Originally the property of Governor William Bligh and his descendents, Camperdown Cemetery land was bought by the Anglican Church in 1848. When the original cemeteries of the NSW colony - the site of the Town Hall in George Street - and then the Old Devonshire Street cemeteries - the site of Central Railway - were resumed, the Anglican Church offered Camperdown as the next public cemetery. Its location "in the country" proved attractive to the Government.

During its 20 years, nearly 16,000 people were buried here, many of whom were poor and buried in unmarked graves.

The Cemetery Lodge was completed in 1848, the year the Moreton Bay Fig was planted. You can see the branches of the tree above the roof of the lodge.

See the magnificent tree here.