Starkey Cemetery

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about Starkey Cemetery in Kerr County. Now settle in, because this one reaches back a long way. Out here in the Texas Hill Country, there's a quiet piece of ground that holds more history than its size might suggest.

It began, as so many things do, with a family. James Monroe Starkey and his wife, Martha Adeline, born a Rees, set aside this land as a family plot. The first soul laid to rest here was their son, Jones Starkey, who died in 1868.

That first burial has a weight to it. A parent's grief, pressed into the earth, marking the beginning of a place that would outlast them all. J.M.

Starkey himself had come to this country in 1854, and he didn't come just to settle. He became Kerr County's first assessor and collector. Then, later, chief justice.

The marker says he was vital in Kerr County's very organization, and that's not a word they put on markers lightly. Vital. The man helped build a county from the ground up.

Beyond the Starkeys, a handful of other families found their final rest here. The Gibbens. The Lowrance family.

And the Rees family, Martha Adeline's own people. Few in number, every one of them. But the marker is careful to say their contributions were invaluable, and then it lists what these folks actually did with their time on earth.

Civic leaders. Mill builders and operators. Ranchers.

Government officials. Texas Rangers. Civil War veterans.

That is a remarkable collection of lives packed into one small cemetery. No grand gates. No famous name above the entrance.

Just the ground, and the people in it, and the record they left behind. Starkey Cemetery, the marker says, remains a record of noted pioneers who made vital contributions to Kerr County. And that's the thing about a place like this.

The Hill Country kept on growing, kept on changing, and most folks passing by today would never guess what's resting just off the road. But now you know.

What the marker says

This burial ground began as a family plot for the James Monroe and Martha Adeline (Rees) Starkey family. The first burial was for their son, Jones Starkey (d. 1868). J.M. Starkey, who came here in 1854, was Kerr County’s first assessor and collector, and later, chief justice; he was vital in Kerr County’s organization. The Gibbens, Lowrance and Rees families are the only others represented. Although few in number, the interred individuals’ contributions were invaluable; they served as civic leaders, mill builders and operators, ranchers, government officials, Texas Rangers, and Civil War veterans. Today, Starkey Cemetery remains a record of noted pioneers who made vital contributions to Kerr County. Historic Texas Cemetery - 2008