Drakesbrook Public Cemetery set to be brought to digital life as Shire of Waroona adopts Chronicle system

Waroona Shire’s only cemetery is set to make the move online, as one local council looks to gives its records a digital life. The Drakesbrook Public Cemetery will be transformed into interactive maps, accessible to anyone with internet access. The council will use Chronicle software used by dozens of cemeteries in the Eastern States to manage administration and create online records after the council voted to implement it at last month’s meeting. As it currently stands, the Shire of Waroona’s cemetery information is available only through the council’s internal corporate management system. Members of the public wishing to access the information have to contact the Shire’s cemetery management team to request it. In her report to councillors prior to the decision, corporate services manager Kirsty Ferraro said it was estimated each cemetery plot cost local government $5 for services including genealogy research, family and funeral director request responses, maintenance and utility costs. “With each new burial added and an increase in the popularity of genealogy research, these costs continue to increase, with more public enquiries and the time taken to respond,” she said. The Chronicle software will allow members of the public to pinpoint plot locations, search by name, date of birth or death, view headstones and inscriptions, and follow a guided walk to a specific burial location. It is expected to supplement and not replace the Shire’s current system. In approving the implementation of the software, Cr Vince Vitale described the initiative as a “great idea”, while Cr Laurie Snell said the system was a “good move in the right direction”. After the vote, Waroona Shire president Mike Walmsley said it was a great initiative. “Once it has been mapped and catalogued — if someone living in Queensland has a family member buried at the cemetery, they can see it,” he said. “They can upload it with information. If you want to put something on your mum and dad, you can. “It is a great source of history for the Shire and I hope people put the stories up.” As part of collecting the data needed to create the mapping system, an aerial drone survey is set to be conducted this week. The survey is expected to take one day, with access to the cemetery to be prohibited during the time. The exact day will be dependent on weather. The council hopes the Chronicle system will be available to the public around April next year.