Churches and Cemeteries
Hall Cemetery, Wakefield
From A Place Apart by Norma Geggie, 1999:
None of the three Protestant churches within the Village of Wakefield had the space for a burial ground, as each of them - Anglican, Methodist, and Presbyterian - bordered the river and were extremely limited in the area of land on which they sat. Consequently, land donated by George Hall became accepted as the community cemetery. This could have been in the 1850s, as this is the period from which the earliest headstones date. George Hall had arrived in Wakefield Township in 1835 and settled on 100 acres of land in Range 1, Lot 1.
A Harvest Home Festival is recorded in early Presbyterian Church records, as being held in Hall's Grove in 1880. The admission fee of twenty-five cents was to go towards the cost of the Rupert Church (which was constructed in 1882). Perhaps there was an area above the cemetery, amongst the tall pines, which lent itself to such an outing.
A grassy hillside bordering George Hall's farmland, possibly a little too sandy for good farming, was a favourable site for this, the earliest of Wakefield's community cemeteries. Today it is edged by massive white pines. One of these majestic trees fell during a storm in 1996, fortunately causing little damage to headstones, but posing a heavy load of work for the crew needing to clear the area.
Legends exist of aboriginal burial sites in this vicinity. A native burial under a large white birch tree is believed to be the first interment at this cemetery.
As well, a group of boulders outside of the cemetery fence at the south end are understood to represent an historic aboriginal burial site.
This graveyard contains the largest number of headstones for original Protestant settlers to the Township. These include Foster Moncrieff, George Hall, William Fairbairn, Jervis Mullen, and Thomas Stevenson, all of whom were listed in the first census of 1842. It is here where the descendants of all of these and many who came in the next wave of settlement, were laid to rest. Some of these headstones have not weathered well. The granite readily available, and the thin white limestone, wear and crumble, and in some cases inadequate foundations have shifted, causing cracking and even fallen stones. The fine headstone erected to the memory of William Fairbairn and his wife Jane Wanless, was one such, and in the 1980s an entirely new stone replaced it. William Fairbairn came to this country as a stonemason, and worked on the Rideau Canal before settling in Wakefield in 1834. Four years later he erected the first flour mill on the falls of the Lapêche River. The original headstone read:
FAIRBAIRN
in honoured memory of the pioneer
William Fairbairn – Millwright,
and his wife Jane Wanless - nurse,
Roxburghshire, Scotland.
1790 – 1867
As in this case, many of the early headstones give a very detailed history of the birthplace of the deceased: Killeleah, Co. Down, Ireland (Thomas Stevenson), Clones, Co. Monaghan, Ireland, (Ann Pritchard), Native of County Donegal, Ireland (John Clarke).
However, apart from this, little is written to tell of the accomplishments of these remarkable people.
The Robert Earle who was memorialized in the Baldwin cemetery together with his wife Charlotte Wright (Baldwin). has a headstone in Hall Cemetery together with his first wife, Elizabeth Trowsse, who died September 17, 1871, aged 62 years.
An early headstone is that of Ruggles Church, son of Stephen and Caroline Wright, d. Jan 19, 1865. AE 8 mos and 14 days.
Census returns indicate that Dr. Stephen Wright was the first medical doctor to serve Wakefield Township from possibly the late 1850s and 1860s. He was the grandson of Thomas Wright, the brother of Philemon, who was commemorated with the 1801 marker in the Old Chelsea Pioneer Cemetery.
Dr. Falls, who followed him in the practice, stayed only ten years or so, but Pioneer monument, Hall Cemetery, Wakefield. the third doctor, a local boy, is buried in Hall Cemetery as well. Nothing on the very fine tall headstone erected for Dr. Hans Stevenson tells of his having been born on one of the original farms and having returned after his training to serve his people tirelessly. The dates give the clue to his too early demise, 58 years, but only stories from the elderly tell of the carriage after carriage of mourners who followed this much beloved physician to his burial in 1911.
We can also trace something of the sadness of the life of Mary Poole, who is recorded on one monument as having been born in 1804 and died in 1876. This possibly is the mother of the little boy, John, whose headstone was unearthed near the Copeland property. If so, she would have been 32 when he died at one month and 26 days in 1836. She is recorded in Hall Cemetery with family who are possibly her grandchildren, as they were born in 1861, 1863, 1870, and 1880. Two infants died in 1863, but the other three died in April, May, and June of the same year, 1884. They were aged 23, 14, and 4 years.
In the summer of 1997, a Pioneer Memorial Committee was set up, under the leadership of Ron Stevenson, a great-great-grandson of an original settler, Thomas Stevenson. Two monuments were installed, one in Hall Cemetery, and the other in MacLaren Cemetery. The bronze plaques memorialize the pioneers from 1827 to 1881, and their descendants buried there. An extensive fund-raising effort made this possible, and a publicity campaign resulted in the gathering of some 160 descendants from across Canada for the unveiling and dedication of these memorials, on August 4, 1997.
In 1961, a Cemetery Board was set up to restore and maintain Hall and MacLaren Cemeteries in Wakefield. With representation from both Anglican and United Churches, it has the responsibility for the sale of burial plots and the maintenance of the sites. In recent years the Board has attempted to raise funds from the interested public towards these costs. Great strides have been made in beautifying Hall Cemetery. An artistic and tastefully laid out area takes advantage of many old fieldstones protruding from the sod, to highlight the difficulty of the first settlers in finding appropriate markers for the earliest burials. This area is contained within cedar fencing, with a sign explaining the project, setting this cemetery out as a true pioneer one. In addition, a flower bed with perennials and shrubs, and again a border of cedar fencing edges the entrance to the cemetery itself. A flagpole and flag were installed in 1998.
The impression one has is of a well-groomed and cared for cemetery where one can stroll and, in reading the epitaphs, gain a sense of history. Hall Cemetery remains active, and although limited in space, will continue to accommodate the needs of local residents for some years.
This large cemetery was recorded by Pat Evans, with Cyril and Kevin Payne in 1985.
Additional resources:
Hall's Cemetery Burial List
George Hall who donated land for the Hall Cemetery published in Up the Gatineau! Volume 2
Hall Cemetery 
from Wakefield Cemeteries
Halls Cemetery images from Find a Grave
List of Gatineau Valley Cemeteries.