Sale Cemetery

Sale Cemetery The Sale Cemetery is located in Sale, Victoria, Australia. The earliest marked graves date from 1855. There is a War Cemetery of mostly RAAF personnel.

In 2016 a Vietnam veteran was repatriated to Sale from the Terendak Military Cemetery, Malaysia.

In 1868 a tragic accident took place on a farm at Clydebank, resulting in the death of Robert Alexander who is buried in...
02/06/2026

In 1868 a tragic accident took place on a farm at Clydebank, resulting in the death of Robert Alexander who is buried in the Sale Cemetery.
Robert Alexander was listed as a resident of Sale in 1868 but born in about 1815 in Linlithgow Scotland which is about 20 miles West of Edinburgh. He was the son of John Alexander and Janet Hickey. In 1845 he married Ann Grant in Scotland and the following year the first of their nine children was born. Within the next few years, the family migrated to Australia and their second child was born in 1850 at Western Port in Victoria.
There were a total of 3 children born at Western Port and their 5th child was born at Bulla Bulla which is just North West of Tullamarine. The subsequent 4 children were born at Tullamarine, with the last being born in 1863.
Robert Alexander was working with his son David at a farm owned by Mr. Anderson at Clydebank. On the 20th March, he was operating a horsedrawn threshing machine which separated grain seeds from the stalks of the oat crop.
Just after commencing at 9 o’clock in the morning, it was observed that the grain was not falling cleanly and Robert inserted his right hand into the box, with the intention of remedying the problem but his hand was caught in the cog wheels. When witnesses including his son David, heard his cries for help, David tried to pull his father’s arm out of the cogs while others tried unsuccessfully to stop the horses in time. This caused Robert’s arm to be drawn into the machine, becoming badly mutilated and dismembered at the elbow.
A ligature and tourniquet was bound around the arm by witnesses to prevent more bleeding and the patient was removed to the Anderson home. Another witness went to Sale to summon Dr. Hedley who attended and recommended the patient be removed immediately to the Sale hospital.
Dr Hedley accompanied the patient to the hospital and on the way administered a mixture of brandy and water for pain relief and after arriving at 2.30pm, immediately called a meeting to consult with other medical officers and it was decided that the patient’s arm needed to be further amputated at the shoulder to give him a chance of life.
The operation went ahead and an attempt was made to administer chloroform as anesthetic but unfortunately it affected his pulse so it was withdrawn. The surgery took place successfully and it was determined that the patient didn’t suffer any further pain than what he was already suffering. The patient was very weak from a loss of blood and continued to get weaker as the afternoon progressed and at 5.30pm, aged 53 years, died from the loss of blood and the shock of the injury. Plan: 4, Section: B, Allotment: 10
References – Find a Grave, Trove Newspapers, Research by Sale Family History Group and Sale Cemetery Trust.
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A walk around this morning revealed a few different fungi popping up in the cemetery grounds after the rain and a bit of...
30/05/2026

A walk around this morning revealed a few different fungi popping up in the cemetery grounds after the rain and a bit of sunshine. Some great colours but would definitely not be the eating variety.

Work is progressing in regard to the ashes garden and columbarium area at the front of the cemetery. We think a few mor...
30/05/2026

Work is progressing in regard to the ashes garden and columbarium area at the front of the cemetery.
We think a few more months and then planting will begin…that’s the plan.

Out here this morning in the mist. Setting up for the Friends of Sale Cemetery Gardening group.
22/04/2026

Out here this morning in the mist. Setting up for the Friends of Sale Cemetery Gardening group.

Cecil Thomas Peter Hopken Plan 8 Section A Allotment 54 Cecil Thomas Peter Hopken was a young 23-year-old resident of Sa...
04/04/2026

Cecil Thomas Peter Hopken Plan 8 Section A Allotment 54

Cecil Thomas Peter Hopken was a young 23-year-old resident of Sale with a great future ahead of him who died tragically on 19th January 1942 and is buried in the Sale cemetery.
Peter, as he was known, attended Sale High School, completed his merit certificate then went to Wesley College in Melbourne. While at school in Sale and Melbourne he was involved in the sport of rowing and participated in “Head of the River” on the Yarra River. On completion of his schooling, Peter returned to Sale where he became associated with radio broadcasting station 3TR, employed as a radio engineer. The newspaper said Peter had a most amiable disposition, was very popular and a well-known figure riding his bicycle to and from work at the Myrtlebank station transmitter, accompanied by his pet fox terrier.
3TR commenced broadcasting in Stawell St. Sale in 1938 and the transmitter mast at Myrtlebank was obtained from Melbourne station 3DB after an upgrade.
In the early days of “Wireless” when a station commenced broadcasting each day, the transmitter had to be manned by an engineer switching it on at the commencement of operation, monitoring it and then at shut down after the last transmission for the day.
On Sunday 18th January, Peter Hopken was attending the transmitter for the closing at 11pm and he spoke twice to the studio in Sale by telephone. The next morning, 19th January, Mr. McKerdy, the morning radio announcer contacted the station manager John Broadbent by phone to advise that the station was not on air as it should be and he had been unable to contact the engineer at the transmitter.
An assistant engineer travelled to the transmitter to ascertain the cause and on arrival found the body of Peter Hopken. It appeared that when Peter was closing the transmitter on Sunday night, he attempted to carry out some repairs but unfortunately, he touched a live electrical cable and was electrocuted.
Peter was the son of Thomas and Dorothea Hopken (nee Eckhardt) and his only sibling was a sister, a nurse at the Sale Hospital. In 1942, the 2nd World War was in progress and Peter had planned to join the RAAF on 29th January, 10 days following his tragic accident. Peter is buried at the Sale Cemetery with his sister Marjorie who passed away in 2008.
References – Trove On-Line newspapers, “Find A Grave” website.

01/03/2026

Sale Public Cemetery
Trust member vacancy

Are you interested in making a meaningful contribution to your community, learning new skills and preserving local history for future generations?

Sale Cemetery Trust is seeking applications from people in the community wishing to become volunteer trust members of the Sale Cemetery.
People with a range of skills and experiences including administration, committees, and groundskeeping will also gain valuable governance skills as a member of a public board with free governance training provided. Everyone is welcome to apply including those from diverse backgrounds.
Cemetery Trust members are appointed by the Governor in Council for a term of up to five years on the recommendation of the Minister for Health.
Anyone wishing to apply for a position on the cemetery trust please contact the Sale Public Cemetery.

How to register your interest
Simply contact the cemetery trust either by phone or mail,
Cemetery trust phone number: 03 51442262
Cemetery trust email address: [email protected]
Cemetery trust postal address: P O Box 1418, Sale, Vic 3850

The job to remove the cypress trees along the west side of the general cemetery area is now complete.Approx 70+ trees re...
27/02/2026

The job to remove the cypress trees along the west side of the general cemetery area is now complete.
Approx 70+ trees removed safely and completely chipped by Drouin Tree Services. Nothing will be wasted nor burnt.

Jane Thomson, daughter of Walhalla bullock driver Arthur and Jane Thomson (nee Swanson) is buried in her family’s grave ...
21/02/2026

Jane Thomson, daughter of Walhalla bullock driver Arthur and Jane Thomson (nee Swanson) is buried in her family’s grave at the Sale Cemetery. In 1876 sixteen-year-old Jane married 43-year-old bullock driver Peter Clement, also from Walhalla who became one of the biggest landholders in Gippsland. This union also provided a family mystery that remains unsolved to this day, with court cases, books, TV documentaries and newspaper articles written on the subject.
Jane’s husband Peter Scott Clement was born in Scotland and migrated to Australia in the 1850’s and as a bullock driver accepted shares in the Long Tunnel gold mine at Walhalla as payment for services and bought extra shares in the goldmine himself. Besides being a shareholder, he also became a director of the mine which was said to be the richest goldmine in Australia,
Clement purchased the large cattle station “Prospect” which includes the Seaspray area and covered 20 Square Kilometres. The family also owned land at Tinamba, Upper Maffra, Denison and Merriman’s Creek. Six children were born into the family and then in 1880 Peter Clement died suddenly at Prospect aged 58 years from Apoplexy (Stroke).
Following her husband’s death, Jane and her six children moved to Sale and lived at the corner of Macalister and Elgin streets. The children attended school in Sale and later the daughters attended the Methodist Ladies College in Melbourne. The family moved to Fulham House on the property later owned by the Gooch family and later purchased a large cattle grazing property named Tullaree, near Buffalo in South Gippsland which was reclaimed swamp land.
In about 1910, three of the Clement daughters Janet (Jeannie), Margaret and Anna went for an extended trip to Europe and Asia. Anna Clement married and became Mrs. Carnaghan and Jeannie and Margaret lived and farmed the Tullaree property. The Clement daughters were members of Melbourne high society and lived in luxury in their mansion at Tullaree. The property consisted of 1875 acres of rich grazing land, and during the 50 years that the family lived at the property, it deteriorated to a swamp again and the palatial homestead fell into decay.
In 1937 Jane Clement nee Thomson, who was living in St. Kilda died at the age of 78 years and was buried at the Sale Cemetery with husband Peter Clement and other family members.
Jeannie Clement passed away at Tullaree in 1950 after having been bedridden for some time and it was believed that sister Margaret had health problems too. By 1952 Margeret aged 70 years was living alone at the swamp bound Tullaree and she was last seen alive at the property in May 1952. No trace has ever been found of Margaret Clement and she became known as “Swamp Lady” or “Lady of the Swamp” and it was said in newspapers that she never walked through the swamp without using a large stick. The stick was found at “Tullaree” after the disappearance and police investigating the mystery were convinced that it wasn’t a case of an old lady who just wandered away and got lost. It was thought significant that after her sister Jeannie’s death in 1950, and not long before Margaret’s own disappearance her one companion, her cattle dog “Devil” was found dying with a cut throat.
Margaret Clement left a will made in 1925 making her sister Jeannie Clement sole executor but as stated, Jeannie died 2 years prior to Margaret’s disappearance and a nephew was named as a beneficiary. Another relative, a niece believed that there was another will made in 1951 and she put a caveat on the 1925 will to prevent it being carried out.
Margaret Clement was declared deceased in 1954 by the courts after the efforts of police and a large body of volunteer searchers failed to find her and the mysterious disappearance still fascinates historians today. Many theories have been put forward for the cause of Margaret’s disappearance, including that she was murdered by family or a neighbor but with the passing of time it’s unlikely the mystery will ever be solved.
Sale Cemetery Plan 4 Sect. D Allotment 8
References. Find a Grave, Trove On-Line newspapers.

Address

1386 Maffra-Sale Road
Sale, VIC
3850

Telephone

0351442262

Website

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