St John's cemetery was established on the outskirts of Rose Hill Settlement in 1790,on a gentle hillside half a mile from St John's church, giving the honour of being the oldest existing European burial ground in Australia. The convict built brick wall isolates Street and the bustle of the now encircling City of Parramatta, giving it a peaceful serenity. The view on the left is from the car park on the roof of 'Westfield Shopping Town' on the opposite side of O'Connell Street.
The cemetery contains the graves of many from Australia's early history,including Governor's wives, prominent citizens and First Fleet convicts, There is no segregation by faith or standing. Ministers of government or church lie next to soldiers or convicts, Anglican next to Catholic, next to Jew.
Pre 1856 it was not compulsory to record births, deaths and marriages in Australia. These stones are, in some cases, the only record of a person's life.
Richard Webb and some of his descendents. Richard came to the colony as a convict boy and at the time of his death was a prominent businessman and landowner in Parramatta.
This large plot, extending across three rows, holds the remains of the Rev. Samuel Marsden, Minister of St John's Church and one of the the first Chaplains in the colony, his wife Elizabeth, their children and their children's families, notably the family of His youngest daughter Martha Betts (nee Marsden)