Local lore buried in Clareville Cemetery

LEARN ABOUT IT: Adele Pentony-Graham is offering a tour of Clareville Cemetery covering its interesting history.PHOTO/FILE

Who was Carterton named after? Who built the Taratahi Hotel and who was the first registered nurse in the world?

Find out this Friday on the Clareville Cemetery tour.

Friday is the anniversary of Ellen Dougherty becoming the first registered nurse in the world in 1901.

To celebrate, Clareville taphophile (a person who likes cemeteries) Adele Pentony-Graham has organised a tour of Clareville Cemetery, which will stop at Dougherty's grave and other graves of historical note.

Mrs Pentony-Graham has been interested in documenting the contributions of Dougherty for some time and goes to her grave every year to place flowers.

"I just think it's time people recognised her more," Mrs Pentony-Graham said, adding that although Florence Nightingale is considered to be the founder of professional nursing, England didn't register their nurses until 1919; almost 20 years after New Zealand made the move.

Another prominent grave site belongs to Charles Rooking Carter, who was partly responsible for the settlement of Masterton, Greytown and Carterton, which is named after him.

Other graves include Richard Fairbrother, the first mayor of Carterton, and Thomas Ray, who was one of the first mailmen in the Wairarapa and delivered rations to soldiers in the Hutt Valley. Mr Ray's parents built the Taratahi Hotel, which still stands.

Mrs Pentony-Graham is encouraging anyone with an interest in the early history of the Wairarapa to attend the tour and find out more about the people who shaped the area.

"The older the grave, the better," Mrs Pentony-Graham said.

The free tour runs from 2pm-3pm on Friday at Clareville Cemetery.