On Saturday 13 September at 11am, we'll be holding an unveiling of the headstone for Charles Crabbe, who died in 1895 and was the first burial at Porirua Cemetery.
Charles was a patient at Porirua Hospital and is also the first unmarked grave. You can read his story here.
Our Cemeteries Manager Daniel Chrisp says "this is an important moment for Porirua Cemetery and for the Porirua Community. Our cemeteries hold our history and heritage and we can tell those stories through headstones. It felt like an honour to be on site and mark out where the grave was for our monumental mason, I thought to myself, this grave has been forgotten for 130 years, until now."
The public are welcome to attend the unveiling and we will also be inviting family members from our unmarked graves project. You will also have an opportunity to see our newly restored Chapel at Porirua Cemetery.
5 Sep 2025
