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Last modified: 14 Jun 2023 12:08pm

close up image of a weathered wooden headstone on a black backgroundWe’re looking to reunite the memorial to a young woman with her family and solve a 148-year-old mystery.

Margaret McNeally was 12 years-old when she died on 20 April 1875, she was buried in Springston Cemetery and her family placed a wooden marker over her grave to remember her.

Almost 150 years later that headstone was discovered by Council staff damaged and in a patch of bushes at Springston Cemetery. The headstone has been stored by the Council and we are hoping to reunite it with the family.

Council Information Management Council Information Management Advisor Leanne Page says the Council would love to get it back to the family.

“We don’t know much about this young lady, but if anyone’s out there from her relatives we’d love to get this back to them, to help commemorate their relative. Wooden headstones are rare in our cemeteries so this is a special piece historically, but most importantly it’s a memory of a precious young woman and we’d like to see them reunited.”

Anyone who believes they may be a relative of Margaret McNeally, or have further information about finding her family can contact us on information.management@selwyn.govt.nz or give us a call on 0800 SELWYN (735 996).