Agua Nueva Cemetery

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Agua Nueva Cemetery, out in Jim Hogg County. Now, some places earn their history quietly, out of sight of the main roads, tucked along the edge of land that families worked for generations before they ever thought to stay the night. Agua Nueva is one of those places.

The Agua Nueva Cemetery sits in southeastern Jim Hogg County, and it was established in the mid-nineteenth century by the Ramírez family. For a long time, the men and the vaqueros would come out to work this land, the land in and around Agua Nueva, and then ride back. Back to Ciudad Mier, over in Tamaulipas, where the families kept their permanent homes until the 1880s.

That was the pattern, generation after generation. Work the land, return to town. But things were shifting.

As threats from Native Americans diminished, the men and vaqueros began staying longer. And then the families started staying too. Permanently.

Two people stand at the center of that transition. Jesús Ramírez García, born 1851, died 1922, was heir to the Agua Nueva de Arriba land grant. His wife, Ricardita Ramírez de Ramírez, born 1849, died 1920, was heir to the Agua Nueva de Abajo land grant.

Two grants, two heirs, one family planting roots in the soil they'd long tended. Beginning in the 1880s, they lived permanently on this land. The cemetery itself sits on the northern boundary of the Agua Nueva de Abajo land grant, on the central side of what the old families called the lagunas cuatas, the twin lakes that form when the heavy rains come through.

You won't always find water there. But when the sky opens up, those lakes appear, and the cemetery keeps its watch between them. Now, the ancestral records tell us something about who was buried here first.

Cowboys. And young children. Their graves were marked with mesquite crosses, simple, made from what the land offered, and every bit as permanent in their way as carved stone.

The oldest marked grave that still stands belongs to Mrs. Celedonia Leyva Narváez, who died in 1900. Her resting place is an above-ground bóveda, a vault, built from local stone.

Two other bóvedas survive alongside hers. One belongs to José María Ramírez, born 1818, died 1902, who was Ricardita's father. The other belongs to Concepción García de Ramírez, born 1820, died 1904, who was Jesús' mother.

Three vaults of local stone, holding the people who came before. Many generations of descendants of families from this area have been laid to rest at Agua Nueva Cemetery. Among them, six generations of the Gregorio Perez Martinez family.

Six generations. That's not just history, that's a family tree with its roots sunk deep into Jim Hogg County soil. And here's the part that'll make you stop and think.

For all that Jesús and Ricardita built here, for all the permanence they brought to this place, they are not buried in this cemetery. When their time came, they were buried in Rio Grande City. The land they settled holds everyone but them.

The Agua Nueva Cemetery is a reminder of the generations of Spanish and Mexican land owners who worked and settled this ground. It offers a glimpse into the culture of the Texas border, the vaqueros, the land grants, the bóvedas of local stone, the mesquite crosses. A world that shaped this part of Texas, still resting quietly in the southeastern corner of Jim Hogg County, right beside the twin lakes that only appear when the rain decides to show up.

What the marker says

Located in southeastern Jim Hogg County, the Agua Nueva Cemetery was established in the mid-19th century by the Ramírez family. Until the 1880s, members of the Ramírez family lived in Ciudad Mier, Tamaulipas, but for generations had worked the land in and around Agua Nueva. As threats from Native Americans diminished, the men and vaqueros stayed longer and families began to stay permanently. Jesús Ramírez García (1851-1922), heir to the Agua Nueva de Arriba land grant, and his wife, Ricardita Ramírez de Ramírez (1849-1920), heir to the Agua Nueva de Abajo land grant, lived permanently on this land beginning in the 1880s. The cemetery is located on the northern boundary of the Agua Nueva de Abajo land grant on the central side of the lagunas cuatas or twin lakes that form in heavy rain. Ancestral records indicate that the first people buried in the cemetery were cowboys and young children. Their graves were marked with mesquite crosses. The oldest marked grave is that of Mrs. Celedonia Leyva Narváez (d. 1900) whose above-ground bóveda or vault is made of local stone. The other existing bóvedas are those of Ricardita’s father, José María Ramírez (1818-1902) and Jesús’ mother, Conception Garcia de Ramírez (1820-1904). Many generations of descendants of families in the area are buried at Agua Nueva Cemetery, including six generations of the Gregorio Perez Martinez family. Surprisingly, Jesús and Ricardita are not buried here but in Rio Grande City. The Agua Nueva Cemetery is a reminder of the generations of Spanish and Mexican land owners who worked and settled this land and provides a glimpse into the culture of the Texas border. Historic Texas Cemetery – 2012