Cairns War Cemetery

• Country Australia
• Total identified casualties 119 Find these casualties
• Region Queensland
• Identified casualties from Second World War
• GPS Coordinates Latitude: -16.90787, Longitude: 145.75352

Location information

Cairns is a town and seaport on Trinity Bay on the north-eastern coast of Queensland, and is 2,029 kilometres north-west of Brisbane. This cemetery is located within Manunda (Martyn Street) Cemetery, which is located at the end of Martyn Street, off Bruce Highway. A paved entrance leads to the war cemetery from an internal roadway of the civil cemetery. Immediately to the left of the entrance is a stone seat into the back of which, facing the approach, is set a panel bearing the name "Cairns War Cemetery". On the right is a stone pier containing a bronze box in which the register is kept. Opposite the entrance stands the Cross of Sacrifice.

History information

After the first Japanese raid on Darwin, on 19 February 1942, a shuttle service of small merchant ships between Cairns and Darwin was introduced. Cairns was also an important air base, from which two Catalina General Reconnaissance Bomber Squadrons (Nos. 11 and 20) operated.

Cairns War Cemetery contains 99 Commonwealth and 19 Dutch war graves of the Second World War.