St Peter's Anglican Cemetery at East Maitland, usually known as the Glebe Cemetery, is reputed to be one of the the oldest cemeteries in the Hunter Region. Already in use for about ten years, the burial ground was consecrated on St Peter's Day 1843, when Bishop Broughton performed the ceremony in a tent erected on the ground.
It is said that, to avoid fording the creek through the Glebe, the hearse used to follow a bush track through Rathluba, from the Buchanan Road, but the route has now been engulfed by a housing estate. Because of its lonely and isolated position on the hill below the Rathluba property, the burial ground became overgrown and ruined. It has obviously suffered greatly over the years from both neglect and vandalism.
In 1994, title to the cemetery was transferred by the Anglican Church Trustees to the Maitland City Council. In 2000, a conservation management plan was developed and an arrangement entered into between Council and the University of New England to undertake a detailed archaeological investigation of the site as the first stage in its restoration.
The data and images displayed here were provided by Robert Tozer, who visited the cemetery in January 2000, and the list compiled by Roma Waldron.