Allen Cemetery

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker says about Allen Cemetery in Henderson County. Now settle in, because this one's a story about roots, and the kind of people who put them down so deep they're still holding ground today. This burial ground has been serving the residents of Murchison since the late 1800s.

And Murchison itself, named for Confederate officer T.F. Murchison, grew up as a station on the Texas and St. Louis Railway.

People migrated in from other states, and before long that little town had itself a school, a post office, a cotton gin, and several businesses and churches. Farmers worked the land, growin corn, cotton, and peaches. Not a bad life, if the weather held.

Around 1902, a man named Gideon F. Dodson made his way down from Tennessee. He wasn't exactly arrivin cold.

His son, Hubert, was already living in Murchison, and Gideon came along with his wife, Molly, born a McCarver, and his children in tow. Dodson was a large landowner and a farmer, and he served as a unity school board trustee. He also purchased land bordering Kickapoo Creek, and here's where the story takes a quiet but lasting turn: he donated acreage for a cemetery that was already in use.

That's the kind of move that echoes. The oldest marked grave here belongs to James Mack Pettiet, dating to 1890. Another early interment is J.C.

Allen, who died in 1893, and whose family gave this burial ground the name it carries to this day. The Hardin, Slaton, McGlaun, Caldwell, Adams, and Perry families are among the other early pioneers resting here. Community leaders, farmers, ranchers, and veterans from conflicts dating all the way back to the Civil War, they're all represented.

The Allen Cemetery Association cares for the grounds, which features vertical stones and fraternal organization markers standing quiet watch over it all. Allen Cemetery is still there, still serving, still reminding anyone who passes through Henderson County that the people who built Murchison didn't just pass through. They stayed.

What the marker says

This burial ground has served the residents of Murchison since the late 1800s. The Murchison Community, named for confederate officer T.F. Murchison, developed as a station on the Texas and St. Louis railway. A number of individuals and families migrated to Murchison from other states, and the town soon boasted a school, post office, cotton gin, and several businesses and churches. Most area residents were farmers who grew crops including corn, cotton and peaches. Around 1902, Gideon F. Dodson moved to Murchison from Tennessee, joining his son, Hubert, who was already living here. He was joined by his wife, Molly (McCarver), and his children. Dodson was a large landowner and farmer, and served as a unity school board trustee. He purchased land bordering Kickapoo Creek and donated acreage for this cemetery, which was already in use. The oldest marked grave here is of James Mack Pettiet, dating to 1890. Another early interment is of J.C. Allen (d. 1893), whose family is the namesake of this burial ground. The Hardin, Slaton, McGlaun, Caldwell, Adams and Perry families are among other early pioneers represented here. Also interred are community leaders, farmers, ranchers and veterans from conflicts dating to the civil war. The Allen Cemetery association cares for the burial ground, which features vertical stones and fraternal organization markers. Today, Allen Cemetery continues to serve as a reminder of pioneers.