Chairperson explains "removal" of plaques

GEORGE NEWS - Chairperson of the George Heritage Trust Henry Paine has allayed concerns about the whereabouts of the heritage plaques that were awarded to the Memorium Street cemetery in March.

It is one of the oldest cemeteries in George.

Members of the public were concerned when they noticed that the plaques "disappeared" from the northern wall of a building in the cemetery shortly afterward, even speculating that they could have been stolen.

According to Paine, the plaques were only temporarily attached at the time, as there were logistical problems in putting them up permanently. The matter was discussed at a recent meeting of the George Heritage Trust and the plaques will soon be permanently mounted on the western side, where they will be more visible from the street.

The unveiling ceremony on 17 March was attended by members of the George Heritage Trust and municipal dignitaries Mayor Leon van Wyk, Deputy Mayor Charlotte Clarke and Ward Councillor for the area, Sean Snyman.

Chairperson of the George Heritage Trust Henry Paine (left) and George Mayor Leon van Wyk inspect the heritage plaques on 17 March.

The importance of graveyards for heritage was stressed and Paine said graveyards are refuges for wildlife and are public open spaces. He quoted part of the preamble to the National Heritage Resources Act.

It reads, "Our heritage celebrates our achievements and contributes to redressing past inequities. It educates, it deepens our understanding of society and encourages us to empathise with the experience of others. It facilitates healing and material and symbolic restitution and it promotes new and previously neglected research into our rich oral traditions and customs".

The George Heritage Trust also plans to put similar plaques at other graveyards.

Established in 1996, the trust promotes the sustainable conservation of the architectural, archaeological, cultural and natural heritage of George and its surrounds.

The heritage plaques on the northern side of a building in the graveyard on 17 March. Photos: Eugene Gunning