As European settlement in the Pambula district began to establish itself along more permanent lines, the basic infrastructure that came with a township also had to be considered. One of the most pressing needs would have been a cemetery in which to inter the dead.

Pambula’s first such ground was established on the flats, where the original village was laid out by Surveyor Townsend in 1843. The area also featured a school, churches, public pound, hotel and businesses, together with the huts and houses of the inhabitants. It is not known exactly when that spot was first used for interment, but an 1853 letter signed by “R. B.” described the “Panbula” township, which included “…an acre of burial ground…” The remaining grave stones also provide some indication of the years the site was in use, with dates ranging between 1851 and 1876. Numerous certificates for other local residents record their burial at “Yowaka”, which is likely to refer to the old cemetery, the area on the southern side of the river being commonly known by that name during the early days of European settlement. 

Evidence indicates that less than 60 burials took place on the site before, like most facilities associated with the original settlement, residents began to relocate their activities to higher ground to the north and south.