Calvary Catholic Cemetery

Duane's take

The way the marker tells it, here's the story of Calvary Catholic Cemetery in Laredo, Webb County. Now, you might think a cemetery is just a cemetery, but this one came into the world the hard way, and it's been keepin' secrets ever since. Laredo was growing fast in the late 1800s.

The city was filling up, spreading out, and pretty soon it needed a new place to lay its people to rest. This would be Laredo's fourth camposanto, and you'd think that would be a straightforward enough proposition. You'd be wrong.

Efforts to build the cemetery date all the way back to the 1880s. But political considerations, economic transactions, and complaints from residents conspired to delay its use until the turn of the twentieth century. The first burial didn't happen until 1901.

That's a long wait for a place people were going to end up in one way or another. When Calvary Catholic Cemetery finally opened its gates, it didn't stay simple for long. Special sections grew up over the years.

There's Babyland, set aside for infants. There are plots reserved for priests and Marist brothers. Four orders of nuns who served Laredo rest here too: the Ursulines, the Sisters of Divine Providence, the Sisters of Mercy, and the Sisters of the Sacred Heart.

And for the laity, sections named Resurrection Garden, Pavilion Garden, and Waterfall Garden offer a final resting place with a certain quiet dignity. Soldiers are interred here as well, Civil War veterans among them. And here is where the story really leans in close.

Two brothers named Santos and Refugio Benavides, men who gained fame in the Civil War, are buried in this ground. So is Bishop Pedro Verdaguer, known also as Peter, who served as Bishop of the Vicariate of Brownsville from 1896 to 1909. Over the decades, the cemetery kept growing.

A mausoleum was added in 1960. A columbarium followed in 2004. Every addition, every name carved in stone, is another thread in the fabric of what Laredo is and where it came from.

Some places take a long time being born. Calvary Catholic Cemetery is proof that what finally gets built, after all those delays and disputes and decades of waiting, can carry a whole city's memory.

What the marker says

Laredo experienced substantial growth in the late 1800s and soon the city needed a new cemetery. The process of creating Laredo’s fourth camposanto, however, was not an easy one. Efforts to build the cemetery date to the 1880s, but political considerations, economic transactions and complaints from residents delayed its use until the turn of the 20th century. Special sections in the cemetery include Babyland (for infants), and plots for burials of priests, Marist brothers and four orders of nuns who served Laredo (Ursulines, Divine Providence, Sisters of Mercy and Sisters of the Sacred Heart). Sections named Resurrection Garden, Pavilion Garden and Waterfall Garden serve as the final resting place for many laity. Soldiers, including Civil War veterans, are also interred here. Santos and Refugio Benavides, brothers who gained fame in the Civil War, and Bishop Pedro (Peter) Verdaguer of the Vicariate of Brownsville, 1896-1909, are among the notable individuals buried in the cemetery. With several additions since the first burial in 1901, including a mausoleum in 1960 and a columbarium in 2004, the cemetery continues to be a reminder of Laredo’s rich heritage. Historic Texas Cemetery – 2005