Southern Downs group Lost Faces of Warwick and Surrounds locating and restoring graves of early settlers

For 30 years a fifth generation Southern Downs man has been researching not only his own ancestry, but the history and burial locations of some of the region’s earliest known settlers. Here’s their story.

Sarcophagus at the Warwick Cemetery.

A historical group born out of Warwick has been on a quest for the past three years to locate and restore the “lost faces” of the district and surrounds, and now has managed to adopt a wider membership of more than 10,000 historical enthusiasts.

The Lost Faces of Warwick and Surrounds is the brain child of the Rose City’s born and bred, fifth generation founding family of the region David Owens, who has been researching his own ancestry for the better part of 30 years and has a close personal connection with one of the group’s latest projects.

“My dad was a railway worker and we actually grew up on a property out at Wallangarra,” Mr Owens said.

“My mother and sister still live out at Warwick.”

By day Mr Owens works as a rehabilitation case manager and has for the past 20 years, while managing the various other projects the team have going on, including a deep dive into the archives to locate the convicts that lived and worked in Warwick and the surrounds, locating burial records of the Warwick cemetery as far back as the 1800s, to name just a few.

The headstone of David Owens ancestor, Dan Owen who was found at Rosenthal Station. Photo: David Owens

“I actually have a personal connection with one of the convicts, although he has no ‘s’ in his surname. He’s believed to be the third earliest European death in the district,” Mr Owens said.

“He died in 1847 and it’s believed he was thrown off a horse and potentially eaten by wild dogs. He’s buried along with his headstone at Rosenthal Station.”

Mr Owens said he was alerted to the location of his ancestor by Southern Downs Regional Council who currently own the block of land where the headstone and remains were found. Currently, there are negotiations occurring with council as to whether the remains will be removed once sale of the land is completed.

The headstone of Southern Downs early settler Ralph Reid, located on a property near the border of Queensland and NSW. Photo: David Owens

The founding group of four who are mostly located in the region, work closely with a local historical society who help locate and identify these ‘lost faces’ and so far have been able to determine that the first recorded death in Warwick were still born twins who sadly passed in April of 1856.

Mr Owens said the group have always found landholders to be very accommodating and helpful with their searches for these ‘lost faces’ and have been intrigued by the foundation of the group.

The latest tip off to the group Mr Owens said is a sighting of a headstone belonging to a Ralph Reid, who is supposedly located on a property overlooking Acacia Ridge on the border of Queensland and NSW.

The Lost Faces of Warwick and District can be found on Facebook for anyone who might have enquiries or know the location of a ‘lost face’ on the Southern Downs.