DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'm gonna give it to you straight. The Joseph Burleson Family Cemetery, Navarro County. Now, the Burleson name carried weight in Texas — real weight — and if you want to understand why a patch of Navarro County ground holds thirty-two identifiable graves and the echoes of something much larger, you've got to start at the beginning.
Joseph Burleson was born in 1800, and he came to Texas about 1834. He farmed for a season down at Bastrop, near his brother — General Edward Burleson, no less — then settled in at San Augustine for many years. So already you're tracking a man who knew where power and family intersected.
Then 1836 rolls around. The Texas War for Independence. And Joseph didn't just watch it happen.
He fought in it. Alongside his father, Captain James Burleson, born in 1775. Three of his brothers.
Other relatives. The Burlesons showed up as a unit. Now, his brother Edward — same General Edward — went on to serve as Vice President of the Republic of Texas, from 1841 to 1844.
The marker puts it plainly: the successive generations of this family continued to furnish leaders to the state and the nation. That's not boasting. That's just the record.
Fast forward to 1854. Joseph Burleson buys himself a final homestead. Two thousand, seven hundred and seventy-five acres, surrounding the very site where this marker stands.
A man who'd been farming, fighting, and moving around Texas for two decades finally plants himself — deep — in Navarro County. And near his dwelling, a cemetery began to take shape. The earliest burial the marker can name with certainty happened in 1867.
That was John, Joseph's son, a veteran of the Civil War, laid to rest in this ground. Then in 1869, Mary — called Polly — Warren Burleson was buried here. Wife of Joseph.
Mother of his fourteen children. And Joseph himself was interred eight years after her. The ground kept receiving them — members of related families, the Bonhams, the Keels, the Reeds, and the Slades — until thirty-two graves could still be identified.
And the marker is honest about this: there are known to be some lost graves. That line ought to sit with you a moment. Known to be lost.
In 1892, trustees recorded a deed to the cemetery, giving the place some formal standing. The last known burial prior to 1977 was George Burleson Slade, in 1923. Then in 1977, a family association was organized to care for the cemetery — to make sure those thirty-two graves, and the ones that might still be lost, aren't forgotten.
A family that helped build a republic, that farmed two thousand seven hundred and seventy-five acres of Navarro County, that sent its sons to war and its leaders to the capital — they're still out here, keeping watch over their own.
What the marker says
Joseph Burleson (1800-1877) came to Texas about 1834. He farmed for a season at Bastrop near his brother, General Edward Burleson, then lived at San Augustine for many years. In 1836 he fought in the Texas War for Independence along with his father, Captain James Burleson (b. 1775), three of his brothers, and other relatives. His brother Edward served in 1841-1844 as Vice President of the Republic of Texas, and the successive generations of the family have continued to furnish leaders to the state and the nation. In 1854 Joseph Burleson bought a final homestead of 2,775 acres surrounding this site. Located near his dwelling, this cemetery was in use as early as 1867 at the burial of his son John, a veteran of the Civil War. Mary (Polly) Warren, wife of Joseph Burleson and mother of his 14 children, was buried here in 1869. Joseph was interred eight years later. Members of related families such as the Bonhams, Keels, Reeds and Slades are represented among the 32 identifiable graves. There are known to be some lost graves. In 1892 trustees recorded a deed to the cemetery. George Burleson Slade in 1923 was last known burial prior to 1977. A family association was organized in 1977 to care for the cemetery. (1978)