DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker at Lilly Island Cemetery has to say — and it's a story that deserves to be heard proper. Out here in Polk County, there's a piece of ground that holds more history than most folks ever slow down long enough to reckon with. Lilly Island Cemetery.
And to understand what this place is, you've got to go back — way back — to the late nineteenth century, when several communities began forming in this part of Texas. Now, some of the people who settled here had made a long journey to get to East Texas. Former slaves who came all the way from Savannah, Georgia, traveling with a plantation owner named Daniel Hamilton.
When Hamilton passed away, his daughter Margaret — along with her husband, John S. Havis — stepped in to manage the plantation. And here's where something worth noting happened.
Two former slaves, Cal Hamilton and Delila Scott, made a request. They asked for land on which to conduct worship services. And Margaret and John S.
Havis donated that property for church purposes. That's how a congregation took root right here. By the late 1880s, members of Lilly Eylan — that's Island — Missionary Baptist Church were gathering on this very ground to worship.
Then in 1903, the congregation relocated to a settlement between Barnes and Camden, and that settlement took the same name as the church. The original church site, the place where it all started, became known as Lilly Island Cemetery. The burial ground served the communities of Barnes, Camden, and Lilly Island.
Most of the settlers were former slaves, and most of them farmed. But many also found work with the W.T. Carter and Brother Lumber Company — a significant operation out here that provided its employees with boarding and houses, schools, medical services, a company store, and a post office.
For a long stretch, that company was the main employer in the area, and it thrived. It thrived all the way until the end of World War II, when many African American workers migrated to urban areas, and the communities here began to decline. The cemetery itself tells the timeline quietly, the way cemeteries do.
The earliest burial recorded here is that of Morris W. Washington — an infant — dating to 1884. Among those who followed are veterans of foreign conflicts, going back to World War I.
Today, the Lilly Island Cemetery Association tends this ground. It continues to serve the area, and it stands — steady and enduring — as a testament to the former slaves and all the other residents of Barnes, Camden, and Lilly Island who built something real out here in the East Texas pines. Some places don't just hold the dead.
They hold the whole story of how people insisted on living with dignity. This is one of those places.
What the marker says
This burial ground served residents of several communities that formed in this area beginning in the late 19th century. Former slaves resided in these settlements; some came to Texas from Savannah, Goergia with plantiation owner Daniel Hamilton. When Hamilton passed away, his daughter Margaret, with husband John S. Havis, began to manage the plantation. They donated property for church purposes after two former slaves, Cal Hamilton and Delila Scott, requested land on which to conduct worship services. By the late 1880s, members of Lilly Eylan (Island) Missionary Baptist Church met here to worship. In 1903, the congregation relocated to a settlement between Barnes and Camden which took the same name as the church. The original church site became known as Lilly Island Cemetery. The burial ground served residents of Barnes, Camden and Lilly Island. Many settlers were formers slaves and most farmed. Many of the freed slaves also worked for W.T. Carter and Brother Lumber Company, which provided boarding and houses, schools, medical services, a company store and a post office for its employees. The company was the area's main employer and thrived until the end of World War II, when many African American workers migrated to urban areas, leading to the decline of this area's communities. The earliest burial here, of Morris W. Washington, an infant, dates to 1884. Other interments include verterans of foreign conflicts dating to World War I. Today, the Lilly Island Cemetery Assocaition cares for the cemetery, which continues to serve the area and remains as a testament to the former slaves and other residents of the Barnes, Camden and Lilly Island Communities. Historic Texas Cemetery-2006.