• Did you know that by the late 1840s Goulburn had the third largest Jewish community in NSW?
• Are you aware that Goulburn’s Jewish community assisted Goulburn’s development as a government and rural service centre in the mid nineteenth century?
• Have you visited the Goulburn Jewish Cemetery?
Last week it was announced that the NSW Government has listed the historic Goulburn Jewish Cemetery on the State Heritage Register.
Established in 1844, the Goulburn Jewish Cemetery is one of only two remaining exclusively Jewish cemeteries in NSW. The cemetery retains a well and elements of its former caretaker’s cottage which included a room reserved for Tahara rites, the ritual cleansing and shrouding of the deceased.
Over the last forty years, the Goulburn Jewish Cemetery has been maintained in a collaboration between the Sydney Jewish and Goulburn communities reflecting its significance.
Minister responsible for Heritage Don Harwin, said of the listing, “Sites of importance to the Jewish community are underrepresented in the NSW State Heritage Register. The Jewish community has contributed greatly to NSW. I’m very pleased that this historic cemetery is now on the State Heritage Register”.
Member for Goulburn, Wendy Tuckerman said “This heritage listing adds another layer to the town’s rich history exploring the stories of the thriving community that made Goulburn home in the late 19th Century.”
The listing of the Cemetery will ensure this historic site will be protected now and into the future.
