Tales from the past for a cemetery tour

A conducted tour of Woodville’s Old Gorge Cemetery will take place on Sunday April 30 commencing at 2.30pm.

The focus will be on visiting the burial sites of Pioneer and early business people. Among the stories to be recounted will be Herbert Clarke’s.

Herbert Clarke was farming on Masterton Road in 1885. On 10 September 1886 Herbert Clarke was a witness to a shocking accident, as he was in charge of a two wheeled dray, loaded with two and half tons of flour and potatoes and had stopped on one side of the road to let Mr Parminter pass, but the leader in Parminter’s brake swerved and there was a violent collision with Mr Clarke’s dray, resulting in Mr Parminter being unseated and falling in front of the wheels of his dray, killing him.

Stones Directory of 1904 lists Herbert Clarke as a forwarding agent.

He also was in business as a carrier, and it was recorded that he carried iron through the Manawatu Gorge while the railway was under construction. (Completed 1890.) Whether this indicates that he transported the iron rails is not clear.

He also is reported as delivering groceries to Palmerston North and Masterton. Herbert’s wife Alwina Radar was of German origin.

Herbert’s father William is also buried in this cemetery (11 — 27, 16-9-1887). Further information regarding Herbert will be related during the tour.