Leesburg Cemetery

Duane's take

The way the marker tells it, here's what happened at Leesburg Cemetery in Camp County. Dwight Hays Townsend, born in 1834 and gone by 1906, donated the land for this cemetery about 1870. That's the kind of gesture that shapes a community long after the man himself is laid to rest.

Before the cemetery even had its footing, two children were already waiting. Their graves were relocated here from the Leesburg schoolyard, and those are thought to be the earliest burials on the site. Think about that for a moment.

The land became a cemetery, and the first souls it received had already been somewhere else, moved to find their permanent rest. The oldest marked grave belongs to Tapley Wylie, born in 1836 and gone in 1870. The same year the ground was donated.

The same year the story began. Leesburg Cemetery became the primary burial ground for the rural community of Leesburg, and over the years it received pioneer settlers, community leaders, a large number of infants and children, and veterans. Veterans of the Civil War.

World Wars I and II. Korea. Vietnam.

Generation after generation, answering different calls, coming home to the same quiet ground. There is something in a rural cemetery that a city one cannot quite hold. It is smaller, closer, more personal.

Everybody in the ground knew somebody else in the ground. That is Leesburg Cemetery. A piece of donated land that became the keeper of a whole community's memory.

What the marker says

Dwight Hays Townsend (1834-1906) donated land for this cemetery about 1870. The graves of two children which were relocated here from the Leesburg schoolyard are thought to be the earliest burials on the site. The oldest marked grave is that of Tapley Wylie (1836-1870). This cemetery is the primary burial ground for the rural community of Leesburg. Those interred here include pioneer settlers, community leaders, a large number of infants and children, and veterans of the Civil War, World Wars I and II, Korea, and Vietnam. (1992) Leesburg Cemetery Established 1870 Historic Texas Cemetery - 2009