Visiting ancestors at a cemetery, Peter and Phyllis McLennan were shocked to discover below the seemingly vacant patches of lawn lay dozens of unknown bodies.
Ellesmere Cemetery, in Tasmania's north-east, was full — yet, many had been laid to rest without a headstone to mark them.
Believing all should have their names recorded for posterity, the McLennans acquired a hand-drawn cemetery map — only to find 100 of the unmarked graves belonged to babies.
"That really hit us hard," Mr McLennan said.
"I thought, 'surely, we can do better than that'."
The McLennans set to work laying down plaques, until every grave in the cemetery was marked.
They have now expanded into other cemeteries in the region, as well as tending to deteriorating headstones.
'Who's done that?'
Part of their joy comes from tracking down living relatives.
The McClennan's efforts have been a gift to people like Aileen Johnston, whose grandmother's headstone was so worn it was unreadable.
Visiting her at nearby Stronach Cemetery, Ms Johnston was thrilled to discover the fresh lettering on a polished surface.
"I was just dumbfounded, this beautiful headstone that stood out, I could read my grandmother's headstone two rows back from her grave," she said.
"I thought, 'who's done that'?"
Ms Johnston was one of the few people to know where her grandfather and uncle shared a plot at Ellesmere Cemetery.
She asked the McLennans to mark the mutual grave, only for them to say "that rings a bell, I think we've done that too".
"After 180 years, my grandfather and my uncle have got a name," Ms Johnston said.
"It is wonderful that I know now I can take my boys up and say, 'well, that's your great grandfather'."
Setting the records straight
The McLennans have helped update official council records along the way.
With assistance from the Dorset Tasmania History Society, they have been able to correct names and dates on headstones.
President Nigel Mercer said the council's records had been thorough, but together they had been able to significantly improve them.
He said discovering graves could be like "detective work", digging into various maps and spreadsheets to uncover what became of people.
"You feel good when you think there was a good chance we've identified where that person is buried because the records have lost track," he said.
In less than two years, they have put down more than 200 headstones, and refurbished more than 150 in the north-east.
And they plan to continue for as long as they can.
"Sadly enough, we should have started 10 years ago because we're not far away from our own plot," Mr McLennan said.
"We've probably got about another good five years' work in front of us with the surrounding cemeteries, and when we've done that, we'll put our paintbrush away and enjoy what we've done."
In recognition of their work, the McLennans were awarded the 2023 Dorset Australia Day Citizens of the Year award.
