HO130 - Staughton Infant Grave - 430-458 Exford Road, Weir Views

The grave at 430-458 Exford Road, Weir Views, and its associated setting including the nearby copse of trees and the view to the valley of Toolern Creek to the east. The gravestone is comprised of a rectangular basalt base with a bevelled upper surface, surmounted by a remnant piece of white marble (likely to have originally been in the form of a cross) bearing a carved inscription - 'Died 11th October 1880 aged 9 months and 20 days'. The grave is almost certainly that of infant Rupert Werribee Staughton, the fourth child of Harry Werribee and Anna Maria Staughton who owned the Exford Estate.

The adjacent copse of trees to the west, including a Stone Pine (Pinus pinea).

How is it significant?

The grave is of local historical, rarity and representative significance to the City of Melton.

The grave is historically significant as one of a few, but nonetheless rare, isolated marked graves in the Municipality with its original gravestone and in its original location. It is also the only known infant grave. It has strong associations with the prominent Staughton family, and the grave site is located on land that until recently was associated with the Exford Estate. It is distinguished from the main other examples by being later, 1880 as compared to 1850s, and post-dates the establishment of the Melton Cemetery in the early 1860s.(Criteria A & B)

The small basalt and marble gravestone is of representative significance for being a mostly intact example of a grave on a rural estate. The base, a small basalt plinth, remains intact however the white marble component which surmounts it, likely to have been a cross originally, has been broken such that only the lower part survives albeit retaining an inscription. The adjacent copse of trees, including a well-established stone pine (Pinus pinea) provides a complementary setting. (Criterion D)

City of Melton Heritage Assessments Project 2018: Findings, RBA Architects and Conservation Consultants (November 2018)

Group

Cemeteries and Burial Sites

Category

Isolated Grave/Burial Site