878/C435
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 3 May 1878
10. William Emmett 45 year-old male
Cause of death: fever
Date of death: 13 May 1878
Queensland Death Certificate: 1878/C443
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 14 May 1877
11. Christopher Kelly 6 year-old male child
Cause of death: convulsions
Date of death: 18 May 1878
Queensland Death Certificate: 1878/C439
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 19 May 1878
12. Rebecca Crossland 11 day-old female baby
Cause of death: convulsions
Date of death: 16 November 1878
Queensland Death Certificate: 1878/C480
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 17 November 1878
13. William James Legren (Le Grande) 8 day-old male baby
Cause of death: convulsions
Date of death: 12 November 1883
Queensland Death Certificate: 1883/C900
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 13 November 1883
14. Bertha Helena Richter 8 months 6 days old female infant
Cause of death: convulsions
Date of death: 5 March 1887
Queensland Death Certificate: 1887/C661
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 6 March 1887
15. Kate Barry Female baby, less than 23 days old
Cause of death: unknown
Date of death: 15 June 1887
Queensland Death Certificate: 1887/C757
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: June 1887
16. Beatrice Ryan 4 month-old female infant
Cause of death: unknown
Date of death: 19 June 1887
Queensland Death Certificate: 1887/C724
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: June 1887
17. Frederick Condon Male, approximately 37 years-old
Cause of death: haemorrhaged liver in boxing match at Kamerunga
Date of death: 22 June 1887
Queensland Inquest: Item ID: 348743
Queensland Death Certificate: 1887/C708
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 22 June 1887
18. John Willoughby 36 year-old male
Cause of death: blasting accident on Range Railway
Date of death: 18 July 1887
Queensland Death Certificate: 1887/C723
Unregistered Smithfield burial
Date of burial: July 1887
19. Robert Joseph Sullivan 1 year 5 month old male infant
Cause of death: unknown
Date of death: 20 September 1887
Queensland Death Certificate: 1887/C752
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: September 1887
20. Louis Kopp 62 year-old male
Cause of death: unknown
Date of death: 13 July 1893
Queensland Death Certificate: 1893/C811
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: July 1893
21. Martha Hudson 49 year-old female
Cause of death: intercranial haemorrhage
Date of death: 10 January 1915
Queensland Death Certificate: 1915/C178
Burial registered at Smithfield
Date of burial: 10 January 1915

Alleged to have been buried at Smithfield:

Miss Murdoch Age at death: unknown
Date of death: unknown
Cause of death: unknown
'A Chinaman' Date of death: before 1915.
There are anecdotal tales of "the remains of a Chinaman being exhumed from Smithfield Cemetery to be returned to his homeland".1
Several Chinese men died near Smithfield, including:
  • Ah Pan,
    killed by a crocodile at the Barron River crossing,
    c.15 January 1881.
  • Chan Hook,
    drowned in the Barron River at Smithfield while fishing.
    11 February 1898
    Queensland Death Certificate 1898/C689.2
  • Gee Chung,
    drowned in the Barron River opposite W.W. Masons Smithfield farm.
    27 November 1901.
    No inquest held.
    Queensland Death Certificate 1901/C744.3
  • Ah Quong
    found dead
    3 July 1902
    No inquest held.
    Queensland Death Certificate 1902/C675.4

There is no evidence to show that any of these men were buried at Smithfield.

Claimed to have been buried at Smithfield:

Samuel John Ferguson 46 year-old male
Cause of death: Died of fever onboard S.S. Vernon.
Date of death: 1 July 1877
Buried at Double Island Beach.
This webpage is an excerpt from the upcoming book
Old Smithfield: Barron River township (1876-1879)
by Dr Dave Phoenix.

Find Out More Here

Featured Artefacts from Old Smithfield:

  • 1. W.T. 'Bill' Johnston, (June 1992), G02856, Cairns Historical Society. ↩

  • 2. Telegraph (Brisbane), 25 February 1898: 3, reprinting an article from the Cairns Advocate. ↩

  • 3. Morning Post, (Cairns), 3 December 1901: 2. ↩

  • 4. Morning Post, (Cairns), 4 July 1902: 2 . ↩