Details for Evergreen Cemetery of Victoria

Historical Marker — Atlas Number 5469006545

Data

Marker Number 6545
Atlas Number 5469006545
Marker Title Evergreen Cemetery of Victoria
Index Entry Evergreen Cemetery of Victoria
Address N. Vine St.
City Victoria
County Victoria
UTM Zone 14
UTM Easting 694355
UTM Northing 3188711
Subject Codes cemetery; women, women's history topics
Marker Year 1976
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark No
Marker Location Evergreen Cemetery, main entrance on E side, N. Vine St., W side between W. Sabine and W. Trinity streets. 1976 subject marker and 2003 HTC medallion.
Private Property No
Marker Condition In Situ
Marker Size 27" x 42"
Marker Text The first community cemetery in Victoria, located at present day Memorial Square, was unpopular with local citizens. They preferred home burial despite an 1846 city ordinance prohobiting the practice. In 1849 John McCrabb bought 27 acres of a tract granted to the city by the Republic of Texas. The property already contained the gravesite of Dr. Walter Fosgate, who died in 1848. During the 1850s, part of McCrabb's land became the new public cemetery. Following the Civil War (1861-65), many graves were moved here from the original city cemetery. Other reinterments occurred when old St. Mary's Catholic Church was razed in 1868. Because of city neglect, local women organized the Victoria Ladies' Cemetery Association in 1876 and took over care of the plot. The name "Evergreen Cemetery" was chosen in 1883 because of abundant trees in the area. The Evergreen Cemetery Endowment Association was established in 1912 to manage investment of maintenance funds. Over the years, further land acquistion has enlarged the site to 30 acres. Among the 9,000 graves here are those of Martin de Leon (1765-1833), early empresario and founder of Victoria; and veterans of the Texas Revolution, Mexican War, and Civil War. (1976)

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