Bobbitt Family Cemetery

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Now, some stories start with a journey, and this one's no different. A.

T. L. Bobbitt, Senior, born in Tennessee in 1826, didn't come to Texas in a straight line.

He came by way of Mississippi, and when he finally arrived in 1846, he wasn't riding in alone. He joined the household of his brother, Roderick R. Bobbitt, right here in San Augustine County.

That's the kind of beginning that sounds simple enough, but give it time. Five years pass, and in 1851, A. T.

L. married a woman named Martha Hobdy, born in 1828, and here's a detail worth sittin' with: she was born near this very site. The land already knew her name before he ever arrived. Together they raised nine children on the family farm, and for a good long while, life just kept moving the way life does.

Then 1873 comes around, and it brings with it the kind of moment that changes a piece of ground forever. Their son, Alfonzo Iza, was buried near the family home, and just like that, this spot became a cemetery. Not by plan, most likely.

By grief. The other family members followed across the years, including A. T.

L. himself, born 1826, gone 1909, and Martha, born 1828, gone 1905, both laid to rest in the same ground she'd known since before she could walk. The marker calls this cemetery one of the few remaining reminders of early Anglo settlement in this area. One of the few.

That's the weight of it. Most of those reminders are gone now. This one's still here.

What the marker says

A. T. L. Bobbitt, Sr. (1826-1909), a native of Tennessee, came to Texas from Mississippi and joined the household of his brother, Roderick R. Bobbitt, in 1846. In 1851, A. T. L. married Martha Hobdy (1828-1905), who was born near this site, and they were the parents of nine children. This cemetery began in 1873 with the burial of their son Alfonzo Iza near their home on the family farm. Other family members, including A. T. L. and Martha, are interred in the graveyard, which is one of the few remaining reminders of early 19th-century Anglo settlement in this area. (2001)