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Memorial for Thomas Gordon

Thomas Gordon was born about 1765 in either England or Scotland and died at Double Bay NSW on 31 March 1851. His wife Alice Smith was born in England in about 1770 and died at Richmond NSW in about 1806. They had been married in St George's church, Hanover Square, London on 8 May 1790. Alice's burial place is not known for certain, but she was probably interred in the church yard of St Matthew's Anglican church at Richmond NSW where her daughter Mary Ann Carlisle was to be buried seven years later. Thomas was buried in the Devonshire Street Cemetery in central Sydney on 2 April 1851. Also in the same grave were his son Charles Moltson Gordon and Charles' second wife, Mary Gordon.

In 1901, the Devonshire Street cemetery was resumed to allow for the development of Central railway station. Remains that were claimed were transferred to a number of cemeteries, including Gore Hill Cemetery, St Thomas Cemetery in Crows Nest, Rookwood Cemetery, Waverley Cemetery, Balmain Cemetery, Camperdown General Cemetery, Randwick General Cemetery, Eastern Suburbs Memorial Park, and South Head General Cemetery. Remains were also relocated outside the metropolitan area, including Sandgate Cemetery in Newcastle, NSW. Remains that were unclaimed were relocated to the purpose-built Bunnerong Cemetery located adjacent to and subsequently absorbed by Botany Cemetery in the early 1970s to create the Eastern Suburbs Memorial Park.

Thomas Gordon's death notice was published - Family Notices (1851, April 4). The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), p. 3. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article12926031. The ultimate fate of his remains and his gravestone are unknown.

Thomas Gordon was buried in the Devonshire Street cemetery in central Sydney

 The grave of Thomas Gordon in the Devonshire Street cemetery

 A general view of the Devonshire Street cemetery before demoloition

 A view of the cemetery and Devonshire Street before demolition

Devonshire Street cemetery with railway line through it!

 An overview of the cemetery before demolition

 Plans for Central Railway Station to be built over the cemetery grounds

 Bicentennial plaque memorialising the mill operated by the family of Thomas Gordon from 1829 until 1870
The site of the mill is now the corner of Gordon and Stewart Streets in Paddington

 A watercolour painting of the mill in 1848
The artist is attributed simply as "Australian School". There is another picture of the mill in the collection of the State Library of NSW.