A sexton is an officer of a church , congregation, or synagogue charged with the maintenance of its buildings and/or an associated graveyard . In smaller places of worship, this office is often combined with that of verger . Larger establishments, such as cathedrals , may employ a team of sextons.
17-603: The Colonial Time Service Observatory was an observatory situated on the edge of the Bolton Street Cemetery in Wellington , New Zealand. It was built in 1869 to replace the Provincial Observatory, the line of sight of the Provincial Observatory had been obstructed by the building of a new telegraph office. The observatory's main function was to determine an exact time for standard New Zealand time by measuring
34-432: A historic building built out of timber in 1857, was enlarged in 1885 and is now being restored. The public cemetery's Sexton's Cottage, also constructed of timber in 1857, was occupied by the sexton David Robertson and his family before the building was demolished in 1908; only its brick outlines are still viewable in the upper lawn. The Mortuary Chapel, built of timber in 1866, was left to deteriorate without any repairs and
51-407: A large vault beneath the park's lawn. The relocated parts of the cemetery with head stones are linked through a foot bridge over the road. Of the 8,500 people reported buried in the park, only 1334 headstones (made of marble or local stones) were traced and 35 are made in wood. Historian Margaret Alington was commissioned to write a history of the cemetery. Her book, Unquiet Earth: a History of
68-659: Is popular among joggers; the Upper Trail is steep compared to the Lower Trail which in places have steps. Tutaenui creek is located in a gulley within the park. Bolton Street Memorial Park is now a historic reserve under the jurisdiction of the Parks and Recreation Department of the Wellington City Council. Of the initial three buildings constructed in the cemetery area, only one remains. The Church of England's Sexton's Cottage,
85-488: Is the oldest cemetery in Wellington , New Zealand. Dating back to 1840, many notable people are buried here. Situated in the suburb of Thorndon , the Wellington City Council's memorial trail number five covers the Bolton Street Memorial Park and visits notable graves, points of interest, lookouts and buildings. The park's history could probably be the history of those buried there; old pioneers are buried in
102-461: The Victorian -type cemetery. Established as a cemetery in 1840 on the outskirts of the new town of Wellington, separate burial areas were designated for Anglicans , Jews and Roman Catholics . Many notable people of the town were buried there, including William Wakefield , Wellington's founder. It was closed for burials in 1892, except for the new burials of kins; this was due to inadequate space as
119-548: The Bolton Street Cemetery , was published in 1978. The original grounds were 18 acres (7.3 ha) in size and was segmented. Approximately 7 acres (2.8 ha) were used by the Church of England, two roods and 37 perches were for Jews, and 8 acres (3.2 ha) were set aside for the public cemetery. The motorway takes up 3.7 acres (1.5 ha), encroaching about 4.5 acres (1.8 ha) of wooded burial ground. Some of
136-572: The United Kingdom the "sexton" was sometimes a minor municipal official responsible for overseeing the town graveyard. In the United Kingdom the position still exists today, related to management of the community's graveyard, with such sextons usually employed by the town/parish or community council. The words "sexton" and " sacristan " both derive from the Medieval Latin word sacristanus meaning "custodian of sacred objects". "Sexton" represents
153-540: The city grew. In 1960, the City Council's urban plan established a need for a motorway, a part of which would be routed through the cemetery. Seven years later, the City Council passed an act to build a motorway through the park. As a result, the cemetery was closed as a burial ground from March 1967 through 1971. The historic cemetery, bisected by the Wellington Urban Motorway , caused extensive controversy at
170-1005: The graves, gifts of plants by the public, members of the Wellington Heritage Rose Society, and also from Europe under the seed exchange programme. According to the recorded list, the park now has 210 heritage roses of which important cultivars and species include 'Archduke Joseph' , 'Mutabilis' , 'Kazanlik' , 'Old Blush China' , 'Viridiflora' , 'La France' , 'Honorine de Brabant' , 'Ispahan' , 'Roseraire de l'Haÿ' , 'Alberic Barbier' , R. eglanteria , 'Tuscany' , 'Souvenir de Madame Léonie Viennot' , 'Cornelia' , Rosa moyesii 'Fargesii' , 'Blushing Lucy' , 'Madame Plantier' , Rosa laevigata , Rosa altaica , Rosa bracteata , and 'Joseph Cartier' . Graves still existing: Reinstated monument after disinterment for motorway Graves moved for motorway construction: Sexton (office) Historically in North America and
187-807: The hillside in 1840 for the public cemetery (non-sectarian), the original settlers planted roses. These were later supplemented by the Wellington Botanic Garden in association with Heritage Roses New Zealand Inc. Under the Wellington City Council Management Plan, the rose garden is maintained by the Wellington Botanic Garden . The "memorial roses" reported from the park are: Rosa banksiae 'Lutea' , Rosa banksiae alba plena , Rosa indica major , 'Félicité et Perpétue , 'Climbing Cécile Brünner' , and 'Souvenir de la Malmaison' , which were planted by people visiting
SECTION 10
#1732844557804204-526: The initial land was surrendered for the Bowen Street cutting and to Anderson Park. The current park, about 1.85 hectares (4.6 acres) in size, includes a land gift from Morva Williams . The approach to the park is from Bolton Street, from a signed pathway off Bowen Street and from Botanic Garden, immediately after Anderson Park. There are walkways in the park on either side of the motorway, which have several signs giving Wellington's colonial history. The trail
221-403: The park's beehives. The park also serves as an extension of Wellington Botanic Garden with areas of open lawns, undulating topography covered by a mix of regenerating native scrub and plantings of exotic trees, shrubs, perennials and bulbs. Notable is the heritage roses collection among the graves. The park's heritage rose collection is of national significance. When land was allotted on
238-537: The popular development of the word via the Old French "Segrestein". Among the traditional duties of the sexton in small parishes was the digging of graves—the gravedigger in Hamlet refers to himself as sexton, for example. In modern times, grave digging and maintenance of the cemetery is usually done by an outside contractor. The general duties of a modern sexton may include: In many UK churches nowadays, where neither
255-603: The time. The new motorway opened in 1978, and in the same year, the Wellington City Council Parks renamed the cemetery as the Bolton Street Memorial Park. Though the Friends of Bolton Street protested against the shifting of the graves, they did not stop construction of the road but ensured that the cemetery got a heritage status and the park got a reserve nomenclature. In spite of protests, about 3,700 graves were exhumed and relocated, most of whom were re-interred in
272-545: The transit of stars. It was demolished in 1906 to allow the Prime Minister Richard Seddon to be buried on the site. It was replaced by the Dominion Observatory in 1907. 41°16′46″S 174°46′18″E / 41.279511°S 174.771792°E / -41.279511; 174.771792 Bolton Street Memorial Park Bolton Street Memorial Park , formerly known as Bolton Street Cemetery ,
289-454: Was finally demolished in 1969 to make way for the motorway. Based on recorded drawings of it, a replica chapel was built and serves as the visitor centre. Situated in the smaller half of the cemetery, it contains exhibits on the park's history, details of those buried at the cemetery, along with printed lists of names. A beehive centre is maintained by the Friends of Bolton Street Memorial Park who also facilitate information on conservation of
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