“In Honour of the Irish Workers. This half-acre cemetery became the final resting place for many Irish immigrants who died at Chaffey’s Mills during construction of the Rideau Canal.”

It was used throughout the 19th century as the burial ground for local residents, particularly members of the Simmons and Fleming families.  The first burial was that of Joseph Poole on Sept. 12, 1825. He was the father of Mary Ann Poole who was Samuel Chaffey’s wife. Samuel owned the lot and 4 mills on the waterway that ran out of Indian Lake. There are 79 graves of the Rideau Canal construction workers identified by rows of unmarked stones of those who were buried between 1828 and 1831.

The cemetery is on property owned by the Crown as represented by Parks Canada. The Chaffeys Lock & Area Heritage Society maintains the site along with an Outdoor Chapel and Memory Wall. The Cemetery is protected as part of the Canal, a National Historic Site as well as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.