| Marker Text |
Previously known as Williamson Branch Graveyard and Temple City Cemetery, Hillcrest Cemetery began as a rural family graveyard before eventually becoming a large, urban burial ground. Before the establishment of Temple, area residents began to use this property for interments in the 1870s. In 1884, John H. And Mary E. Williams, who owned the land, deeded acreage for use as a public cemetery.
In 1893, the Temple Cemetery Company formed, acting as a cemetery association. The company was aided in maintaining the burial ground by the City of Temple and Bell County, which played major roles in building the property's infrastructure. The burial ground expanded between 1884 and 1921, when it was annexed into the city. Over the years, the association developed further sections of the property and made other additions, including Memorial Garden, which opened in 1962.
Approximately 18,000 individuals are interred in Hillcrest Cemetery, representing diverse nationalities, ethnic groups, religions and cultures. Languages on the gravestones include Chinese, Czech, English, French, German, Italian, Korean, Norwegian and Vietnamese. Noted individuals buried in Hillcrest include persons of local, statewide and national significance. Cemetery features include monuments and statuary, Woodmen of the World and other fraternal gravestones, zinc gravestones, false crypts, obelisks, vertical stones, curbing, and interior fencing. Today, Hillcrest Cemetery continues to serve the city of Temple as a final resting place and as a record of the area's rich history.
Historic Texas Cemetery - 2008 |
