Description of Historic Place

St Mary's Cemetery is located south of the intersection of Lyons Lane and South Service Road in the Town of Oakville. The forested cemetery began with the first burial in 1856.

The property was designated by the Town of Oakville in 1987 for its heritage value under Part IV of the Ontario Heritage Act (By-law 1987-295).

Heritage Value

St Mary's Cemetery is associated with the area's earliest pioneers. The land was donated by George K. Chisholm, the first mayor of the Town of Oakville. The cemetery contains many prominent Chisholm family members, the most prominent of which is Colonel William Chisholm, the founder of Oakville.

St Mary's Cemetery is a good example of 19th century cemetery design. It is characterized by a naturalistic setting to attract and comfort the living, the use of markers and monuments to perpetuate the memory of individuals and a park-like layout for public use. True to the original plan, gravesites are marked with separate individual markers. An interesting feature of a number of burial areas in the cemetery is the decorative wrought iron fencing delineating family plots.

Source: Town of Oakville, By-law 1987-295.

Character-Defining Elements

Character defining elements that contribute to the heritage value of St Mary's Cemetery include the:
- variety of styles, materials and symbolism represented in the markers and monuments
- the range of size and sophistication of markers and monuments, from modest to elaborate
- park-like layout including mature trees
- monuments
- individual grave markers with their surviving inscriptions
- wrought iron fencing around family plots