DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Mount Calm Cemetery, out in Limestone County. Pull over if you can — this one's worth a moment. Settlers started finding their way into this part of Limestone County back in the 1850s.
And the way these things go, once a few families put down roots, a community has a way of growin' up around them. Before long, Mount Calm had itself a Masonic Lodge, stores, a post office, a school, churches — the whole constellation of things that tells you a place means to stick around. A pioneer settler by the name of James Samuel Kimmel donated the land for a cemetery, and the first marked grave there is dated 1870.
So the community had its anchor, its gathering place for the living and its quiet ground for those who'd passed. Then came 1881. The Texas and St.
Louis Railway was laying track through the region, and here's where the story takes its turn — the railroad bypassed the village. Now, in that era, being bypassed by a rail line wasn't just an inconvenience. It was closer to a verdict.
The residents read that verdict clearly, and they moved north to the railroad line and started fresh — New Mount Calm, over in Hill County. The stores went. The lodge, the school, the post office — all of it followed the people.
All that remained of the earlier settlement was the cemetery. And here's the thing: it didn't fade away. It was enlarged over the years and is still in use today.
James Samuel Kimmel donated that land to the community, and long after the community moved on, the land is still keepin' that promise.
What the marker says
Settlers began arriving in this part of Limestone County in the 1850s. Soon Mount Calm community developed with a Masonic Lodge, stores, post office, school, and churches. James Samuel Kimmel, a pioneer settler, donated land for this cemetery, and the first marked grave is dated 1870. In 1881, when the Texas & St. Louis Railway bypassed the village, residents moved north to the railroad line and began New Mount Calm in Hill County. The cemetery, which has been enlarged and is still in use, is all that remains of the earlier settlement. 1984