Old Centerview Cemetery

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to honor every word. Way out in Sabine County, one of the oldest settlement areas in the whole state of Texas, there's a piece of ground that's been holding stories a long time. The farming community of Centerview dates back to the 1840s, and in its day it had everything a community needed to hold itself together: a stagecoach station, a post office, a general store, a church, and a school.

People put down roots here. And when they were done with this world, they were laid to rest here too. That's the Old Centerview Cemetery, and it carries more than you might expect from a quiet patch of East Texas ground.

There are at least a dozen gravesites in this cemetery that are unmarked or undated, their stories gone quiet before anyone thought to write them down. But the oldest marked grave takes you back to 1899, and it belongs to a baby. Merle Taylor.

Let that land for a second. A community's oldest legible memory is of a child who barely got started. Beyond that, the cemetery holds the burials of community leaders, generations of area families, and veterans.

Men and women who served in the Civil War, World Wars I and II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Different eras, different conflicts, same ground. The cemetery itself has character you can see: wooden markers worn by weather and time, curbed plots, and an elaborate arched entryway that tells you people cared about this place.

In 1968, Centerview Methodist Church conveyed this land to a newly formed body called the Centerview Cemetery Association. That handoff mattered, because the association has kept the commitment alive. To this day, they hold an annual workday, and descendants of early Centerview residents come together to tend the grounds and preserve their community's history.

A dozen nameless graves, one baby from 1899, soldiers from five different conflicts, and families still showing up to keep the memory going. Some communities write their history in monuments. Centerview writes theirs in showing up.

What the marker says

Sabine County is one of the oldest settlement areas in the state. The farming community of Centerview, which dates to the 1840s, supported a stagecoach station, post office, general store, church and school. There are at least a dozen unmarked or undated gravesites in this community cemetery, but the oldest marked grave dates to 1899 and the interment of a baby, Merle Taylor. Other burials include leaders of the community and generations of area families, as well as veterans of conflicts including the Civil War, World Wars I and II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. Cemetery features include wooden markers, curbed plots and an elaborate arched entryway. In 1968, Centerview Methodist Church conveyed this land to the newly formed Centerview Cemetery Association. Today, the association holds an annual workday for descendants of early Centerview residents, who come together to preserve their community's history. Historic Texas Cemetery - 2003