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November 8, 2024






Colorful Mexican tile cross with marigold flower decorations for Day of the Dead in the San Pedro Cemetery

El Madero monument at San Pedro Cemetery in San Marcos

Grave Concerns in Texas, November 2024

A Publication of the Cemetery Preservation Program

"The Cemetery Preservation Program of the THC supports cemetery preservation efforts in each of the 254 counties across the state. Cemetery Preservation Program staff provides consultation, educational materials, and training to concerned citizens and public officials. In addition, the program offers the Historic Texas Cemetery (HTC) designation and maintains a statewide inventory of cemeteries to record and protect historic burial grounds. Click here to learn more about our work. [ [link removed] ]"

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HTC Highlight: McNeil Cemetery
Photograph of historic headstone for Mr. Rendon in McNeil Cemetery

One of our favorite Historic Texas Cemetery (HTC) applications to process this summer was for the McNeil Cemetery, located in Williamson County, not far from the Travis County line. This little cemetery is unique because it served as the primary burial ground for the people who lived and worked in the company town that supported Austin White Lime Company.

*READ MORE* [ [link removed] ]


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HTC Honor Roll

Official Historic Texas Cemetery Medallion

We’re thrilled to announce that nine cemeteries have received HTC designations since August 15! Congratulations to the following cemeteries:


* Lozano Family Cemetery, Atascosa County
* Nada Cemetery, Colorado County
* Shiloh Cemetery, Comanche County
* Mt. Olive Baptist Church Cemetery, Fort Bend Co.
* Pennington Cemetery, Houston County
* Belgrade Cemetery, Newton County
* Mt. Gillion Cemetery, Shelby County
* Gates-Perry Cemetery, Washington County
* McNutt-Allen Cemetery, Williamson County

Want to designate a historic cemetery you care about? Visit our website [ [link removed] ] to get more information, watch a how-to video, and download the application.



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Re-Cap: Hands-On Workshops
Collage of four color photographs of headstone repair workshops in Texas historic cemeteries

We had a great time last month teaching folks how to properly clean and repair historic gravestones. The workshops, which were held in Henderson County, were the very first training events held with support from the Cemetery Preservation Education Program Fund of the Lana Hughes Nelson Endowment Fund for Cemetery Preservation [ [link removed] ]. The Endowment and the Education Program Fund is administered by the Friends of the THC [ [link removed] ].

Read more [ [link removed] ] about this fun and impactful training event, including about one participant’s personal connection to two gravestones that were restored by the workshop trainees. Plus, get a link to a video that teaches you the right way to clean a historic gravestone without harming it.

*LEARN MORE* [ [link removed] ]


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Dia de los Muertos at San Pedro Cemetery

Photo of a colorful traditional Mexican altar with photographs of families buried at San Pedro Cemetery in San Marcos, Texas

The Cemetery Preservation Program recently celebrated Día de Los Muertos at San Pedro Cemetery [ [link removed] ] (HTC Alumnus) in San Marcos, featuring the annual Flores y Ofrenda event. This vibrant celebration included family photos, offerings, cempasúchil flowers, pan de muerto, aguas frescas, and live mariachi music, all set against the backdrop of the cemetery's colorful tile crosses.



Dia de los Muertos decorations on a grave

In preparation for the event, the San Pedro Cemetery Association collaborated with community partners like the Centro Cultural Hispano de San Marcos [ [link removed] ]. They organized clean-ups, decorations, and preservation workshops where families could honor their loved ones by scanning photographs and creating tributes for display.

The community's commitment to preserving centuries-old Mexican American traditions is evident through the cemetery association's efforts. Established in 1909 when two acres were purchased for burials, San Pedro Cemetery may be one of the longest-operating Mexican American cemetery associations in Central Texas. The dedication to maintaining these traditions ensures that ancestors are honored and remembered through ongoing preservation efforts.



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Famous Graves—Bagdad Cemetery

Color image of tall man wearing a cowboy hat and a young woman walking through a historic cemetery

It’s November and we’re still in the Halloween spirit! That’s why this time we’re not just highlighting one famous grave but thousands of famous graves. This month the honor goes to everyone buried at the Bagdad Cemetery [ [link removed] ] in Leander, where "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre [ [link removed] ]" was filmed in 1974. Wow, that was 50 years ago! Happy anniversary y’all!



The rural community of Bagdad [ [link removed] ] was only around from 1854 to 1882, back when it boasted a post office, a hotel, two schools, three churches, and more. The cemetery dates to 1857 and was recognized with a historical marker [ [link removed] ] in 1972, two years before director Tobe Hooper arrived with the low-budget production of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre". Although the cemetery's screentime is brief, the groundbreaking horror film restored some thunder to the town of Bagdad nearly a century after losing its population to Leander in 1882. Watch for the film's ghoulish opening scene involving the monument to Col. C.C. Mason [ [link removed] ], the first postmaster of Bagdad, which is the tallest monument in the cemetery.

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Online Exhibit Ideas for Cemeteries

This Veterans Day weekend, we invite members of cemetery associations and county historical commissions to browse the prolific catalog of online exhibits published by our friends at the Oakwood Cemetery Chapel [ [link removed] ] in Austin, in particular "To Serve": Honoring Military Veterans Buried in Austin's Cemeteries [ [link removed] ]. Online exhibits like these allow cemetery associations and historians to highlight the diverse stories of people buried in their community's cemetery through maps, oral histories, photos, videos, and more. When thinking about interactive cemetery volunteer projects, consider starting a collaboration with local veterans groups on research for an online exhibit. There's plenty of easy-to-use platforms like WordPress [ [link removed] ] and ArcGIS StoryMaps [ [link removed] ]. Remember that because the exhibits are digital, you have the opportunity to add and correct information as you learn!

Photo of digital exhibit homepage for "To Serve: Honoring Veterians Buried in Austin's Municipal Cemeteries"




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RP25 Header [ [link removed] ]
Cemetery Programming at Real Places 2025

The THC’s Real Places conference brings together anyone interested in protecting our past so they can work directly with industry-leading experts and each other to learn practical, actionable solutions they can apply in their community. The topics covered reflect the wide range of fields involved in history and historic preservation, including cemeteries.

Real Places 2025 will feature these sessions on historic cemeteries:


* An Old Cemetery at the Brink—Can the Graves of the Farmworkers be Saved?
* Best Practices for Restoration and Repair at Historic Cemeteries
* Cemetery Associations: Turning Your Vision into Reality
* Every Stone Has a Story: Bethany Cemetery and the Fight to Save Black Austin History

These sessions might also be of interest to people involved in cemetery preservation:


* Is that Where it Was?—Using Georeferencing to Better Understand Historic Maps
* Who's Who in Texas' Preservation World
* Secret Ingredients for a Successful Preservation Grant Project
* Truth and Reconciliation: Addressing Highway Construction Impacts on African American History

View the full conference schedule [ [link removed] ] to see other sessions that can help you advance your organization, your mission, and your preservation projects.

Presented again by the Friends of the Texas Historical Commission in partnership with Phoenix I Restoration and Construction, LLC, Real Places 2025 will take place April 23–25 both online and in person at the Renaissance Austin Hotel.

*ACT NOW* to save up to $155—early-bird savings only last through December 20. Additional discounts are available for students and organizations that register multiple people at the same time, and hotel stipends are available on a limited basis to qualified individuals—don’t delay, as hotel stipend applications are due by December 20!

*REGISTER NOW* [ [link removed] ]


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HTCs in the News

Restoring Williamson County’s Lost Cemeteries [ [link removed] ]—The Sun (Williamson CHC Cemetery Restoration Volunteers)

Grave Concerns: Houston History Remains Buried in Timbergrove Backyards [ [link removed] ]—The Leader News (Vollmer Cemetery, Harris Co.)

Voices of the Past Cemetery Tour in Montgomery Texas Teaches Junior High Students “The History of the Texas Flag” [ [link removed] ]—Montgomery County News (New Cemetery)

Cole Family Cemetery Gets Texas Historical Marker [ [link removed] ]—Record Tribune (Cole Family Cemetery, Bosque County)

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