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Verrall Park and Pioneer Graves, Woodlinks Village, 2016
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TitleVerrall Park and Pioneer Graves, Woodlinks Village, 2016Date Created2016AcknowledgementThe Village Buildings Company
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DescriptionThe Verrall Park and Pioneer Graves at Woodlinks Village were entered in the Heritage Awards category of the 2016 Design, Heritage, Environment & Student Awards. Village Building Company, Saunders Havill Group and RPS Group were presented with a Gold Award.
The preservation of the pioneer gravesite was key to the establishment of Verrall Park by The Village Building Company within the Woodlinks Village Residential Estate.
George and Sarah Verrall arrived in Sydney from England in 1844. After working in the Clarence District, they settled in the Ipswich District in 1850, initially renting a farm at Redbank and pioneering the growing of wheat in the West Moreton District. After purchasing their own farm and diversifying into the growing of cotton, the Verralls later expanded their land holdings with the purchase of a significant land holding for cattle grazing in 1868-9. This purchase established them as one of the largest land owners in the district. George & Sarah Verrall had 14 children and today have up to 3000 known descendants, with 2000 living in the Ipswich region.
During their time, George & Sarah Verrall established a family cemetery on their property with the earliest burial believed to be that of a child in 1880 and over time, other neighbours are also thought to have been buried in this cemetery. The family cemetery was identified in a 1991 heritage inventory as containing up to 14 human burials, including the graves of George and Sarah Verrall and their family.
The Village Building Company and their team of consultants used innovative methods to expand on the findings of the 1991 heritage inventory. Using ground penetrating radar (GPR) technology, survey consultants RPS undertook an archaeological survey of the site to determine the exact location of the grave sites. The use of GPR helped to overcome the significant challenge of locating burial plots, as many were unmarked. In doing so, the search identified 13 anomalies likely to represent human burials. An exclusion area was established around the known burial sites to avoid any disturbance of the grave sites.
Hoop Pines
Until recently, when the effects of firte and storm damage finally took their toll, a large Hoop Pine existed on the eastern bank of Goodna Creek. This tree was thought to be located near the former site of the Verrall family homestead. This tree may have been originally one of a pair that were either planted as part of the homestead setting or selectively retained.
In recent years, Verrall family descendants Tom and Chris were able to pot seedlings from this tree and some of these propagated Hoop Pines have now been planted as shade trees within ‘Verrall Park’.
The preservation of the pioneer gravesite was key to the establishment of Verrall Park by The Village Building Company within the Woodlinks Village Residential Estate.
George and Sarah Verrall arrived in Sydney from England in 1844. After working in the Clarence District, they settled in the Ipswich District in 1850, initially renting a farm at Redbank and pioneering the growing of wheat in the West Moreton District. After purchasing their own farm and diversifying into the growing of cotton, the Verralls later expanded their land holdings with the purchase of a significant land holding for cattle grazing in 1868-9. This purchase established them as one of the largest land owners in the district. George & Sarah Verrall had 14 children and today have up to 3000 known descendants, with 2000 living in the Ipswich region.
During their time, George & Sarah Verrall established a family cemetery on their property with the earliest burial believed to be that of a child in 1880 and over time, other neighbours are also thought to have been buried in this cemetery. The family cemetery was identified in a 1991 heritage inventory as containing up to 14 human burials, including the graves of George and Sarah Verrall and their family.
The Village Building Company and their team of consultants used innovative methods to expand on the findings of the 1991 heritage inventory. Using ground penetrating radar (GPR) technology, survey consultants RPS undertook an archaeological survey of the site to determine the exact location of the grave sites. The use of GPR helped to overcome the significant challenge of locating burial plots, as many were unmarked. In doing so, the search identified 13 anomalies likely to represent human burials. An exclusion area was established around the known burial sites to avoid any disturbance of the grave sites.
Hoop Pines
Until recently, when the effects of firte and storm damage finally took their toll, a large Hoop Pine existed on the eastern bank of Goodna Creek. This tree was thought to be located near the former site of the Verrall family homestead. This tree may have been originally one of a pair that were either planted as part of the homestead setting or selectively retained.
In recent years, Verrall family descendants Tom and Chris were able to pot seedlings from this tree and some of these propagated Hoop Pines have now been planted as shade trees within ‘Verrall Park’.
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Events2016 Design, Heritage, Environment and Student AwardsTaxonomy21st Century | 2010s | 2016
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Reference IDVerrall graves 2016-07-28-0005Asset TypeImage - JpegImages, Maps and Artefacts (Trove mapping field)imageColour or Black & White ImageColourPhysical DescriptionBorn DigitalHigher Resolution Available (contact Picture Ipswich)NoCopyright StatusIn CopyrightCopyright NoticeTo use this image, please contact the Picture Ipswich Digital ArchivistCopyrightPicture Ipswich Copyright Information
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Verrall Park and Pioneer Graves, Woodlinks Village, 2016. Picture Ipswich, accessed 31/08/2026, https://www.pictureipswich.com.au/nodes/view/22295