Sadler Cemetery

Duane's take

The way I heard it told, this comes straight from the official marker record, so let me pass it along just as it stands. Out in Grayson County, there's a piece of ground that was already doing its solemn work before anybody got around to writing it down. The land was already in use as a burial ground, known as Bethlehem Cemetery, when it was officially dedicated in county records in 1884.

Now that name, Bethlehem, came from a church that once stood across the road. That congregation eventually disbanded, and the church went with it, but the cemetery stayed. Also in 1884, a couple by the names of S.

M. and Maggie Lester conveyed nearly four acres to three trustees: R. L. Belsher, H.

C. Hall, and B. S.

Hackleman. That's when the Sadler Cemetery Association was formed, and the burial ground took on the name it carries to this day. The deed language was as plain as a Texas sky in January.

The land was to be used by the public as a public cemetery, and for no other purposes, whatsoever. No wiggle room there. The cemetery didn't stop growing.

R. G. and Gertrude Mood conveyed additional land in 1917. Then Almedia Flannery added more in 1955, and again in 1966.

Every one of those conveyances said the same thing: this ground belongs to the people, for one purpose. Now, one name looms a little larger than most when you walk those rows. J.

J. Sadler, born in 1836, passed in 1923, moved to this area in 1870 and donated land for the town that carries his name. He is the only known Civil War veteran buried in Sadler Cemetery, and that distinction sets him apart in a place that holds a great many veterans.

Thirty-seven in total have been identified, including veterans of both World Wars, the Merchant Marines, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Three known Grayson County commissioners are also counted among the approximately one thousand burials. Walk through and you'll see the variety of how people chose to mark their dead: granite, limestone, marble, concrete, and wooden grave markers.

Obelisks rise up here and there. Masonic markers stand quiet watch. Woodmen of the World markers too, each one worth a second look.

The cemetery reflects pioneer families, beloved teachers, preachers, business leaders, civic leaders. And here's the thing about Sadler Cemetery that the marker lands on with some weight: it's still in use. There are clearly discernible pioneer and modern sections side by side, each one helping educate about the names, events, and heritage of the past.

That's what a cemetery can do, if it's tended and remembered. One thousand souls and counting, out there in Grayson County, still telling the story.

What the marker says

This land was already in use as a burial ground known as Bethlehem Cemetery when it was officially dedicated in county records in 1884. Bethlehem Church, the source of the original name, was originally across the road before the congregation disbanded. In 1884, S. M. and Maggie Lester conveyed nearly four acres to trustees R. L. Belsher, H. C. Hall, and B. S. Hackleman. The Sadler Cemetery Association was formed and the burial ground was renamed Sadler Cemetery. The cemetery was recorded in deeds “to be used by the public as a public cemetery, and for no other purposes, whatsoever.” The cemetery expanded through land conveyed by R. G. and Gertrude Mood in 1917 and by Almedia Flannery in 1955 and 1966. J. J. Sadler (1836-1923) moved here in 1870 and donated land for his namesake town; he is the only known Civil War veteran in Sadler Cemetery. A total of thirty-seven veterans have been identified, including veterans of both World Wars, the Merchant Marines, Korean War, and Vietnam War. Three known Grayson County commissioners are also among the approximately one thousand burials. Funerary materials include granite, limestone, marble, concrete and wooden grave markers; obelisks, masonic and Woodmen of the World markers are noteworthy. The Sadler Cemetery provides an invaluable record of pioneer area families, as well as beloved teachers, preachers and business and civic leaders. Still in use, the cemetery reflects the continuum of the area’s history, with clearly discernible pioneer and modern sections which help educate about the names, events and heritage of the past. Historic Texas Cemetery - 2009