Texas State Cemetery

The Texas State Cemetery (TSC) is a cemetery located on about 22 acres (8.9 ha) just east of downtown Austin, the capital of the U.S. state of Texas. Originally the burial place of Edward Burleson, Texas Revolutionary general and vice-president of the Republic of Texas, it was expanded into a Confederate cemetery during the Civil War. Later it was expanded again to include the graves and cenotaphs of prominent Texans and their spouses.

Texas State Cemetery
Texas State Cemetery entrance
Location901 Navasota Street
Austin, Texas, U.S.
Coordinates30°16′01″N 97°43′34″W
Built1851
MPSEast Austin MRA
NRHP reference No.86001085
Added to NRHPMay 12, 1986

It is a popular tourist attraction and colloquially referred to as the "Arlington of Texas" because of the renown of those interred and proximity to the seat of government.[1]

The cemetery is divided into two sections. The smaller one contains around 900 graves of prominent Texans, while the larger has over 2,000 marked graves of Confederate veterans and widows. There is room for 7,500 interments; the cemetery is about half full, after including plots chosen by people who are eligible for burial.

Burial guidelines

The guidelines on who may be buried within the Texas State Cemetery were first established in 1953, and are currently set by Texas state law. Currently, all persons to be buried in the cemetery must be one of the following:[2]

  • A former member of the legislature or a member who dies in office.
  • A former elected state official or an official who dies in office (e.g., Governors of Texas, Lieutenant Governors of Texas, state Attorneys-General and departmental commissioners).
  • State official appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Legislature who served at least 10 years in the office. After September 1, 2015, this criterion may be used only upon approval of the State Cemetery Committee if it finds the official made a significant contribution to Texas history.[3]
  • Individual designated by governor's proclamation, concurrent resolution of the Legislature, or order of the State Cemetery Committee; but only after approval of the committee if it finds the individual made a significant contribution to Texas history. The statute as written permits the committee to deny burial under this criterion even if requested by the governor or Legislature.
  • The spouse of anyone meeting the above criteria.
  • The child of an eligible member, but only if he or she was dependent on another due to a long-standing physical or mental condition during the lifetime of one of the child's parents.

History
Texas flags flying at the cemetery
Confederate graves
Monument to the wounded of America's wars
Meditation area
Antonio Briones Headstone in the Texas State Cemetary

After the death of Edward Burleson in 1851, the Texas Legislature arranged for his burial on land formerly belonging to Andrew Jackson Hamilton. In 1854, the Legislature established a monument at Burleson's grave-site for $1,000 and purchased the surrounding land. The burial ground was virtually ignored until the Civil War, when Texas Confederate officers killed in battle were buried there. In 1864 and 1866 more land was purchased for veterans' burials. An area of 1-acre (4,000 m2) was also set aside for graves of Union veterans (all but one later removed, to Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio). The remaining Union soldier is Antonio Briones, who was left at the request of his family. He is interred alone in the far northeast corner of the cemetery.

Because the Texas Confederate Men's Home and the Confederate Women's Home were located in Austin, more than two thousand Confederate veterans and widows are interred at the State Cemetery. Most were buried after 1889. The last Confederate veterans in the Cemetery were reinterred in 1944; the last widow, in 1963.

In 1932, the State Cemetery was little known and had no roads. There was a dirt road running through the grounds of the Cemetery linked to what was then called Onion Creek Highway. The road kept its highway status when Texas historian Louis Kemp brought it to the attention of the Texas Highway Department that the road running through the Cemetery should be paved. The roads, which are officially designated as State Highway 165, are dedicated to Kemp, and were for a time known as "Lou Kemp Highway". Kemp was also the driving force behind the reinterment of many early Texas figures in time for the Texas Centennial in 1936.

The cemetery was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1986, but by the early 1990s, the State Cemetery had fallen into disrepair—suffering from vandalism and decay—and was unsafe to visit. In 1994, after noting the condition of the Cemetery, Lieutenant Governor Bob Bullock initiated a three-year project that added a visitor center and renovated the cemetery. In 1997, there was a re-dedication and a reopening of the State Cemetery.

A three-person Texas State Cemetery committee oversees operations at the cemetery. Thomas N. "Tom" Sellers (appointed by Governor Greg Abbott) is chairman. James L. Bayless (Speaker's appointment) and Carolyn Hodges (appointee of the lieutenant governor) also serve. Nathan Stephens is the Administrator and the senior historian is Will Erwin.

Former Governor and United States President George W. Bush announced his intention to be buried in the State Cemetery. However, in August 2018, Bush decided he and his wife will be buried at his presidential center following their deaths.

Statistics

As of 2023, buried in the Texas State Cemetery are:

Davis Guards Medal recipients
  • Michael Carr (Section:Confederate Field, Section 2 (D) Row:Q Number:34)
  • David Fitzgerald (Section:Confederate Field, Section 1 (F) Row:P Number:7)
  • John Flood (Section:Confederate Field, Section 2 (D) Row:V Number:21)
  • William Hardin (Section:Confederate Field, Section 1 (F) Row:K Number:15)
  • Thomas Sullivan (Confederate Field, Section 2 (D) Row:U Number:18)

Notable interments

Governors of Texas

Texas Rangers
  • Stephen F. Austin
  • Willis Thomas Avery
  • Jesse Billingsley
  • Joseph Graves Booth
  • John Watkins Bracken
  • Guy Morrison Bryan
  • Ben Franklin Bryant
  • George Christopher Brakefield
  • Edward Burleson
  • James Hughes Callahan
  • Walter P. Callaway
  • William Angelo Dial
  • Homer Garrison
  • John Grumbles
  • Joseph Sidney Fletcher
  • William Polk Hardeman
  • John Reynolds Hughes
  • Ben McCulloch
  • Charles Edward Miller
  • Daniel Webster Roberts
  • James Lambert "Skippy" Rundell
  • William Read Scurry
  • Lamartine Pemberton "Lamar" Seeker
  • William Tom
  • William Alexander Anderson "Big Foot" Wallace
  • Eleazar Louis Ripley Wheelock
  • John Lemon Wilbarger
  • Robert McAlpin Williamson
  • Thomas C. Wilson
  • William Delpard Wilson

Other

See also

References
  1. Hashimoto, Raoul. "The Texas State Cemetery, "The Arlington of Texas"". Texas Escapes Online Magazine.
  2. Texas Government Code, Chapter 2165 (Section 2165.256, subsections (d), (e) & (f))
  3. HB 2206, 2015 Texas Legislature (Section 2)
  4. "Beto, George John." Handbook of Texas. Retrieved on August 8, 2010.
  5. The Last Man on the Moon DVD 'Final Resting Place' 2015
  6. "Alexander Campbell Earle". Archived from the original on January 25, 2010.
  7. "Paul John Hilbert [9430]". Archived from the original on September 4, 2018.
  8. "Houston Association of REALTORS®". Archived from the original on August 18, 2011. Retrieved June 1, 2011.
  9. Texas State Cemetery
  10. Nichols, Irby C. Jr. (June 15, 2010). "TTerrell, Alexander Watkins". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  11. Texas State Cemetery. "Mary Andrus Jones".
  12. Texas State Cemetery
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