Old Cemetery of Paris

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, as best as old Duane can relay. Now, if you ever find yourself rolling through Paris, Texas — Lamar County — there's a piece of ground there that holds more than most folks realize. They call it the Old Cemetery of Paris, and the story of that place goes back about as far as the city itself.

The land once belonged to a man named George Washington Wright, born in 1809, and the marker names him the founder of the city of Paris. That's the kind of legacy that gets your name attached to things — and sure enough, for a stretch of years this ground was known as Wright's Cemetery, serving as the primary burial ground for Paris between 1845 and 1865. Now here's where the story gets quiet for a moment.

The oldest grave in that cemetery is said to be that of a free black man who worked for Wright. The stone has worn past reading — illegible now — but the date is thought to be 1845. There's something worth sitting with in that.

The stone won't give up its words anymore, but someone thought to remember that it mattered. The oldest legible stone belongs to Thomas Wortham, who was born in 1776 and died in 1846. You can still make out what it says.

By 1866, Paris had grown enough that a new burial ground was started — the Evergreen Cemetery, called the New Cemetery — and many of the graves from the old plot were exhumed and moved there. The old place didn't lose everyone, though. George W.

Wright himself was buried in the Old Cemetery in 1877. Make of that what you will. A cemetery association formed in 1879, and by 1885, the Wright heirs had deeded the land over to its trustees.

Then in 1922, the cemetery was deeded to the city of Paris itself, and a standpipe was located there for the new Lake Crook Waterworks. History has a way of layering itself right on top of itself. Today the cemetery holds approximately 325 graves, though only about a hundred markers are still intact.

Those that remain show the majority of burials happening between 1870 and 1910. Many early community leaders rest there. And then there's this — a granite marker in that cemetery honors members of the 9th Texas Infantry, C.S.A., who died in a measles epidemic in 1862.

Not in battle. In an epidemic. Young men, far from wherever home was, taken not by cannon or rifle but by fever and a sickness that didn't care one thing about courage or cause.

Three hundred and twenty-five graves, give or take. A hundred readable stones. One that can't be read at all, but hasn't been forgotten.

That's the Old Cemetery of Paris — and it holds a good deal more than ground.

What the marker says

The old city cemetery is located on land once owned by George Washington Wright (1809-1877), founder of the city of Paris. The oldest grave here is said to be that of a free black man who worked for Wright. Although the stone is illegible, the date is thought to be 1845. The oldest legible stone marks the grave of Thomas Wortham (1776-1846). Site of the primary burial ground for Paris between 1845-1865, the plot was also referred to as Wright's Cemetery. In 1866 the Evergreen Cemetery was begun, called the New Cemetery, and many graves were exhumed and moved there. George W. Wright was buried in the Old Cemetery in 1877. A cemetery association was formed in 1879, and in 1885 Wright heirs deeded the land to its trustees. In 1922 the cemetery was deeded to the city of Paris and a standpipe was located there for the new Lake Crook Waterworks. The cemetery contains approximately 325 graves. About one hundred markers are intact, and show the majority of burials to have taken place between 1870-1910. Many early community leaders are buried here, and a granite marker honors members of the 9th Texas Infantry, C. S. A., who died in a measles epidemic in 1862. Texas Sesquicentennial 1836-1986