THE body of a woman buried in a lonely bush grave south of Bathurst in 1855 has been dug up and taken from the site.
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The grave is that of Maryann Tattersall, who died on September 20, 1855. It’s believed this grave at Newbridge is one of the oldest in Blayney Shire.
The iron fence which surrounded the grave is also missing.
The headstone and plinth were found buried under the soil removed from the grave, which appears to have been excavated recently by hand.
There is no apparent evidence of human remains in the open grave, which is around 1.7 metres deep.
After hearing of the grave’s desecration from my brother Chris Freestone, whose property adjoins the densely wooded area where the grave is located, I ventured to Newbridge on Saturday afternoon to see what damage had been done.
Maryann Tattersall’s grave is not actually in Newbridge cemetery, but in remnant bushland fenced off from both the cemetery and my brother’s property, Wychwood.
To get to the site it’s necessary to trek through timbered country into a slight gully. The grave is not visible from either Newbridge cemetery or my brother’s property.
Upon arrival I was shocked at the vandalism and I wonder what would drive someone to dig up a body which was laid to rest 153 years ago.
I learned of this lonely grave some years ago through my brother who, like me has an interest in history. I had visited the site once before.
Luckily, Chris photographed Maryann Tattersall’s grave some years ago.
On Saturday, our first inspection of the area revealed a rectangular hole where the grave had been. There were large piles of loosely packed soil surrounding the hole, indicating the desecration was relatively recent.
The area is heavily wooded and it appears it would have been impossible to get machinery into the area to excavate the grave.
At first there was no sign of the the headstone, plinth or iron fence.
My nephew’s dog, Horse, began scratching around in one of the piles of soil and in the process revealed the corner of the plinth.
The Hamer family, who are constructing a wall in Newbridge cemetery for the interment of ashes, brought along a shovel and some digging revealed Maryann Tattersall’s headstone lying face down in one of the piles of dirt.
Blayney and Bathurst police have been informed of the desecration and were examining the scene yesterday.
