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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.
HTC Highlight: 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.
HTC Honor Roll
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 to get more information, watch a how-to video, and download the application.
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Re-Cap: Hands-On Workshops
 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. The Endowment and the Education Program Fund is administered by the Friends of the THC.
Read more 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.
Dia de los Muertos at San Pedro Cemetery
The Cemetery Preservation Program recently celebrated Día de Los Muertos at San Pedro Cemetery (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.
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In preparation for the event, the San Pedro Cemetery Association collaborated with community partners like the Centro Cultural Hispano de San Marcos. 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
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 in Leander, where The Texas Chainsaw Massacre was filmed in 1974. Wow, that was 50 years ago! Happy anniversary y’all!
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The rural community of Bagdad 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 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, the first postmaster of Bagdad, which is the tallest monument in the cemetery.
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 in Austin, in particular To Serve: Honoring Military Veterans Buried in Austin's Cemeteries. 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 and ArcGIS StoryMaps. Remember that because the exhibits are digital, you have the opportunity to add and correct information as you learn!
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