Pony Creek Cemetery

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker says about Pony Creek Cemetery, out in Erath County. Now settle in, because this one goes back a good long ways. We're talkin' about a place where the land itself holds memory, layer after layer, going all the way down to 1845.

That's when pioneers are believed to have started buildin' homes in what would become the Pony Creek Community. Eighteen forty-five. Think about what that means on the Texas frontier.

Raiding Indian parties. Hardship that didn't let up until after the Civil War. These folks weren't just passin' through.

They were puttin' down roots in ground that pushed back hard. And yet they stayed. And when they died, they were laid to rest right there among the people they'd come with.

The cemetery you can visit today goes by more than one name. Some folks call it Box slash Pony Creek Cemetery. But whatever you call it, it has been holdin' the stories of local families for generations.

The oldest marked grave belongs to J.T. Roberson, who died in 1875. And there's another early grave for Martha Walker Bills, born in 1799.

Born in 1799. Let that number sit with you a moment while the road rolls by. The Civil War came and went, and new settlers followed in its wake, arrivin' in the area and changin' the character of the community.

The Pony Creek Community thrived from the late eighteen hundreds all the way until the mid-nineteen hundreds. In 1865, the Pony Creek Baptist Church was established, and it has been associated with this cemetery throughout its entire history. The church building sits west of the burial ground and has been used for funerals and meetings, which is a quiet kind of continuity that speaks for itself.

Then in 1907, John and Mary Britton made it official, deeding the land for the cemetery. The names carved into the stones out there are agricultural names, farm family names, and among them are the names of veterans, numerous veterans, who found their final rest in this community they called home. Today an association maintains the grounds, keepin' those names legible, keepin' the grass cut, keepin' faith with the people beneath it.

Pony Creek never got famous. It just got faithful. And sometimes that's the taller tale of all.

What the marker says

(also known as Box/Pony Creek Cemetery) This cemetery is the final resting place for generations of local families, including descendants of pioneer settlers in the Pony Creek Community who came here as early as 1845. The oldest marked grave is that of J.T. Roberson (d. 1875), and another early grave is for Martha Walker Bills, born in 1799. It is believed that pioneers began building homes here circa 1845, although frontier conditions, including raiding Indian parties, remained difficult until after the Civil War. Following the war, new settlers arrived in the area. The community thrived from the late 1800s until the mid-1900s. In 1907, John and Mary Britton officially deeded land for the cemetery, which is also the final resting place of numerous veterans. Throughout its history, the community's cemetery has associated with the Pony Creek Baptist Church, established in 1865. The church building, located west of the burial ground, is used for funerals and meetings. The Pony Creek Community has always been agricultural, and the names of area farm families are preserved throughout the cemetery, maintained today by an association. Historic Texas Cemetery - 2000