Here's a story about an attraction that has some grave implications.
Yes, I'm shameless.
Sydney's first burial ground was located in the downtown area around 1792. By 1820, a new cemetery had opened for, um, business. A couple of thousand people had been buried there. Just about anyone could have been found a resting place in that spot, from civic leaders to criminals. Remember, it wasn't that big a town then.
The old place went straight downhill from there, to the point where the graves were essentially unmarked. It would have taken a lot of digging to figure out who was down there. The City Corporation needed a home for its operations, and the old gravesite was picked to host a new building in 1868. It finally opened in 1878, and a new wing was soon added.
The Town Hall has gone through a variety of changes and renovations over the years, but it retains its stately nature. The inside has some areas that are still grand, looking fresh out of the late 19th century. Along the way, however, work done on the grounds frequently uncovers some graves. There are no records of the burials from way back when, but scientists have learned quite a bit about customs in such circumstances when a corpse is disturbed by progress.
Tours of Town Hall are open to the public; that might be a good idea for a rainy afternoon if you are in the neighborhood. But, we can take a look here.
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