The Mintaro Cemetery is one of two burial areas in Mintaro, the other being in the grounds of the Roman Catholic Church. The cemetery is located about one kilometre west of the town. It contains the earliest formal graves of settlers in the district, commencing in 1858-9. Some of the early headstones are in marble, but then in the 1860’s, slate headstones were supplied by Thompson Priest carved from slate taken from the nearby Mintaro Slate Quarries. These headstones are simple and elegant in design, but unfortunately are weathering quite badly due to lack of maintenance and the inherent nature of the stone. There are also excellent examples of iron fenced plots and above-ground slate graves.
The burial plots extend along a narrow band, a North-South strip across the land allotted for the purpose (part of section 344). The cemetery area was one thousand links square. There was some early segregation of denominations and possibly even social classes in the early stages but these distinctions have become blurred over time. The graves of the Bowmans of Martindale and the Chewings of Kadlunga are in the northern section of the cemetery, and other early settlers graves are also easily located.
The Mintaro Cemetery in a way reflects the atmosphere of the town. It has an aura of neglect and decay contrasting in spots with the bright newness of a freshly established grave.[1]
A Mintaro Progress Association cemetery group works with local volunteers and the Clare and Gilbert Valleys Council to improve and maintain the public cemetery. Recent efforts include restoration of the main entrance gate, initial restoration of the ‘olive hedge’, a cemetery walking trail, construction of a shelter and of a columbarium for housing cremated remains.