Reverend Michael Li presided over a ceremony dedicating a memorial plaque commemorating the mass grave located in the chapel cemetery at St. George’s Chapel in Gores Landing on August 12, 2018.
Two separate mass burials are located in the cemetery: one for early Irish settlers to the area who perished from typhoid fever in 1847 and one for German workers of the Cobourg and Peterborough railway who perished in a cholera epidemic in 1854.
“On this very special occasion we are now dedicating this memorial plaque to the blessed memory of those who were buried here. May this memorial placed in their honour be a constant reminder of their contribution in building Canada,” said Reverend Li.
Donna McGillis who co-authored a book titled Gores Landing and the Rice Lake Plains said the historical record is sketchy but they believe there were two “waves” of Irish settlers that came through the area.
The Peter Robinson settlers in 1825 and later on another immigration of Irish settlers who camped along the lakeshore between Gores Landing and Harwood,” said McGillis.
“Some of them were buried here as a result of typhus.”
The approximate number of people buried in the cemetery is approximately 15.
“Some of the German workers died of cholera while building the Cobourg to Peterborough railroad were buried over by Harwood Road and there is a plaque there to mark their grave sites and others were buried here.”
“We can only assume that some of them wanted to bury them in a Christian cemetery, but it was all done very quietly because there was such a fear of catching cholera,” said McGillis.
“They were buried very quickly and surreptitiously.”
The brief ceremony took place after the morning service at the Chapel located on Church Hill Road in Gores Landing.
Author: Pete Fisher
Has been a photojournalist for over 30-years and have been honoured to win numerous awards for photography and writing over the years. Best selling author for the book Highway of Heroes - True Patriot Love
