Old City Cemetery

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Old City Cemetery in Fayette County. Now settle in, because this ground has been holding stories since before La Grange was even a city. The site was already being used for burials by 1840.

Think about that. Before there was an incorporation, before there were trustees, before there was a deed with anybody's name on it, folks were already bringing their people here. Then a man named J.

S. Lester deeded the property to trustees, and those trustees conveyed it to La Grange after the city was incorporated on July 3, 1854. The land had a new keeper now.

But land alone doesn't tend to the dead. Somebody has to care. And that is where this story takes a turn worth remembering.

On April 17, 1873, fourteen townswomen of La Grange gathered and did something that had, in all likelihood, never been done before in the state of Texas. They organized the Ladies' Cemetery Association of La Grange. Probably the first such organization in the whole state.

Fourteen women, one purpose. Mrs. L.

W. Moore stepped up as the first president. Now here is the part that ought to stop you cold on a quiet stretch of highway.

That association did not disband. It did not fade away. It has maintained and administered the city cemetery from that day forward.

And starting in 1874, they established an annual decoration day, a day set aside to honor those resting there, including many of the pioneers who fought for Texas freedom. Fourteen women showed up one April morning and built something that outlasted nearly everything around it. That's not a footnote.

That's the whole story.

What the marker says

Used for burials by 1840, this site was deeded by J. S. Lester to trustees who conveyed it to La Grange after incorporation of the city on July 3, 1854. Fourteen townswomen on April 17, 1873, formed what was probably the first such organization in Texas when they organized the Ladies' Cemetery Association of La Grange. Mrs. L. W. Moore was the first president. Since that time, this association has maintained and administered city cemetery. Annual decoration day, started in 1874, honors those resting here including many of the pioneers who fought for Texas freedom.