How researching a novel sparked a family’s quest to restore a pioneer’s grave

From Montville History Group

When Montville novelist Cate Patterson began researching her new book, Through Her Eyes, she expected a deep dive into the past – old letters, sepia photographs, family trees. What she didn’t expect was that her fictional journey would bring her face-to-face with her own family history – and launch a movement to preserve it for generations to come.

At the heart of both her research and her story lies the historic grave of Hannah Smith, her great-great-great-grandmother, who passed away on April 17, 1901. Hannah’s grave, a prominent obelisk in Mapleton Cemetery, was the first official burial in the cemetery and a symbol of the pioneering spirit that shaped the Sunshine Coast hinterland.

A monument tells a story

The obelisk stands on a gentle slope at the edge of Mapleton, its marble plaque faded, a small angel statue at its base battered by time. The monument’s broken top, at first glance a sign of neglect, could actually be a nod to Victorian symbolism: a “broken column” often signified a life cut short or, as in Hannah’s case, the passing of a family’s matriarch.

Hannah Smith, born in 1817 in Worcestershire, England, journeyed across continents – first to America, then to Australia. She settled in Montville in her 80s, keeping house for her son, Edward, and providing a gathering place for her sprawling family. Her resilience, pragmatism, and strength became the foundation for future generations, including her daughter-in-law Jane “Jinny” Smith, the protagonist of Cate’s novel Through Her Eyes. Jinny, Montville’s first postmistress and storekeeper, helped shape the thriving, close-knit community that endures to this day.

Family, memory, and the challenge of preservation

During her research, Cate reached out to Smith descendants across Australia and her literary quest soon became a family mission: the restoration of 15 Smith family graves at Mapleton. But Cate and her cousin, Donna Klease, quickly learned that grave restoration is more than a matter of weeding and scrubbing headstones.

First comes the legal maze. In Queensland, the right and responsibility to maintain or restore a grave rests with the Burial Rights Holder – a status that must be proven through Council records and succession documents. Heritage-listed cemeteries, like Mapleton, require additional layers of approval: only qualified heritage stonemasons may carry out physical repairs, and any intervention must respect conservation principles and local government regulations.

The process is rigorous, designed to protect history as much as individual memory. Succession is clear but demanding.

The Digital Future of Remembrance

While the bureaucracy is daunting, Cate discovered a 21st-century alternative: smart memorial plaques. These devices, blending bronze with digital technology, offer an intuitive platform for sharing life stories. Visitors can scan the plaque to access biographies, photographs, and family memories – transforming a static headstone into a dynamic, interactive tribute.

If Hannah’s grave were fitted with such a plaque, it would tell a story like this:

Hannah Smith

Born: March 1817, Birtsmorton, England. Died: 17 April 1901, Montville.
A matriarch whose spirit crossed oceans – from Worcestershire to Connecticut, Redland Bay to Montville. Mother of twelve, she was a tireless worker and a force that held her family together across continents. Her home was always open, her advice sought by neighbours and kin alike. Seven generations on, her descendants honour her resilience, courage and legacy.
“Perhaps it is this very strength and energy, seen in Hannah, that has persisted down through the generations to all of her descendants.”

 “Hannah’s life was epic, but her memory risked fading beneath lichen and bureaucracy,” said Cate. “Now, with technology, we can share her story with anyone who visits her grave – or anyone, anywhere, who wants to know where we came from.”

A cemetery’s past, and its living community

Mapleton Cemetery, with its century-old graves and bushland setting, is a testament to the region’s pioneers and the communities they built. The site’s heritage listing acknowledges its importance in tracing the patterns of settlement, faith and resilience that shaped the Sunshine Coast.

What began as research for a novel has become a family’s act of remembrance, blending old and new ways of honouring the past. For Cate and her kin, restoring Hannah’s grave is not just about stone and marble – it’s about reconnecting with the stories that made them, and ensuring those stories live on, both in print and in the digital world.

Hannah Smith.

The Obelisk Monument marking Hannah’s grave at Mapleton Cemetery.