Show All Answers

1. How can I locate a family member interned in the cemetery?

Call Government Centre at (780) 865-6018, Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Or, send an email cemetery@hinton.ca listing the full name, birth and passing date of the person you are trying to locate.

2. How do I go about purchasing a plot or columbarium niche?

You may do so at the Government Centre, located at 2nd Floor of 131 Civic Centre Road. Town staff will explain all your options and related fees.

3. What can I place at a grave site?

• No iron or ironworks, glass bottles, earthen jars, metal or wooden boxes containing artificial wreaths or flowers or other memorial tributes shall be allowed in any section of the said cemetery, and any so placed shall be entirely removed by the Supervisor.
  
• No shrubs, trees or flowers may be planted in any part of the said cemetery other than those planted by the Supervisor in areas reserved for such planting.
  
• The Supervisor or his designate shall have authority to have removed from any grave and weed or grass, funeral designs or floral pieces which have become wilted, or any other article or things which are in his opinion, unsightly.
  
• Without restricting the generality of Part 6.0, no person shall erect upon a grave any curbs, fences, railings, walls, copings, trellis, hedges, trees, or shrubs or the like, and where any of the same have been previously erected on or around a grave, and have by reason of age or neglect become unsightly or objectionable, the Supervisor, may cause same to be removed but, in so doing, will leave areas in a safe, proper and neat condition.
  
• Where the Supervisor finds any monument or other structure upon a grave in a state of disrepair, unsightly or objectionable, or directly interfering with routine cemetery maintenance, he shall notify the owner in writing thereof and require that repairs be promptly undertaken. Any monument or structure not repaired within thirty days, after a notice in writing has been forwarded to the said owner at his last known address provided to the Town, may be removed from the plot.

4. When will the plots have grass on them?

Plots will have grass seeded after they have settled and been tamped. Typically this happens each spring or 3 weeks after interment.

5. Why isn't the ground level at the cemetery?

Over time, burial materials would disintegrate, and each year, spring and summer rains cause settling of the ground around these plots. New soil is added and tamped to level older plots whenever significant settling is seen to be a safety hazard.

6. What kind of monument can we have placed at a grave site?

Please refer to the Cemetery Bylaw Monuments for specific details and instructions. Cemetery Bylaw #796 (PDF)

7. Can I pour my own foundation for a monument, or create my own monument?

All foundations and monuments must be installed / created by a registered monument company to ensure town standards are followed, and insurance is in place should a neighbouring monument be damaged during installation.

8. Does the Town of Hinton allow 'environmentally friendly green' burials?

The town does not allow environmentally friendly green burials at this time.

9. Do I have to pay ongoing care fees for the Woodlawn Cemetery?

No, all perpetual care fees are covered by the town.

10. My family members are all planning on cremations. How many urns can be placed in 1 plot?

You can have up to 4 cremations in 1 regular cemetery plot.

11. Can we place a bench at the grave site?

At present, benches may not be placed at grave sites. However, there may be an opportunity to utilize the town memorial bench program to have a bench placed nearby in their honour. For more information on this program, contact the Maintenance Services Supervisor at 780-865-6024.

12. What are the current conditions of the Cemetery?

At the moment (summer 2019) we are addressing at least one out of three graves (far more than normal sunken volumes of one in five) showing a high need for additional soil (and time) resources. Some water table shifting is being observed even for grave sides older than 20+ years.

Parks are continuing to be engaged in maintenance of this area, but ongoing wet conditions is complicating the work, including leading to tracks of machinery, etc. in the area. The Town is limited by weather and soil conditions, and weather patterns are anticipated to remain wet for the near future.

13. How does the Town Take Care of Graves - New

New graves are covered over with gravel/dirt layer up to 1 foot below grade / finalized with black soil layer. These graves are then monitored for settling and topped off as needed.

With administration support, gravestone placement may be arranged and separately placed on undisturbed soil. 

The seeding of grass will occur as per season and conditions requirements. 

14. How does the Town Take Care of Graves - Old

Older graves are monitored seasonally for settling and topped off as needed, in addition to re-seeding (grass) as required.

The Town also offers admin support connecting with the family to discuss actions regarding grave stones in the case of issues like sinking/breakage.

15. When does topping off of graves occur?

During the mowing of gravesites the observation of required top off of soil is referred to the Parks Supervisor to be taken care of. On average graves get topped up in the first ten years roughly bi-annually. During heavy rainfall periods the water table changes and will increase the amount of sites needing top up (to over one out of 5 graves).