Riviera Cemetery

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Riviera Cemetery, out there in Kleberg County. Now, every town has a story, and every story has an ending. But the endings I want to tell you about today are the ones that became a beginning, of a sort.

Riviera itself was established by a man named Theodore F. Koch, an immigrant who'd made his way over from the Netherlands and put down roots in South Texas. Koch wasn't just building a town.

He was thinking ahead, the way founders do. In 1907, he dedicated land for a burial ground, a place set aside for the community's dead. Then, a few years on, in 1910, he formally deeded that acreage to a newly formed organization called the Riviera Cemetery Association.

Put it in writing. Made it official. The earliest recorded burials belong to two souls: Maudie Ethel Poteet and Wilson A.

Myers. Both passed away in 1909. Their names are the first names written down in this ground's history, and there's a weight to that worth sitting with for a moment.

After them came others. Community leaders whose decisions shaped the town. Victims of flu outbreaks.

Victims of yellow fever. War veterans who came home, or didn't, and whose memory found a place here regardless. The cemetery holds all of them.

The Riviera Cemetery Association still cares for the grounds today. It has served the residents of Riviera since early in the community's history, and it goes right on serving them, as an important reminder of the pioneers who made this corner of Texas what it is. Theodore Koch planted a town.

And in the way of all things, the town needed somewhere to lay its people down. That somewhere is still there, still tended, still remembering.

What the marker says

This cemetery has served the residents of Riviera since early in the community's history. Riviera was established by Theodore F. Koch, an immigrant from the Netherlands. In 1907, he dedicated land for a burial ground, formally deeding the acreage to the newly formed Riviera Cemetery Association in 1910. The earliest recorded burials are of Maudie Ethel Poteet and Wilson A. Myers, both of whom passed away in 1909. Other notable burials include community leaders, victims of flu and yellow fever outbreaks, and war veterans. The Riviera Cemetery Association cares for the historic burial ground. The site continues to serve Riviera as an important reminder of area pioneers. Historic Texas Cemetery - 2006