THE team at Collier Trenerry celebrated their 101st birthday this year, and to mark the special occasion they blew the dust off an old burial register from 1929.
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The historically significant piece helped to identify the names of those laid to rest in unmarked graves across Griffith, while also uncovering previously unknown family history between both Collier and Trenerry.
"10 years before the register began, Carol's grandfather [Joe Trenerry] started with the original funeral director, a Mr Earl," owner Greg Collier said.
"I thought that Joe Trenerry had bought out Mr Earl, but at some stage they must have been in partnership, then Joe took over.
"After that my grandfather [Jack Collier] and a Mr Brown got involved, who became the competition in town.
"The significance is that on both sides of our family there's documentation of how it all began, and you can see where we've ended up."
The register contains complete records of the old cemetery and funeral directors in town, with handwritten entries that are still legible today.
The historical piece was gifted to Carol Collier by her father, which he received from her grandfather.
"It also shows where people are buried, their locations," owner Carol Collier said.
"It's something that I really treasure, it's more of a keepsake for me than anything else."
Records from 1929 to 1969 were entered in stunning calligraphy by Joe Trenerry and his colleagues on a weekly basis for decades.
The 1900s entrepreneur moved to Griffith from Broken Hill, working in a number of trades including tank building, plumbing and bricklaying. He also owned a sawmill and a brickworks.
"He was an extremely versatile man," Greg Collier said.
"He's a bloke that I would like to have met, but unfortunately I never did."
Collier Trenerry have received offers for the historical treasure from the Genealogical Society, but have decided to hold onto the family heirloom.
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