Shellharbour City Council staff has come across an unexpected find at Albion Park cemetery.
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Ground-penetrating radar showed 17 unmarked graves that have not been identified in current council records.
Staff made the discovery as part of the initial research into creating a masterplan of Albion Park and Shellharbour cemeteries.
Amenity and assets director Ben Stewart said the graves were discovered under a grassy, vacant area in the cemetery grounds.
“The ground-penetrating radar used electromagnetic waves to pulse into the ground and it appears there are grave shafts,” he said. “The radar detects changes in the clay soil.
“It has identified when soil has been excavated but there has been no visible disturbance to the ground.”
Tongarra Heritage Society secretary Wendy Nunan is a passionate cemetery researcher and was excited to hear about the discovery.
“We may be able to identify who is or was there if we are lucky,” she said.
“My husband and I have worked to identify early burials spots in the Illawarra and we will help the council identify the graves.
“The grave might have already been identified but the headstones could have been removed or they might not have had headstones when the people were buried.”
Shellharbour mayor Marianne Saliba said because the cemetery dated back to 1900, the find was not unexpected.
“It is not uncommon to find unmarked graves in older cemeteries,” she said. “The council’s job now is to - sensitively and with respect - conduct further exploration.
“Results from the ground penetrating radar study will inform the future planning of the site. The council aims to respectfully meet the current and future needs of the community.
“This study has continued over the past two weeks, with more ground penetrating radar results still to be analysed.
“As the options for the site develop, the future management of the area - including unmarked graves - will be communicated with all relevant stakeholders including the community and those who have a specific interest in the cemetery plans.”
Mr Stewart said the council would protect the area but there are no plans to excavate the graves at this stage. He said an heritage consultant would analyse findings.
Mr Stewart said the technology could not detect if any bones were in the shaft, it only detected about a metre down into the ground and could not tell when the graves were excavated in the past.
“We will discuss with heritage consultants, community groups and the heritage society to see if the graves can be identified,” he said.
Mr Stewart said the research into the cemeteires was the first step in creating the masterplan which seeks to find out what is needed at the cemetery to meet the needs of future generations.
“For example, memorial gardens might be the way forward but that will be a discussion to be had with the community and council,” he said. “We need to plan what the cemetery will look like now and in the future.”
Council staff have started discussions with industry experts on providing assistance with the strategic business planning for the masterplan and are looking to engage an expert early next year.
